The Unholy Nexus

By Amir Zia

May 19, 2014

The News 

In no other major city of Pakistan do we find this kind of criminalisation of politics and politicisation of crime. Karachi’s sheer population size and its diverse ethnic composition make the situation complicated against the backdrop of rampant corruption at the official level and past attempts by the security agencies to prop up one political or ethnic force against the other

Crime and politics usually go hand-in-hand in the urban jungle called Karachi. This has long been an open state secret in the land of the pure – a sort of fact that always remained in the knowledge, but seldom formally acknowledged, at the official level. 

Ask our elected lords and masters about the unholy nexus between crime and politics in Sindh – especially Karachi – and they will either indulge in self-denial or blame their rivals for this evil.

However, the hard fact remains that Sindh’s political parties – representing rural as well as urban areas – are mostly responsible for Karachi’s law and order woes. The PPP, its part-ally, part-rival the MQM, the ANP, the small Sindhi nationalist groups, the religious and sectarian parties – they all have contributed to our city’s plight, each according to its size and weight. 

Therefore, it was interesting to see on May 14 some of these very political stakeholders sitting with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and the top military brass that included Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif to ponder over the law and order challenges of Karachi. The reported crux of the chief secretary Sindh and director general Sindh Rangers’ separate briefings on the occasion was how political patronage and interference in policing have been hampering the operation against criminals and terrorists from getting desired results.

The two briefings reportedly exposed the collapse of governance and administration under the PPP-led rule in Sindh since 2008, which should hardly be a revelation for former president Asif Ali Zardari, who was sitting next to the prime minister, and his other PPP top stalwarts including the Sindh Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah. 

Some of the figures presented during the briefings were an eye opener. For instance, out of the 1,747 hardened criminals arrested since the launch of the Karachi operation on September 5, only 27 have been convicted. The two major political parties – the PPP and the MQM – have proved to be the biggest hindrance for both the police and the Rangers, preventing them from performing their duties. 

The PPP ministers kept the pressure on the police force by their successful and unsuccessful attempts to bring police officers of their own choice on important slots and thus creating a sense of uncertainty among the senior members of the Karachi police team.

The provincial government even dragged its feet in issuing the red warrants for the arrest of notorious criminals who allegedly have connections with some of the members of the ruling party here.

The MQM kept the heat on through its series of protests and attempts to make the operation controversial, accusing the law-enforcement agencies of extrajudicial killings of its workers and their alleged forced disappearances. The Sindh government, on its part, failed to activate the four committees including monitoring and grievance committees that have to ensure the effectiveness and transparency of the operation.

If Army Chief Raheel Sharif made it clear that the operation won’t succeed until the political forces take its ownership for peace and rule of law in the city, the prime minister warned against allowing terrorists from using the ‘political umbrella.’

It is perhaps ironic that the push for peace and indiscriminate action against criminals is not coming from the two main stakeholders in Sindh’s politics, but from the federal government and the military. The political forces of Sindh appear as the reluctant partners in this operation, which prime minister has vowed to take to its next phase now. 

The reluctance of the local political players of Sindh seems understandable. Most of the extortion mafias operate their rackets in this teeming port city with the blessings of one or the other political, ethnic, religious or sectarian group. The encroachment of prized land is made possible here only under political patronage. These forces fight bloody turf wars. They kill rivals and dissident members of their own. Some openly allow thugs in their ranks to indulge in the deadly drug and weapons’ trade. The gun-wielding boys do all the dirty work of their political bosses and, when free, also take assignments of their own.

In a nutshell, most major political stakeholders of Karachi are a part of the problem of lawlessness, crime and violence. Their narrow vested interests and financial stakes are the biggest obstacles in establishing rule of law here.

In no other major city of Pakistan do we find this kind of criminalisation of politics and politicisation of crime. Karachi’s sheer population size and its diverse ethnic composition make the situation complicated against the backdrop of rampant corruption at the official level and past attempts by the security agencies to prop up one political or ethnic force against the other. And in doing this, our agencies have shown a lot of tolerance for crimes, acts of terrorism and killings committed by militants considered on the right side of the fence.

Is this going to change any time soon? Maybe…The army chief reportedly assured the civilian leaders of “100 percent” sincerity and cooperation in beating crime and lawlessness in Karachi, which is a heartening development. Prime Minister Sharif’s often repeated resolve to bring peace in Karachi should also raise expectations that the government will match its words with action.

In the past, many such high-level meetings did create a lot of hype and hope for peace, but the bitter fact remains that despite all such tall claims the ground reality in Karachi remained unchanged. The main reason for this remains the lack of political will that prevented any meaningful structural reforms mainly in the police, and the judiciary.

The police need to be freed from political interference and must be given operational independence. The government must also ensure that all the recruitment and appointments in the police force are on merit and officers are appointed for a fixed term.

Similarly, there is an urgent need to introduce modern investigation techniques, which cannot be done without changing the entire training manual of the police force. The old colonial-era system, which has been corrupted and tarnished over the years, won’t simply work in the present times. None of these recommendations are new. Many of our veteran police officers have been urging for such reforms for decades now. Is anyone listening? 

There also remains a dire need to set up more courts, including anti-terror courts, for speedy dispensation of justice. A witness-protection plan along with foolproof security for judges and prosecutors are also a must.

The government needs to remove the dichotomy in the legal system, which it has introduced by placing a moratorium on the death penalty. This only benefits people convicted for heinous crimes, including terrorism and murders.

Only a holistic approach, political will and structural reforms can help realise the dream of beating crime and terrorism. Our rulers have paid enough lip service to this cause. It is time for action. Let’s hope that this time the civil and military leadership does not end up disappointing the people.