Below is a report published by The News, the largest English-language Pakistani newspaper, on the CRSS quarterly security report released early this month. The report, based on open-source information from national newspapers, underlined the marked decline in incidence of violence across the country in the last quarter, including that in Karachi, Pakistan's largest city on the Arabian Sea.  Security think tank’s report shows marked decrease in Karachi violence Karachi: The quarterly report of an Islamabad-based security think tank released on Tuesday showed a marked improvement in the law and order situation in Karachi and the law enforcement agencies’ operation against criminals in the city has been given the credit for it. Besides, the report prepared by the Centre for Research and Security Studies (CRSS) also stated that there has been a significant improvement in the security situation in the entire country. The ongoing operation in Karachi, spearheaded by the Rangers, has had a positive impact in terms of curbing organised crime – a combination of criminal gangs, political patronage and bureaucratic protection. “This combination has had its own impact on the city’s security landscape because the criminals hooked up with militants – both relying on one another for protection and support,” Muhammad Nafees, a senior research fellow at the CRSS who compiled the report, told The News. Launched in September 2013, the Karachi operation represents yet another dimension of the security crisis that Pakistan faces.“For the first time in history, the law enforcement agencies focused on the connection between crime, politics and militancy in a sustained way,” Nafees maintained. The report also highlighted the controversies and fierce reaction from various political groups, especially the Muttahida Qaumi Movement and the Pakistan People’s Party, because of the operation “Yet there is hardly any denial of the fact that political patronage of crime, facilitation and...

Major Western democracies — despite many socio-political shortcomings, not alien to human society at large — stand out for continued democratic exercise and incessant accountability. Legal and institutional oversight of the government and parliament ensures preservation of and the respect for citizens’ fundamental rights — the yardstick for judging the performance of the various arms of government. It basically boils down to the rule of law and the respect for it — a basic prerequisite for instilling fear in the minds of violators and giving confidence to those who knock at the doors of courts for justice. Enquiry into controversies, largely fearless adjudication, a usually unconditional acceptance (by contestants) of such verdicts and near certainty of punishment (where applicable) are some of the hallmarks of present-day democratic societies and systems that stand on and draw strength from a legal regime i.e., the rule of law. This check and balance works as continued introspection to provide for course correction. These systems, evolved over decades, allow criticism and are open to correction as well. One such example in the US, for instance, is the National Security Archive (NSA), which is a non-governmental, pro-transparency organisation and the leading non-profit user of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). It is located at The George Washington University in Washington. Through the FOIA, the NSA has been releasing documents that relate even to the mighty US security establishment, including the CIA. Although most cases date back decades, yet the access to information does underscore the importance of institutions born out of the American Constitution. On July 20, the NSA managed to acquire and release files that document the often rough-and-tumble, behind-the-scenes dynamics between Congress and the executive branch during the “Year of Intelligence (1975-76)”, when a congressional committee was trying to investigate allegations and revelations of abuses...

Major Western democracies — despite many socio-political shortcomings, not alien to human society at large — stand out for continued democratic exercise and incessant accountability. Legal and institutional oversight of the government and parliament ensures preservation of and the respect for citizens’ fundamental rights — the yardstick for judging the performance of the various arms of government. It basically boils down to the rule of law and the respect for it — a basic prerequisite for instilling fear in the minds of violators and giving confidence to those who knock at the doors of courts for justice. Enquiry into controversies, largely fearless adjudication, a usually unconditional acceptance (by contestants) of such verdicts and near certainty of punishment (where applicable) are some of the hallmarks of present-day democratic societies and systems that stand on and draw strength from a legal regime i.e., the rule of law. This check and balance works as continued introspection to provide for course correction. These systems, evolved over decades, allow criticism and are open to correction as well. One such example in the US, for instance, is the National Security Archive (NSA), which is a non-governmental, pro-transparency organisation and the leading non-profit user of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). It is located at The George Washington University in Washington. Through the FOIA, the NSA has been releasing documents that relate even to the mighty US security establishment, including the CIA. Although most cases date back decades, yet the access to information does underscore the importance of institutions born out of the American Constitution. On July 20, the NSA managed to acquire and release files that document the often rough-and-tumble, behind-the-scenes dynamics between Congress and the executive branch during the “Year of Intelligence (1975-76)”, when a congressional committee was trying to investigate allegations and revelations of abuses...

Ashraf Ghani finds himself pitched against deeply-entrenched beliefs about Pakistan in Afghanistan’s security establishment. The July 12 suicide car bombing near a military base in Afghanistan’s eastern province of Khost killed 20 people and drew instant flak from all those critical of President Ashraf Ghani’s reconciliation moves. The lethal attack provided an instant opportunity for detractors to criticize Taliban as well as Pakistan, which they insist remain unchanged on the geo-political front. None of the Taliban factions claimed responsibility for the latest attack but it did cause embarrassment to all those stakeholders who had left the Murree conference room on a rather positive note. They even discussed a ceasefire before and during the Eid as a possible confidence building measure. Where does this leave the intricately delicate peace process and what does it mean for major stakeholders such as Pakistan, USA and China? And will the Afghan narrative on Pakistan change in favour of a regionally-steered reconciliation process? Afghanistan, President Ghani and most of the security establishment find themselves caught in an intense tug of war; following stiff opposition to the counter-terror cooperation deal with Pakistan by the NDS chief Rahmatullah Nabil, representing the surreptitious Karzai legacy (comprising Pashtun nationalists and those Afghans critical of Pakistan) Ghani lost no time in appointing Ajmal Abedi as the deputy director of NDS. In an attempt to neutralize majority of the thundering MPs in the Woolasi Jirga – the parliament – opposition within the security apparatus the president also agreed to reviewing the MoU text. Dawlat Waziri said Pakistani helicopters were assisting the Taliban in the Paktika province But clearly, Ghani finds himself pitched against a deeply-entrenched narrative on Pakistan within Afghanistan’s security establishment and bureaucracy, exemplified by two recent statements. The deputy spokesman for the Ministry of...