The military court system has the support of the Cabinet, and trials can take place all year round in either the same city or in several others.
Protesters who ransacked and vandalized military installations on May 9 will be tried under the Army Act and the Official Secrets Act, as decided in the National Security Committee (NSC), which the federal cabinet authorized on Friday in ISLAMABAD.
Just days after the NSC and the Corps Commanders’ Conference committed to bring those responsible for the violent protests to account, the federal cabinet meeting, convened by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif at the Prime Minister House, approved trial civilians in the military courts.
Protests erupted across Pakistan on May 9 after paramilitary Rangers detained Imran Khan, leader of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), outside the Islamabad High Court (IHC).
Protesters damaged government buildings and private property, including the General Headquarters in Rawalpindi and the home of the Lahore Corps Commander. After the riots, there was a severe crackdown on PTI leaders and employees, and this crackdown is ongoing to this day.
A key cabinet minister, speaking anonymously to The Express Tribune, said that the accused will be tried in the “special standing courts” that are already operating under the military statute and that no new military tribunals would be established.
The establishment or resuscitation of the special standing courts, however, requires an official notification from either the defense ministry or the chief of army staff (COAS), according to Colonel (ret.) Inamur Rahiem, a well-known lawyer and expert on military-related cases.
“Federal government has already empowered the army chief to constitute or even issue a warrant to any formation commander to constitute special standing courts,” Rahiem said, adding that the military typically sets up tribunals in the units involved for any crime committed in that unit.
Once formed, he added, special standing courts can operate year-round in any number of locations. In the past, he had mentioned that the law and order situation in the unsettling city of Karachi necessitated the establishment of special standing courts in the Malir neighborhood in 2005 and 2006.
He went on to say that the military courts ceased operations after the Supreme Court (SC) declared in the Shiekh Liaquat case that there was no longer a need for them because a functioning judicial system already existed in the country. The high courts, he recalled, had ultimately upheld 98% of the military court convictions that had been contested.
According to the statement issued by the federal government, “the decisions taken in the National Security Committee meeting held on May 16 were approved by the federal cabinet.” The NSC has previously approved trials in military courts and emphasized the importance of political engagement over confrontation in order to settle disagreements.
General Asim Munir, Chief of Army Staff, had already resolved in a meeting with Corps Commanders that those responsible for such acts would be tried under the Army and Official Secret Acts. The federal cabinet approved the NSC’s recommendations on Friday.
The Defense Minister was repeatedly sought for his thoughts on the formation of the special standing courts, but no contact could be made.
Also on Thursday, PM Shehbaz visited the Pakistani-Iranian border and informed the cabinet on his findings. The premier said that the long-delayed project to import 100 MW of cheap power from Iran was accomplished in a short period of time due to the personal interest of the Iranian President and under his personal supervision.
The prime minister has assured the cabinet that the project will bring growth and prosperity to the underdeveloped districts of Balochistan, specifically South Balochistan and the city of Gwadar.
The premier also mentioned the opening of the “Mand-Pishin Border Market,” which will give people on both sides of the Pak-Iran border access to new commercial and job prospects. He added that the Iranian president has shown keen interest in increasing bilateral trade between his country and Pakistan.
A group led by the foreign minister will soon visit Iran to discuss potential areas of collaboration in agriculture, science and technology, and solar energy, the prime minister said.
The prime minister informed his cabinet that the two nations have agreed to strengthen security along their 900-mile border and have prioritized working together to stop terrorists from crossing into either country. The PM claimed that he had extended an invitation to the Iranian president, which had been accepted.
A big number of Pakistani pilgrims, PM Shehbaz told the cabinet, will profit from the “Road to Makkah” arrangement recently agreed with Saudi Arabia. According to the PM, 26,143 Pakistani pilgrims will be able to skip the lines at Saudi airports and complete their immigration procedures in full at the Islamabad airport.
The arrangement, the PM said, began to be put into action on May 18, with the expectation that by next year, with the help of the Saudi government, it will be available to pilgrims leaving from Lahore and Karachi.
Meanwhile, the cabinet gave the go-ahead for Rawalpindi to get its own Insurance Tribunal. The present Accountability Court No.4 will be transformed into an Insurance Tribunal, thus there will be no additional costs associated with the new tribunal, according to the official announcement. The decisions made at the May 11 meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Legislative Cases were also approved by the cabinet.
