Give up guns

As members of the ‘Citizens Against Weapons’, and working for a peaceful and weapon-free Pakistan, it is our considered opinion that the only option for Pakistan to eliminate its violence and militancy is to work proactively towards a weapon-free society. Unfortunately, the government has only rendered lip service to deweaponisation. In December 2017, the government announced that all automatic gun licenses will be considered invalid after January 31, 2018, if they are neither downgraded nor surrendered. But the programme was a complete failure as it was never followed through.

Possession of arms must be the exclusive domain of the state and no citizen must be allowed to possess, carry or display any weapon of any kind – licensed or otherwise. In the same manner, hundreds of private militias (prohibited by Article 256 of the constitution) that roam around freely in both urban and rural centres must be firmly disbanded. We also appeal that the issuance of all new gun licenses be stopped immediately and those already issued be declared null and void. A phase-wise programme, starting from illegal weapons and then progressing to the surrender and the buy-back of licensed weapons, should be implemented.

Naeem Sadiq

Karachi