Pakistan - The Hazara horror

The horror that has confronted the tiny Hazara community, an ethnic and religious minority concentrated in Quetta, continues. The Hazaras have continued to be slaughtered in this country. In 2013, hundreds were killed in bomb blasts targeting the community in Quetta. And there seems to be no end. Five more Hazaras, all reported to be young men, were shot dead in what police say is a targeted attack near the congested Bacha Khan chowk in Quetta on Sunday. Four died on the spot; one a few hours later at the Civil and Military Hospital. Once more, Hazara families will bury their dead and place photographs of those felled so cruelly at prominent spots in their homes. Such photographs, with garlands around them, can be seen now in almost every Hazara home in Quetta. The prime minister has condemned the attack, so has the chief minister and other officials. But the reality is that the killings have not been controlled. In the last week or so, over half a dozen Hazaras have been killed in similar attacks in Quetta. The solution offered by authorities – that the community be virtually shut into areas where they live in large numbers with barricades set up outside them – is completely unacceptable. The idea is not to punish or imprison the Hazaras by holding them in jail-like camps. The real purpose must be to apprehend those responsible for murdering them, providing the Hazaras an equal right to live freely.

We have a good idea of which groups are involved in these murders. In the past, the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi has claimed responsibility. Some of its key leaders remain free because the police have failed to prove charges against them. There have been open admissions of murder, but even this does not lead to principal leaders being placed behind bars and penalised under the law. Essentially, these groups have been given a licence to kill. They kill freely and when they choose. The Hazaras, essentially defenceless, have become a prime soft target. To escape bullets and bombs, thousands have fled the country. Some have then died while attempting to flee aboard illegal ships. The horror of the Hazaras is something we should all be ashamed of. It is something we should be treating with far greater attention and a much more determined effort. The continuing killings are simply unacceptable. Condemnations and condolences to families are not enough. More has to be done to stop the hatred. The fact that we seem unable to stem it does not say anything at all about our capacity or our capability as a state able to uphold the security of all its citizens.