The federal government has devised a strategy for talks with the opposition parties for an extension in the term of military courts. Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and Defense Minister Pervez Khattak have been reportedly authorized to hold talks with the political parties. Both the ministers will engage the members of the opposition parties on the issue by next week to get their consent as the government requires a two-thirds majority in both houses of parliament to get the bill passed. Expressing his views during a TV programme last week, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General Maj Gen Asif Ghafoor had recounted the performance of the military courts since their inception in 2015. “So far, 717 cases were referred to the military courts, out of which 646 cases have been decided. The military courts have awarded 345 convicts death sentences while 296 have been handed various sentences,” he had said. “The government has to decide whether it wants to extend the tenure of the military courts or not,” he had said in response to a question.
Published in Daily Times, January 13th 2019.
