WUNRN
PAKISTAN - NATIONAL ASSEMBLY
PREPARES TO PASS ACID CONTROL
& BURN CRIME PREVENTION BILL -
ENFORCEMENT IMPORTANT
By
Rebecca Buckwalter-Poza
Last week,
the government of
While passage is nearly certain, it remains to be seen whether the government will
make a sincere attempt to implement this legislation - and, moreover, how
effective its effort at enforcement may be.
Over the past few
years, acid terrorism has begun to provoke international
concern
as acid-related crimes have increased in some countries and appeared in others.
In several recent high-profile cases, individuals have used acid in mass attacks. Destroying a
victim’s life may cost anything from the 100,000 rupees some attackers
have reported being promised in
While the motivations behind such acts vary, perpetrators choose acid for
simple reasons: it is cheap and widely available, assault with acid is
penalized relatively lightly or goes unpunished, and victims who do not die are
marked, often disabled for life. When it does not kill, acid leaves victims in
agony --disfigured, deformed, and sometimes blinded. Their limbs may be fused
in the position they held when burned. For those with access to medical care
surgery may lessen complications and reduce disfigurement, but survivors struggle
to overcome both physical and mental injury and social stigma for the rest of
their lives.
In
In
The breakdowns that reduce the likelihood of an acid attack being punished
begin at the local level. Many assaults go unreported, but when victims do
report acid attacks, the police may demand a bribe to investigate, refuse to
investigate, or accept a bribe from the attacker to drop the case. In court,
the prosecution and judiciary are susceptible to the same extralegal influences
and pressure to adhere to social norms. Illegal out-of-court settlements
routinely deprive victims of formal justice and keep acid attacks out of the
judicial system entirely.
The text of the
preamble
to
"Whereas
it is necessary to make provisions to specifically criminalise acid related
violence by providing tougher and stricter penalties, speedy trial of such
heinous offences and for matters connected therewith and incidental thereto;
and
Whereas to further control the import, production, transportation, hoarding,
sale and use of acid to prevent the misuse of acid as a corrosive substance and
for the purpose of treatment and rehabilitation of acid victims and to provide
legal support to them and for matters connected therewith and incidental
thereto."
The legislation would create a
National Acid Control Council and “comprehensively defin[e] hurt and disfigurement”
as well as categorizing acids as dangerous substances, restricting their sale,
more heavily penalizing "unlawful sales," and increasing the maximum
sentence for disfigurement significantly -- in addition to setting a minimum
sentence of seven years. Medical professionals would be legally bound to report
acid-related injuries to police. Further, the bill would define the victims of
acid attacks as disabled, entitling them to government benefits, and provide
for treatment, rehabilitation, and legal aid.
If passed, Cambodia's law would regulate the
sale of acids, set minimum sentences and increase the maximum sentence for
acid-related offenses, and improve care for survivors. Today, acid attacks are
classified as civil assaults, which require the
victim to press charges. Like
Tentative progress in
Legislative reform will not necessarily translate to substantive change in
Despite its flaws and the obstacles ahead, the Acid Control and Burn Crime Prevention
Bill represents an opportunity to make remarkable progress in combating acid
terrorism in Pakistan. Its successful passage may also signal receptivity to
the involvement of civil society and international organizations in policy
reform. In passing this bill, the Pakistani government puts progress ahead of
politics.
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About AHRC: The Asian Human Rights Commission
is a regional non-governmental organisation monitoring and lobbying human
rights issues in