Everyday crime, corruption and cold-blooded murders occur but nothing is done to reform our criminal justice system
ISLAMABAD: Every day, heart-rending stories of crime, corruption, cold-blooded murders of innocent women, girls and transgenders, targeted killings and violence play out in news headlines across the country. Even then, nothing is done to reform our criminal justice systems.
Whenever I visit the library of the Ministry of Law, Justice and Human Rights, I read several reports of erudite researchers, and legal and judicial bodies, both national and international, emphasising that a major transformation in our legal and judicial sectors is needed. Had those well-conceived and well-researched series of reforms been gradually implemented, they would have kindled hope among justice-seekers and dramatically improved our public security and the administration of justice in the country. Together, these reforms touch virtually all aspects of the judicial sector, including policing, prosecution, and behaviour of attorneys, courts and court personnel. The recommended reforms include significant changes in our criminal procedure, new measures to promote greater access to justice for both defendants and victims, new functions for law enforcement and public security agencies in the administration of justice, and tougher measures for combating organised crime. Proponents of the reforms hope that they will help Pakistan achieve a more democratic rule of law by introducing greater transparency, accountability and due process to Pakistan’s legal and judicial sector.
Although there has been substantial attention paid to Pakistan’s legal and judicial sector reforms among legal eagles, legal experts and human rights activists, there has been remarkably little effort on the part of federal and provincial governments to reform the administration of the justice system in the country. This is necessary to save society and the state. Training academies at the federal and provincial levels must inspire the flame among trainees towards commitment to quality justice, spirit of cooperation among key players of the justice system, dedication to continuing legal and judicial education, sensitivity to the environment, consciousness of socioeconomic issues, adoption of best practices and ethics, among others, to reform and revolutionise dispensation of justice in our country.
Hashim Abro
Published in The Express Tribune, June 2nd, 2016.
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