It was three in the morning. Two four-by-four vehicles and a white Toyota Corolla stopped near a house in Malir. Plainclothesman picked up 27-year-old Rafiq Muhammad and left. His family had to pay Rs 1,350,000 for his release. Rafiq now lives in Dubai.
As the parially-successful law-enforcement operation in Karachi continues at a varying pace, it looks like some policemen have made it into a profitable business.
According to statistic provided by the Sindh Home Department, Karachi police and the paramilitary Rangers held 14,728 people from September 2013 to January 2014. Less than 1.3 percent of them were prosecuted. “It is not just about poor witness protection,” said Muhammad Ilyas, a former Sindh prosecutor. “It is also a result of corrupt policing.”
[quote]"Forty-two policemen have been killed in retaliation. We must be doing something right"[/quote]
Haji Barkat Khan, 72, says his son was picked up by men in plainclothes recently. His body was found in the Baldia Town locality of Karachi. “My son had nothing to do with politics or the jihadis,” he said. We got a call asking for ransom. We didn’t pay, only to find him dead.” His family and three others filed petitions in the Sindh High Court (SHC) against extra-judicial killings in Karachi. The SHC has issued many notices to the police to explain themselves, but the police denies any involvement in these abductions.
“The police are the biggest extortion mafia in Karachi,” Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) leader Khaled Maqbool Siddiqui said while talking to reporters after the party’s worker Fahad Aziz was arrested and tortured by the police, ending up in hospital. The MQM says 42 of its workers are missing and some have been killed out of court.
A woman shouts slogans as police vehicles watch
Three policemen were dismissed after the Fahad Aziz incident, and police chief Shahid Hyat admitted “mishandling”. “The arrest was mishandled at the local level for which we have dismissed people. However, we will question him as soon as he is fit,” he said. MQM officials demanded that the police chief be dismissed.
Despite the 11,927 raids and 14,728 arrests, 2013 was the deadliest year for Karachi, with 2,700 people killed in violence. “An 18,000-strong Rangers force and 35,000 policemen guard Karachi’s estimated 24 million population,” said SSP Raja Omar Khattab. “How can you control a city this big? Police is working over capacity and needs encouragement.” Another police official spoke on condition of anonymity. “Do you expect us to be killed and not retaliate? More than 40 policemen have been killed by people we know, and we can’t do anything about it.”
The MQM and other opposition parties boycotted the Sindh Assembly session in protest last week to protest against extrajudicial killings. “Police and Rangers had been given a free hand by the Sindh government, but we will now allow them to kill innocent people,” provincial minister Sharjeel Memon said. “We have already dismissed three police officials in the Fahad Aziz case.”
MQM chief Altaf Hussain asked the army and ISI chiefs to intervene. His party is all set to launch a province-wide campaign to pressure the provincial and federal governments to stop the Karachi operation.
A police officer frisks a passenger at a roadside checkpoint
Despite the concerns raised about the operation, law-enforcement officials claim success. “We have busted major terrorist gangs including those affiliated with political parties and sectarian organizations,” Raja Umar Khattab said. “Forty-two police officials were killed in retaliation. We must be doing something right.”
Many citizens disagree. “The situation is the same as it was,” says IT professional Najeeb Ahmed. “The only difference is that now there is an enhanced police presence.” Housewife Madiha Saher said such operations would have no real impact until the police were reformed. “How can the corrupt arrest the corrupt?”
Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah, who is said to be spearheading the operation, says Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar is taking little interest in law and order in Karachi. The minister visited Karachi only once, he said, and has been persuading the People’s Party to form a committee of notables to oversee the operation and address allegations of human rights abuses.
