Speakers urge lawfare to advance national interest

Seminar on ‘Lawfare as a Tool of Strategic Coercion: A Case Study of Mumbai Attacks’ held in Islamabad

Chairman Joint Chief of Staff Committee (CJCSC) General Zubair Mahmood Hayat has said that international legal framework, which continues to unite the international community, also has the potential to be utilised for ulterior motives.

Addressing the seminar 'Lawfare as a Tool of Strategic Coercion: A Case Study of Mumbai Attacks' in Islamabad on Wednesday, General Hayat said that lawfare, a form of war through the use of legal system against an enemy, is a component of state's soft power.

He urged legislative issues to be considered on both national and international levels.

According to a statement issued by the Research Society on International Law (RSIL), a private sector research and policy institution which organised the seminar, he said legal instruments in relation to disputes such as Kashmir, Siachen, Sir Creek were subject to manipulation and misinterpretation by India.

"The right to self-determination cannot and must never be coalesced with terrorism," the CJCSC was quoted as saying.

In his address, expert on international law Ahmer Bilal Soofi discussed the 2008 Mumbai attacks and the legal avenues pursued by India in its aftermath.

He highlighted how lawfare is weaponised by states and Pakistan must be equipped to avert such attacks.



Soofi noted how the Indian government employed advanced lawfare tactics to de-legitimise the genuine freedom struggle of the Kashmiri people, and deny their right to self-determination.

Suggesting a future course of action, he recommended enhancing the Mutual Legal Assistance framework between the two countries, improving the capacity of stakeholders concerned, and highlighting the sacrifices and progress Pakistan has made in the field of counter-terrorism.

The talk was followed by a panel discussion wherein former ambassador Afrasiab Mehdi said that immediately after the Mumbai attacks, India commenced anti-Pakistan propaganda at international forums.

Former secretary interior Kamal Shah noted that there was a critical need to highlight Indian human rights abuse in the region.

Pakistan, he added, must enhance its capabilities to effectively highlight Indian atrocities and bring it to account.

In relation to the Mumbai trials, he said Ajmal Kasab was issued a domicile from the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.

Indian stance lacked international credibility and should be exposed, he added.

Former Punjab IGP Shaukat Javed and former DG Arms Control and Disarmament Affairs Khalid Banuri also spoke on the occasion.