Islamabad, October 10, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Amnesty International has raised serious concerns over Pakistan’s Anti-Terrorism (Punjab Amendment) Act, 2026, warning that the legislation threatens the right to a fair trial by creating provisions for secret judicial proceedings.
The international human rights organisation said the amendment to the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA), 1997, was passed by the Punjab provincial Assembly on August 31 and establishes a mechanism for trials conducted under a level of secrecy that exceeds permissible restrictions on the right to a public hearing under international human rights law.
Amnesty International warned that the amendment deepens concerns over the historical misuse of anti-terrorism legislation in Pakistan, which it said has contributed to serious human rights violations.
According to the organisation, the amendment was passed despite opposition from political parties and civil society groups. Four days before its passage, the Assembly Speaker had deferred proceedings on the bill after receiving a note from an opposition member raising constitutional and procedural objections.
However, the same version of the bill was passed on August 31 without addressing those concerns. Opposition members raised objections during the proceedings and subsequently walked out in protest, Amnesty International said.
The organisation also noted that the governor gave assent to the legislation despite appeals from civil society groups urging him to return the bill to the Assembly for reconsideration over fair-trial concerns.
The amendment has been challenged in the Lahore High Court through several petitions, including one filed by Punjab Assembly Opposition Leader Moeenuddin Riaz Qureshi, the rights body said.
Amnesty International argued that the new legislation strengthens an already restrictive anti-terrorism law that has been used to place human rights defenders, grassroots movements and organisations on the Fourth Schedule of the ATA. It also alleged that the law has enabled arbitrary detention of dissidents under vague charges and the imposition of lengthy sentences on activists for offences that should not exist.
The organisation warned that secret trials would add another layer of opacity to a legal framework already vulnerable to miscarriages of justice, reducing transparency and limiting independent scrutiny of proceedings under the anti-terrorism law.
It stressed that counterterrorism measures cannot justify abandoning human rights and that fair-trial protections must be upheld in all circumstances.
Amnesty International also highlighted the wider implications of the legislation, noting that Punjab is Pakistan’s most populous province and accounts for 50.9 per cent of the country’s population.
If implemented, the amendment could have consequences beyond Punjab, the organisation warned, potentially encouraging other provinces to introduce similar laws and creating a wider precedent for secret trials across Pakistan.
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