YOUR editorial ‘Protection for military courts’ (Feb 26) shows concern about an amendment to an already amended Army Act and that too through a presidential ordinance. Your anxiety, though well-meaning, is, however, unnecessary.

Human knowledge is not perfect and changing and improving safety requirements of military courts as the need arises is a sign of vigilance and focus rather than of transgression. Promulgation of ordinances (which need ratification by the legislature within four months) is the fastest way of making necessary changes to the law to suit changing circumstances.

That army courts need protection is quite obvious and voices were raised to that effect when the issue was being debated. Kindly recall my letter (Jan 9) stating: “A military team ... would be just as vulnerable. Only special procedures will make them secure.”

‘Special procedures’ include ‘in camera’ trial and protection of all the participants through elaborate means. We must not forget that we are in a state of war with a ruthless enemy who does not hesitate to kill women, children, witnesses, judges and prosecutors.

Lamenting about transparency of trial of such an adversary and in the situation we are in is pure naivety!

Military courts are a special, though temporary, arrangement to cope with a law-and-order situation which ordinary courts have failed to redress. They need to deal with insurgency wherever the need arises -- which could even be in Karachi. I would go a step further and say — particularly in Karachi!

The situation in Karachi is far more complex than it is in Fata where the authorities could easily have Miramshah cleared of its inhabitants to carry out the military operation. Karachi cannot be evacuated, so any military manoeuvre has to be a surgical operation requiring full judicial back-up and a lot of understanding from the press!

Badar Moinuddin

Lahore

Published in Dawn, February 28th, 2015

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