THE use of ‘encounters’ by our law enforcers to neutralise suspects is an unfortunate, widespread reality in Pakistan. Due process is bypassed in order to get rid of ‘troublesome’ suspects or to settle scores.

Figures recently released by the HRCP show that in the first six months of the current year, 255 suspects were killed in police encounters in Karachi, which marks a 64pc increase over the corresponding period in 2014.

Interestingly, a drop in the number of overall killings in the metropolis has also been witnessed between January and June.

Know more: Analysis: ‘Encounter policy’ unsustainable

From this, it can be inferred that while violent crime may indeed be down, police are increasingly using extrajudicial methods to bring down the crime rate.

In fact, a high number of suspects have been killed in encounters ever since the security operation commenced in Karachi in September 2013. As per official figures, around 925 suspects were killed extrajudicially in the city by the police and Rangers in 2014.

Though the problem may be particularly acute in the Sindh capital, encounters are also routine in Lahore and other Punjab districts, as are incidents of custodial deaths.

One estimate suggests that in the Punjab capital alone, there have been over 100 encounters since December 2014, with both suspected criminals and militants being eliminated.

There seems to be a feeling amongst some sections of the police hierarchy that encounters and similar extralegal methods are acceptable tools of law enforcement: they believe such methods send a ‘strong’ message to criminals and militants.

However, killing a suspect without resorting to due process is a clear violation of that individual’s fundamental rights, and rightly condemned by civil society groups and political parties.

Without doubt there are violent criminals and terrorists operating in our cities and towns, and these have become increasingly insecure for the common citizens. But the way to deal with such elements is through invoking the law, not by circumventing it.

The criminal justice system is indeed broken, yet instead of fixing it by strengthening the investigation and prosecution systems law-enforcement agencies prefer to look the other way as suspected criminals are eliminated through encounters.

This creates a system open to massive abuse, without any regard whatsoever for the judicial process. Unless the police authorities engender a change of thinking within the ranks, such brutal methods will continue to remain in vogue and make a mockery of fundamental rights in this country.

Published in Dawn, July 21st, 2015

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