Police Story

By Amir Zia
The News
September 30, 2013

Until the police force is free from political interference and can work independently, all operations and crackdowns on criminals and terrorists will remain symbolic and meaningless

When Shahid Hayat Khan took charge as additional inspector general of police in Karachi on September 12 in the wake of the massive reshuffle of the Sindh Police by the provincial government, he became the fifth officer to hold this highly politicized, but coveted slot in a period of less than nine months.
Before Khan’s appointment as Additional IG Karachi, only one out of his four predecessors managed to last in this office for six months. This lucky officer was Iqbal Mehmood, who held this position from mid-Sept 2012 to mid-March 2013. But when Mehmood was again brought on the same slot after a five-week break – during which Ghulam Shabbir Shaikh held this position – his stint barely lasted eight weeks (April 23 to mid-June). Ghulam Qadir Thebo, who followed Mehmood, could survive in this position for only three months.
Ten officers have come and gone in the position of IG Sindh in less than six years. This means that the average lifespan on the top slot in the Sindh police force is less than seven months.
The other senior cadre positions in the Sindh Police – from deputy inspectors general to assistant superintendents – have similar short terms – both in the rural and urban areas. This stands in violation of the Police Order 2002, which says that cadre appointments should be for a three-year period. But our elected representatives are hardly fond of this police order and have already diluted it through a series of legislations. In fact, the 19th century colonial-era police system has been brought back by our chosen ones.
The situation of the non-cadre police officials, especially the station house officer (SHO) – is even worse. Here, according to senior police officials, the average term lasts barely two months.
Police officials have to perform a high-wire act not just to get key appointments, but also to maintain them under the PPP-led provincial government, which has been running the show here since early 2008 and has successfully managed to distort and destroy the system. Background interviews conducted with senior officials reveal that there remain only two options to get a position or survive in the Sindh Police under the people’s rule; first, through political connections and displaying and pledging loyalty to the elected masters and second, by paying them outright bribes. No wonder police stations are auctioned and sold and only those officers are selected for important assignments who serve their political mentors or are willing to pay the price in cash or kind. For upright and honest police officers options stand limited. Either you compromise or get sidelined. Senior police officials just don’t have to meet demands of the chief minister or the provincial home minister, but any lawmaker belonging to the ruling party worth his salt manages to interfere in department’s internal matters as well as policing.
Most PPP ministers and elected representatives even want SHOs of their choice in their areas, confides a former inspector general of police. Demands such as freeing, favouring and protecting criminals – from the dark alleys of Lyari in Karachi to the desolate wilderness of Dadu – remains an ongoing process and a favourite pastime of many of our elected representatives.
The irony for many police officials – themselves notorious for extracting bribes – is that they have to literally pay weekly or monthly sweeteners in cash to some of the PPP’s provincial lawmakers and local leaders to stay in their good books. According a PPP contact, some ward-level presidents of the party now demand gifts such as a car or motorcycle from SPs and DIGs of their respective areas.
This one may call a classical case of a predator becoming a victim – the ‘perfect revenge’ of democracy from its onetime tormentors.
But on a serious note, the people’s rule in Sindh has further eroded the credibility of the police and dragged it deeper into the pit of corruption and inefficiency. From the process of police recruitments to that of transfers – everything has become highly politicised under the PPP’s rule. “The police have directly become part of the nexus that exists between politics and crime”, said a senior serving police officer, requesting anonymity. “It has now become a force that is part of the problem rather than an institution focused on beating crime. The morale of the force is down and it is steeped in corruption.”
Many of the reforms initiated under the former military-led rule, including the selection of lower cadre officials through the public service commission, have been scrapped by the elected government. Instead of encouraging merit, they want to dole out government jobs to favourites or simply raise money for themselves by selling them to the highest bidder.
And obviously when a police officer has to pay hundreds of thousands of rupees in bribes to political bosses, his first desire is to get this ‘investment’ back in the shortest span of time along with profit so he can bid for the next position. This has introduced a constant atmosphere of uncertainty and adhocism in the police force and wrecked its morale.
This kind of corruption and inefficiency was hardly expected from a party that once was led by Benazir Bhutto and Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. But this is a different day and age and a different party.
In the complex world of Sindh politics, where crime and politics go hand-in-hand and all the major political parties remain deeply involved in patronising crime and criminals, sponsoring killers, kidnappers, extortionists, and encroachers’ mafias, this is just another twist. It also casts shadows on the much-publicised operation in Karachi and establishment of rule of the law in the province.
Until the police force is free from political interference and can work independently, all operations and crackdowns on criminals and terrorists will remain symbolic and meaningless. The reshuffle of police officers would never do the trick until the rulers address the structural flaws in the police department and introduce reforms.
A small, but necessary step in this direction would be to make appointments for a fixed period of three years on both cadre and non-cadre positions – at least up to the SHO level. The officer should only be removed if found involved in misconduct, corruption or violation of law. And once removed after an independent inquiry, they should not be reinstated on any other position for a fixed term – depending on the gravity of the offence.
There is also a need to create an independent bipartisan commission to keep a check on the conduct of the force to ensure that it acts within the framework of law.
The recruitment and training process of the force also needs a major overhaul to ensure merit and efficiency. Today, police training – based on the 19th century colonial-era manual – has become a joke as many recruits manage to avoid it by paying bribes. Even positions in its examinations are doled out on recommendation or payments of hefty amounts of bribe. These corrupt practices need to be done away with. Instead, modern investigation and policing methods should be introduced to meet the current law and order challenges.
But more importantly, the police department needs sweeping reforms and fresh legislation where necessary which must include revising the pay scale of the force. A force that offers only peanuts as salaries to its low and mid-ranking members is bound to indulge in corruption and abuse of authority.
In any civilian setup, the police remain the vanguard in fighting crime. Its officers and men need the confidence that they can stand for the law without the fear of being victimised by their political bosses. They need to take pride in their uniform and be able hold the rich and the powerful accountable if they violate the law – from breaking a traffic rule to any bigger offence.
If our rulers are sincere about bringing peace and fighting crime, let’s make ‘freeing the police’ from the clutches of the politicians a top priority. This will be a step forward.

