MIT® replied on Sunday, July 24, 2016 12:37 PM PST
Agreed with Mr. Jameel, but who cares in Pakistn? An ex post facto law is a law that retroactively changes the legal consequences (or status) of any past matter and were already made unlawful by the Kellogg-Briand Pact, the Covenant of the League of Nations, and the various Hague Conventions. Retrospective criminal laws are prohibited by Article 7 of the European Convention legislation, though new precedent generally applies to events that occurred before the judicial decision. Ex post facto laws are expressly forbidden by the United States Constitution in Article 1, Section 9, Clause 3 (with respect to federal laws) and Article 1, Section 10 (with respect to state laws). In some nations that follow the Westminster system of government, such as the United Kingdom, ex post facto laws are technically possible, because the doctrine of parliamentary supremacy allows Parliament to pass any law it wishes. In a nation with an entrenched bill of rights or a written constitution, ex post facto legislation may be prohibited.
Article 12 of the constitution of Pakistan clearly prohibits any law to be given retroactive effect by stating:
12.1 - No law shall authorize the punishment of a person:-
12.1.a - for an act or omission that was not punishable by law at the time of the act or omission; or
12.1.b - for an offence by a penalty greater than, or of a kind different from, the penalty prescribed by law for that offence at the time the offence was committed. |