Retiree jurisdiction in Pakistan

Under human rights principles, court-martial jurisdiction is supposed to be reserved for serving personnel, not veterans, retirees, dependents, or other civilians. Pakistan's field general court-martial this month convicted a retired lieutenant general, Faiz Hameed, for offenses said to have occurred both before and after his retirement. He has appealed to the Army's internal court of appeal. Dawn has the story here. Will he -- can he -- challenge the post-retirement exercise of military jurisdiction? Excerpt from Dawn's report:

Hameed, who retired in November 2022, is the first former ISI director general and only the second three-star general in Pakistan’s history to face a full military trial and be sentenced to a jail term.

The case against him originated from accusations by property developer Kanwar Moeez Khan, who alleged that in 2017 that Hameed — then a major general in ISI — and two officers orchestrated a raid at his home and offices, seized valuables and coerced him into paying Rs40 million and financing a private television channel. The matter resurfaced in 2023 when the Supreme Court advised the complainant to seek remedies through the defence ministry, leading to a formal military inquiry.

While the Army Act typically allows action against retired personnel within six months of retirement, the proceedings reportedly invoked Section 2(d), which extends military jurisdiction to certain offences committed by persons not subject to military law, though exceptions were also available under Sections 31 and 40, which permit court martial regardless of time elapsed for offences involving mutiny, insubordination or fraudulent acts related to property.

A Court of Inquiry convened in April 2024 found grounds to proceed, leading to Hameed’s arrest on August 12 of that year. He was subsequently served a detailed charge sheet covering four categories of alleged misconduct: post-retirement political engagement; violations of the Official Secrets Act; misuse of authority, including the 2017 raid; and causing wrongful loss through coercive actions against Moeez.

The investigation was later widened to include several retired officers, among them retired Brig Ghaffar, retired Brig Naeem Fakhar and retired Col Asim, although the verdict did not state what determination the FGCM made regarding them.

Comparative law mavens will recall that the U.S. Department of Defense is currently weighing what to do about an unlawful-orders video recently released by, among others, retired Navy captain (and current Senator) Mark Kelly.