Pakistan's Shia Under attack: ''Inertia abounds''

Two policemen have been killed while guarding an Imambargah in Rawalpindi on Monday. Four terrorists riding motorcycles shot the officers on duty with ease since the officers neither had any weapons to defend themselves nor were they alert to face an ambush. So much for the security of a place of worship that had already been attacked in November last year, killing 15 people. It seems that the sensitivity of Imambargahs has failed to sink in to the administration. Rawalpindi has witnessed some of the worst episodes of sectarian crimes since the start of Muharram yet complacency refuses to leave the policy makers, so far living in a world of their own. It is indeed unfortunate that terrorism has badly hit the law enforcement agencies of the country. We are losing our officers and men from the army, paramilitaries and police like sacrificial lambs. The police is perhaps the worst hit because of multiple issues, the major one being the incapability of the government to build the force into a potent institution, laced with new and appropriate training and equipment. The officers on duty at the Imambargah belonged to the Punjab Constabulary and had been called in to aid the Rawalpindi police during Muharram. They were not trained to counter terrorism. The shooters managed to escape as easily as they had entered the security zone of the Imambargah. Interestingly, the Closed Circuit Television was of no use since it was not working due to loadshedding. Where all this would land us is a question nagging every thinking mind in Pakistan today.

Realistically speaking, it is the domain of the police to combat urban terror-related incidents. It is the police with their entrenched linkages in cities that help them get into the terrorists’ sleeper, intelligence and active cells. Unfortunately the police in Pakistan has been developed and sustained for political purposes. The fault is deeper than what appears on the surface. The recruitment policies whereby illiterate and unsuitable persons are hired at the SHO and ASI level have made matters worse. The result is that the police remains a force to be feared and not to be depended upon.

Almost every fortnight a statement from the prime minister comes out showing his resolve to counter terrorism and instructing his team to develop a new road map to that effect. On the ground nothing tangible worth the name is visible. It is time to practically redefine Pakistan’s security polices through a change in the policing format and security paradigm.