Bilateral ties: Can India’s and Pakistan’s lawyers help

A discussion between lawyers of both countries can serve as basis for proposing legal solutions in resolving disputes.

Recently, I attended a conference in Lahore hosted by the Supreme Court Bar Association of Pakistan. The theme of the conference was “Justice for All and Impunity for none” and it was significant in view of the long list of international delegates including prominent lawyers from India and Sri Lanka. The conference was well-organised and successful in terms of the exchange of views between lawyers in the South Asian region on common problems confronting the justice system. On the issue of impunity, a few Indian lawyers openly expressed their resentment over how some powerful Indian politicians were committing crimes with no check whatsoever.

Generally, such conferences provide an effective forum for discussions about relevant legal issues, with the goal of devising strategies and proposing solutions to deal with problems related to the justice systems of both countries. For Pakistani lawyers in particular, such conferences provide a rare opportunity for substantive discussions on important legal issues. This rare opportunity is even more valuable if lawyers from India are in attendance.

During this conference, some lawyers appeared to be following certain protocols of being ambassadors of peace and goodwill. For instance, in his speech, a former attorney general of India mentioned how he had fallen in love with Pakistan a while ago during one of his visits. Another Indian lawyer was all praise for the Pakistani lawyers’ movement. While it may sound good and may even be well-meaning and sincere, it made me wonder why these lawyers do not share their views on contentious legal issues which have been the subject of debate and dispute between the two countries for many years. Is it because these lawyers think it would be controversial and distasteful, or is it because they consider it pointless as it would not be taken seriously by the governments on either side of the border? It is probably a bit of both.

It is about time these lawyers dispensed with these formalities and spoke their legal minds. Consider the potential benefits of an honest and strictly professional discussion by these lawyers on the issues holding the whole South Asian region hostage. In light of the sensitivity of these issues and the strong emotions involved, it would probably not be possible to have a purely professional discussion at least at the start of such a process. However, the politics and the policy parts of the issue could certainly be minimised, or completely eliminated, from these discussions.

Lawyers, because of their background and training, would be in a much better position to put forth definitive legal positions of their respective country, something that usually gets muddled at the state level in the political posturing and convoluted state policies on sensitive issues of strategic importance. The downside to such an initiative is the uncompromising approach of lawyers in trying to win every case. Negotiating on behalf of their clients to reach an amicable settlement is not something a lot of lawyers seem to be trained in, especially in Pakistan. However, despite this approach, a discussion between lawyers of both countries can serve as a basis for proposing legal solutions for resolution of these disputes.

Conferences and seminars are not just opportunities to exchange messages of goodwill and discussing the noble ideas of rule of law and justice for all. In light of the strained relations between Pakistan and India, these opportunities should also be used by lawyers to make some headway in relation to the legal issues that bilateral and national importance, and regional and global security implications.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 24^th,  2011.