I am trying to work out which one is the greater challenge.
That there are Taliban in Swat or that the police and judiciary fall short of minimum standards.
To say that a militia of a few thousand fighters at best, is likely to run over a 600,000 strong Pakistan Army stretches creduility. Even the mighty Rustum feared taking on such odds in his own legends. That Taliban can run over Pakistan is similar to chicken little’s hue and cry about the sky losing altitude. However, absence of consequences for criminals CAN plunge the country into lawlessness.
In fact it already has and that is the clear and present danger.
Defense from external threats has always been on top of national agenda without exceptions. However, it appears that defense from internal threats, or law and order has been relegated to use in slang.
The per capita expenditure on law enforcement in District Rawalpindi, one of most well policed district, is Rs350 per person per year, with one police person for every 800 people. I don’t believe a scholarly effort is required to prove that this department of the state is badly dysfunctional.
The Lahore high court has 36 judges that adjudicate the disputes of about 90 million people. That is less than one Judge per 2.5 million people. No wonder LHC and its lower courts have 1.3 million cases pending as of April 2009
Peshawar High court has 13 judges that mind the disputes of 21 million people. That is one judge for every 1.6 million people. PHC and lower courts had 200,000 pending cases as of 1 April 2009
We need to fight the battle in NWFP. However, fighting a battle without a strategy for winning the war is another fanciful enterprise. That containing the Taliban will somehow cause the people of Pakistan to be more satisfied with their grievious lot is silly. To expect that if someone’s daughter is raped and there is no justice in court, they will sit tight and not pick up a gun or an axe and go for walk, is rather optimistic.
One in ten registered FIRs make it to court. That coupled with 1.6 million pending cases in the court system of Pakistan, says we are sitting on dynamite, getting dryer by the day, and starting to crackle.
Taliban is not the core issue. The core issue is effective policing and dispensation of justice.
It is not a tall order to appoint another 1,000 judges countrywide. Such a measure may re-motivate people to respect the law. That is a priceless dividend for a cost which is slender in comparison. Yet, the police is far from effective and the judiciary remains crippled.
Such neglect may be deliberate on the part of the government, but it seems there is a lot more that certain organized segments of the society, particularly the media, and civil society can do to motivate the government to focus on this issue. If a thousand militants, in an ex-tourist resort, armed with guns, can literally grip the attention of the world, what can a million organized voices armed with pens do.
@TOP: Taliban are not an issue at all. This is lack of dignity, pride and courage of our rulers and defeat of govt agencies
There can be no justice in the country if politicians of Punjab continue to throw their weight around and get the largest share of the NFC (National Finance Commission) Award solely based on population. This is a very fundamental issue and sets the priorities for governance and power sharing between all provinces, ethnicities.
The NFC award has remained to be adjudicated on basis of population since the last 60 years, despite protest by the other provinces against Punjab.
I know that in Germany that federal revenues are allocated for use to provinces on bases such as each state’s requirement/potential for development (less developed states receive more funding in order to bring them up to par with the rest of the country) – something which needs to be done in the case of Balochistan, in Pakistan’s context.
No one is asking for population to be dropped from the list of criteria for allocating the NFC award – but in this day and age – I can’t help but sneer at the so-called ‘civil society’ and ‘liberals’ in Punjab who do not campaign and advocate for a balanced relationship between Punjab and the other provinces.
Other criteria on which the NFC award could be based include: level of poverty (poorer areas should get more funds), potential for development (areas with known mineral resources should get more funds), areas which generate more revenue should be rewarded for it. Right now, we are rewarding the province for producing the biggest population. Its just bad economics.
My message to the Punjabi intelligentsia is: Wake up and smell the coffee – there is a great discontent brewing against your indifference and selfishness towards the rest of the country.
The argument about how many judges there are in the High Courts is silly. The High Court is not supposed to be for all cases, there are hundreds and thousands of judges in the lower courts (but more will certianly help).
By your logic, the US Supreme Court is supposed to have only 9 justices… so 1 judge per 34 million Americans!!!
Taliban ARE the core issue my brother, because all enemies of Pakistan are attacking on us from all aspects, but blaming taliban. So when there will be no taliban there will no one left for our enemies to blame and we could figure out those enemies openly.
The Chinese use two brush strokes to write the word ‘crisis.’ One brush stroke stands for danger; the other for opportunity. In a crisis, be aware of the danger – but recognize the opportunity. John F. Kennedy (1917 – 1963), Speech in Indianapolis, April 12, 1959