National Assembly Speaker Dr Fehmida Mirza has underlined the need for reforming the criminal justice system.

Our justice system has to be modernised. Some lax and outdated procedures have resulted in aggravating the human rights violations in the country,” she said while speaking at the launch of a report of the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Human Rights.Dr Mirza said that some changes in procedural laws were required and the law enforcement agencies needed to be trained about human rights laws.

We need the agencies to address the issues amicably. The agencies must also be provided with better technology, facilities and latest investigation methods to improve their performance while dealing with human rights violations,” Dr Mirza said.The provinces should review criminal procedures as the 18th Amendment allowed the provinces to review legislation, she said and asked the provinces to establish legal and institutional frameworks to check human rights abuses and create awareness by making it a part of the education system.

Information on human rights should be made part of curriculum in schools, and provinces should ensure revamping education by focusing on the importance of human rights,” she said.Criticising the media, Dr Mirza said: “Instead of glamorising crime, it should educate people about their rights and repercussions in case of violation.”Meanwhile, the standing committee held a meeting and discussed the failure of official machinery in controlling the targeted killings of Shias.

The committee unanimously observed that the law and order situation had collapsed and blamed the interior ministry for the situation.The committee chaired by Riaz Fatiyana lashed out at the ministry for its failure to contain free movement of terrorists across the country and said target killing was not only a human rights violation but a heinous crime which was eating away the foundation of the society.