Paris/Islamabad, July 9 (IANS) A leading international human rights organisation has highlighted widespread and systemic corruption at all levels of the Pakistani justice system, warning that it carries grave consequences for human rights.
France-based International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and one of its member organisations, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP), released a 32-page report, titled ‘Under the Bench: Mapping corruption risks in Pakistan’s justice system’. The report detailed the multi-faceted ways in which corruption, “endemic” throughout Pakistan’s judicial system, has impacted the independence and effectiveness of the judiciary, while weakening its ability to uphold fair trial rights and protect other fundamental freedoms.
As per the findings, there are indications that judicial corruption in Pakistan has reached a systemic scale and may amount to grand corruption.
“This report shows the extent to which corruption has become entrenched in all aspects of the judiciary and the insidious impacts it has on the enjoyment of human rights. Far from being a victimless crime, corruption in the judiciary has demonstrably curtailed the right to fair trial, particularly for the most vulnerable, such as minorities,” said FIDH Secretary General Shahindha Ismail.
The report noted how the recent 26th and 27th Constitutional Amendments in Pakistan have heavily diluted the limited independence previously enjoyed by the judiciary by altering judicial appointments and expanding the grounds for judicial removal.
“These developments mark a regressive shift in Pakistan’s legal and constitutional order by completely stripping the limited independence previously enjoyed by the judiciary. Judicial appointments, bench formation and high-level case management are now subject to political influence in ways that contradict international standards for judicial independence,” the report stated.
“Moreover, these structural distortions at the top impact the lower judiciary, where judges are influenced by higher courts regarding their own conduct and decision-making, and where the potential to be influenced by external pressures is greater,” it added.
The report documented the failure of existing anti-corruption mechanisms to ensure accountability and deter future acts of corruption, while highlighting human rights consequences of corruption in the judiciary.
These included “violations of the rights to due process and equality before the law, which are particularly acute for low-income communities and minorities; the link between corruption and the incidence of torture and the application of capital punishment; and the impact of corruption on gender equality within the legal profession and judiciary.”
“Eradicating the risks of corruption in the judiciary at all levels will require much more than just increasing judges’ emoluments and perks or installing CCTV cameras in the courtroom – it needs to start with a comprehensive approach to restoring judicial independence and addressing the underlying factors that contribute to inappropriate practices and compromised judicial decisions,” said HRCP Secretary-General Harris Khalique.
The organisations called on the Pakistani authorities to protect the independence of the judiciary and ensure accountability of the judiciary, including by repealing the 26th and 27th Constitutional Amendments. It also urged the authorities to ensure accountability in cases of corruption within the judiciary, including by prioritising the investigation and prosecution of allegations of corruption by judicial actors.
–IANS
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