The United Nations' highest court ordered Pakistan on Wednesday to stay the execution of an alleged Indian spy and undertake a full review of his case, after agreeing with India's contention the man's rights had been violated in a case that has been a source of friction between the nuclear neighbors.
International Court of Justice President Abdulqawi Ahmed Yusuf said the panel of judges found 15-1 that Pakistan violated international law by not providing Kulbhushan Jadhav access to consular assistance or the ability to choose his own defense attorney.
Jadhav was arrested by Pakistan in 2016 after allegedly entering the country from Iran, and convicted of espionage and sabotage by a Pakistani military tribunal and sentenced to death in 2017.
Indian friends of Kulbhushan Jadhav, celebrate verdict of International Court of Justice in Mumbai, India, Wednesday, July 17, 2019. The United Nations' highest court has ordered that Pakistan stay the execution of Jadhav, an alleged Indian spy and ordered that his case be reviewed after agreeing with India's contention that his rights had been violated. (AP PhotoRajanish Kakade)
India had denied that Jadhav was a spy and asked the world court to order his release, arguing his rights were violated in breach of an international treaty.
The court rejected Pakistan's contention that Jadhav wasn't entitled to those rights, as "an individual suspected of espionage."
It did not, however, order Jadhav's return to India or annul the military court's decision.
Indian friends of Kulbhushan Jadhav, celebrate verdict of International Court of Justice in Mumbai, India, Wednesday, July 17, 2019. The United Nations' highest court has ordered that Pakistan stay the execution of Jadhav, an alleged Indian spy and ordered that his case be reviewed after agreeing with India's contention that his rights had been violated. (AP PhotoRajanish Kakade)
Pakistan's Foreign Ministry reiterated it believes "this is a clear care of Indian state terrorism," but indicated it would comply with the court's decision.
India and Pakistan routinely accuse each other of harboring terrorists.
"Pakistan, as a responsible member of the International community, upheld its commitment from the very beginning of the case by appearing before the honorable court for the provisional measures hearing despite a very short notice," the ministry said in a written statement. "Having heard the judgment, Pakistan will now proceed as per law."
Indian friends of Kulbhushan Jadhav, celebrate verdict of International Court of Justice in Mumbai, India, Wednesday, July 17, 2019. The United Nations' highest court has ordered that Pakistan stay the execution of Jadhav, an alleged Indian spy and ordered that his case be reviewed after agreeing with India's contention that his rights had been violated. (AP PhotoRajanish Kakade)
As a remedy, the U.N. court ordered Pakistan to "take all measures to provide for effective review and reconsideration including, if necessary, by enacting appropriate legislation."
Yusuf said it was up to Pakistan how to carry out the case's review but that "the right of defense of the accused should receive close scrutiny."
"The review and reconsideration of the conviction and sentence of Mr. Jadhav, in order to be effective, must ensure that full weight is given to the effect of the violation of the rights" in international conventions, Yusuf said.
As the case was being considered, the U.N. court had ordered Pakistan not to execute Jadhav, and extended that to now include Islamabad's review of the case.
"The court considers that a continued stay of execution constitutes an indispensable condition for the effective review and reconsideration of the conviction and sentence of Mr. Jadhav," Yusuf said.
The court's rulings are final and legally binding.
WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk expressed satisfaction on Monday after a series of candidates supported by his party won weekend races for mayor.
Candidates from his pro-European Union centrist Civic Coalition, or running with the party's backing, won in a series of cities in the second round of local elections held on Sunday, among them Krakow, Poznan, Wroclaw and Rzeszow.
“It is very difficult to clearly say who won and who lost,” Tusk said Monday. “But if we compare these results, especially in the most attractive places, on these attractive battlefields ... then I actually have reasons for satisfaction.”
“Law and Justice has simply disappeared in many places,” Tusk added at a news conference, referring to the main opposition party.
The results put Civic Coalition in a favorable position as the country looks next to elections to the European Parliament on June 9.
Mayors were chosen in a total of 748 cities and towns where no single candidate won at least 50% of the vote during the first round on April 7.
Candidates for Tusk’s party also recaptured cities where they had not held power for many years, including Zielona Gora, Legnica and Torun.
The local and regional elections were viewed as a test for Tusk's pro-European Union government four months after it took power at the national level. Sunday's second round strengthened the Tusk government's leverage in the cities, which should facilitate cooperation on development projects and allotment of EU funds.
Tusk's allies also won in some places in the first round two weeks ago, including in Warsaw, where incumbent Mayor Rafal Trzaskowski was an easy victor.
In the first round, the right-wing Law and Justice, prevailed on the level of regional assemblies in the country's 16 provinces, where it took 34.3% of the votes, while Tusk's Civic Coalition got 30.6%. Law and Justice governed on the national level from 2015-23.
Tusk’s socially liberal Civic Coalition traditionally has strong support in cities, while Law and Justice has a more solid base in conservative rural areas, particularly in eastern Poland.
Civic Coalition is the largest group in a three-party coalition that governs the EU nation of 38 million people. The coalition is pro-European Union but otherwise spans a wide ideological spectrum with left-wing politicians in the Left party as well as conservatives in the Third Way.
Polish voters take part in a local runoff election in Lomianki, near Warsaw, Poland on Sunday, April 21, 2024. Voters are choosing mayors who did not win outright in the first round of the election two weeks earlier. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski)
Campaign posters promote candidates as Poles vote in local and regional elections in Lomianki, near Warsaw, Poland on Sunday, April 21, 2024. Voters are choosing mayors who did not win outright in the first round of the election two weeks earlier. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski)
Polish voters take part in a local runoff election in Lomianki, near Warsaw, Poland on Sunday, April 21, 2024. Voters are choosing mayors who did not win outright in the first round of the election two weeks earlier. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski)
Polish voters take part in a local runoff election in Lomianki, near Warsaw, Poland on Sunday, April 21, 2024. Voters are choosing mayors who did not win outright in the first round of the election two weeks earlier. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski)
FILE - Poland's Prime Minister Donald Tusk reacts during his and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy meeting with students in Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, Jan. 22, 2024. Poland's Prime Minister Donald Tusk is celebrating a victory on Monday April 22, 2024 after a series of candidates supported by his party won weekend races for mayor. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky, File)
FILE - Poland's Prime Minister Donald Tusk listens to the media in Berlin, Germany, Friday, March 15, 2024. Tusk is celebrating a victory on Monday April 22, 2024 after a series of candidates supported by his party won weekend races for mayor. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi, File)
