In order to appreciate the destructive, random nature of the Jirga, its methods must be looked at. In a tribal court, witnesses and hearsay are the main forms of evidence and a verdict often rests on the reputation or power of a witness. Women are considered sexually corrupt, and their testimonies are never given any weight. In fact, in Jirga proceedings women are not allowed to participate. During a session spectators tend to gather, pick a side and heckle, putting pressure on the decision makers. Some spectators head to Jirgas for entertainment and needless to say, the most popular verdict may not always be a just one; it is difficult to reconcile justice with the will of an over-excited mob. In many instances, superstition also comes into play. In certain cases defendants have been told to walk on hot coals; if they feel and show no pain then they are deemed to be innocent. These are not conditions of a humane or rational system, and yet it is one that regularly deals out the death sentence.
The power of the Jirga has increased over the years because of failings in Pakistan’s existing legal system. Judgments can take years, even generations, and Pakistanis with small civil complaints often prefer to take the swifter route through local Jirgas because they have little faith in the system. It is from here that the Jirga’s advent into life and death judgments has grown. The likelihood of justice has become so bad that a Jirga-issued death sentence has become a way to resolve personal and political vendettas and property disputes (particularly by male family members who resent losing property to another family through the marriage of a woman relative).
http://newageislam.com/pakistan--jirga-courts-and-the-murders-they-commit/islamic-world-news/d/952
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11:01 PM
Moderate Islamist here
