The latest killing of four members of a Hazara Shia family as they drove along the highway from Quetta to Karachi is a reminder that militancy and unrest continue their mayhem everywhere in the country. The Hazara community, based mainly in Quetta, has been the target of consistent attacks over the past few years, such as the suicide bombing in Hazara Town which killed hundreds. In the targeted attack which took place on Wednesday, a private vehicle was shot at by gunmen near Mastung as it slowed down to navigate a speed breaker. Among those killed were four members of a single family, including a woman, while a non-Hazara passenger in the front seat was injured. Police in the area say this was a planned strike against the Hazaras. Other killings of Shias have taken place in the same area over past years.
It is obvious that despite claims made by those with influence we have been unable to stem the hatred which triggers such attacks. In a press statement, rights activists are HRCP condemned the killings, saying there have been 1500 terrorist attacks in Balochistan over the past 15 years. This is an extremely high number and demonstrates just how unsafe people in the province are. The deliberate picking out of Shias for murder can only add to the sectarian tensions which run through our country. There has been very little success in preventing such hatred from spreading or working towards completely shutting down the outfits responsible for the violence. We would have thought that given the pattern of the attacks it should have been possible by now to detect the groups responsible for such acts and arrest their top leaders so they can be brought to trial. The failure to punish perpetrators is one reason why the killings continue. The Hazaras in particular have become key victims of such acts of terrorism. The latest killings will only add to the sense of insecurity the community already faces. Condemnations have come in from provincial and national
leaders but we clearly need to go beyond these and find a way to put the National Action Plan of 2015 into effect if the violence is to be controlled. It is quite obvious that for now we are failing in this as more and more lives are lost to bullets, bombs or other weapons unleashed by those who aim to destroy our society.