DYNAMICS of demography now have changed. At the outset of the 20th Century 10pc people of the world lived in cities. In 2000, this proportion rose to over 50pc and by 2025 it will be over five billion worldwide.

So issues like hate speech, hate crime, xenophobia and racism are obvious, which the world has been witnessing in different forms recently. Pakistan’s largest city, Karachi, is in turmoil for similar causes, and the next city could be Islamabad.

The ongoing Karachi operation is not addressing the root-cause. Although it has achieved some short-term successes, in the long run it would produce lethal repercussions, perhaps a nightmare for not only targeted ethnic groups, political parties, rangers and military but for Pakistan too.

Pakistan is not a signatory to the UN Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Racial Discrimination (UNCERD). How ironic that Pakistan disintegrated because of racism in 1971 and still there is no legislation on this issue.

Racism and xenophobia are widespread issues worldwide. In the wake of burgeoning urbanisation and cosmopolitanism, we must make laws to avoid a Karachi-like situation in our other big cities.

We now need a solid legislation in term of racism like we have framed rules in the form of Protection of Pakistan Bill to eliminate terrorism

Currently, there are only three federal secretaries from Sindh. It is the government’s duty to balance the equation to end the victimisation of Sindh and other smaller provinces.

Let us pledge to eliminate all forms of racial discrimination and sign UNCERD. We should make legislations and revisit the Karachi operation in the wake of urbanisation and demographic dynamics.

Saif R. K.

Islamabad

Published in Dawn, July 27th, 2015

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