SOME things in Pakistan, it seems, never change. Among these is the abhorrent ‘kill-and-dump’ policy allegedly employed by sections of the deep state to get rid of ‘undesirable’ elements.

The discovery of the bodies of several missing persons in different parts of Sindh over the past few days indicates that the grim practice of ‘disappearing’ individuals and then eliminating them illegally is alive and kicking.

Read: Disappearances — a festering sore

On Wednesday, it emerged that the bodies of three men who had been missing for years had turned up in various parts of Sindh. The body of Abid Abbasi was dumped by a road in Nawabshah, while that of Wasim Akhtar was found in a similar fashion in Mirpurkhas. Both were reportedly MQM workers. Meanwhile Sohail Hassan’s remains were retrieved from floodwater in Umerkot; the man is believed to have had links with Lyari gang warfare elements.

Earlier in the week, the body of Irfan Basarat, who was also associated with the MQM and was related to a party lawmaker, was found in Sanghar. He had gone ‘missing’ seven years ago.

The profiles of those who go missing in Pakistan, and sometimes end up dead, vary. They can include members of political parties, suspected religious militants or their sympathisers, as well as nationalist or separatist elements.

The fact that this dubious practice exists, and has continued to thrive despite the fact that some of the highest offices in the land have slammed it, indicates that powerful ‘invisible’ and unaccountable hands support it.

Even if it is assumed that some of the individuals picked up and later killed had criminal or terrorist backgrounds — some of the men found dead in Sindh were facing criminal cases — eliminating them in extrajudicial fashion is an affront to the law.

Moreover, it is shocking that just days after the prime minister vowed to reunite missing persons with their families, the bodies of four missing men have turned up in Sindh. It seems as if someone is trying to embarrass the elected government, and mocking due process.

While attending an IHC hearing on enforced disappearances last week, PM Shehbaz Sharif said it was his duty to trace missing persons. Clearly certain elements are telling the government, as well as the judiciary, that they answer to no one.

Editorial: Missing empathy

As we have stated in these pages multiple times, if the state or the security establishment feels someone has committed a crime, they must be brought before a court. And if the powers that be feel the courts are ill-equipped to punish the guilty, then the justice system needs radical reform; resorting to illegal methods and playing judge, jury and executioner cannot be countenanced.

The IHC CJ remarked during the aforesaid hearing that he would “summon someone else” if the Constitution continued to be violated. Perhaps his lordship should seriously explore this option.

Published in Dawn, September 16th, 2022