
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF RESEARCH AND INNOVATION IN SOCIAL SCIENCE (IJRISS)
ISSN No. 2454-6186 | DOI: 10.47772/IJRISS | Volume IX Issue X October 2025
www.rsisinternational.org
present military legal framework remains inconsistent in Pakistan to give with the Constitution’s guarantees that
to ensure fair trials and an independent judiciary. The literature repeatedly stresses legal and institutional reforms
that is without meaningful, the violation of national and international human rights in military courts.
To explore possible solutions to these structural flaws, the next section examines how the United Kingdom
reformed its own military justice system to meet fair-trial standards.
British Experience and Lessons for Pakistan
It is easy to control the domestic military justice system like the United Kingdom also possible to keep the
military system strong without compromising constitutional values or human rights. In 1990s the British military
justice system same to the present military justice system of Pakistan, The full control of senior officer over
prosecutions, the approval of sentences and trials. At the time all the function is under the higher command
power, instead of to work as an independent in court system. This process is eventually difficult by human rights
and the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) for violating Article 6 of the European Convention on Human
Rights and set out the principles of independence and fairness.[25]
A changing point came with the landmark case Findlay v United Kingdom (1997) [25], after this case, the
European Court of Human Rights say that the British court-martial system did not meet the impartiality standards
and also the independence and it violating by Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights. The
judiciary think that the commanding officer have a control in court martial and the choice of prosecutor, to give
a final judgment to be seem unfair. This kind of control make the trials unfair and created the perception its
means that the justice was control by military and it is not on the basis of law. The Findlay ruling acted that the
United Kingdom need to reform the military justice system under the human rights standards.[25]
In response to this ruling the United Kingdom implemented the legal reforms and the human rights review later,
which resulted in the enactment of the Armed Forces Act 2006 [26]. Under this Act, the UK added the different
service laws of the army, navy, and air force into one consistent legal system and to make sure civilian oversight
and compliance with the European Convention on Human Rights. A series of major reforms followed. The first
is that to appointment of civilian judges for preside over courts martial, and also removing judicial authority
from the military command structure. secondly Authorized a neutral body to replace prosecutions previously
controlled by commanders guaranteed that prosecutorial decisions were free from superior officers’
approaches.[42] The third reform make the Court Martial Appeal Court, staffed by civilian appellate judges, to
review military convictions and sentences and ensure an impartial external appeal process. The Fourth is the trial
will be in public ally and more transparent, and also to be publishing court judgments, while national security
cases keeping confidential at last, the system came under parliamentary review, all the reports need to present
before the Parliament, to make sure accountability. [25] Together, British military justice system changed these
reforms into a model that balances respect for discipline with the protection of human rights. The new system
ensures fair trial and an independent judiciary service members were granted, and maintain the full respect for
international human rights law. To enhance the public trust in fairness and Parliamentary oversight and greater
public access have openness of the system.[43]
Now for Pakistan it is very clear lessons from United Kingdom’s to improving its own military justice system.
The first lesson is that the military justice respects the constitution and still maintain strong discipline. To enhance
judicial independence and minimize the impact of command authority appointing civilian judges to courts martial
on trial outcomes. Second, to make independent military prosecution authority to pursued on legal merits and
rather than command influence. Third, Civil–Military Appeals Court setting up retired Supreme Court and High
Court judges would introduce the independent oversight missing from Pakistan’s military justice framework [25]
Fourth, publishing military court judgments as sensitive information hidden to protect national security, it makes
the system more transparent and increase public trust. Lastly, UK is a model the parliamentary reports, would
build stronger oversight and reinforce accountability within Pakistan’s democratic institutions.