ISLAMABAD: The federal government on Friday moved the Protection of Pakistan Bill, 2014 before the Senate accompanied with strong protests from the joint opposition in the Upper House.
Minister for Science and Technology Zahid Hamid on behalf of Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan tabled the bill which was subsequently referred to the Senate Standing Committee on Law and Justice.
The bill has already been passed by the National Assembly.
“We have changed the bill considerably and as far as clauses relating to detentions are concerned, they have been taken from already existing law of the Anti-Terrorism Act 1997 and clauses relating to location of detainees have been extracted from Article 10 of the Constitution,” Hamid said.
Speaking on behalf of the opposition leader, Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Senator Mian Raza Rabbani suggested that the government reconsider the bill in the backdrop of the 27 human rights conventions which Pakistan is bound to abide by due to the European Union’s GSP Plus status.
Senate members from the Awami National Party (ANP) and the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) also opposed the bill saying it may contradict human rights conventions in the future.
“It’s a black law from Raiwind,” ANP Senator Haji Adeel said.
The proceedings of the House were subsequently adjourned to 4pm Monday.
The National Assembly passed the bill in the beginning of April amid protests from members and condemnation from international rights groups such as Amnesty International.
The law grants sweeping powers of arrest and detention to security forces. It permits the security forces to shoot suspects on sight, detain them at secret locations for up to 90 days and carry out raids without search warrants. The security forces can also carry out secret trials.
Lawmakers have warned that the law is too broad and that anger over abuses by the police and army is already fuelling growing militancy.