JI submits ‘witness protection bill’ in NA Secretariat

ISLAMABAD: Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan (JI) members in the National Assembly have submitted the “Witness Protection Bill 2015” in the National Assembly Secretariat.
The bill bears signatures of JI members Sahibzada Tariq Ullah, Sahibzada Mohammad Yaqub, Sher Akber Khan and Aisha Syed.The bill was submitted by Aisha Syed, who is also mover of the bill.
The bill contains 34 clauses, which also includes more than three amendments in the Criminal Procedure Code. The bill depicts a practicable procedure of witnesses’ protection at the federal, provincial and local levels. In case of approval of the bill, the government shall commence a programme for protection of witnesses at the federal level.
The Clause IV of the bill says that with the permission and prior information of the court, in order to ensure the protection of the witnesses, their identity would not be revealed, thus making their family safe and other relevant issues have been covered.
In case of the bill approved, the witness could make evidence through video link with a changed tone and thus making his identity secret while making evidence prior to permission from the court.
A witness, who applies for the government programme for protection, will be eligible for all the protection and guarantor facilities of the government. If the family of the witness needs such protection and guarantee, the government will also be bound to provide the same.
The draft of the bill says if the witness faces any harm to his life, the government will also compensate him. This bill clarifies that in case a witness is registered under the government programme, the government will regularly provide details needed to the court where the witness has made evidence. Jamaaat-e-Islami has made this amendment to prevent the government machinery from mismanagement.
The bill also seeks an advisory board to be constituted at federal level consisting of federal secretaries of interior, law and justice, finance, attorney general of Pakistan and secretary of interior affairs from each province.
The federal secretary of interior would be chairman of the board, while secretary law and justice would be its secretary.The board would be responsible for checking the advisory boards and provincial levels and give them guidance regarding policy matters from time to time, thus ensuring transparency.
It shall also be responsible to identify the threats to the lives of the witnesses and ensure implementation process on the court decisions regarding their protection run smoothly. In case a province does not have an advisory board, steps will be taken to constitute it.
In order to gain maximum benefit from this bill by the masses, there is a suggestion to establish units for witnesses’ protection, which would be established and defunct by the provincial governments. The provincial police chief has suggested to be made as chief protection officer, and his responsibilities have also been suggested to be defined.
A committee has also been suggested to coordinate all these matter. All the government departments would be bound to provide assistance in processing these responsibilities. The bill seeks the witness to enter this programme through a formal written agreement and he would also be required to give written reasons for his exit thereof. Any person who endangers a witness’ protection by any means, in accordance with the offence made by him/her, would be punishable for a period not exceeding fifteen years. This bill would be tabled in the next session of the National Assembly.