BRUSSELS: The European Parliament has expressed deep concern over what it described as the “alarming rate of executions based on flawed trials” in Pakistan, and has strongly called on the government to restore the moratorium on the death penalty, with the longer-term objective of full abolition of the death penalty.
The EU Parliament noted the progress made under the Pakistan’s National Action Plan (NAP) for human rights, and encouraged the government to fulfil its commitments.
In its resolution, the EU Parliament issued a strong statement calling for a ban on the execution of minors and persons with mental disorders. It urged the government to bring the provisions on the death penalty in national legislation into line with international laws and standards, including “a halt on executions for any offence other than intentional killing”.
Currently, there are 27 crimes that are punishable by death in Pakistan, including non-lethal acts such as narcotics and adultery.
Moreover, the EU expressed its dismay over executions being carried out “while appeal mechanisms were still underway”. Last year, the Supreme Court acquitted two brothers on death row who were executed a year before, while their appeals were still pending.
Pakistan has ratified a number of international human rights treaties, including the Convention against Torture and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to qualify for GSP+ scheme – a preferential trade status that has seen Pakistan’s exports rise by $ 6.15 billion in 2014, making it one of the largest countries to reap benefits from the GSP+ status granted to the country.
In fact, Pakistani exports under the GSP+ scheme increased to $6.94 billion from January to December 2016.
The resolution stated that the granting of GSP+ status was conditional and that the effective implementation of international conventions was an essential requirement under the scheme.
“Failing to comply with these requirements can put these economic advantages at risk, and deprive Pakistan’s business community of lucrative trading opportunities.”
In May, the United Nations Committee against Torture strongly condemned the “widespread practice of torture in Pakistan committed by police” and called on Islamabad to implement urgent reforms to the law.
In 2017, Pakistan has been questioned for its human rights record by the UN treaty bodies in two reviews, and in the following months it will face the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) review as well as undergo its universal periodic review.
“Pakistan retains one of the highest populated death rows in the world, primarily because the legal safeguards preventing death sentences from being imposed on juvenile offenders, mentally ill and disabled prisoners, or those tortured into false confessions, are simply not adhered to,” the resolution stated.
“It is time for the stakeholders to commit to genuine reform, and to restore the moratorium on the death penalty, lest it risk losing its coveted GSP+ status, warned EU.
