Pakistan minister says those involved in attacks on army installations will be tried under military laws

Islamabad: A top Pakistani minister said on Wednesday that those involved in attacks on army installations in the wake of former prime minister Imran Khan's arrest would be tried under the stringent military laws, amid concerns expressed by the rights groups.

Addressing a press conference, information minister Marriyum Aurangzeb said scores of people have been arrested for their alleged involvement in arson attacks and vandalism on May 9 following former premier Khan's arrest from the Islamabad High Court premises.

The minister said it was the state's responsibility to arrest and punish the culprits.

"Attackers will be tried under the relevant civil and military laws,” she said, adding that the National Security Committee has also “categorically vowed to take strict action against them,” she said.

She said that martyrs’ graveyards were attacked which was akin to showing enmity towards the country.

“We have the video evidence and we will not spare anyone who did this,” she said.

When asked if Khan would also be tried under the army law, she said he would be tried by the “relevant courts”.

As government officials press to use the Pakistan Army Act and the Official Secrets Act against those responsible for violence, local and international rights bodies have expressed concern.

Amnesty International and the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan issued separate statements on Tuesday and raised an alarm at the possibility of trial under military rules.

Dinushika Dissanayake, Amnesty's deputy regional director for South Asia, said that trying civilians in military courts was contrary to international law. Dissanayake accused the Pakistani government of using military law as “an intimidation tactic, designed to crack down on dissent by exercising fear of an institution that has never been held to account for its overreach.” The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan said civilians arrested should be tried in civil instead of military courts.

“While those responsible for arson and damaging public and private property during the recent protests should be held to account, they remain entitled to due process,” the group said in a statement.

Experts are divided over the trial of civilians under military regulation.

President Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) Abid Zuberi said in an interview with Geo News that civilians who damage military installations can be tried under the army act.

“Civilians who damage military installations can be tried under the Army Act. In 2017,” the legal expert said.

However, there are others who question the legality of such trials.

Commenting on the development, Former SCBA president Kamran Murtaza said: “I was against the military courts earlier, and I am still against it today.”Pakistan has a history of using military courts for trials of civilians.

The country's Parliament made a special law for two years to enable special military courts to try hardcore terrorists after the attack on a school in Peshawar in December 2016.

Military courts usually operate behind closed doors, creating doubts about a fair trial of the accused.

The arrest of Khan on May 9 by the paramilitary Pakistan Rangers at the IHC premises triggered unrest in Pakistan. For the first time in Pakistan's history, the protesters stormed the army headquarters (GHQ) in Rawalpindi and also torched a corps commander's house in Lahore.

Police put the death toll in violent clashes to 10 while Khan's party claims 40 of its workers lost their lives in the firing by security personnel.

On Monday, the top military brass vowed to bring the arsonists, who attacked the civil and military installations, to justice through trial under relevant laws of the country, including the Pakistan Army Act and Official Secrets Act.

Khan was ousted from power in April last year after losing a no-confidence vote in his leadership, which he alleged was part of a US-led conspiracy targeting him because of his independent foreign policy decisions on Russia, China and Afghanistan.