ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s federal cabinet on Sunday approved a constitutional amendment package seeking to bring judicial reforms among other changes, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s office said, describing it as a “milestone.”
Sharif’s administration has been attempting to introduce a set of constitutional changes in parliament since last month which the country’s opposition and legal fraternity argue are aimed at granting more power to the executive in making judicial appointments. The government rejects these allegations.
The proposed amendments initially suggested establishing a federal constitutional court, raising the retirement age of superior judges by three years and modifying the process for appointing the chief justice of the Supreme Court of Pakistan.
During the cabinet meeting, Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar once again gave a detailed briefing on the 26th constitutional amendment and the participants approved a draft of the amendments proposed by the coalition parties.
“The cabinet took the decision in the wider interest of the country while adhering to the oath of national development and public welfare,” PM Sharif was quoted as saying by his office on the occasion.
“By the grace of Allah, after stability of the country’s economy, a milestone has been achieved for constitutional stability and rule of law in the country.”
The draft amendment would now be tabled in the Senate and the National Assembly, upper and lower houses of Pakistan parliament, for approval, according to the law minister.
Former premier Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party has alleged the government is using the amendments to grant an extension in office to incumbent Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa, widely seen as aligned with the ruling coalition government. The federal government has rejected Khan’s allegations.
“The political committee of the PTI has decided to boycott the voting process in both houses of parliament, in case the government tables the constitutional amendments,” the PTI said in a statement on Sunday.
Law Minister Tarar earlier said the ruling coalition had worked out the draft after “broader consultation” with all political parties and their leaders in parliament as well as with legal representatives.
The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), a key ally of the Sharif-led coalition government, has been spearheading efforts to woo opposition parties and prominent lawyers to accept the controversial amendments.
In a press conference on Saturday night, PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari and Jamiat Ulama-e-Pakistan Fazl (JUI-F) chief Fazl-ur-Rehman confirmed “major” disputes between both sides had been resolved after the government had removed some sections of the initial draft on which the opposition had expressed its reservations.
“The government agreed to withdraw all the contentious sections we objected to, paving the way for consensus,” Rehman told reporters. “At this stage, there are no major disputes between us about the amendments, and most of the contentious issues have been resolved.”
The JUI-F chief said ex-PM Khan’s PTI had been kept in the loop on discussions related to the amendments, adding that he received a message from the former premier which reflected a “positive approach” toward the constitutional amendments.
Pakistan’s federal cabinet approves proposed 26th amendment to constitution
https://arab.news/4ksrt
Pakistan’s federal cabinet approves proposed 26th amendment to constitution
- PM Shehbaz Sharif’s administration has been attempting to introduce a set of constitutional changes since last month
- Ruling coalition member PPP, opposition JUI-F confirm ‘major’ contentious points removed from initial amendments draft
Challenges for millions pushed back to Afghanistan from Iran, Pakistan
- Over five million Afghans returned home since September 2023 as Iran, Pakistan ramp up deportations
- Those who returned face challenges in form of unemployment, lack of housing, shortage of electricity and water
KABUL: After decades hosting Afghans fleeing crises at home, Pakistan and Iran have ramped up deportations and forced millions back across the border to a country struggling to provide for them.
Whether arriving at the frontier surrounded by family or alone, Afghan returnees must establish a new life in a nation beset by poverty and environmental woes.
AFP takes a look at the people arriving in Afghanistan and the challenges they face.
FIVE MILLION
More than five million Afghans have returned home from Iran and Pakistan since September 2023, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
The figure equates to 10 percent of the country’s population, according to the agency’s deputy head in Afghanistan, Mutya Izora Maskun.
Three million returnees crossed the borders just last year, some of whom have spent decades living abroad.
Such a huge influx of people would be hard for any country to manage, Maskun said.
INADEQUATE HOUSING
Months after arriving in Afghanistan, 80 percent of people had no permanent home, according to an IOM survey of 1,339 migrants who returned between September 2023 and December 2024.
Instead, they had to live in temporary housing made from materials such as stone or mud.
More recently, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) spoke to Afghans who arrived back between January and August last year about their living arrangements.
Three-quarters of tenants said they could not afford their rent, while the majority of families were sharing rooms with up to four people, according to the survey of 1,658 returnees.
DESPERATE SEARCH FOR WORK
Just 11 percent of adults pushed back from Pakistan and Iran were fully employed, the IOM survey found.
For those who returned in the first few months of last year, the average monthly income was between $22 and $147, according to the UNHCR.
WATER, ELECTRICITY SHORTAGES
More than half the returnee households lack a stable electricity supply, according to the IOM.
The agency said that households headed by women faced “significantly higher vulnerabilities,” with around half of them struggling to access safe drinking water.
SPEEDING UP LAND DISTRIBUTION
More than 3,000 plots of land have been distributed to returnees nationwide, Hamdullah Fitrat, the Afghan government’s deputy spokesman, said in mid-January.
The process “was accelerated,” he said while recounting a special meeting with supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada.
On their arrival in Afghanistan, returnees usually receive help with transport, a SIM card and a small amount of money.
