Deadly business
January 17th, 2011
Wali Khan Babar, 29, gunned down on the streets of Karachi during the latest spree of targeted violence in the city, became the first Pakistani journalist to die in the line of duty in 2011. Will he be the last? The omens are not good. Last year, eight media professionals were killed in the country; more than twice that number were injured. Most became victims of bombings or other acts of terrorism carried out with the purpose of maiming or murdering indiscriminately. The nature of journalism demanded, of course, that they be close to the place of action in situations rife with tension. This made them especially vulnerable when the bombers struck.
According to the Committee for the Protection of Journalists, a US-based watchdog body, Pakistan emerged as the world’s deadliest place for members of the profession in 2010. There are no indications that this will change, unless far greater commitment is demonstrated by various groups. The government needs to devise policies in this respect. What is perhaps even more imperative is that media bodies work out a code of conduct to protect journalists. In an age when fierce competition poses its own perils, an agreement is needed that cameramen, reporters and others on the frontline of action will keep a safe distance when covering events involving terrorism. Preventing death is more important than bringing images into living rooms. Organisations running newspapers or TV channels should put in place work guidelines and also insurance policies for members of staff. Protective gear could help in some cases. Among those most at risk are stringers based in conflict-torn areas, who do not have the protection offered by large offices and who are often based within strife-torn communities. Special attention needs to be given to their plight.
The fact that so many dangers now face journalists stems also from the failure to penalise those responsible for violence in the past. Several high-profile cases of murder remain unsolved; suspicions of agency involvement heighten the threat — and this only leaves others in the field in a great deal of danger.
Bravery punished
January 17th, 2011
We all know why Shamshad Begum died. The masked gunmen who broke into her house in Hangu district and shot her dead alongside five family members, some of them minors, were obviously associated with the Taliban militants who had been threatening her for some time. The policewoman drew their wrath because of her role as part of a security team that had apprehended various militants at police checkposts in an area where the terrorist hold remains firm.
Beyond revenge, the ruthless murders were also intended to send out a clear message. It is one that has been spelled out in blood. The intention is to deter others from adopting the same devotion to duty as that exhibited by Shamshad Begum in her action against terrorists. The fact that she was a woman working in a field not common for her gender, especially in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province, perhaps also left her open to attack. We have seen before the militant targeting of working women in many areas where the Taliban have exerted their hold.
The crime needs to be investigated. The demoralising impact it will have on others in the same line of work is a major concern. So, too, is the evidence that the militants seem able to act without any check on their activities. We wonder if the threatening messages the policewoman had received earlier had been followed up and if her complaints had been heard. She does not appear to have been offered any additional protection. Had this been the case her life may have been saved. In all this there is a message the authorities need to heed. It is hard to believe there was no information available about terrorist operations in Hangu. Agencies must have been assigned tasks in this regard. Their failure to pick up the danger to Shamshad Begum must be examined.
Birth and death
January 17th, 2011
The flood victims who poured out of their homes in a panic-stricken sea of humanity from July to September last year, as the worst floods in living memory devastated the country, have been largely forgotten. The cameras have swung away, volunteers moved on from camps, government attention switched to other issues and funding slowed down to a trickle. International concern has faded as the inevitable ‘compassion fatigue’ sets in. But the agony of tens of thousands of flood victims continues, aggravated by colder weather and reduced attention from both official and unofficial quarters.
A recent report from a camp, housing some 2,700 people in Karachi, speaks of at least, four newborn deaths, primarily as a result of, lack of healthcare for expecting mothers. A lack of protection from winter winds and a reduction in food supplies adds to the suffering of pregnant women and infants. This holds true not only for the camp in Karachi but also in other parts of the country. Freezing weather in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, much of Punjab and Gilgit-Baltistan leaves many without adequate shelter and at the mercy of the elements. International agencies report an increase in respiratory infections, most notably among small children. The lack of medical facilities adds to their suffering.
The flood may be over, but its aftermath persists. It will be many months, perhaps years, before anything resembling a full recovery is possible. Persons active in the relief effort report large-scale malnutrition, especially among women already weakened by multiple pregnancies. We need to see far greater initiative to assist the victims of the disaster. The government needs to take the lead in this, but other sections of society can also play a part by ensuring the people affected by the floods are not abandoned to suffer on their own, as has happened at the camp in Karachi and others like it scattered across Pakistan.