Assembly who are elected from the general constituencies in East Pakistan should elect three women from East Pakistan to the National Assembly. Similarly those members of the National Assembly who are elected from the general constituencies in West Pakistan should elect three women from West Pakistan to that Assembly.
TREBAL AREAS
25. Special treatment to Tribal Areas. - The Tribal Areas of West Pakistan where special and tribal conditions prevail deserve special treatment in the matter of election of the President and Assembly members. The Tribal Areas are sparsely populated, and the population in some areas is nomadic. Means of communication and transport facilities within the Tribal Areas being very unsatisfactory, it is difficult to have access to many a place within those areas for contact with the people living therein. The Tribal people are conservative and strictly adhere to their customs and usages. The Tribal Maliks who wield much influence over the Tribal people of their respective areas guide them in almost all important affairs. The Tribal people adhere to the system of Jirga and abide by the decisions of the Jirga composed of elders and Tribal Maliks. The women folk of the Tribal Areas are very conservative, and their conservatism is rigidly guarded by the menfolk. The conservatism is So rigid that no one can even utter the name of a women without the risk of being reprimanded or punished. It is on account of these special tribal conditions that it may not be feasible to constitute electoral units within the Tribal Areas as required under Chapter 2 of Part VII of the Constitution and hold and conduct elections within those Areas in the same manner as in the settled areas of West Pakistan. It is, therefore, necessary that the constitutional provisions with regard to the formation of electoral units and the method of holding elections should be relaxed in the case of Tribal Areas, and the Election Commission should be empowered by law to make such arrangements in these matters as it may deem fit and proper for a realistic representation of the people of those Areas.
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SUMMARY OF THE CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
27. This Report answers fully the points involved in the terms of reference. The conclusions and recommendations which are partly unanimous and partly divided, as explained in the next succeeding paragraph are summed up as follows:
(i) That the electoral system prescribed by Chapter 2 of Part VII of the constitution is not an efficacious and appropriate instrument for realistic representation of the people for reasons given in paras 1, 12, and 13.
(ii) That universal adult franchise should be the basis of election of the President and members of the National and Provincial Assemblies (Para 10).
(iii) That every citizen who is aged 21 years or above and is not of unsound mind shall, if not otherwise disqualified, have a right to vote (Para 10).
(iv) That the election of members of the National and Provincial Assemblies should be direct and on the basis of universal adult suffrage (Para 11).
