ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice of Pakistan Yahya Afridi called for coordinated prison reforms and improved inmate welfare, stating that protecting prisoners' rights is a fundamental pillar of the criminal justice system and that improving prison conditions is a constitutional responsibility of provincial governments.
Addressing the National Conference on Prison Reforms at the Supreme Court, the chief justice said prisons are the ultimate measure of a country's criminal justice system, reflecting the performance of investigators, prosecutors and courts alike.
"If one wishes to assess whether the criminal justice system is functioning effectively, one must look beyond statistics and just visit a prison," he said.
Justice Afridi acknowledged that the justice system was not functioning perfectly, saying existing mechanisms such as judicial jail inspections and criminal justice coordination committees had not produced outcomes matching the urgency of the challenges.
"Reform begins with honesty," he said, adding that accountability must be shared by all institutions involved in the criminal justice chain.
The chief justice stressed that safeguarding the rights of inmates, including access to healthcare and clean drinking water, should remain a priority, while noting that improvements in the justice system would depend not only on court decisions but also on their effective implementation.
The National Judicial (Policy Making) Committee had identified key gaps in prison oversight, including delays in criminal cases and the ineffective functioning of statutory grievance redressal mechanisms inside prisons, he said.
To address these issues, the committee constituted provincial review teams comprising lawmakers from both the treasury and opposition who had previously served prison sentences, assisted by young lawyers. Their recommendations have since been forwarded to provincial governments for implementation.
Justice Afridi said the conference, attended by the chief ministers of all four provinces, chief justices of the superior courts, senior police officials and prison authorities, marked the first time all key stakeholders had come together to jointly discuss prison reforms.
He said the National Prison Reform Action Plan represented a collective commitment to move beyond piecemeal efforts through coordinated action among the judiciary, executive and provincial governments.
Calling for sustained institutional cooperation, the chief justice said meaningful prison reforms would ultimately strengthen Pakistan's entire criminal justice system and ensure it remained grounded in human dignity.
