The Military Courts Case: another op-ed

Hafiz Ahsaan Ahmad Khokhar, a Pakistani attorney, has wrtitten this unpersuasive News International op-ed in defense of the country's use of military courts to try civilians. He writes that "[p]remature statements criticising these trials, while the matter remains sub judice, are unwarranted," but his op-ed does precisely that. His basic argument is that other countries (he missed such prime offenders as Uganda, Cameroon, Tunisia and Egypt, and included some that no longer make the list, such as Turkey, thanks to the European Court of Human Rights) do this as well, and that Pakistan's courts have upheld the practice. His account of the domestic caselaw seems selective. For example, the leading case he cites involved a retired officer -- a category that is obviously distinct from individuals who have no connection with the armed forces. Even in such cases, the exercise of military jurisdiction is highly controversial under both domestic and human rights jurisprudence. Additionally, without ever naming it, he relies on District Bar Ass'n, Rawalpindi v. Federation of Pakistan, PLD 2015 SC 401, even though that 2015 case concerned the validity of a now-expired constitutional amendment that temporarily permitted military trials of civilians. If a constitutional amendment was required, that would seem to suggest that, absent an amendment, the practice was invalid. Also missing from Mr. Khokhar's op-ed is any reference to human rights jurisprudence, which strongly disfavors the trial of civilians by courts-martial.