New Delhi: The Commonwealth Secretariat Tuesday published the Stellenbosch Draft of the ‘Commonwealth Military Justice Principles’, comprising 10 basic principles that outline the bare minimum expectations from any system of military justice.
These pertain to adherence to the principles of separation of powers, rule of law, impartiality, independence and competence of adjudicators and prosecution, rights of the accused, open-access, and appellate rights.
Signed on 7 November in Stellenbosch town of South Africa, the draft seeks to “reaffirm” and “reiterate” the Commonwealth’s belief “that an independent, effective, and competent legal system is integral to upholding the rule of law”.
The draft further aims to “recognise” the unique roles military justice systems play to reflect the nature of the armed forces defending their nations and international security.
The Commonwealth is an international body comprising 56 nations, including India, that promotes democracy, good governance, peace and the rule of law.
The principles laid down in the Stellenbosch Draft state that when it comes to military justice, it must be ensured that the law and procedure relating to military justice are reviewed at regular intervals to ensure their compliance with best practices and developments in international domestic jurisdictions.
They pertain to the categories of military justice, judges in military courts, non-judicial members in military courts, jurisdiction, prosecution, protection of victims, rights of accused, open and accessible proceedings, executive review and appeals and summary proceedings.
The principles further aim to enhance the support for discipline, operational effectiveness and morale of the armed forces, to extend the laws of the country to personnel outside the relevant country’s general jurisdiction, and to ensure accountability and compliance with international and domestic law.
The military principles have been drafted and signed by a 15-member “committee of experts”, comprising two Indian lawyers — Major Navdeep Singh (retd) and Aishwarya Bhati — who have a background in military law.
For the formulation of the military principles, a five-member global advisory committee was constituted by the Commonwealth Secretariat earlier this year and a 10-member global consultation group was thereafter constituted on the recommendations of the advisory committee.
The members of the advisory committee were judge Alan Large from the UK; Navdeep Singh, advocate Punjab & Haryana High Court; chief judge Kevin Riordan from New Zealand; Dr Michelle Nel, Vice Dean, University of Stellenbosch; and Professor Eugene Fidell from Yale University in the US. The consultation group included Bhati.
Chandigarh-based Navdeep Singh specialises in constitutional and service matters and is a former Territorial Army volunteer-reservist and founder president of the Armed Forces Tribunal Bar Association.
Bhati is a senior advocate of the Supreme Court and the Additional Solicitor General of India. She represented petitioners in the landmark judgments which authorised “permanent commission” to women officers of the defence services.
The Stellenbosch principles are expected to be a valuable resource for legal, judicial, academic and public policy guidance.
(Edited by Nida Fatima Siddiqui)
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