Syed Sharifuddin Pirzada
Encyclopedia
Syed Sharifuddin Pirzada NI, (born 12 June 1923, Burhanpur, Central Provincess) (British India) a direct descendant of Shaikh (Arabic: شيخ) Burhanuddin Raz-i-Ilahi (the Saint/Pir (Persian: پیر)) of the Shattar order in Burhanpur, who had, amongst others, Emperor Aurangzeb as his disciple), Barrister-at-Law
(Lincoln's Inn
) and a graduate in Law from Bombay University (British India) in 1945, Senior Advocate Supreme Court, is widely regarded as Pakistan's leading jurist and constitutional expert, playing a key role in constitutional continuity across several military coups. He is also considered an authority on the Pakistan independence movement.
Sharifuddin Pirzada has served a variety of senior government posts in his career. Until recently (March 2008) served as Honorary Senior Adviser to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs, Law, Justice and Human Rights with the status of Senior Federal Minister.
Barrister
A barrister is a member of one of the two classes of lawyer found in many common law jurisdictions with split legal professions. Barristers specialise in courtroom advocacy, drafting legal pleadings and giving expert legal opinions...
(Lincoln's Inn
Lincoln's Inn
The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn is one of four Inns of Court in London to which barristers of England and Wales belong and where they are called to the Bar. The other three are Middle Temple, Inner Temple and Gray's Inn. Although Lincoln's Inn is able to trace its official records beyond...
) and a graduate in Law from Bombay University (British India) in 1945, Senior Advocate Supreme Court, is widely regarded as Pakistan's leading jurist and constitutional expert, playing a key role in constitutional continuity across several military coups. He is also considered an authority on the Pakistan independence movement.
Sharifuddin Pirzada has served a variety of senior government posts in his career. Until recently (March 2008) served as Honorary Senior Adviser to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs, Law, Justice and Human Rights with the status of Senior Federal Minister.
- President International Law Association, Pakistan branch 1964-1967.
Senior posts with the Government of Pakistan
- Attorney General of PakistanAttorney General of PakistanThe Attorney General for Pakistan is appointed under Article 100 of the constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and the Deputy Attorney General of Pakistan appointed under the Central Law Officers Ordinance, 1970...
from 1965-1966. The youngest person ever to be appointed to that post and the longest serving. - Foreign Minister of PakistanForeign Minister of PakistanThe Foreign Minister of Pakistan heads the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The current Foreign Minister is Hina Rabbani Khar who took office as Minister of State for Foreign Affairs on 11 February 2011, and as full Minister of Foreign Affairs on 20 July, 2011...
from 1966-1968. - Represented Pakistan in the Commonwealth Head of Government Conference in 1966.
- Moved Resolution 2253 of the United Nations General AssemblyUnited Nations General AssemblyFor two articles dealing with membership in the General Assembly, see:* General Assembly members* General Assembly observersThe United Nations General Assembly is one of the five principal organs of the United Nations and the only one in which all member nations have equal representation...
on the “status of Jerusalem” in 1967. - Attorney General of Pakistan from 1968-1971.
- Represented Pakistan in the Commonwealth Law Ministers and Attorney Generals Conference 1971.
- President Afro-Asian Legal Consultative Committee, 1969.
- Attorney general for Pakistan from 1977-1985.
- Minister for Law and Parliamentary Affairs from 1979-1985.
- Caretaker Foreign Minister of Pakistan 1993.
- Appointed Honorary Roving Ambassador (with the status of Federal Minister) from 1995 –Current.
- Honorary Senior Advisor to the Chief Executive (CE) and Member (ex-officio) of the National Security Council of PakistanNational Security Council of PakistanThe Prime minister Secretariat National Security Council is a consultative body that is chaired by the President of Pakistan and Prime minister of Pakistan. It is a principal forum that is mandated for considering national security and foreign policy matters with the senior national security...
(NSC) from 1999-2008. - Honorary Senior Adviser to the Chief Executive (CE) on Foreign Affairs, Law, Justice and Human Rights (with the status of Senior Federal Minister) from 2002-2008.
Association with the Organisation of Islamic Conference
- Chairman of the Experts' Group for drafting the statue of the Islamic International Court of Justice.
- Served (elected unanimously) as Secretary General of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference 1985-1988. (This is the highest post that any Pakistani has served in at any international organization)
- Member of Committee of Eminent Jurists to review the OIC Charter 2007.
Represented Pakistan before various international forums and tribunals including
- Rann of KutchRann of KutchThe Great Rann of Kutch, also called Greater Rann of Kutch or just Rann of Kutch , is a seasonal salt marsh located in the Thar Desert in the Kutch District of Gujarat, India and the Sindh province of Pakistan....
Case 1965. - Counsel in the reference regarding Namibia (before the International Court of JusticeInternational Court of JusticeThe International Court of Justice is the primary judicial organ of the United Nations. It is based in the Peace Palace in The Hague, Netherlands...
) 1970. - Pakistan’s complaint against India in the matter of overflights at the International Civil Aviation OrganizationInternational Civil Aviation OrganizationThe International Civil Aviation Organization , pronounced , , is a specialized agency of the United Nations. It codifies the principles and techniques of international air navigation and fosters the planning and development of international air transport to ensure safe and orderly growth...
(ICAO) 1971. - Appointed Judge (ad hoc) International Court of JusticeInternational Court of JusticeThe International Court of Justice is the primary judicial organ of the United Nations. It is based in the Peace Palace in The Hague, Netherlands...
2000, making him only the second Pakistani to serve there.
Association with the United Nations
- Member United Nations Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities, 1972-1979 (Served as Chairman from 1977–1978).
- Chairman, Investigation and Working Group of Complaints of the United Nations Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities, 1978-1979.
- Leader of the Pakistani delegation to the Law of Sea Conference 1978-1980.
- Elected (by the UN General Assembly) to the International Law CommissionInternational Law CommissionThe International Law Commission was established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948 for the "promotion of the progressive development of international law and its codification."It holds an annual session at the United Nations Office at Geneva....
, 1981-1986. - Leader of Pakistani Delegation to the UN Human Rights Commission, 1995.
Publications
- Pakistan at a Glance, Bombay 1941.
- Jinnah on Pakistan, Bombay 1943.
- Leaders Correspondence with Jinnah.
- Evolution of Pakistan, Karachi 1962 (also published in UrduUrduUrdu is a register of the Hindustani language that is identified with Muslims in South Asia. It belongs to the Indo-European family. Urdu is the national language and lingua franca of Pakistan. It is also widely spoken in some regions of India, where it is one of the 22 scheduled languages and an...
and Arabic). - Fundamental Rights and Constitutional Remedies in Pakistan, LahoreLahoreLahore is the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab and the second largest city in the country. With a rich and fabulous history dating back to over a thousand years ago, Lahore is no doubt Pakistan's cultural capital. One of the most densely populated cities in the world, Lahore remains a...
1966. - The Pakistan Resolution and the historic Lahore Session. IslamabadIslamabadIslamabad is the capital of Pakistan and the tenth largest city in the country. Located within the Islamabad Capital Territory , the population of the city has grown from 100,000 in 1951 to 1.7 million in 2011...
1970. - Foundation of Pakistan (3 volumes), 1971.
- Some Aspects of Quaid-i-Azam’s Life 1978.
- Collected Works of Quaid-i-Azam Jinnah (3 volumes).
- Dissolution of Constituent Assembly of Pakistan, KarachiKarachiKarachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...
1985.
External links
- http://www.pirzada.com
- BBC Hardtalk interview of Syed Sharifuddin Pirzada