Law passed for security of vulnerable establishments, but no progress yet

Karachi
It has been over a month since the Sindh governor promulgated an ordinance for the security of “vulnerable establishments”, but there has been little to suggest that the government is serious about its implementation.
The “Sindh Security of Vulnerable Establishments Ordinance” is meant to secure places vulnerable to terrorist or other attacks.
The ordinance defines a “vulnerable establishment” as a place of worship or any other religious place, a sensitive office of the government, a non-governmental organisation or a foreign project, a hospital, a bank, a forex firm, a financial institution, a company, an industrial unit, an educational institute, a public park, a private clinic, a wedding hall, a filling station, a jewellery shop, a hotel, an amusement centre, a public transport terminal, a special bazaar, a commercial street, a shop or a shopping arcade.
The ordinance envisaged the deputy commissioner of each district forming a sub-division security committee comprising the sub-divisional police officer as the chairperson and a representative of the district administration, an officer from police special branch, an officer from the counter-terrorism department and three representatives of traders, growers and other stakeholders as its other members.
As per the ordinance, the committees will identify and recommend the establishments for notifying as vulnerable establishments, inspect a vulnerable establishment on a quarterly basis, issue advice in writing to the manager of a vulnerable establishment for making security arrangements as may be necessary on the basis of threat perception and other related factors and send a report to the head of the district police in case of non-compliance of any advice.
The deputy commissioners can declare any establishment as vulnerable, maintain a list of them and issue an updated list on an annual basis.
They can also provide a copy of the list and the revised list of vulnerable establishments to government, the head of the district police and the assistant commissioners.
The local government or any other local authority will ensure the clearance of debris or construction material from the roads and streets adjoining the vulnerable establishments, covering manholes and removing broken water supply pipes so that no explosive materials can be concealed there.
An SHO can inspect any vulnerable establishment at any time and submit their report to the chairperson of the committee under intimation to the head of the district police.
If the committee is satisfied on the basis of information received from the inspection report of the sub-committee or the SHO that the security arrangements as per the advice of the committee have not been made at a vulnerable establishment, it will issue a written warning to the manager of the vulnerable establishment specifying the violation.
If the manager fails to implement the advice of the committee within the stipulated time, the committee can direct complete or partial sealing of the establishment or suspension of its operations till the time the advice is fully implemented and satisfactory security arrangements are made or the manager undertakes in writing to do so within a certain time.
The manager of the establishment can, within three days from the receipt of advice, warning or direction of sealing or suspension of operations of the vulnerable establishment, file an appeal to the DIG concerned.
The DIG, after affording the opportunity of personal hearing to the appellant and the representative of the committee, pass a final order as they deem necessary.
The DIG will have to dispose of the appeal within seven days and immediately communicate the decision to the appellant and the committee.
Besides, the manager will have to provide evidence of the offence as obtained through the security arrangements of the establishment to police or any other investigating agency.
If any person knowingly contravenes the provisions of the ordinance, they will be liable to punishment of imprisonment which may extend to six months and fine that shall be over Rs40,000.
Furthermore, an offence under the ordinance will cognisable and non-bailable. A judicial magistrate will conduct the trail of an offence under this Ordinance. No suit, prosecution or other legal proceedings shall lie against the committee or any other person acting under its directives for implementing the ordinance.