ZULFIQAR AHMAD

ISLAMABAD: The Senate on Tuesday passed a legislation to extend the term of military courts for another two years.

It took almost three months for the government to successfully persuade the opposition parties, especially Pakistan Peoples Party Parliamentarians (PPPP), which were reluctant to extend the term of military courts, arguing that it is tantamount to undermining the civilian courts.

The bill ‘The Constitution (twenty-eighth amendment) Bill, 2017’ secured a two-third majority – a requirement to pass a constitutional amendment – as 78 votes were cast in favour of the bill, while three senators voted against it.

The three senators belonging to Pakthunkhwa Milli Awami Party (Pk MAP), a government ally, voted against the bill, while members of another government ally – Jamiat Uleam-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F), abstained from the vote.

The bill is now expected to be signed into law by the President this week.

Before the passage of the bill, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar in his speech extended his gratitude to the opposition for voting on the bill, said that the extension to military courts is meant to tighten the noose around terrorists.

“Mr. Chairman, there is no need to be upset as we all are equally down, but we [civil-military leadership] are on the same page to eliminate the menace of terrorism as at present, the country is facing three serious challenges which included security, economic, and power crisis,” he said while pointing towards Chairman Senate Raza Rabbani, who conducted the proceedings with a grim face, as he has been opposing the move.

However, Opposition Leader in Senate Aitzaz Ahsan somewhat made his fellow senator a bit embarrassed by recalling that the government came to know about military offensive in South Waziristan Agency (SWA) after two days, adding the general, who is going to head a “Sunni army’ in Saudi Arabia, launched the offensive in SWA without letting anybody know.

“Dar is a flexible man but he forgets the promises such as formation of Parliament’s committee on national security, etc. They have no option but to come to us as they need votes to pass the bill,” he shot back.

The House also adopted a motion empowering the chairman Senate to nominate members from Upper House of the Parliament to become members of the parliamentary committee on national security, which is likely to be formed in days to come.

Declaring the passage of the bill as ‘defeat of Parliament,’ the opposition senators said the government failed to implement the National Action Plan (NAP) in letter and spirit or else extension to military courts would not have been needed.

They called upon the government to make sure that before the mandated term of the military courts ends, a strong and fast track system would be in place to avoid the repetition of such piece of legislation.

Some senators even wanted the government to give an undertaking to Senate that such arrangement would be desisted in future, saying if the Justice Faez Essa report and the Abbottabad Commission reports had been made public along with implantation of NAP, the situation would have been different.

However, Dar defended the initiative and argued that in extraordinary circumstances and security situation, nations had been taking extraordinary decisions and referred to US, which had to use tactics like Guantanamo Bay, tearing away green cards and forcibly pushed people out of the country.

PPPP Senator Khalida Parveen said the constitutional amendment is a question mark on good governance and revival of the doctrine of necessity.

PkMAP Senator Sardar Muhammad Azam said that while going against the terrorists by voting for military courts, politicians are strengthening dictatorship and claimed no political party here would vote if the military courts are tasked to deal with the menace of corruption and the Panamagate case.

Senator Sehar Kamran of PPPP said today is the day of defeat of the Parliament and that the legislators have failed to come up to the expectations of the masses. She claimed that Justice Faez Essa report is a mirror for all to learn lessons.

“There is no need for discussion in the House after all parties have agreed on the amendment. It is because of our mistakes that today a voice is echoing in the Parliament for military courts. Who will give an assurance that after two years, there will be no need for such courts and the Parliament will be strengthened further?” asked ANP’s Senator Sitara Ayaz.

PTI’s Mohsin Aziz wondered if the institutions have been strengthened enough and due protection has been given to the courts and witnesses, and NAP has been implemented, there would have been no need for the constitutional amendment.

Former interior minister and PPP Senator Rehman Malik recalled that it was decided previously that a fast track judicial system would be there within two years. But this could not be done. However, he added, though no military courts exist presently anywhere, but those countries do not face the challenges as Pakistan does.

“We should concede openly that we have made mistakes and could not put in place a fast track system. There is a need for retrospection because all are to be blamed,” he maintained.

Earlier, Dar defended the amendment and said that all the parties have been taken on board and they had evolved consensus on having military courts for another two years, being the need of the hour.

He contended that all parties and their leaders have sentiments and pointed out that the consensus on the matter is a proof of the nation’s confidence in this connection.

The minister assured the Senate that the parliamentary committee on national security would be constituted to oversee the performance of the military courts.

“We are on the right track and already a number of key measures have been taken and there is nothing to worry about,” he maintained while referring to operation Zarb-e-Azb and allocation of Rs 100 billion for this purpose.

He maintained that Pakistan has taken extraordinary measures in an extraordinary situation and it has been acknowledged the world over.

Another bill titled ‘The illegal Dispossession (Amendment) Bill, 2017’ was introduced in Senate, which was referred to the concerned standing committee of the house for further consideration.