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TARGETED killing has come to be seen as driven by sectarian, ethnic or terrorist motives. In Karachi targeted killings are pushing certain groups towards isolation. Since January 2010, on average some 3.6 murders have taken place in this city every day.
Targeted killings aren’t isolated acts; they are organised, well-coordinated acts undertaken with the sanction of a militant, or political, organisation.
The prime reason for the upward trend in sectarian targeted killing is the strengthened nexus between banned sectarian organisations and terrorist organisations.
According to statistics of the Islamabad-based Centre for Research and Security Studies, more innocent people fall prey to targeted killings as compared to those who die in suicide or other blasts. In 2012, 839 were killed as a result of 389 incidents of bomb blasts and suicide bombings, while 1,784 were killed in 1,324 incidents of targeted killings.
Karachi is the worst affected. Ethno-political, sectarian and land-mafia rivalries have intensified the incidence of such killings. Since 1994, Karachi alone has lost over 9,500 people to targeted killings, the majority belonging to various political parties, particular sects and sectarian groups.
According to CRSS statistics, last year a 30 per cent increase was observed in targeted killings in the city. From the statistics one can discern that the majority of the victims were from certain political parties.
Although for the last two decades Karachi has been the preferred hunting ground for killers, now Quetta, Gilgit-Baltistan and Peshawar are also in the crosshairs.
During the last four years around 283 pro-government community elders have been killed. This has rendered it difficult for law-enforcement personnel to win the public’s cooperation. People’s faith in the criminal justice system has also been badly eroded, and no one, even from affected communities, is prepared to stand witness in court.
The majority of such cases are registered against unknown accused. Without the cooperation of the people and in the absence of even circumstantial evidence, it becomes difficult for investigators to trace the killers. The blind nature of these cases means that most are submitted in courts as untraced.
Illiteracy, unemployment, abject poverty and exposure to hate-mongering are responsible for the creation of such killers. Recruitment agents exploit their psychological and financial needs and the enrolled ‘talent’ is trained in skills such as motorcycle riding, throwing grenades while driving motorbikes and shooting. They are kept motivated by propaganda and hate material.
Target identification is an exclusive job usually carried out by the mastermind. Before striking the targets the killers shadow them. Generally, small arms are used in such killings. In recent incidents, reportedly, pistols fitted with silencers were used.
Before shooting the target, the communication between the handler and shooter takes place primarily via cellphone. During such communication, code words are used while illegal mobile subscriber identity modules (SIMs) facilitate the killers. We direly need a crackdown against the illegal sale of such SIMs.
The network actually consists of very few individuals; if one is arrested, the whole gang can be busted. However, the conviction rate in cases of targeted killing is very low and therefore, the majority of the accused are acquitted. The complainants are usually unaware of the killers’ identities, so they do not charge anyone in the first information report lodged with the police.
Furthermore, adequate protection has not been made available to judges, investigators and witnesses. Article 21 of the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997, provides protection to the judges and prosecutors.
Compensation is an obligation of the state. Justice (retd) Zahid Qurban Alvi presided over a commission set up by the Sindh government to determine the number of victims and the compensation that was to be paid to the heirs. The government gave Rs0.2 million to the heirs of each victim killed in a targeted attack. The commission also recommended providing free education (from the zakat funds) to two children of each such victim.
The higher judiciary has also taken suo motu notice of targeted killings. To encourage citizens to share information, the Peshawar High Court has directed the police to introduce a universal access number so that information can be volunteered anonymously. The systemic surveillance of banned organisations and their supporters needs immediate attention, though.
Hate literature propels otherwise innocent people towards crime and aids terror funding and the recruitment of terrorists. The administration needs to clamp down on such distribution and printing presses.
Pakistan’s policing model depends primarily on eyewitness accounts. To deal with new challenges, technology-led policing coupled with the cooperation of vulnerable communities is the need of the hour. Merely increasing the human resource base will not be enough; we need to build the capacity of law-enforcement agencies.
Recently, the police along with several communities worked out a plan to install 9,000 closed-circuit cameras in Karachi. Such technological help will facilitate the police in nabbing target shooters. But the police need to adapt to technology.
CCTV cameras were installed in a few important areas but due to poor monitoring, maintenance and a lack of coordination between the police and the monitoring room, these cameras effectively remained decoration pieces. When the residence of a police officer in Karachi was attacked in 2011, the CCTV cameras were not working.
Without credible intelligence, policing is a wild goose chase. Intelligence-led policing will strengthen the law-enforcement agencies. Meanwhile, the “special branches” of all provincial police departments need revamping.
In Karachi, especially, the proliferation of small arms is another important factor. Civilians are estimated to hold some 18 million guns. Obviously, de-weaponisation of the city is one of the most daunting tasks yet to be undertaken.
By adopting a proactive strategy, improved and coordinated endeavours and the sharing of timely intelligence, the law-enforcement agencies can control targeted killing.
The writer is deputy inspector general of the police.
