EDITORIAL : THE DAWN, PAKISTAN

 

HRCP report

THE country`s main human rights watchdog has confirmed what was widely believed to be the case — that Pakistan had a dismal track record in terms of rights violations in 2010. The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan`s latest annual report paints a bleak picture. It does point to some positive developments last year, such as the passage of sexual harassment laws, the weakened hold of the Taliban in Swat and the fact the Supreme Court issued notices to intelligence agencies` heads regarding missing persons. But among its detailed reporting on rights violations that Pakistanis have lived with for many years, two particularly disturbing conclusions could be drawn: first, that militancy and political violence took thousands of lives. And second, that last year was an especially dangerous one for religious minorities.

According to the HRCP, over 2,500 people were killed in terrorist attacks, including almost 1,160 in suicide attacks, and nearly 960 were killed in US drone strikes. Add to this the targeted killings — according to the organisation, they claimed over 500 lives in Karachi and almost 120 in Balochistan. Even if these numbers are based on newspaper reports and can be disputed, especially given the difficulty of counting casualties in conflict-ridden areas, they are alarming on an order-of-magnitude basis. Without including routine murders or the lethal use of force by police, the toll from political violence alone is deeply disturbing. Pakistan was a truly lawless state in 2010, where terrorists wreaked havoc and political parties and security and intelligence agencies appeared to back, or at least turned a blind eye to, the killings of political rivals.

Another particularly alarming claim of the report is that the year marked worsening conditions for religious minorities in Pakistan, who suffered at the hands of a culture of faith-based discrimination. Ninety-nine Ahmadis, for example, lost their lives, including 86 on a single day in Lahore. Nor was violence limited to non-Muslims; over 400 appeared to have died in sectarian attacks, including some on Sufi shrines. The blasphemy laws became a flashpoint but remained untouched by the government: three accused were killed in police custody, and even disagreeing with the law became reason to murder politicians Salman Taseer and Shahbaz Bhatti. The rise in religious intolerance is a development that should give serious pause to those tasked with protecting Pakistani lives. But governments have for too long ignored reports by credible organisations such as the HRCP, and one fears that this one will meet the same fate. If the government of the day truly wishes to leave a mark, it should begin by treating this report as the wake-up call that it is.

Bhutto reference

AS the PPP`s attempt to revisit the judicial verdicts that led to the hanging of its founder, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, haltingly gets under way, big question marks hang over the intentions of all sides. Perhaps aware of the political minefield that it is being lured into, the Supreme Court has gingerly raised technical problems with the presidential reference. There certainly appear to be deficiencies in the drafting of the reference, a fact corroborated by non-partisan judicial experts, so that has temporarily obfuscated the court`s intentions on the matter. Is the present superior judiciary really willing to revisit one of the low points in the judicial history of the country? The presidential reference could be an opportunity to exorcise some of the ghosts that have stalked the intersection of law and politics in the country for many decades. However, given the political quarters from where the reference has originated, it may be less a case of an opportunity than a political googly tossed at the judicial bat.

Which leads to the other question: what exactly are the PPP leadership`s intentions? Is the party really interested in retrospective justice or is it a political ploy to drag the court into controversy while revving up the PPP base? Watching the cringe-worthy spectacle of a former foe of Mr Bhutto, Babar Awan, posturing and preening in defence of the leader he once so publicly hated, it is easy to believe that the most cynical of intentions are at work. If the PPP were genuinely seeking to at least undo the legal travesty that led to the hanging of its founder, it would be hard to argue against. But there is plenty of reason to be sceptical, not least because of the manner and timing of the reference and the personnel chosen to argue it before the SC. Political brinkmanship is the oldest trick in the book, but some tricks have a way of backfiring. Why reignite a debate when most of the political class appears to have accepted that the hanging was a grave miscarriage of justice?

Another bank heist

IN what is said to be Karachi’s biggest bank robbery so far this year, several suspects — including a private security guard employed at a bank in the city’s Jodia Bazaar area — made off with Rs9m on Thursday. Surprisingly, the suspects took a leisurely two hours to complete their operation. This is the fifth major bank robbery in Karachi this year while in 2010 the city witnessed around 22 such incidents. Reports in the media suggest that despite the fact the security company concerned had been alerted, it failed to respond. The robbery is the latest incident in a disturbing trend where private guards employed at banks end up looting them. Also, the relaxed method in which the crime was committed shows that the element of fear is fast disappearing as criminals carry out their activities with the greatest of ease. Poor law enforcement is principally to blame for the criminals’ increasing brazenness.

The police claim that banks hardly spend on security manpower and equipment as they know the cash in their vaults is insured. Indeed, a poorly paid guard with no workplace benefits cannot be expected to put his life on the line to ward off criminals; in the worst-case scenario guards themselves turn to crime, as we have seen in this and several other incidents. Banks, security companies and the police all need to seriously rethink their attitudes towards protecting financial institutions. Guards need to be well paid while equipment such as cameras and security systems needs to be in perfect working order. The hiring procedure of security guards also needs to be made more stringent, while the police’s response when such crimes occur must be much more efficient. Considering the fact that apart from criminal gangs, militant groups also use the cash generated from bank heists to finance their activities, this troubling trend cannot be taken lightly.