Shehri in collaboration with
Ferozabad Police Station, Jamshed Town and the local residents
initiated a ‘Community Policing’ project that aims to build trust
between the community and the institution of local police through
joint projects and training programs.
The
institution of police has not received the level of government
priority in terms of funding for institutional infrastructure,
technology and human resource development as merited by an
institution of such critical importance. Politically motivated
appointments/transfers of staff have adversely affected the
performance and damaged the credibility of the institution in the
eyes of the public. Over the yea
rs the institution has been used by
the governments in power for political victimization of their
opponents. This has also served to erode the image of the
institution. All these factors have combined to severely limit the
potential of the police to effectively tackle the rising crime graph
in the country that includes human rights violations against the
vulnerable sectors of the society such as women, children and
minorities.
The
present government is however, making serious efforts to redress the
situation. The Police Order 2002 aims at making the police service
oriented and accountable to the public. Its purpose is to ensure
that police is more efficient and respects human rights and dignity
of the citizens. Since promulgation of the Police Order 2002,
stakeholders have been urged to participate by voicing their
opinions, criticisms and by initiating projects that help in
achieving the objectives enshrined in the Police Order 2002. It is
therefore felt that the time is opportune to initiate and implement
projects from within the civil society that contribute in
strengthening the ongoing process of police reforms initiated by the
government. Since issues related with human rights strike at the
very core of the citizen interaction with the police, this specific
sector has been targeted for reform by Shehri-Citizens for a Better
Environment.
The
Formation
On 12th August
2003, a get together was held at Ferozabad Police Station, Karachi
to formally establish a ‘Community Policing Program’ with the
citizens living within the territorial jurisdiction of Ferozabad
Police Station.
At this get together, the
D.I.G. (Operations), Mr. Tariq Jameel, the Town Police Officer (TPO)
Jamshed Town, Mr. Fayyaz Qureshi, the Assistant Superintendent
Police (ASP) Ferozabad, Mr. Shahzad Waheed and the Station House
Officer (SHO) Mr. Mohammad Inam Khan, along with other senior police
officials of Ferozabad Police Station were present. Shehri-CBE was
represented by Mr. Roland deSouza, Chairperson Shehri-CBE, Mrs.
Amber Alibhai, General Secretary, Shehri-CBE, Mr. Rizwan Abdullah
(Treasurer, Shehri-CBE), Mr. Khatib Ahmed (Member Shehri-CBE) along
with other civic minded citizens of the area and their families.
This get together was
hosted by Shehri-CBE with the aim of engaging and facilitating
citizens of the city and government institutions of public service
in a meaningful dialogue, debated and cooperation on issues such as
efficient delivery of public services, transparent governance and
the rule of law. Mr. Khatib Ahmed gave a brief background of the
aims and objectives of this get together and why it was so necessary
to the citizens and the police to communicate with each other in an
environment based upon mutual trust and respect. Mr. Muhammad Inam
Khan, (SHO Ferozabad Police Station) gav
e a brief about the working
and structure of his police station.
Mr. Tariq Jameel (D.I.G. Operations) was very grateful to the citizens and Shehri for holding
this kind of get together, the first of its kind in a police station
where women and children were also present. He said that this kind
of event would help to create a human face of the police force. He
gave his unfettered cooperation and that of his officers to the
citizens. He also invited that the citizens could come and sit in
the police station anytime of the day and night to observe the
police at work.
Mr. Saleem Farooqui of the
Dehli Mercantile Society appreciated the Police Station management
and promised further cooperation with them. Another resident
formally offered a Police Mobile along with mobile phone with all
expenses paid to the Police Station.
Mrs. Amber Alibhai of
Shehri told the citizens that a most important responsibility as
sovereign citizens was to stand behind the police and provide them
moral support so that the rule of law could be established. The area
residents appreciated the efforts made by Shehri to open the working
of the police station.
The DIG later invited all
the citizens present for a tour of the Police Station which was
extremely exciting for the children and women.
Mr. Roland deSouza,
Chairperson, Shehri-CBE thanked the citizens and the personnel of
the Ferozabad Police Station for their hard work in making this get
together successful.
Aims and Objectives
The following ‘Resolution’
was passed on the occasion of the launching of the ‘Committee’ that
lists its main aims and objectives.
-
To invoke amongst the
citizens a sense of responsibility as sovereign citizens of the
state and recognize their social responsibility that comes with
sovereignty.
-
To establish within
the police and the citizens the spirit of cooperation and
friendship and through this friendship remove from the minds and
hearts of the people the fear of police and the police station.
-
To establish respect
between the residents and the police and through this mutual
respect uphold the rule of law so that the life, property and
the fundamental rights of the citizens are safeguarded.
-
To establish a
permanent liaison between the police and the citizens so that a
permanent relationship based upon respect, trust, and
transparency is built.
The
Terms and Reference
of the Committee are as follows:
-
To spread awareness
among the citizens of their responsibilities, duties, rights as
owners.
-
To build trust between
area police and residents and to create a friendly environment
and remove misunderstanding between citizens and police.
-
To encourage mutual
respect between police and area residents for better enforcement
of law.
-
To develop
institutions to build friendly working relationship between the
area police and residents
The Committee at Work
The
‘Community Policing Committee’ and the area police jointly
established a ‘Camp’ at Police Chowki Liberty, Tariq Road from 15th
of Ramadan, 2003, till Chand Raat, manned by the area residents,
area police and traffic police. The sole object of the camp was to
ease the pressure on the police in attending public complaints
during these peak days of shopping, so police could concentrate on
the duty of law enforcement.
The
SDPO Ferozabad, A.S.P. Shehzad Waheed personally took the initiative
by arranging and installing surveillance cameras at strategic points
at Tariq Road, with control room at Police Chowki Liberty, Tariq
Road which he monitored personally, with a result that two thieves
were caught red handed while stealing from a car parked in a narrow
lane at a distance from the Police Chowki.
The
‘Community Policing Committee’ established a ‘Community Policing
Help Desk’ at Ferozabad Police Station on December 19, 2003 and the
Help Desk is being manned by Shehri Member Sheikh Rizwan Abdullah,
almost daily during different hours of the day along with other
volunteers. The ‘Community Policing Committee’, established a camp
for collecting food and clothing items in the aftermath of the
October 2005 earthquake. In addition a number of capacity building
and training workshops have been arranged by Shehri-CBE for the
local police on subjects such as human rights and gender
sensitization for improved policing.