EDITORIAL : THE DAWN, PAKISTAN

Karachi killings

FROM innocent bystanders to political workers and high-profile party leaders, Karachi`s violence claims its victims across the spectrum of power and influence. Tuesday saw the murders of three MQM workers and the death of a teenager who was shot while working at a hotel; the ANP claims the latter was an act of ethnic violence. Just a day earlier, a senior MQM-Haqiqi leader was gunned down along with three others in broad daylight on a major thoroughfare. While this style of assassination is not new to Karachi, it points, once again, to the impunity with which targeted killings are carried out in the port city. Gunmen can simply drive up to their victims and shoot them without requiring the cover of even deserted streets or darkness. Casualties in the single digits now barely register with most residents — aside from those who live in neighbourhoods where such violence routinely takes place. For them, everything from groceries to transport becomes a luxury every time another handful of people are murdered.

What is clear from the identities of the victims and the audacious style of the killings is that they cannot be taking place without political cover. Nor, it seems, are law-enforcement authorities unaware of this link, or of the fact that these are well-organised efforts rather than random bursts of violence or acts carried out for personal reasons. A joint investigation team consisting of various law-enforcement and intelligence agencies constituted to look into targeted killings has reportedly identified over two dozen suspects affiliated with political parties including the MQM, the MQM-H and the ANP. Two of these are the government`s coalition partners in Sindh, and are also widely believed — along with the ruling party itself — to have provided cover to criminal gangs operating in certain parts of the city. While extortion and other mafia activity are crimes distinct from politically motivated targeted killing, they also take a deadly form in a city where weapons are rampant and those breaking the law are protected.

As this paper has argued repeatedly, it is high time some accountability is built into the fabric of this lawless city. If the investigation cited above really does demonstrate a link with political parties, those findings and any others should be made public instead of being leaked by unknown sources or hinted at by ruling-party politicians. They should also be used to prosecute offenders regardless of political affiliations. The residents of Karachi have suffered more than enough bloodshed, and denial should no longer be considered enough to absolve those in power from responsibility.

SC order

YET another episode has been added to the series of events that show just how keenly the judiciary is watching the doings of the government and indeed acts of parliament. Asked to adjudicate on the matter by two parliamentarians and a couple of other stakeholders, a three-member Supreme Court bench has said that the Higher Education Commission will continue working until and unless its status is changed by a piece of legislation. The HEC`s existence is perceived to be threatened by the plan to devolve powers to the provinces, and the decision must have given some satisfaction to all those who are agitating against the commission`s disbanding. The SC order does not stop the winding up; however, it is being viewed as a development that gives those who are demanding that the HEC must not go some time to plead their case and build their campaign. The government and parliamentarians belonging to the treasury have all been heard giving assurances of a smooth devolution, but they have only been partially successful in allaying fears on this score.

Where there are fears there is also another view. In the context of the SC order, the situation offers two leads and the choice of the course will determine the future relationship between the judiciary and a parliament which has time and again shown signs of discomfort under the close watch of the judges. The SC bench that was headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry has asked parliament to define the role and status of the HEC. But the fact that the court`s intervention is deemed to have been necessary is reflective of the trust deficit between the judiciary and other organs of the state. Observers who have been pointing out the dangers of a difficult partnership between parliament and the judiciary are waiting anxiously to see which of the two trends is going to be followed from here on: the one that recognises parliament`s right to express and define through legislation or the one that draws it strength from a perpetual suspicion of parliament`s capacity and ability.

The bloodshed continues

THANKS to Muammar Qadhafi, Libya has been rendered nothing short of a charnel house. The figures given by the opposition — 10,000 killed, 30,000 wounded and 20,000 missing — may well be exaggerated. But even if half these numbers are true, Mr Qadhafi should feel ashamed, repent and quit. His acceptance of the African Union peace plan has become meaningless, because his son continues to insist that the colonel will stay in power. The Arab League is in a fix. It had called for the imposition of a no-fly zone, but the scale of the Libyan tragedy and the rise in civilian casualties from Nato air strikes appear to have to paralysed it. It is time the Arab League coordinated its diplomatic efforts with those of the African Union, which is probing the possibility of reforms within the system. The difficulty lies in combining a halt to Nato air strikes with the peace move. An end to Nato bombings will give an overwhelming tactical advantage to government forces and add to the rebels` military weakness. That this military setback will make the rebels agree to power-sharing is difficult to accept.

Neutral observers rule out a military victory for the rebels, and this means the seesaw battle will continue. The heartlessness of the civil war is evident from the pounding of Misrata by the loyalist forces, whose long-range guns continue to inflict heavy casualties on the civilian population. Food is scarce and medical supplies are running out, thus aggravating the people`s misery. The intensity of hatred on the rebels` side for Mr Qadhafi stands in the way of a political solution, and unless common sense dawns on the strongman and he quits, the slaughter will continue, while a ceasefire agreed to by both sides could lead to the oil-rich country`s de facto partition.