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" An Appraisal of Pakistan's Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997 An Appraisal of Pakistan's Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997 By Barrister Syed Shahbal Ali From the time the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997 came into effect there have been many misinterpretations around its application. With the interpretation of the definition of Terrorism the emphasis shifted from one criterion to another including the gravity of the act, lethal nature of the weapon used, plurality of culprits, number of victims, impact created by the act, and the effect of fear and insecurity brought about or likely to be created in society by the action. Ultimately, due to the vague and unclear definition and perhaps the mindset inherited by us in the background of the Summary Military Courts, Speedy Trial Courts and Special Courts for Suppression of Terrorist Activities, which were different courts constituted at different stages in the past for separate and special handling of offences of grave nature, the cases being sent to the Anti-Terrorism Courts ("ATC") and being tried by the ATC never belonged there. A key misunderstanding that existsis regarding the objective vs subjective nature of the assessment of the act of terrorism. The standard of assessment can make all the difference between a finding of guilt and a finding of innocence. The subjective standard requires the prosecutor to prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the accused intended his or her actions while the objective standard requires the prosecutor to prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, that a reasonable person in the accused's position would have intended his or her actions. It has been made clear through judgments that an objective standard is to be applied to ascertain whether or not an accused had intended to commit an act of terrorism. This…