The HazeOf Talks

By Amir Zia
Monday, Sept 23, 2013
The News

Our salvation lies in talks, even repeating the mantra of talks for the sake of talks. Come hell or fire, let’s talk. This is all we can do.
 
It is heartening to know that Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan has told the National Assembly on September 19 that there won’t be any change “in the government’s position on talks with (the local) Taliban” even after the assassination of Maj-Gen Sanaullah Khan and other Pakistan Army personnel in a roadside bomb explosion in Upper Dir earlier this month. This is what one may call courageously keeping on course for peace come hell or high water.
The same day, the Foreign Office said that dialogue with the local Taliban remains Pakistan’s “internal affair” and any “reaction” from the outside world would be considered as interference in Pakistan’s “domestic affairs.” These are also brave words underlining the government’s unwavering resolve of brokering peace with the Al-Qaeda-inspired-and-linked local militants, who just want to use the Pakistani territory to foment violence and terrorism in various parts of the world to punish ‘infidels’ and impose their brand of Islam in the country by getting rid of the ‘evil democratic system’ and its ‘satanic constitution’.
The day these inspiring and morale-boosting words of our interior minister and Foreign Office were carried in this newspaper, a front-page news story also informed that a bombing at a Peshawar mosque killed three people. These worshippers were attending a ‘Mehfil-e-Naat’ when the attack occurred. Also the same day, there was a report of a hand grenade attack at an Imam Bargah in Karachi, killing one person and wounding16 others.
The same paper enlightened us that militants handed over a list of 50 prisoners to the ruling party’s former lawmaker, Ibrahim Paracha, demanding their release.
This snapshot of one day’s The News shows that the Islamic Republic – Mashallah – is heading in the right direction. Sooner or later – Inshallah – there will be a peace deal with these ‘soldiers of Islam’ and we will live happily after. Let’s not doubt it – for we are a people of great faith.
The few deaths reported in the media are nothing but just faceless numbers. After all we have seen and lived through much worse and blood-soaked days. An addition of a few more bodies, probably a dozen, a hundred or two hundred, or perhaps more – say thousand or a couple of thousands – in the small, negligible pile of 50,000 plus such victims of terrorism that also include more than 4,000 security personnel, can be endured.
Pain, trauma, loss and grief are nothing more than unnecessary adjectives. Sooner or later, this emotional phase will fade away. Time will heal every wound. Statesmanship requires delicate navigation through the minefield of those insane voices that cry for a crackdown on these God-fearing, pious, religiously upright and brave fighters of Islam, who just want to run a state within state and expand their turf from the mountainous tribal areas to the settled areas – from Peshawar to Karachi – which have now become unsettled thanks to their holy interventions.
The only small offence of these devout warriors, if one may like to call it, is of carrying out a string of bombings at countless mosques, shrines, congested bazaars, a few hotels, attacking the military headquarters and a handful of other sensitive installations and slitting throats of soldiers, paramilitary troops etc. And that too, spanning just over a decade or slightly more. These small ‘actions’ and slight breaches of law can be forgiven and forgotten for the sake of peace – perhaps at their terms in the larger national interest.
Yes, the geographical and ideological boundaries of the world’s lone Islamic nuclear power remain secure. The small problem of Pakistani armed forces and their installations being unsafe within the country is a mere footnote. It should not raise any eyebrows. As our prime minister has rightly said following the killing of the major general that the armed forces have made “substantial” sacrifices in this unwanted conflict. In the course of time, these substantial sacrifices have the chance of becoming great sacrifices as the militants continue to fight, while our rulers implore and beg for talks.
