II. PERVASIVE LACK OF DUE PROCESS Pakistan's criminal justice system is incapable of fairly adjudicating capital cases. The human rights violations described in this report are linked inextricably with structural and socioeconomic features of Pakistan's criminal justice system. Inadequate training and resources, widespread corruption, a culture of police brutality, an inadequate indigent defense system, and ineffective trial courts have created a permissive environment for the routine miscarriage of justice. Despite numerous efforts at reform,49 the system remains incapable of reliably administering the irreversible sanction of death. Under international law, the death penalty may only be imposed pursuant to a legal process that rigorously observes the procedural guarantees required under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.50 Based on the Covenant's mandate that “[n]o one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his life,”51 states may not impose the death penalty in the absence of a fair trial.52 The Human Rights Committee has specified that in trials involving capital punishment, states must observe “scrupulous respect of the guarantee of fair trial.”53 The Economic and Social Council has further stated that “[c]apital punishment may only be carried out pursuant to a final judgment rendered by a competent court after legal process which gives all possible safeguards to ensure a fair trial, at least equal to those contained in article 14” of the ICCPR.54 The execution of individuals in the absence of such protections may also constitute a violation of Article 7's prohibition on inhuman and degrading treatment.55 Examination of Pakistan's criminal justice system reveals striking flaws throughout the adjudicatory process. At each stage—arrest, charging, trial, appeal, and confinement—Pakistan fails to protect defendants' fundamental rights. The continued imposition of capital punishment violates international law. This section provides an overview of the various deficiencies endemic to Pakistan's adjudication of capital cases in the regular criminal courts as well as in the Anti-Terrorism Courts, which provide even fewer protections. Sections IV through XIII provide detailed discussions of some of the most serious violations: reliance on confessions obtained via torture, ineffective counsel for poor defendants, lack of procedural protections and resources required for a fair trial, placement of the burden of proof on defendants, and insufficient appellate review. A “MOST SERIOUS CRIME”: PAKISTAN'S UNLAWFUL USE OF THE DEATH PENALTY 6