Vital separation

THE inordinate delays in the creation of an Independent Prosecution Service (IPS) under the law departments of provincial governments seem inexplicable. As things stand, while the Balochistan assembly has already passed the required law for the establishment of an IPS in that province, there is much foot dragging going on in the other three provinces. Even in Balochistan, the law needs to be further modified to make the IPS an independent entity or to place it under the control of the provincial law department. The federal government, for its part, has asked the provincial chief secretaries to work quickly to establish an IPS each in the remaining three provinces and place them under the law department or else the matter would be put before the federal cabinet or the National Judicial Policy Making Committee for implementation. The provincial governments have taken the plea that their law departments have locked horns with the respective home departments for control of the IPS, which is causing the delay.

The provincial departments are at present entrusted with both prosecution and investigation powers. They are not happy at the idea of giving up prosecution powers to the law departments. This is despite the unsatisfactory experience of both investigation and prosecution being handled by one and the same agency. The provincial police entrusted with the two functions under the home department cover up their inefficiency in investigation by looking for bogus evidence that can make prosecution seem plausible. Needless suffering is caused as confessions are extracted to corroborate the findings of the police. Cases are sent up for trial on the basis of insufficient or weak evidence, involve frequent postponements in hearings at the instance of officials lacking qualification for the task, and are thrown out after dragging on for years. In many instances, biased or lackadaisical investigation and prosecution can lead to the guilty escaping punishment and the innocent being punished.

Under the Access to Justice Programme (AJP) funded by the Asian Development Bank there is a stipulation for establishing an independent prosecution service that would help enhance the accountability of the police. The present system of accumulation of powers with the home department runs contrary to the broader principles of separation of the judiciary from the executive. It is a well-known fact that the poor lack access to courts, bureaucracy and even the police, and they are the ones who suffer the most as victims of crime or the excesses of the police. The Access to Justice Programme was launched in 2002 to promote judicial, police and administrative reforms in the country. This is part of the government’s commitment to bring justice to the doorstep of the people by improving the performance of the courts, ombudsman’s offices and the police and helping establish new institutions such as the prosecution services, public safety commissions and police complaint centres. As we approach the end of 2003, all the preparatory work for the programme has been completed. It is very important to build upon the work carried out in the earlier phases in order to promote and achieve the objectives of the AJP. For it is in this phase that the benefits of reforms planned over the past four years will finally be felt. Keeping this in mind, it is important that the IPS is in place within the year, otherwise the purpose of the entire programme will be defeated.

Riyadh atrocity

THERE is a sense of shock everywhere at the devastating terrorist attack that killed 17 people and injured 122 in Riyadh on Sunday morning. A heightened terrorist threat had been predicted for Saudi Arabia by western intelligence sources, but few had thought that a suicide bombing causing such havoc would come in the holy month of Ramazan. All those killed, and most of those injured, were Arab civilians, including children, making one wonder what purpose the bombing was meant to serve. As with the attack in May on compounds housing western nationals, the latest attack has also been blamed on Al Qaeda, prompting Saudi Interior Minister Prince Nayef to vow that the kingdom would do everything to crush its network. The blast goes to show that Al Qaeda is not only intact but is widening the scope of its activities, and targeting countries that it perceives as part of the war against terror. In Iraq, many of the recent incidents of violence appear to be directed against those collaborating with the occupiers. The aim is to create instability and spread panic.

Saudi Arabia now has a relatively large middle class, which is expanding. Unemployment is growing, and there is resentment against lack of economic and business opportunities. The new generation of Saudis would like to see the political system liberalized with a greater share for the people in running the country: plans for municipal elections announced recently should help. The pro-American orientation of Riyadh’s foreign policy does not also go down well with many Saudis. The problem is compounded by America’s carte blanche to Israel for its genocidal policies against the Palestinian people. Thus, like most Arabs and Muslims, many Saudis, too, consider America an accomplice in Israeli crimes against Palestinians. It is issues like these that Al Qaeda exploits and uses to get recruits. But killing civilians, including women and children, totally unconnected with the war on terror or with the policies of governments is a most cowardly thing to do. The Arab League has rallied to Saudi Arabia’s support, and Pakistan has rightly condemned the Riyadh atrocity in the strongest possible terms.

ID card deadline

ACCORDING to a report appearing in the national press on Monday, the manually issued national identity cards will cease to be a valid identity document after December 31, 2003. Thereafter, only the computerized identity cards (CNICs) issued by the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) will be regarded as legal proof of identity; but it seems that a majority of Pakistanis will not be able to get the CNICs by then. This is partly because Nadra has not adequately publicized the new cut-off date. There has been no campaign in recent weeks in the electronic and print media aimed at informing the people of the approaching deadline. Nadra has opened ‘swift centres’ across the country to expedite CNIC processing, but there still exists much confusion among the general public as to how to go about acquiring the new cards. The ambiguity surrounding the situation, coupled with the approaching deadline, is likely to result in hardship for the public that is entirely avoidable if proper measures are taken even now.

Another important service provided by Nadra, but one that too needs to be better explained, is the registration of newborns. The ‘swift centres’ do not seem to be clear about this aspect and often turn parents away, asking them to contact the regional Nadra office whose location in a given district, again, is not widely known. One fails to understand why the ‘swift centres’ cannot provide a one-window service for an entire family. Similarly, Pakistani permanent residents abroad who are required to acquire overseas Pakistani ID cards under the new registration scheme, and our students who are temporary residents abroad and who need the regular CNICs, are said to be having a tough time getting the necessary information from Pakistani missions abroad. The problems of those living in small towns and the rural areas within the country do not get much into the press, but these must also be grave. The current registration process has been in place for over two years now; it is time it got over its teething problems and became fully functional and efficient. Unless that happens, it will be unrealistic to fix deadlines and expect that these will be met.