Those calling for fighting the local Taliban, their allied bands of warriors organised under the banner of Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, Jandullah, this jaish or that harkat, their dissident factions, or faceless cells are western stooges (please read: American agents).
These misguided ones are working against Pakistan by asking the state to establish its writ on its territory. How can that be? The Islamic Emirates of Pakistan…(oops sorry, it is still an Islamic Republic) is the fortress of Islam. If not under a stated policy, at least in practice, here all are free to do whatever they want in the name of Islam. This not only includes Pakistani fighters, but Arabs, Chechens, Uzbeks, Afghans, Indonesians…whosoever manages to sneak in or openly walk into the country.
The former military ruler unnecessarily provoked holy warriors when he tried to stop them from operating from the Pakistani soil. He should not have listened to the world or the United Nations Security Council. Rather some direct advice from Afghan Ameerul Mominneen Mullah Omar, or the martyred Osama bin Laden or any of his aides should have been the preferred choice. Even the wise counsel of clerics of the Lal Mosque in Islamabad or leaders of the once active Pak-Afghan Defence Council would have served him and the country better.
The government should talk to the TTP and its likes without any preconditions. And it won’t be any crime if for the sake of talks, the government yields to some or all of their demands, including pulling out troops from some of the militants’ infested areas. If our estranged brothers continue to explode bombs, the government must make bigger bangs by issuing statements and crying for talks. If they attack and kill our soldiers, officers and civilians, we must continue to stay on the righteous course of negotiations. The holy ones should remain free to kick and punch us (metaphorically speaking as in reality they simply kill), violate the law of the land, undermine the country’s sovereignty, but we should still talk of peace and negotiations – for they are one of us.
The government’s policy of repeating the mantra of national pride, national security, and sovereignty of the state can only be advanced through the September 9 All-Parties Conference resolutions, which also plead for talks with militants. Our words speak louder. Who cares about actions? Inaction, coupled by high-sounding words and phrases should be able to do the trick for us. Therefore, the government must talk, talk, and talk to everyone…we must wheel and deal with militants. The issues of world reaction or the use of Pakistani territory for terrorism around the world will be dealt with later. We must have faith that the free world and the brother Islamic countries will come to rescue us at the last minute no matter what we do.
In this stream of consciousness or unconsciousness – depending on how one takes it – the government should also abandon the operation in Karachi against all the politically-connected gangsters, extortionists, kidnappers, and killers and instead talk to them. The operation is a waste of time and energy. Given our record, we don’t have much appetite or spine for fighting. After all, the local Tehreek-e-Taliban also indulges in many of these small crimes. When the government can talk to one set of militants or criminals – whatever a reader would like to call them – then why not the other?
The ruling Pakistan Muslim League, its band of allies, the opposition – those forces that attended the APC and hold the destiny of the 180 million plus Pakistanis in their hands – represent the collective wisdom and will of this nation. We must believe in the sagacity and political acumen of the APC leaders. Like the past, they never can be wrong and can make no mistakes. The government should not pay any heed to those advocating the use of force against militants. Our salvation lies in talks, even repeating the mantra of talks for the sake of talks. Come hell or fire, let’s talk. This is all we can do.

Inviting Catastrophe

By Amir Zia
The News
September 16, 2013

Emotional posturing against the US drone strikes and attempts to neutralise terrorists through the policy of appeasement are not going to help.  

