KARACHI:
Not a day goes by when murders, robberies, thefts and other crimes are not part of the news. In countries with low literacy rate, the crime rate is high, and vice versa. Education makes people civilised, and aware of what is right and what is wrong. But due to low literacy rate in our country, unemployment has increased, forcing people to get money from unfair means. An increasing crime rate in our country is associated with unemployment, inflation and poverty — social ills that are directly or indirectly linked to illiteracy.
On an average, around 100 incidents of mobile snatching and theft take place in Karachi daily. No part of the city is free from street criminals. A few days ago, a female student — belonging to the Orangi Town neighbourhood of Karachi where I also live — was waiting for her university bus. Some people on motorbikes came and snatched her mobile phone and money at gunpoint. After this incident, the residents of our locality are so scared that they avoid stepping out of their homes, specially in late hours, unless extremely necessary. However, the police are still not pushed for taking any measures to prevent street crimes in our locality. While I request the government to take steps against the growing menace of street crime, I also urge people to get united and fight these criminals rather than be a victim.
Aisha
Karachi
Published in The Express Tribune, September 25th, 2022.
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