Police brutality

In every society, police and law-enforcement agencies are a necessity to maintain law and order. However, we have often seen incidents when security forces use excessive force including physical and verbal harassment causing injury or even death.

Just recently, we saw the incident of a Baloch youth Hayat Khan who was shot dead in front of his parents multiple times. Hayat was a promising student in Karachi and was in his hometown of Turbat when he was shot eight times by Frontier Corps soldier. A terror attack occurred that day and Hayat happened to be in the area. He was accused of belonging to the terrorists and lost his life.

Due to a hue and cry, the paramilitary arrested the official and have now handed him over to the police. The FC has blamed the individual and absolved the institution, saying it is playing a vital role to restore peace and security in the province. It is imperative that a case is pursued and justice is ensured for the innocent youth.

There have been numerous incidents of police brutality and violence. The number of cases or physical force by a law enforcement official are not documented but have been frequent. In 2011, a young man Sarfaraz Shah was killed in a public park in upscale Karachi neighbourhood by Rangers officer. The case was caught on camera and got immediate attention but later the suspect got a presidential pardon.

Incidents of police brutality are prevalent around the world even in developed countries. The United States in often in the headlines for incidents of police violence as often race plays a crucial factor. This year there were massive protests over the killing a Black man George Floyd who died when policemen knelt over his neck for several minutes. In 2014, another unarmed Black teenager Michael Brown was shot leading to riots and violent protests.

There is significant research done on what prompts excessive use of force by law-enforcers but often the main reasons are systematic corruption, discrimination, lengthy trials and burden of proof. The carrying of weapons by policemen often plays a factor as it leads to misjudgments. It is seldom that a policeman or law-enforcer has been declared guilty.

While there is enough support and rally against police brutality elsewhere, it is unfortunate that we have not seen such level of outrage to bring change. It is imperative that the government enacts police reforms it has promised, depoliticize law-enforcement agencies and ensure they are held accountable.