It is now official. By offering talks to the ‘Pakistani Taliban’, the government-sponsored All-Parties Conference (APC) has formally handed over a strategic and morale-boosting advantage to the Al-Qaeda inspired and linked local extremists operating in the tribal areas of the country. 
The APC resolution of September 9 gives a loud and clear message to insurgents as well as to the world that the Pakistani state is too weak to stand against a determined and resolute enemy and lacks the capacity and will to establish its writ. Rather than dispensing justice and working towards establishing rule of law, it prefers to negotiate and wheel and deal with those non-state actors who are responsible for slaying thousands of Pakistani soldiers, attacking sensitive military installations and killing countless innocent civilians, including women and children.
The ‘collective wisdom’ of our ruling elite as reflected in the APC resolution should send shivers down the spines of all those patriotic Pakistanis committed to Quaid-e-Azam Mohammed Ali Jinnah’s vision of a modern, progressive and democratic Pakistan. The declaration fails to grasp the gravity of the situation. It appears simplistic and naïve in tone and content and follows the tried, tested and failed strategy of appeasing extremists who defy and challenge the constitution and sovereignty of the state. This APC declaration would serve to further embolden violent non-state actors, and their supporters, who are trying to expand influence, dictate terms and run a state within the state.
Although the declaration says that “the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Pakistan are paramount and must be safeguarded at all costs”, in reality and in spirit it has undermined the state and its institutions. By offering talks, the civil and military leadership has implicitly accepted these militants as equal and legitimate stakeholders, forgiving and forgetting all their heinous crimes and atrocities committed in the sacred name of Islam. This policy will have dangerous implications for the country’s politics and encourage other such shadowy players – organised under the banner of various lashkars, sipahs and jamiats – to follow similar tactics. It is also a blow to the morale and confidence of all those who supported and stood loyal to the state and made sacrifices in this conflict. 
Interior Minister Chaudhary Nisar’s ‘innocent’ assertion that “a dictator” dragged Pakistan into this unwanted and unnecessary conflict is flawed and exposes the limits of his imagination.
The conflict started when the then government, in line with its international responsibility and resolutions of the United Nations Security Council, attempted to ensure that Pakistani territory was not used for planning and fomenting terrorism and violence in neighbouring countries and around the world. This international obligation meant eradication of terrorists’ safe havens in the tribal areas where thousands of foreign militants and their local supporters have been operating. 
The facts speak for themselves. 
Osama bin Laden was found hiding on Pakistani soil. So are many other kingpins of Al-Qaeda and other extremist groups from Chechens to Uzbeks and Indonesians to Afghans. Pakistani authorities had been pressing the local warlords to abandon their support to these foreigners and hand them over to their respective countries for justice. But such a deal couldn’t be pulled through. Had the security forces not moved against these militants and attempted to establish the writ of the state in these areas, we would have been witnessing more than US drone attacks on our soil.
However, Pakistan’s internal contradictions and the mishandling of the war against terrorism by the United States and its Nato allies, in which they failed to address Islamabad’s concerns about Afghanistan’s 21st century Great Game, prevented a just solution to this conflict. But this does not mean that Pakistan should shut its eyes to the presence of international terrorists and their local allies, who have both regional and global ambitions. Dealing with these elements remains in our national interest and is a must to avoid making Pakistan a pariah state. The policy of self-denial followed by the mainstream political and religious parties won’t help Pakistan.
The international fallout should not be the only concern. Defeating these forces and the extremist mindset is all the more important for Pakistan’s own sake to prevent it from sliding into complete anarchy and collapse.
Ironically, none of the political parties including those which portray themselves as democratic, liberal and secular, have been able to raise themselves to the challenge and come up with a strong counter narrative to the religious and right-wing parties which have been acting as cheerleaders of the extremists and declaring this conflict for Pakistan’s survival as an ‘American war’.
The bitter fact is that the civilian leadership has been failing to give the much-needed support to the armed forces which have been acting as the vanguard in this conflict and declaring it to be ‘Pakistan’s war’.
Another ominous sign is that like the previous two APCs, the latest one also fell short of defining the rules of engagement or setting any pre-conditions for talks. Any negotiations between two forces are a game of give and take. The question is what the government plans to concede to the militants. Will it allow foreign extremists to continue to operate from Pakistan’s territory unchallenged and unchecked? 
Will it allow them to rule parts of Pakistan according to their narrow and controversial interpretation of Islam, which has few takers even among learned ulema and clerics and the majority of Pakistani Muslims? Will it free all the terrorists and return the weapons and ammunition seized from their possession? Will it concede that Pakistan’s constitution is against the principles of Islam and democracy is an ‘evil system’? And will the government agree to pull back troops from the restive tribal areas to appease these militants? All these remain pertinent questions and need categorical answers not just from the government but all those political forces that advocate talks with the militants. 
It is also shocking that our political leadership seems to take these non-state actors as a monolith force with a central command and control. Our security establishment must have explained Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, his close aides and the leaders of the main opposition parties the complex nature of this extremist challenge in which sectarian, Islamist, pan-Islamist and Afghanistan-specific small and big bands of warriors and terrorists overlap and support one another’s efforts as well as carry out operations independently. There are cells and sub-cells within each group, many of which see the Pakistan Army as their number one enemy. These forces are targeting the armed forces directly as well as trying to penetrate its ranks.
The APC’s declaration that “we reaffirm our complete trust and confidence in our valiant armed forces and assure them of our full solidarity and support in overcoming any challenge to our national security or threat to our national interests” is simply not enough. The politicians will have to match their words with actions.
It is sad to see the intellectual bankruptcy and dishonesty of the civilian leadership, which remains unable to grasp the seriousness and enormity of the challenge posed by the extremist and terrorist groups. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his team seem devoid of the resolve, courage and ideas needed to pull the country out of this crisis. In fact, they have become hostage to those elements that want to keep Pakistan in the pit.
Emotional posturing against the US drone strikes and attempts to neutralise terrorists through the policy of appeasement are not going to help. The only way forward is to defeat these parochial forces by evolving a holistic counter-terrorism strategy, which should include both the determined use of force and challenging them ideologically on each every platform. 
But so far there are no signs that our leaders are prepared to do what is required of them. They are applying the same failed formula and are hoping to get a different result. Yes, we are sleepwalking towards an imminent disaster. Despite all these bombings, suicide attacks, jailbreaks and targeted killings, our leaders refuse to open their eyes and see the danger.

