NEW YORK: Human Rights Watch (HRW), a prominent international watchdog body, has urged Pakistan’s Senate to speed up the adoption of a bill that criminalizes the use of torture.
Although Pakistan’s constitution prohibits the use of torture “for extracting evidence” and the country is a party to international treaties that prohibit it, HRW said, the country still lacks legislation that criminalizes the practice.
After the National Assembly approved the Torture and Custodial Death (Prevention and Punishment) Act — on August 1, the bill was sent to a Senate committee.
The Senate can now vote on the legislation at the earliest during its next session later this month, it said.
“Pakistan’s Senate should urgently pass a bill that would make torture a criminal offense,” the New York-based watchdog said in a statement on August 24.
“The first step to ending Pakistan’s endemic torture problem is to criminalize it,” John Sifton, Asia advocacy director at Human Rights Watch, said.
“Justice and accountability in cases of torture will only be possible if parliament passes the torture bill and the government enforces the law by carrying out transparent and impartial investigations into torture allegations,” he added.
HRW also urged for an immediate, independent, and transparent investigation into the alleged torture of a PTI leader.
Pakistan ratified the United Nations Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman and Degrading Treatment or Punishment in 2010.
Under articles 2 and 4, Pakistan is obligated to bring domestic law in line with the treaty.
The UN Committee against Torture and the Human Rights Committee, in each of their Concluding Observations following Pakistan’s 2017 treaty reviews, urged Pakistan to make torture a criminal offence under Pakistani law.
“By passing the torture bill, Pakistan will start a long-overdue process of reform to ensure that future allegations of torture are transparently investigated and that those responsible held accountable,” Sifton, the HRW’s director, said.
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