The unsafe halls of justice

The shocking attack on the district courts in Islamabad has raised a number of potent questions — both political and in terms of security. The Supreme Court (SC) has ordered the administration to install security cameras around the premises, implying that a key installation in the heart of the capital had no cameras to monitor the daily comings and goings of all sorts of criminals and accused. That, in itself, is alarming, but wasn’t the extent of the lapse. The SC was also told that the security on duty on the day was short — with a dozen policemen missing on the day — and it wasn’t as if a lone attacker managed to slip through the cracks (at least, four entered the premises fully armed with bombs and guns). Such a lapse would be shocking in any urban centre of the country, given they have the most resources and are the primary targets for militants. That it happened at a judicial installation in Islamabad, the capital, the political and administrative nerve centre of the country, meant to be the safest place in the country, is beyond any sort of justification — and it was offensive seeing the interior minister attempt to do just that on the floor of the National Assembly on March 4.



Just days ago, he held a bizarre press conference claiming Islamabad was safe and the security establishment had details of everyone in the capital. Which brings us to the political side of things. The attack came within 48 hours of a ceasefire announcement by the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). As keen as the government has been on the peace process, it needs a close re-examination of parameters, expectations and indeed limitations. The TTP immediately distanced themselves from the attack, which was later claimed by the Ahrarul Hind — a little known group, but one that has been linked closely to the TTP in the past (one is also curious why the interior minister asked the TTP to ‘identify the attackers’). Foremost among the questions will be: if the TTP didn’t know about it, or even if they did but didn’t have the authority to stop it, how much premium should we be placing on any detente with them given that fringe groups still have the capacity to execute such high-level attacks?

Published in The Express Tribune, March 5^th, 2014.

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