Bringing Normalcy & How

By Amir Zia

The News on Sunday
September 15, 2013

Trying to tackle challenges in Karachi from the narrow prism of an operation is a flawed approach

Do we need rocket science to beat street crime, curb extortion, and stop targeted assassinations in the country’s industrial and commercial hub of Karachi? Why, after every few years, this restive port city gets caught in a situation where nothing less than an “operation” is seen as a necessary evil to establish the rule of law?

Governments have come and gone, but sadly, the pattern of managing Karachi has by-and-large remained unchanged. Despite all the big promises and the so-called successive massive operations, Karachi continues to remain one of the most dangerous mega-cities of the world.

Here, on an average, nearly 1,800 people are killed every year since the country’s historic return to democracy in 2008 that unleashed a wave of unabated political, sectarian, ethnic, and religiously motivated violence among the key power players — including the coalition partners of the yesteryears — as they fought bloody turf wars to expand or protect their domains and financial stakes.

The politically-connected extortion and crime mafias literally destroyed the investor and business-friendly image of the city, making life a living hell for many of its citizens, who have nowhere to turn to for justice and protection.

The mega collapse of law and order is the collective failure of the political and security institutions, which only have to play by the book, act fairly, and with a little sense of purpose to bring peace in Karachi. But narrow, vested and political interests, rampant corruption and greed have so far prevented decision-makers from making the right choices and going for obvious solutions.

To begin with, fighting crime, terrorism and lawlessness is a 24/7 job. It needs to be done all 365 days of the year. Trying to tackle these challenges from the narrow prism of an operation is basically a wrong approach as it fails to address the structural flaws and weaknesses of the system that breeds and encourages criminals and terrorists.

If the federal and provincial governments and the security establishment are sincere in bringing peace to this traumatised city, they must abandon the practice of supporting and patronising one set of politically or religiously-linked group of criminals and terrorists against the other.

In the early 1990s, the security establishment openly supported militants belonging to one of the MQM’s dissident factions, organised under the banner of MQM Haqqiqi, in an attempt to dislodge Altaf Hussain’s loyalists from the city. Rather than going for even-handed crackdown against criminals and terrorists, the then establishment made the entire exercise controversial by its “selective justice”.

