=> City Nazim Syed Mustafa Kamal has posed a question
City Nazim Syed Mustafa Kamal has posed a question as a “common citizen”, as to where the civil society, lawyers, and journalists were when “women were raped” and people were burnt alive when riots erupted Karachi on December 27.
He said this while informally talking to newsmen at his office Monday evening and further asked as to why these people did not hold any demonstration to blame those who “raped the womenfolk of this city” and went on a looting and plundering spree for several days.
Kamal also asked as to why they remained silent when thousands of vehicles were burnt and properties were looted and set ablaze. He felt that by turning their backs on these incidents the three above-noted segments of society, particularly the journalists, were losing credibility.
The city Nazim said that he was surprised that there was not a single word against those who went on an orgy of loot and arson. He said that, as citizens, it was their responsibility to come forward and raise a voice against the destruction.
He added that, during the last nine months, they had held all sorts of demonstrations but today they were absolutely “silent”. Kamal acknowledged the government’s weakness in curbing such heinous crimes, but said that one should also blame those perpetrating them.
He said that, in the past, lawyers , civil society, and journalists had held demonstrations outside the Karachi Press Club but, he said, there was not a single demonstration against these harrowing and tragic incidents.
Mustafa said, in a tone of indignation, that while the civil society and media had held demonstrations over the issue of the removal of the chief justice, they were totally silent over the December 27 violence in Karachi. He said that the attitude of these above three segments of society was “shameful.”
The Nazim said that a lot of investment had come into Karachi over the last two years but after December 27 there was a flight of capital from the city and posed the question as to who was responsible for this unhappy situation.
Replying to a question about the compensation to the victims of December 27-30, he said that the provincial government would pay compensation to those affected by the riots.
Source: The News
Date:1/8/2008
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