You can sign our open letter here to register your protest.
As academics, activists and members of the civil society engaged with Pakistan’s history, politics, law, and society, we issue this urgent condemnation of the 27th Constitutional Amendment, passed in the Senate amid opposition boycotts and procedural opacity. This amendment threatens the democratic foundations of Pakistan’s 1973 Constitution at a time when the nation faces converging crises including economic collapse, rising poverty and unemployment, an uptake in militancy and civilian casualties, and a complete breakdown of institutional checks and balances.
Following the deeply flawed 2024 elections and the 26th Constitutional Amendment’s assault on judicial independence to impede independent investigations of the polls, the 27th Amendment completes the architecture of authoritarian rule. It proposes a separate Constitutional Court appointed by the Executive, reducing the Supreme Court, whose reason for existence was protection of fundamental rights of Pakistanis, to an appellate court. Already, the judiciary was under attack: independent minded judges from the Islamabad High Court had written a letter to the Chief Justice about threats to their families from intelligence officers which still remain unaddressed. By allowing High Court judges’ transfers without consent with the threat of losing their jobs, the 27th amendment provides formal measures to coerce the judiciary into executive submission. Elsewhere, the amendment formally recognises military dominance through amendments to Article 243 by creating a Chief of Defence Forces position while also providing immunity for life to senior military officers, as well as retention of privileges of rank and employment. While government ministers have boasted about the effectiveness of the “hybrid” system ever since the 2024 elections, this outsized expansion in military power will further reduce space for civilian governance, while also institutionally weakening the military chain of command, centralising power in the office of the Army Chief.
This constitutional assault comes at a tenuous time for the 250 million people of Pakistan. The recent floods caused widespread destruction in communities already reeling from the devastating effects of the 2022 floods which left millions homeless. The World Bank recently noted that poverty had seen a sharp uptick due to economic shocks and lack of investment in human capital: more than 25% Pakistanis now face poverty, rising from 18% in 2022. Economic growth has stagnated despite steady increase in the population of young people entering the workforce, industry has slowed down, foreign investment remains truncated with many multinational companies leaving the Pakistani market. Further, the government’s failure to protect small-farmers and military takeover of farmlands has led to acute shortages of food and price inflation, again affecting the most marginalized communities. In this situation, further centralising of power will likely reduce prospects of investment in productive activities and kickstarting the economy which has sharply diverged from the paths taken by neighbouring India and Bangladesh. Most worryingly, record numbers of skilled Pakistanis are leaving the country: in 2024, Pakistan had the highest net emigration in the World. Though temporarily providing rents in the shape of remittances, the long-term consequences of this brain drain will be felt most acutely by future generations.
Simultaneously, Pakistan faces a dramatic resurgence in militancy and insurgency, especially in KP and Balochistan. The state’s use of brute force in place of dialogue and civilian outreach has also seen the return of drone attacks in the border areas, with civilian casualties explained away as collateral damage. Responding to this, the inhuman exodus of millions of Afghan migrants, many of who were born in Pakistan, by the current government under the pretext of security lays bare the human costs of militarised governance. Moreover, the government’s belligerence in dealing with Afghanistan threatens to drag the region into wider conflict. Rather than developing a comprehensive counterterrorism strategy rooted in civilian intelligence and community engagement, the regime has prioritized its own entrenchment.
We express solidarity with the people of Pakistan and demand a different path forward, one that rejects authoritarian consolidation and builds democratic institutions capable of addressing the nation’s crises. We do not need to underscore the importance of democratic legitimacy and accountability, Pakistan’s future depends on rejecting the authoritarian path embodied in the 27th Amendment. The nation needs transparent governance, an independent judiciary, civilian control of resources and security policy, and democratic institutions accountable to its people. We urge scholars, civil society, and legal minds throughout the world to unite in demanding a constitutional order that addresses the urgent crises citizens face.
If you would like to register your protest, please sign our open letter here.
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScASULnKJD1Ty0nR4ODBvOlWe7TKweSnYeXX59BLMkcJp3CRg/viewform
Signatories:
Nader Hashemi – Georgetown University
SherAli Tareen – Franklin and Marshall College
Shabana Mir – American Islamic College
David Swanson – World BEYOND War
Dina M. Siddiqi – New York University
Yahya Habib – Princeton University
Ramsha Khalid – Università triennale
Altaf Qadir – University of Peshawar
Muhammad Tariq Khan – The Education University of Hong Kong
Safa Naseem – New York University
Zain R. Mian – University of Toronto
Hussam Badi Uz Zaman – American University of Sharjah
Zahra Sabri – Habib University
Amjad Riaz – N/A
Vanlianthang Cinzah – University of Louvain
Khurram Shahzad – Orlando Health
Marzia Raza – Heidelberg University
Muhammad Salman – Heidelberg University
Dr Rai Mansoor Imtiaz – University of York
Sadaf Hasnain – Hunter College, CUNY
Zeynab Ali – Columbia University
Meena Nadeem – University Of Huddersfield
Azhar N. Hussain – Polk State College
Junaid Rahman – Aitchison College
Abdullah Ahsan – East West University’
Karim S Karim – University of Waterloo
Nadia Khan – N/A
Arsalan Khan – University of Tennessee, Knoxville
Amar Latif Qazi – Habib University
Syed Fazil Hussain – N/A
Muhammad Qasim Pasta
Shahnaz Ahad – The kidney Foundation
Sumbul Yousuf – – Habib University
Mahbubur Maruf – UICA
Mariam Saeed Khan – – Columbia University
Dr. Adnan Fateh – Forman Christian College, Lahore
Salwa Tareen – Leiden University
Amna Afreen – Baltimore City Public Schools
Sairah Zaidi – The Carter Center
Uzma Noorani – HRCP
Umer Zaib Khan – Nukta Pakistan
Abdul Moiz Jaferii – AMJ Law
Riaz Ahmed- Karachi University
Saleem Siddiqui – PAKPAC
Tahira Abdullah – – N/A
Dr.Faiz Muhammad – University of Karachi
Mehak Jehanzeb – NED
Habiba Hasan- Legal Aid Society
Faizullah Jan – The University of Peshawar
Asad Ullah- RNK & Co.
Farah Khan – Independent Lawyer
Aurangzaib Alizai – University of Balochistan
Mahnaz Rahman – HRCP
Shahnaz Ahad – N/A
Rabia Khan- Independent Lawyer
Rukhsana Rashid – N/A
Pervez Amirali Hoodbhoy – The Black Hole
Naheed Aziz – WAF Islamabad
Tahira Abdullah – N/A
Munizae Jahangir – Journalist
Lubna Nadeem – HRCP
Murtaza Ghumro – Advocate High Court
Imran M. Mahar – Independent Lawyer
Dr Asghar Dashti – Federal Urdu University Karachi
Syed Naseer Akhtar – University of Karachi
Sidra Ahmad – Bahria University
Dr. Anwer Sayeed – N/A
Yasmeen Kazi – N/A
Faisal Haq – Toronto Metropolitan University
Fatima Sajjad – The Pluriversity Lahore’
A. H. Awan – ICAP
Muzaffar Hussain – HRCP
Dr Mamnoon Ahmad Khan – Federal Urdu University Karachi
Naazish Ata-Ullah – HRCP
Zoobia Chaudhry – Johns Hopkins University
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