Stabilizing Pakistan through Police Reform
A report by the Asia Society Independent Commission on Pakistan Police Reform finds that Pakistan’s efforts to combat crime and counter terrorist activities are being outpaced by the innovation and agility of criminal networks and terrorist organizations. Without comprehensive reform of the legal framework governing police action, the police force as an institution, Pakistan’s law enforcement strategy, and interagency and international coordination, Pakistan’s progress toward political stability and economic security will be limited. The report, Stabilizing Pakistan through Police Reform, is the result of an unprecedented convening of law enforcement and legal experts in Pakistan and the U.S. led by Asia Society Senior Advisor Hassan Abbas.
According to the report, a lack of resources, poor training, insufficient and outmoded equipment, and political manipulation pose difficulties to the police force as it works to maintain law and order. To be successful, reforms must aim to improve police technology, personnel, training, and intelligence capability. A well-defined national counterterrorism strategy is essential to establishing a clearer role for the police in overseeing internal security. Increased international support will be useful in the spheres of technical assistance, training, and modern equipment.
Stabilizing Pakistan through Police Reform explores aspects of reform that are crucial for jump-starting this process and highlights the obstacles that have derailed previous efforts. Contributors assess the current state of Pakistan’s police force and offer recommendations for enhancing the institutional capacity needed to check the growth of organized crime and effectively conduct critical counterterrorism operations throughout the country.
The launch of the report was accompanied by panel discussions on July 24, 2012 at Asia Society New York and July 25, 2012 in Washington, D.C. at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, in partnership with the Middle East Institute. Additional launch events will be held in Pakistan from July 27 to 31.
For more information on Asia Society’s work on Pakistan, see “Pakistan 2020: A Vision for Building a Better Future”.
Read the full report here.
Members, Independent Commission on Pakistan Police Reform:
Hassan Abbas (Project Director), Senior Advisor, Asia Society; Professor, College of International Security Affairs at National Defense University
Iftikhar Ahmed, Former Inspector General of Police, Islamabad
Aitzaz Ahsan, Member, Senate of Pakistan; Former Interior Minister, Federal Government of Pakistan (1988-90); former President of the Supreme Court Bar Association
Arif Alikhan, Former Distinguished Professor of Homeland Security and Counterterrorism, National Defense University; Former Assistant Secretary for Policy Development, U.S. Department of Homeland Security
Hasan Asad Alvi, Chief Security Officer of the Prime Minister of Pakistan, Islamabad
Mohib Asad, Former Director General of Federal Investigation Agency (FIA)
Brigadier Syed Shafqat Asghar, Serving Pakistan Army officer and currently visiting faculty member at the College of International Security Affairs, National Defense University
Andrew Carpenter, Chief, Strategic Policy and Development Section, Police Division, Office of Rule of Law and Security Institutions, Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO), United Nations
Zulfikar Hameed, Assistant Inspector General of Police Administration, Punjab
Syed Ejaz Hussain, Deputy Inspector General of Police, Punjab
Tahira Khan, Scholar of South Asian studies
Tariq Khosa, Advisor on Rule of Law and Criminal Justice, United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime (UNODC); Former Inspector General of Police in Baluchistan
Roger B. Myerson, Glen A. Lloyd Distinguished Service Professor of Economics at the University of Chicago.
Tariq Pervez, Former Director General of Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Authority (FIA) and former Chairman of Pakistan’s National Counterterrorism Authority (NACTA)
Amir Rana, Director, Pak Institute for Peace Studies (PIPS), Islamabad
Afzal Ali Shigri, Former Inspector General of Police, Sindh
Shoaib Suddle, Federal Tax Ombudsman of Pakistan and Former Inspector General of Police, Sindh
Muhammad Tahir, Former Senior Superintendent of Police, Peshawar and currently Humphrey Fellow at the University of Minnesota
Sohail Habib Tajik, Former Senior Superintendent of Police in Rahim Yar Khan (Punjab)
Sheikh Muhammad Umar, Currently Counsellor, Community Affairs, Embassy of Pakistan; and former Senior Superintendent of Police in Sindh
Contributing Writers
Ahmed Ali Aafani, Assistant Director, Federal Investigation Authority (FIA)
Humayun Tarar, Member of Pakistan’s police force; Hubert H. Humphrey Fellow, Maxwell School, Syracuse University
Zamir Haider, Journalist, Dunya News
Project Manager
Johan Kharabi, Senior Program Officer, Global Policy Programs, Asia Society
Project Researchers
Nida Naqvi (Project Co-editor)
Dania Khan
Humaira Masihuddin
Siraj Ahmed – See more here.
ISPU scholars are provided a space on our site to display a selection of op-eds. These were not necessarily commissioned by ISPU, nor is their presence on the site equal to an endorsement of the content. The opinions expressed are that of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ISPU.