A file photo of a car damaged by bullets. PHOTO: EXPRESS/FILE
KARACHI: As an unprecedented wave of killings and kidnappings hits Karachi, the Pakistani city's elite are splashing out to have their luxury cars made bomb and bulletproof.
The sprawling metropolis of 18 million people on the Arabian Sea is Pakistan's economic heart, with ranks of factories, import-export wheeler-dealers and slick bankers.
But it is also the crucible of the country's worst excesses of violence, criminality and inequality.
Bloody gang wars fed by ethnic and political bitterness, drugs and the Taliban, and a steady drum beat of gangsterism have created a culture of impunity under the stunned gaze of police.
In 2012, nearly 130 people were kidnapped in Karachi -- a record -- according to the Citizens-Police Liaison Committee.
Like many successful businessmen in the city, Nadeem Khan, who owns pharmaceutical labs and marble workshops, feels threatened and has no faith in the ability of the authorities to protect him.
"Karachi is more dangerous than Kabul. We have police here and we have Rangers (paramilitary) here but they won't lay a hand on the criminals," he told AFP.
"So the people are compelled to have themselves secured by having their own personal bodyguards and armoured vehicles."
The epidemic of killings and kidnappings shows no sign of slowing, so those who can afford it are kitting their cars out with windows that can stop an AK-47 bullet and chassis that will survive a bomb attack.
Khan recently armoured two of his 4x4s and is waiting for two more to be completed for his father and brother.
"I got threats many times. I am the head of the law and order committee of the Korangi Industrial Area and there are so many dacoits (bandits) and robbers there," he said.
"There are bhatta (extortion) groups -- they always hurl threats on the phone."
These are worrying times for Karachi's rich but boom times for companies such as Streit, which armours vehicles.
Khalid Yousaf, head of Streit Pakistan, says business has doubled since they started work in December.
In a spotless workshop with a polished concrete floor set amid the city's carpet of dust and dirt, a team of Streit mechanics work on a dozen stripped-down 4x4s.
The hulking Toyota Land Cruisers are no more than skeletons: an engine, wheels and chassis with no bodywork, doors or seats.
The mechanics insert thick metal plates, laser-cut for a precise fit, into the doors, reinforce the floor, fit bulletproof windows, protect the battery with a metal cage and beef up the suspension to cope with the extra tonne of steel and glass that has been added.
All this costs anything between $30,000 and $45,000, said Yousaf -- an incomprehensibly huge sum for most Pakistanis. But the rich are happy to pay for peace of mind, and the armourers' business is booming.
"We were expecting at the beginning to armour three to four cars per month, but initially in the first months and onward we had seven cars, then 10," he told AFP.
"Now we are around 15 cars per month. Maybe it is going to increase even more."
Discretion is a valued commodity in the armoured car business and other firms were reluctant to discuss business on the record, but several spoken to by AFP confirmed that orders were on the rise.
"Before, we were watching movies where in Mexico or South America people were roaming in armoured vehicles," one salesman told AFP.
"We were amazed to know why they were doing this, but now it is happening here in Pakistan -- rich and famous people are asking for their safety and are moving around in armoured vehicles."
Media executive Saif -- not his real name -- said many in Karachi had felt the kidnap threat get closer and closer in recent years.
"Previously, it was three or four degrees of separation. It's now one degree of separation away," he told AFP.
"When it is one degree of separation away and people you know, that means you have to make the blanket assumption that it will happen to you.
"It's not a matter of whether it will -- it will. It's just a matter of are you protected enough?"
And an armour-plated skin is no guarantee of safety in Karachi -- last month Bilal Shaikh, a security chief for President Asif Ali Zardari was driving in his armoured car when he was attacked.
His driver opened the door and a suicide bomber threw himself into the car before blowing himself up, killing Shaikh instantly.
COMMENTS (11)
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@Obaid U: De-weaponization Bill is tabled by MQM, please understand and rise above perceptions
Such is the state of affairs, that people with means can afford this luxury, however what about the rest of the population of this commercial hub ? Its obvious that no one trusts the state and its institutions anymore in the Land of Pure ! What happened to that Dream of the creators of this Nation ? Over sixty years have passed and the progress report as to development and Nationhood for Muslims , needs lot to be desired ! Rest assure that Muslims on other side have far more safety, security and economic opportunity too !
It's despicable how petty people sound in the comments section.
Citizens do not create security. That's the governments job. When the government fails, people are forced to fend for themselves. Why do you guys lock your doors at night if you feel that self preservation is a stupid thing? We all do the best we can in our personal capacity to ensure our safety.
Don't jealous jaan.
@ssad: What does security got to do with Marx or Marxism? It is our collective existence that's being threatened and it's right here and as real as you & me arguing here. All I'm trying to raise our attention to is that individuals can deceive themselves by arming themselves or their vehicles but this just won't make them much more secured than anyone without such gadgets. True, it's responsibility of the state / governments to ensure safe streets, however if we all could go beyond our personal petty self-interests and join hands and cooperate with the state this can be made possible. Reason for referring to the limitation of the prevailing mind set of the new rich here was simple it's them who display fear of material loss and tend to believe in such fallacious modes operandi and limited effectiveness instead of thinking more in terms of collective responsibility and efforts which can make thing better for us all.
@Uza Syed: Your comment has no bearing on this article. The Marxist undertones are misplaced and disorganized. It is not the job of the "bourgeoisie" to rid the streets of crime. It is the job of the incompetent state. The citizens pay taxes, but state failure is very common in Pakistan, and leaves no choice to these people but to protect themselves. THIS is a financial drain on the economy.
@Aysha M: If the bill is acted upon, where will the politicians go? Especially MQM which feeds its financial needs through extortion and gang wars. They are in the government how do you expect them to agree on a bill that is sure to cut their roots of income?
Saad news :(
Karachi has no weapons factory. Why cant the supply of weapons to Karachi be checked. Karachi's educated and civilized people are subjected to tribal culture where there is a constant war on, and people have to organize for their own security rather than depending on state run institutions How about having a debate over the de-weaponization bill tabled years ago to make Karachi safe and liveable
Just another example of petty bourgeoisie mind-set of the nouveau riche of the land. I wonder how long would it take these idiots to learn that armoured cars don't provide security, it's the safer streets that ensure a crime free neighbourhood and cities which guarantee security and safety for all the citizens. This can be achieved with lot of teamwork of the citizens and their representatives in government / administration with deep sense of ownership and sense of solidarity and can be done at, relatively, much less financial burden.
nice black stickers on car