EDITORIAL
A National Loss
O
ne of the most revered and loved voices of Pakistan was silenced, another victim of Karachi’s
violent nature. Renowned Qawwal Amjad Sabri
was loved by all who knew him and heard his voice,
and as hundreds gather at his hour in grief and respect
across the nation, millions are shocked and saddened
by the brutal killing. Sabri was shot dead in Karachi, after unknown assailants fired at his vehicle. It is a wonder of how many murders we will condemn - how many
times brutality will break our hearts.This is the third such
incident in a week in Karachi. On Monday, an Ahmadi
doctor was killed, on Tuesday the son of the Chief Justice of Sindh was kidnapped and Wednesday saw bullets shot at Sabri. Whatever nascent peace had been
created in Karachi in the wake of the Rangers operation
was only a mirage. By all reports and accounts, Amjad
Sabri was a kind and humble man.His message was of
love and spiritual peace, and it is appalling to know that
there are those who would wish him ill or be offended
by him. While we wait to find out why he was killed,
the fear gripping the hearts of Pakistanis is that we are
losing the brave, the creative, the talented and the outspoken to extremism and crime. Prime Minister Nawaz
Sharif has condemned the attack and has directed the
relevant authorities to bring the perpetrators to justice.
Moreover, the Chief Minister Sindh Syed Qaim Ali Shah
has taken notice of the incident and ordered IG Sindh to
submit a report regarding the assassination. However,
this is another case of state failure, and another target
killing where the police and government will not be able
to catch and punish the shooters. Karachi continues to
bleed. Amjad Sabri was one of the country’s finest qawwals, known for his soul-stirring renditions of mystic
poetry, and we failed him by refusing to acknowledge
the hate and violence on our streets.By promoting this
poisonous ideology of a specific, rigid Muslim identity,
we silently watch monsters grow.
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