Targeting the police

The most perilous job in the country is being a policeman in Khyber-Pakhthunkhwa. Apart from doing a thankless job for an extremely low pay, cops also have to contend with being the Taliban’s chief targets in the province. This was not supposed to be a part of the job description. Policemen are supposed to go after common criminals, not a group that has declared war on the country and is willing to fight it using any means possible. The police neither have the training nor the equipment to be at the front lines of this war. And yet, as the death of an SP and three other cops in a suicide attack in Peshawar shows, this is precisely the war they have been forced into.

Pakistanis in general have a very low opinion of the police, considering them corrupt and incompetent. It may now be time to change that view. Countless police officials have been killed for no reason other than the uniform they wear, especially in Khyber-Pakhthunkhwa. Every day, policemen willingly man checkpoints, just waiting for the next suicide bomber to detonate himself. In return, they ask for nothing. The very least we can do is appreciate their sacrifice in the cause of protecting this county against the militant threat. They deserve our admiration, not our scorn.

The state, too, has a responsibility to the police force. Those serving in militant-infested areas should be given hardship pay and regular bonuses. They should be assured their families will be taken care of if they are the victims of militant attacks. Above all, the government needs to realise that the police alone cannot do much about the Taliban threat. Their talents are better utilised in investigating cases and arresting culprits. Fighting militants is not a law-and-order problem; it is a military battle. For that, it is the army which has to take the lead role with the police supporting its efforts. In addition, the police must also receive training in counterterrorism since that has now become their chief duty. This was not a war that any of us asked for but it is what we are stuck with. At the very least, those who are fighting it should not have to be lambs waiting for the slaughter.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 10^th, 2012.