Yet another case of vigilante justice in Pakistan

by Saba Imtiaz (Pakistan)

The lynching of two young men, who were brothers, in Sialkot is another case of vigilante justice carried out in the streets of Pakistan.

The men, who the crowd believed to be robbers, were beaten to death by a crowd in the city of Sialkot in Pakistan’s Punjab province on August 15. Moiz Butt and Muneeb Butt, aged 17 and 15 respectively, were reportedly going to play cricket. The Associated Press quoted a government official’s account that:

“an armed robbery had taken place in the vicinity of the cricket field, so residents were on alert and police were nearby. Apparently, when the boys appeared with a bag, they were thought to be the robbers.”

According to a report published at the time, “District police officer Waqar Ahmad Chohan said that the mob cornered the robbers outside the street and began pelting them with stones.”

The footage of the event, recorded by a member of the crowd on a cell phone camera, has been airing on local television channels incessantly since it surfaced. It has shocked and angered many, more so because the footage clearly shows that police officials were present at the scene and did not stop the mob from taking the law into their own hands based on their own perceived concepts of justice.

Cases of vigilante justice are nothing new. Whether it is those alleged to have committed blasphemy or a petty crime, scenes of mobs beating men mercilessly is a common sight on the streets of Pakistan. There have been numerous incidents, such as students of the Jamia Hafsa seminary in Islamabad kidnapping and forcing a woman to repent in public in 2007 since they believed she was ‘running a brothel’.

In 2008, three robbers were beaten and burned to death in Karachi, and a similar incident took place this February.
That people can frequently do this, and are encouraged to by angered citizens, stems from the fact that Pakistan’s law and order system is inherently broken.

It is easier in Pakistan to bribe and threaten your way out of any situation – whether it is breaking a red light or getting a passport made – than it is to follow official procedure. Registering a case in a police station, and investigations, are cumbersome and frustrating matters that often yield in no results and are a waste of time, money and effort. Thousands of prisoners languish in Pakistani jails as their cases have never gone to trial, or the trials are delayed for months and even years on end.

In the vacuum created by this lack of trust in law enforcement agencies and the legal system, incidents of vigilante justice will continue to take place in the country, and harden people’s minds in terms of punishments. In a survey conducted by the Pew Research Centre, which was published earlier this year, 82% of surveyed respondents supported “whipping and cutting off hands for crimes like theft and robbery.” Even in this recent case in Sialkot, detaining the policemen involved was fraught with delays. The main accused in the case has also disclosed that “he got the ropes from Rescue 1122 Daska Road station and tied up the hands, arms and legs of the two victims.”

Rebuilding people’s trust in the system – that has led them down at every turn – will take years; and there does not appear to be anyone who is ready to take up that challenge in Pakistan.

Saba Imtiaz works as a journalist in Pakistan and can be reached at saba.imtiaz@gmail.com