{"id":24205,"date":"2023-11-13T16:16:18","date_gmt":"2023-11-13T16:16:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/senate-passes-resolution-backing-military-trials-of-may-9-rioters\/"},"modified":"2023-11-13T16:16:18","modified_gmt":"2023-11-13T16:16:18","slug":"senate-passes-resolution-backing-military-trials-of-may-9-rioters","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/senate-passes-resolution-backing-military-trials-of-may-9-rioters\/","title":{"rendered":"Senate passes resolution backing military trials of May 9 rioters"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div dir=\"auto\">\n<p>The upper house of Parliament on Monday passed a resolution backing the military trials of civilians arrested in the wake of violent protests in the country on May 9.<\/p>\n<p>The resolution, a copy of which is available with <em>Dawn.com<\/em>, was tabled by Senator Dilawar Khan at the tail-end of today\u2019s session. PPP Senator Raza Rabbani and Jamaat-i-Islami Senator Mushtaq Ahmed opposed the resolution.<\/p>\n<p>Led by Justice Ijazul Ahsan, a five-member SC bench comprising Justice Munib Akhtar, Justice Yahya Afridi, Syed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi, and Justice Ayesha A Malik on October 24 had <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/1783244\">declared<\/a> unconstitutional by a majority of 4-1 the military trials of civilians for their alleged role in attacks on army installations on May 9.<\/p>\n<p>The bench unanimously emphasised that the cases of the accused involved in the May 9 riots would proceed before criminal courts.<\/p>\n<p>The court also declared Section 2(1)(d) of the Army Act, which elaborates on persons subject to the Act, to be in violation of the Constitution and \u201cof no legal effect\u201d. Further, the court declared Section 59(4) (civil offences) of the Act to be unconstitutional. Justice Afridi disagreed with striking down the sections.<\/p>\n<p>At the time, Attorney General for Pakistan (AGP) Mansoor Usman Awan had told <em>Dawn<\/em> that the government would file an appeal against the decision. However, the appeal has not yet been filed.<\/p>\n<p>The resolution tabled in the Senate today said that \u201cprima facie an attempt has been made to rewrite the law by impinging upon the legislative authority of Parliament\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>It reiterated that the trial of those accused of violence against the armed forces under the Army Act was an \u201cappropriate and proportional response in line with Pakistan\u2019s existing constitutional framework and statutory regime\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWithin the country\u2019s constitutional framework, the trial of individuals accused of anti-state vandalism and violence under the Army Act serves as a deterrent against such acts,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n<p>The resolution also expressed solidarity with the families of martyrs, which it said had \u201cexpressed feelings of insecurity and treachery\u201d due to the court\u2019s decision.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"media  sm:w-1\/2  w-full  media--right  media--embed  media--uneven\">\n<p>    <iframe class=\"nk-iframe\" onload=\"setInterval(()=&gt;{try{this.style.height=this.contentWindow.document.body.scrollHeight+'px';}catch{}}, 100)\" width=\"100%\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" style=\"height:400px;position:relative\" src=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/card\/1787562\" sandbox=\"allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-popups allow-modals allow-forms\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p>\u201cTheir concern that absence of military court trial is likely to encourage or embolden those responsible for acts of terrorism due to [a] lack of stringent justice in regular courts is fully endorsed,\u201d the resolution said.<\/p>\n<p>It noted that the SC verdict \u201cannuls the sacrifices made by martyrs\u201d in combatting terrorism.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMilitary courts have played a significant role in addressing terrorism by ensuring that those responsible for terrorist acts are brought to justice. However, this judgment, while abandoning the spirit of martyrdom, grants lenient option to terrorists, anti-state actors, foreign agents, and spies to be tried in normal courts,\u201d the resolution said.<\/p>\n<p>The resolution said the SC had not taken into consideration \u201cexisting procedures which make it abundantly clear that the sentences given by military courts are not arbitrary and are conducted following due process and formalities\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>It added that existence of an appeal process against the verdicts issued by military courts had also been overlooked. \u201cThe provisions of the Army Act and underlying procedures ensure that the right to a fair trial under Article 10-A of the Constitution is not violated,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n<p>The resolution reaffirmed that May 9 would be remembered as a \u201cdark day in the history of the country\u201d. It also condemned the \u201canti-state acts\u201d committed against the armed forces, \u201cwhich the enemies of Pakistan cannot even dare to think of committing\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe culprits of May 9, who blatantly attacked defence installations and disgracefully dismantled memorials of martyrs deserve no empathy or leniency, rather they should be tried in military courts and stringent punishments [should] be given to make them an example for internal and external enemies [of] Pakistan by creating deterrence and upholding the supremacy of state,\u201d the resolution said.<\/p>\n<p>It said that Section 2(1)(d) was added to the Army Act in 1967, and civilians had been tried in military courts in the past under the provision while sentences were also carried out.<\/p>\n<p>It added that previous SC verdict had upheld trials under the Army Act by a majority. On the other hand, the bench which announced the recent verdict was \u201cnot in unanimity as opposed to previous benches which upheld trials of civilians under the Army Act, hence the decision is legally flawed and should not be implemented unless it is considered by a larger bench,\u201d the resolution said.<\/p>\n<p>It said that the \u201cinvalidation of the jurisdiction of army courts is likely to facilitate vandals and abettors of terrorism and anti-state activities\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Senate of Pakistan calls upon the apex court to reconsider its decision, urging alignment with the national security paradigm and [the] sacrifices of the martyrs in order to address the concerns raised regarding the ramifications of the judgement on the security and stability of the nation,\u201d the resolution said.<\/p>\n<p>On May 9, PTI chief Imran Khan was <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/1751782\">arrested<\/a> by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) with the help of the paramilitary Rangers at the Islamabad High Court in the Al Qadir Trust case. The development had sparked countrywide protests amid incidents of vandalism and violence.<\/p>\n<p>During the protest, military installations \u2014 including the Lahore corps commander\u2019s residence \u2014 and state properties were damaged across Pakistan.<\/p>\n<p>Following the episode, the military had <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/1761848\">termed<\/a> the day a \u201cdark chapter\u201d in the country\u2019s history and resolved to bring to justice all those involved in the vandalism. It had sacked three army officers, including a lieutenant general, as a part of its \u201cself-accountability process\u201d into the events of May 9.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The upper house of Parliament on Monday passed a resolution backing the military trials of civilians arrested in the wake of violent protests in the country on May 9. The resolution, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com, was tabled by Senator Dilawar Khan at the tail-end of today\u2019s session. PPP Senator Raza Rabbani [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":24206,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/i.dawn.com\/large\/2023\/11\/13205636902c868.jpg?r=210058","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[192],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-24205","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-islamabad-news"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24205","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24205"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24205\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/24206"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24205"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24205"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24205"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}