Location unknown: Federal taskforce given four weeks to cough up report on missing persons

PHC had earlier ordered K-P, federal govts to draw legislation on internment centres .

PESHAWAR:

The Peshawar High Court (PHC) has set a four-week deadline for the federal taskforce for missing persons to produce a report on the whereabouts of all missing and those released.

The order was given by a division bench comprising Chief Justice Dost Muhammad Khan and Justice Asadullah Khan Chamkani on Thursday while hearing 284 petitions on missing persons. The whereabouts of some have been identified, while the location of most is still unknown.



Additional Attorney General (AAG) Syed Atiq Shah informed the bench the federal government constituted the taskforce through a notification on July 24. Chaired by the additional secretary for the Ministry of Interior, members include chief secretaries, home secretaries, IGPs, additional IGPs of four provinces, representatives of the attorney general of Pakistan and Islamabad commissioner.

The Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) is so powerful that no one is ready to make a specific law to make it accountable to the civilian government, remarked Chief Justice Khan. Both the parliament and federal government are watching it as silent spectators, he added.

“This agency is picking up people on a daily basis but the government is watching without taking any action. The agency must be brought within the jurisdiction of the law; US spy agency CIA follows the orders of Congress whenever needed.”



Subcommittees of this taskforce have held many meetings regarding the recovery of missing persons and this report will be presented before the court, stated AAG Shah. He assured the PHC that if enough time is given, the taskforce can fulfil its duties properly.

However, Chief Justice Khan argued the court has asked the federal government several times to shut down all illegal internment centres where people are kept illegally for years, but these are still operating – particularly in the tribal areas.

“When this petition and others were taken up, the court was informed a taskforce has been constituted for the matter but needs time to do the work. Now a one month period is being given to it to trace missing persons and present the report before the court.”

The case was adjourned till November 27 after the PHC was assured a comprehensive report would be presented.

On September 17, the PHC directed the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) and federal governments and the Pakistan Army to make necessary legislation before withdrawing troops from Malakand Division. This would prevent legal and constitutional crises regarding the detainees in internment centres there, it said.

The court also ordered the Ministry of Defence to constitute a legal investigation board to pinpoint the location of missing persons in centres in K-P and the Federally Administered Tribal Areas. The report is to be submitted with affidavits.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 25^th, 2013.