Every year, International Day in Support of Victims of Torture is observed on 26 June to speak against the crime of torture by law enforcement agencies as well as to honour and support victims and survivors of torture across the world.
Though global, the issue is endemic in Pakistan as there is little to no punishment and accountability against its perpetrators. All three pillars of the state, legislation, executive and judiciary, are desperately required to deliver all forms of support to victims.
In many cases, custodial tortures have resulted in serious consequences. A few days ago, Sagheer Tanoli, an under-trial prisoner in Karachi, was tortured to death. On February 19, 2019, Raiwind police arrested an eight-year-old orphan, Ahmed, as they suspected him of being a swindler’s accomplice. He was brutally tortured in custody.
The very next day, the police released the child when he was in severe pain and unable to walk, sit or sleep.
In January, Arshad (55), who was a brick kiln owner in the Chariaola Village in Gujrat district, was allegedly severely tortured. He died of his wounds a day after he was taken into custody.
Human Rights Watch (HRW) reported in 2016 that Pakistan’s police were widely regarded as amongst the most abusive, corrupt and unaccountable institutions of the state. The report brought forward disturbing cases of arbitrary arrests, false claims, torture and ill-treatment of suspects and fake encounter killings.
The criminal justice system in Pakistan is fraught with a host of problems in terms of a fair trial as the conviction is based on statements extracted through torture or other forms of ill-treatment. The torture that a great number of the accused experience is believed to be an inevitable and significant part of crime investigation for extracting self-implicating and confessional statements from suspects.
According to Human Rights Watch (HRW), Pakistan’s police were widely regarded as amongst the most abusive, corrupt and unaccountable state institutions
As police officials directly involved in crime investigations lack scientific knowledge and skills to conduct investigations, therefore, perforcing the judiciary and prosecution depends on these confessional statements.
An investigation is the backbone of the criminal justice system, which includes all proceedings for the collection of evidence conducted by a police officer. A good investigation consists of identification, collection, preservation and presentation of evidence in the court of law. It is the duty of the prosecution to prove the guilt of an accused beyond any reasonable doubt. Due to the lack of trustworthy and confidence-inspiring evidence, accused cannot be convicted. The high standards of proof can only be achieved when evidence is properly collected, secured and documented at the time of investigation to prove charges whether for or against the suspect. It is, therefore, the duty of the police to properly and scientifically investigate to collect evidence.
Lamentably, Pakistan’s law enforcement agencies, especially the police, are incapable of doing their jobs in this way. They do not use professional methods of investigation, including forensic knowledge and skills in the process of crime investigation. They lack adequate modern education, state of the art technology and a rule of the law-oriented concept of the criminal investigation. Police officials responsible for conducting crime scene investigations and evidence collection should be imparted training on advanced forensic and criminal investigation methods. They should be provided with regulars refreshers to make them capable of finding real causes of crimes by collecting foolproof evidence. For that purpose, there is a need to develop state-of-the-art training institutions in the country.
Torture in custody, that too, at the hands of officials of the state, breeds more violence and lawlessness in society. It is in sheer infringement of Article 14 (2) of the 1973 Constitution, which states, “No person shall be subjected to torture for the purposes of extracting evidence.”
But we regularly read written accounts in newspapers and hear verbal accounts on television channels of the accused being physically, mentally and psychologically tortured by police and other security officials in custody.
In a civilised society, custodial deaths (deaths taking place in the custody of law enforcement agencies in a lock-up or a jail during interrogation) invite public anger, concern and mass resentment as such events show the negligence of the authorities concerned. In Pakistan, torture has remained politically, socially and morally acceptable as a practice for the police force. This is why custody torture continues to exist endemically with no fear of accountability and punishment. Many incidents of deaths due to torture have occurred in the country while many prisoners have committed suicide to avoid third-degree torture. Yet, no responsible police official has been prosecuted for his alleged crimes.
This gruesome and startling situation calls for structural changes in the process of investigation into criminal cases. There is a need to make criminal justice system capable of dispensing justice to the public. There is utmost need to criminalise custodial torture through legislation. The criminal investigations collecting circumstantial and foolproof evidence of offensive activities should be based on scientific knowledge and skills. The state must ensure the culture of torture in custody is stamped out.
The writer is an academic