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There is a need to pool our resources to simplify the existing system and
explore alternate ways for resolving disputes. Dr. Abdul Hafeez Shaikh Federal
Minister for Privatisation & Investment stated this in his opening address
here today at the conference on arbitration under the title 'Privatisation of
Justice' organized by Mandivalla & Zafar Law from the forum of SAARC Law,
which is the prime organisation representing legal community, judges and
jurists from all the SAARC nations.
Dr. Hafeez Shaikh said that a private justice system assigned the State a role
of just another commercial partner, ensuring that non-commercial issues would
not be aired. Pakistan has recently promulgated an ordinance ratifying the New
York Convention on the recognition and enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Award,
he said.
He stated that our current judicial system does not fully cater to settle
commercial disputes, which was required to be resolved through specialized
procedures and by experts with a different mindset. The government was
supportive of the investors' access to third-party arbitration to settle
investment disputes, such as the facilities of the World Bank's International
Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes, he added.
He further stated that just and speedy resolution of disputes was now of
essence in the commercial market and Pakistan has begun to accept as binding
the international arbitration of investment disputes in some its
privatisation major processes, which has brought further credibility to the
privatisation program of Pakistan and boosted the process itself.
The Minister said that there was growth in private capital inflows to
developing countries while official capital flows were declining by 32 billion
between 2001 and 2004 while net private inflows increased by 140 billion. FDI
has also been increasing, but out of the total of 165 billion to developing
countries, it was highly concentrated in a few large ones and 88 percent of
the increase gone only to five countries, therefore, in order to attract FDI
efforts were required through domestic reforms, improved climate and the legal
system, which was one of the keys, he stated.
Giving the details of the court cases in the process of privatisation, he said
that 1050 cases were filed from 1991 to October 2005, out of which 903 were
disposed of while now 147 were pending. Later, panel discussions were
conducted among the legal experts.
In past also SAARC Law held various conferences all over the SAARC nations,
which were attended by the Heads of State of SAARC Countries. The objective of
the conference was to provide a solution to offering an alternative medium,
other than litigation for settling commercial disputes lawfully in order to
make Pakistan a business friendly environment in form of establishment of an
arbitration center in Pakistan. This will attract investors to Pakistan, both
foreign and local by offering them viable alternatives in order to overcome
rigours of litigation, causing losses in terms of time and money.