Regulation of Acid Crimes in Pakistan

Momina Imran (20090036)
Iqra Saif Agha (21090046)
Zoha Allawala (21090005)

Harassment, discrimination, sexual assault, child marriages and honor killings; this is the reality for many women in Pakistan, where patriarchy deprives them of their social, political and economic rights. In this backdrop, the crime of acid violence underlines the patriarchy’s response to the women who dare to defy norms of society and stand up for themselves. A cursory glance at stories of acid attack survivors, majority of whom are women, shows that they have been subjected to the brutality of such attacks if they either reject a marriage proposal, refuse to reciprocate sexual advances of men or are subjected to vicious acts of domestic violence.

Although the Acid Crime Prevention Act was introduced in 2011, it seems that it has not been sufficient to curb the issue of violence involving use of corrosive substances. It must be noted that even this amendment was a result of Suo Motu action taken by the Supreme Court, by which the legislature was recommended to frame a law that penalizes acid attacks against women. Despite these attempts, the crime still remained one of the biggest atrocities inflicted upon women and young girls in Pakistan. The highest number of 43 cases were reported in the year 2016, five years after the law had been enacted in the country.

The existing legal framework to penalize acid crimes in Pakistan includes the Acid Crime Prevention Act, 2011, by which Sections 336-A and 336-B were added to the Pakistan Penal Code, 1860 through an amendment. Acid crimes are also listed in the third schedule of the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997 thereby categorizing acid crimes as acts falling within the definition of terrorism. Due to the two laws granting jurisdiction to different courts, the ordinary criminal courts and the special Anti-Terrorism Courts, many acid crime cases first require decision on a jurisdictional question that is which court should entertain such a case. The issue on jurisdiction is ultimately decided differently by different courts. This not only disrupts and delays the criminal proceedings, but also grossly violates many principles of statutory interpretation. Does the special law take precedence over the general law, or does the law enacted later in time implicitly repeal the earlier law? These are questions courts often consume time to engage with, leaving the victim waiting for justice.

It is in light of such atrocities that the introduction of a new legislation catering specifically to the crime of acid attack becomes imperative. With the number of victims ever increasing and the ambiguity with respect to the laws catering to it, we take inspiration from the two Bangladeshi laws, The Acid Control Act, 2002 and Acid Crime Prevention Act, 2002. Because of the similarity of our contexts, we shed light upon the benefits that these laws have brought about in Bangladesh. Firstly, in respect of the regulation of the sale and purchase of industrial grade acid, the local government has started issuing licenses regulating such transactions in order to restrict the availability of such a corrosive substance and consequently its abuse. Furthermore, the legislation has imposed penalties of hefty fines, both on the seller and the purchaser in cases of non-compliance. As a consequence of the clarity in the law catering only to this crime, this legislation has empowered the magistrate to take record of witnesses anywhere. The incorporation of this provision is significant for the number of such cases to be controlled because most instances of such crimes occur in rural areas upon women who are unaware of the protections they can seek under the law. These individuals are unaware of their rights and once they are subjected to such violence, they are left unguided as to whom they can approach to seek medical aid and justice. Therefore, such empowerment of the magistrate reduces procedural red tape and overcomes hindrances that lie in the way of the victim when she decides to file her complaint. Furthermore, it provides for the establishment of victim facilitation centers for such crimes, which are sufficiently equipped to reduce the suffering and which also provide assistance in guiding the victims to seek justice.

Apart from the confusion of which law to apply in the case of an acid crime, and unlike the laws in Bangladesh, the two Pakistani laws in force lack penalties for unauthorized sale of industrial acids, rehabilitation of victims of acid crimes, as well as rules for preservation of evidence specifically for acid crimes. While the legislature passed a law applicable to the Islamabad Capital Territory in 2018, called the Acid and Burn Crime Bill 2018, which holistically lays down the law on aiding and abetting of such a crime, responsibility of hospitals to treat acid crime victims, and rules of evidence protection, there is no such law that applies to the rest of the country. Similar to the law on Acid Crimes in Bangladesh and other jurisdictions, Pakistan needs to enact dedicated legislation to curb the problem of acid crimes. Criminal courts must be given clear instructions, along with exclusive jurisdiction to adjudicate upon crimes involving the use of acids and/or corrosive substances. The law must also require strict regulation of acids, especially industrial acids which leave the human body permanently damaged, if exposed to them. Mere punishment of criminals guilty of committing acid crimes leaves victims with little to no tangible compensation for the physical and mental trauma they endure as a result of such crimes. The law should also address these concerns. Rehabilitation and treatment of acid attack victims must be legislated upon, with the state ensuring assistance to victims. Leaving criminal matters such as acid crimes for Anti-Terrorism Courts to decide only disrupt the very fabric of criminal law in Pakistan and take away from the real need of the hour; effective and dedicated legislation to curb acid crimes against women and other gender minorities.