Legal Updates

Pakistani Protest

The Law Society, the association of Muslim Lawyers and the Bar Council have joined forces to urge the Paki­stani authorities to release and rein­state lawyers and judges imprisoned in following the recent consti­tutional crisis. All three groups were due to meet the High Commissioner of Pakistan this week. During the recent state of emergency, 1,734 lawyers and political activists were arrested in Punjab, 489 in Sindh and a further 800 lawyers in Lahore—and hundreds more in other areas. President Mushar­raf also suspended the constitution and sacked 12 of the 17 Supreme Court judges. Law Society president Andrew Holroyd says:”’The rule of law requires the judiciary and the legal profession to be independent and free from political interference.”

CREDIT CHECK

It will be easier to borrow money from banks in any European country after the European Parliament finally agreed to back the Consumer Credit Direc­tive. Fierce debate over the proposed Directive has raged since 2002, but agreement between the rowing politi­cal factions has now been reached. The new rules will apply to loans of between €200 and €75,000 but not to mortgages. Rules about advertising, pre-contract information, contracts and definitions will be harmonised, as will processes for calculating the full cost of a loan.

MINI CRIME WAVE

Police in have warned Brit­ish tourists to be on guard with their luggage following a spate of dwarf-related thefts. Criminal gangs are believed to have targeted the coach operator Swebus, and are using dwarfs—hidden within luggage and then stowed in the baggage compart­ment—to steal valuables from tourists’ bags. In recent months police have received reports of thefts worth thou­sands of pounds. A spokesman for police says: “We are look­ing at our records to identify criminals of limited stature.”