Witness Protection Laws: The Missing Link in Pakistan’s Criminal Prosecution System — A Comparative Study of India, UK and the USA

Abstract

The absence of complete protection for witnesses and a properly secure witness protection system has, within the realm of criminal prosecution, led the rest of the world, particularly Pakistan, to term it a ‘major missing link’ error. This blunder gives birth to a frost-bitten environment where intimidation of witnesses becomes the daunting ‘hostile’ issue, coupled with, and resulting in, abysmally low prosecution rates in critical crimes such as terrorism and organized crime. With respect to what the study has found, the ‘constitution’ of the set federal laws is primitive, overly divided, and punishing as opposed to protective. On the contrary, provincial acts appear dysfunctional due to a lack of funding, split lack of will, and a condition of institutional paralysis, coordination, and political spiritedness in tackling an issue. Analyzing and comparing developing countries, Pakistan does share the tiered ‘Witness Protection Scheme’ with India, along with the United States of America with its complete WITSEC, as well as the ‘Special Measures’ provided in a court of the United Kingdom. These models