Revival of Pakistan military courts get Pakistan People’s Party support

The PPP had earlier said it would only agree to a one-year extension. The party also announced nine recommendations regarding military courts and how they should be handled moving forward. In the second session of parliamentary discussions on the issue on Thursday, the PPP sought to push these recommendations, but an agreement could be reached on only two of the nine points raised before the session concluded. 

The points agreed to include the recommendation that the provisions of the Qanoon-i-Shahadat, 1984, (Law of Evidence) apply to military courts and that the accused be granted the right to appeal. Military courts had been disbanded this year on January 7 after the expiry of a sunset clause included in the legal provisions under which the tribunals were established. 

Though a revival of the controversial system seems closer now than before, the government and the opposition have struggled to reach a consensus on the issue despite frequent discussions. The primary concern of critics is the mystery surrounding military court trials: No one knows who the convicts are, what charges have been brought against them, or what the accused’s defence is against the allegations levelled.

Meanwhile, a case was registered against unidentified persons involved in spreading blasphemous material on social media, amid a top Pakistan court’s call for a ban on such sites due to the spread of “blasphemous” images. The case was registered at Raman Police Station after Islamabad High Court (IHC) ordered the government to implicate those running “blasphemous Facebook pages”. 

“Sentiments of Muslims have been hurt by the content being shared on these pages,” according to the FIR. The relevant sections of blasphemy laws have been invoked against the perpetrators of the crime, an official said.  The action came two days after Islamabad High Court Judge Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui called for a ban on social media sites in Pakistan due to the spread of “blasphemous” images online. Justice Siddiqui on March 7 had ordered Interior Minister Nisar Ali Khan to take immediate action to eliminate access to blasphemous content on social media. The court mentioned pages like Bhensa, Mochi and Roshni and ordered that action should be taken even if it means blocking all access to social media.