Violent crime wave
THE violent crime wave that has been afflicting Karachi for the past few years shows no sign of abating, as lives full of potential are snuffed out by criminals over a mobile phone or a few thousand rupees. Over the weekend, a bright young engineer was gunned down in the city’s Gulshan area by muggers. Several such young people, including students with their lives ahead of them, have mercilessly fallen to criminals’ bullets in this crime-infested city. Moreover, no part of Karachi seems to be immune from this crime wave. From the so-called posh areas to sprawling shantytowns, all of Karachi’s neighbourhoods are susceptible to violent crime. For example, over the past few days, armed criminals murdered an industrialist in DHA who had just drawn cash from a bank, while in Korangi, a used-shoe vendor met the same fate. The numbers paint a tragic picture. Figures published by this paper show that up till mid-April, 60 people had lost their lives in street crime incidents. The total number of victims in 2023 was 108.
The state’s reaction to this crime epidemic has been inadequate. The latest step the Sindh government has taken is to ban the display of arms for three months. If this is linked to street crime, it is unlikely to stem the tide. Moreover, private guards working for state functionaries and ruling party apparatchiks openly brandish their weapons. Rather than instilling fear in the criminals, these vulgar displays of power frighten law-abiding citizens. The MQM has suggested issuing more arms licences to Karachi’s citizens. But in a city awash with arms — many of them illegal — will more guns solve the problem? When the state fails to act, a jittery public takes the law into its own hands by lynching suspects. De-weaponisation and professional policing are key to cracking down on violent crime. Does the Sindh government have the wherewithal to do the needful?
Published in Dawn, June 6th, 2024
Airline safety
WHILE the European Union has yet to issue a formal statement in this regard, it seems that Pakistan has remained unable to satisfy the EU Air Safety Committee regarding the latter’s concerns pertaining to airline safety measures. As a consequence, local airlines will remain restricted from flying to the region. It may be recalled that, in March, Pakistan’s Civil Aviation Authority had expressed the hope that PIA would soon be able to resume flights to the UK once the EU Air Safety Committee completed its review in May. The CAA had been confident that it would pass the scrutiny and that the airline would be allowed to resume flights to Europe, which have remained suspended for four years since the PTI aviation minister, Ghulam Sarwar Khan, made a shocking statement about airline pilots possessing ‘dubious’ licences. The former minister’s remarks had drawn condemnation, but while he was roundly criticised for ‘exaggerating’ the figures and ‘misrepresenting’ the reality of the situation, successive governments since then have remained unable to convince the EU authorities otherwise.
It is, more than anything, the loss of Pakistani travellers that they remain unable to avail the facility of flying directly to Europe on a local airline. The connecting flights they are right now forced to take due to the ban result in an additional burden in terms of the extra money and time they have to expend in order to make it to their destinations. It is the CAA’s responsibility to allay the concerns that have been raised regarding its staffing issues and adherence to safety protocols. And while it appears that it is making a sincere effort to meet expectations, it is falling short. The government must take measures to provide it with the necessary resources to ensure that the Pakistani aviation sector is operating in compliance with European safety standards. PIA has been anxious to take off: for example, the CEO of the national flag carrier had been hopeful of resuming biweekly flights to Paris in June or July. However, because the CAA seemingly fell slightly short, those plans will now have to wait. The Authority is more than capable: it is staffed with able professionals who know what they must do. It just needs to make a final, concerted push and clear the finishing line.
Published in Dawn, June 6th, 2024
Real powers
THOUGH former president Arif Alvi seems eager to rebuild the bridges his party has burnt, he has been discovering that, in present circumstances, getting the ‘real power’ to the negotiating table can be like pulling teeth.
On Tuesday, in a talk with the media in Lahore, Dr Alvi, while delving into a long metaphor about guards, gardeners and renting houses, repeated that his party would only talk to “the owner of the house”, before qualifying that with: “if the guard has decided to be the owner, he can say so, and we can talk”.
Though Dr Alvi conceded that he has had little success in getting the PTI and establishment to negotiate despite trying for the last two years, he remained hopeful about breaking the ice. “If there were no chances of success, I would have stopped trying long ago,” he explained in response to a question.
Dr Alvi need not be so circumspect about Pakistan’s problems as he sees them. Speaking in riddles is best left to mid-tier politicians; Dr Alvi has served as the country’s longest-serving democratically elected president and, as such, is entitled to speak his mind without having to worry about whom he may be upsetting.
Similarly, by virtue of having been supreme commander of Pakistan’s armed forces, it seems unbecoming of him to be chasing after those he wrongly considers the “owners of the house” and the “empowered”. Instead, he should be reaching out to other representatives of the people, the true owners of Pakistan.
Earlier this week, Dr Alvi explained that the PTI has three demands — supremacy of law, the release of PTI’s founder chairman Imran Khan, and the return of the party’s mandate.
There is no reason why these cannot be discussed with the other political parties, which, regardless of what their respective numerical strengths should be in the assemblies, still do represent the part of the citizenry that does not vote for the PTI. Indeed, the PTI seems to be repeating one of the biggest mistakes it made during its last tenure, when it sought to sideline its rivals while seeking a direct line with the establishment.
Once again, the PTI is not representative of the entirety of the people of Pakistan: even if the PTI believes the current government has been formed with rigged results, it still does not mean that its rivals got no votes at all.
If for nothing else, it must respect the other elected political parties in consideration of this fact. Unless it respects the choices of those who did not and do not vote for it, and unless it engages with the representatives elected by these people, the nation will not break free of the vicious cycle of stop-start democracy it is currently caught in.
Published in Dawn, June 6th, 2024