ISLAMABAD:
Since its reconstitution, the Commission of Inquiry on Enforced Disappearances (CoIED) has resolved 8,770 — or 82% — of the 10,607 alleged enforced disappearance cases it has received.
In July alone, after Justice (retd) Syed Arshad Hussain Shah assumed office, the commission resolved 70 cases and registered 15 new complaints, said a statement issued by the commission on Friday.
The federal government reconstituted the commission, appointing Justice (Retd) Syed Arshad Hussain Shah, the former chief judge of the Gilgit-Baltistan Supreme Appellate Court, as its chairman.
Justice (retd) Nazar Akbar was appointed as Member (Sindh); retired judge Muhammad Bashir as Member (Islamabad) and Justice (retd) Syed Afsar Shah was appointed as Member (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) to handle cases of alleged enforced disappearances in the province.
Justice (retd) served as a judge in the Sindh High Court; Bashir served as a judge of Islamabad Accountability Court-I and Justice (retd) Shah served as a judge in the Peshawar High Court.
According to the statement, the commission has also implemented the federal government’s financial assistance package of Rs5 million for families of missing persons. The chairman has presided over two meetings to present recommendations to the government regarding such financial assistance cases.
The commission stressed the need for a uniform policy for investigating and resolving disappearance cases promptly. The chairman also visited Lahore and Karachi to work on regulations aimed at preventing disappearances, hearing over 50 cases in these cities.
