Opinion The killings in Karachi
A register of reports and views from the Pakistan press.
The killings in Karachi
Some expected that political violence in Karachi would subside after the local government system was reinstated week. But over the last three days,nearly 60 people have been killed,including a former PPP parliamentarian and his friend. The 72-year-old former PPP parliamentarian,Waja Karim Dad,was Zulfikar Ali Bhuttos man,and helped establish the party in Lyari. Following that murder,violence escalated,Daily Times reported on August 18: Some half a dozen vehicles were torched as the citys downtown and surrounding areas changed into a battleground,where gangsters propelled rockets and hurled hand grenades freely,besides engaging in intense exchange of fire.
Seven bullet-ridden dead bodies packed in gunny bags were found in Karachi,and most of them were from Lyari,traditionally a pocket borough of the PPP. On August 19,The Express Tribune reported: Bodies turning up in gunny bags also contain notes. Three bodies discovered within the remits of the Baghdadi police station had messages on a piece of paper that said: Do you want peace or war? and Is this enough,or do you want more?
The Express Tribune reported that the violence was probably a result of a gang war: Off the record,police officials admit that the violence is a spillover and a so-called chain reaction between two warring gangs in Lyari,namely the Arshad Pappu/Ghaffar Zikri versus the Peoples Aman Committee/Baba Ladla group. They also admit they are helpless in controlling the situation as the gangsters are allegedly supported by the ruling political party. The Karachi police has,according to Dawn,swooped down: The city police on Friday claimed arresting over 100 suspects involved in terrorist activities and said that it had started an indiscriminate operation against terrorists.
Floods revisit Sindh
Sindh,for the second consecutive year,is facing floods. Daily Times reported on August 18: Devastating rains have triggered floods in southern Pakistan,affecting at least 700,000 people and forcing 60,000 from their homes… Villages have been flooded and crops destroyed in Pakistans breadbasket,one of the worst hit areas in the unprecedented floods of 2010 that affected 21 million people and caused losses of $10 billion.
Looking back,forward
At a seminar organised in Lahore on August 12 by the South Asian Free Media Association (SAFMA),former prime minister Nawaz Sharif spoke openly of the prospects of peace between India and Pakistan. The Nation reported on August 14: Nawaz Sharif has asked both Pakistan and India to move beyond the old thought process for resolving the outstanding issues marring relations between two nuclear neighbours… He mentioned that the Indian government had probed the Kargil debacle through a commission. A day will come here as well when a commission will probe the war, he said,on the subject of Indias ex-premier Atal Bihari Vajpayee stating that by waging the Kargil war,Pakistan had stabbed him in the back,and that If I would have been in Vajpayees place,I would have felt the same way. Sharif also spoke of constructing a road between Peshawar and Kolkata and the promotion of trade,and objected to the culture of competitively buying defence equipment when both countries have other pressing needs.
Opening stand
Former Pakistani cricketer Aamir Sohail has joined the PML-N,reported The Express Tribune on August 18: Former Test captain Aamir Sohail was asked to join the party after a survey of youth revealed that the Tehreek-e-Insaafs popularity hinges on Imran Khans career as a cricketer. Sohail on Thursday announced that he was joining the PML-N in the national interest… He said Khan was inexperienced and could not lead the country out of crisis.
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