And it was not just one group that enjoyed this kind of support and patronage. There are several other known and shadowy religious and political groups and factions that had ties with officials in the security establishment.

Unfortunately, this practice continues even today.

The banned Peoples’ Aman Committee of Lyari — seen responsible for running the major rackets of extortion, gun running, drug paddling, kidnappings and street crimes in today’s Karachi — is being supported not just by some of the Pakistan Peoples’ Party (PPP) stalwarts, but also the rogue element within the security establishment.

This should explain the easy flight of the committee’s leader Uzair Baloch via Iran to Muscat and then to Dubai despite the High Court’s order for his arrest.

And it is not just the Aman Committee that enjoys cozy relations with some top government and security establishment functionaries. If one believes the police “folklore”, even militants belonging to the banned sectarian and al Qaeda-inspired Islamic terrorists groups have their sponsors in the official quarters.

When arrested by the police, they often have to be freed over the intervention of the ‘visible’ and ‘invisible’ security agencies’ officials. This should offer food for thought to our civil and military leaders, who should take firm measures to end such criminal practices.

The second important step is to free the police department of political interference. Politicisation of the police and law enforcement agencies is the biggest obstacle in fighting crime and terrorism, says a former inspector general of police requesting anonymity. “From the recruitment process to getting key appointments, it is all done either on the basis of bribery or recommendations (sifarish) of the political bosses,” he says. “Even many fresh recruits manage to avoid training and get their examinations cleared by using political influence or paying bribes.”

A police force selected and appointed in this manner could hardly prove a vanguard in the fight against crime. Therefore, reforming the police should be among the top-most priorities if the government is sincere in walking its good talk.

During the previous and the current PPP rule in Sindh, the police department has transformed into a mere pawn in the hands of the political bosses. They oversee the appointment of station house officers (SHOs) at the police stations to that of senior officials. No wonder, the average tenure of police officials in any slot in the city has been reduced to only a few months rather than three years as specified in the 2002 Police Order.

Most police officers get postings by paying huge bribes and struggle to get this money back with profit during the limited time they get on one position. They try to serve and appease their political masters rather than standing for the law and protecting the people.

The recent reshuffle of the police force in Karachi should be seen in this context and be a matter of concern rather than relief. All key appointments, including that of SHO, superintendent of police, deputy inspector general or inspector general must be for a fixed three-year term. These officials should only be removed on disciplinary grounds and, if punished, not reappointed.

According to a senior PPP leader, who requested anonymity, some police officials even pay weekly bribes to the powerful PPP MPAs in Karachi. Even the ward-level PPP leaders in rural Sindh demand their pound of share from the police that could include a “gift” ranging from a new car to a motorcycle or a few thousand to several hundred thousand rupees.

Bringing back police into a neutral mood and freeing it from political pressures is one of the keys to successfully fighting crime and terrorism in the city.

Another link in this chain remains the specialised training for the police force. According to senior police officials, the whole police training manual is outdated as it banks on the 19th century syllabus. There is an urgent need to introduce modern investigation and crime fighting techniques that cannot be done without raising the bar of education and making appointments on merit at all the levels.

Reforming the police is also a must to improve the prosecution and conviction rate, which currently stands at a dismal less than 10 percent. This scenario hardly serves as deterrence against crime and terrorism.

Evolving a fair and credible accountability mechanism for the police is also the need of the hour to ensure that officials involved in wrongdoings, corruption, or highhanded actions can be held accountable.

The dissemination of quick justice also remains pivotal for establishing the rule of law. Today, cases keep dragging on for decades — from grandfather to grandson. This needs to be changed. And it cannot be done without overhauling the legal system. “Ideally, there should be only trial court and one appeal court,” says the former IG police. “Also, the government should immediately lift moratorium on the death penalty that remains in place since 2008. It has introduced a dichotomy in the legal system and serving people involved in heinous crimes.”

Until the authorities show zero tolerance toward crime and criminals and ensure that they take action without any consideration of political, ethnic or sectarian affiliations, bringing peace in Karachi would remain only a pipe dream.

But reforming the police and even-handed action against politically-connected criminals and mafias will serve as the first crucial step in bringing normalcy to this traumatised city. The other mid- to long-term steps should include establishing an effective city government in Karachi, improving its infrastructure, and giving it a modern mass transit system. Without ensuring such steps, Karachi won’t be able to regain its former role of serving as the main hub of business and economy activity of the country.