LHCBA secretary urges PM to amend Hudood laws

By Abid Butt

LAHORE: Lahore High Court Bar Association (LHCBA) Secretary Azam Nazir Tarar has urged Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz to immediately repeal or at least amend the Hudood Ordinances to rescue Pakistani women from “flawed laws”.

Talking to Daily Times, Mr Tarar, however, criticised the draft report of a special committee of the National Commission on the Status of Women (NCSW), which was formed to review the Hudood Ordinances of 1979.

The LHCBA secretary termed the committee’s proceedings futile and said the committee had failed to convince the government to plan an immediate revision to the Hudood law even though they could have done so.

He said the committee’s report seemed to be a set of demands based on the personal desires of the members made hurriedly rather than a report based on logical inferences.

“The report has sidelined the issue and the government is now hesitant in bringing the draft amendment law in parliament,” said Mr Tarar.

The LHCBA secretary said the commission had discussed and highlighted various defective provisions of the ordinance to prevent adultery (Zina) and suggested amendments, but then demanded to total repeal of the laws.

Mr Tarar said he criticised the commission’s report in its historic perspective, but was not a supporter of the Hudood laws.

The NSCW had held detailed discussions and pointed out at least 11 defects in the Hudood law against adultery, its applicability over other laws and definition of marriage, puberty, criminal responsibility and adultery, and distinction between adultery and rape liable to Hadd. The commission also deliberated on whether Rajm — stoning to death —

was Hadd or Taazeer and the application of Hudood laws with reference to non-Muslims and then proposed various amendment to the flawed laws.

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