Growing pains

Author: Steve Inskeep
Publisher: Penguin Books
Price: Rs599
Classification: Non-fiction

Steve Inskeep makes his writing debut with this book about Karachi. Co-host with a show called ‘Morning Edition’ on the NPR (erstwhile National Public Radio), he has also been the recipient of the 2006 Robert F Kennedy journalism award.

The book is a historic and educative narrative, taking the reader down memory lane from the time of the Partition and the ever-respected Quaid-e-Azam - Muhammad Ali Jinnah who tried to give shape to Pakistan, to Asif Ali Zardari, Benazir Bhutto’s widower and today’s controversial president. Inskeep details the relevant points of each administration over the past 50 years, showcasing the reign of various heads of state with their differing policies and views on running a burgeoning economy.

The book gives the reader a peek into the lives of some famous personalities like Mustafa Kamal, the ex-mayor of Karachi; Faisal Edhi, the son of the founder of the Edhi ambulance service; Tony Tufail, “the man who dreamed that Karachi, that overwhelmingly Muslim metropolis, would be the perfect place to build a casino”; Ardeshir Cowasjee, the caustic-tongued Parsi shipping heir and newspaper columnist; and Fatima Bhutto, the grandchild of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, founder chairman of the Pakistan Peoples Party.

By “Instant City”, the author refers in part to the population explosion that has taken place in Karachi due to the rising tide of migrants moving into the city from neighbouring countries (and countryside) and the increasing birth rate, leading to creation of new micro cities overnight. The port city of Karachi has grown exponentially, over 30 times, since the end of 1945 and World War II. As of date, Karachi houses over 13.1 million people, from a meagre 400,000 during the Partition in 1947.

It is estimated that more than half of Karachi's residents live in illegal homes and settlements. The author reveals that buying and selling of real estate around the city is through sleazy deals that involve bribes. He talks about land, housing, environment and energy abuse and the pressures this brings to bear on the populace. "There are red streams going down the streets that people say are pollution from tanneries. There's raw sewage going into the harbour. But at the same time, it's a city full of incredible life and incredible improvisation."

The Partition and the mass movement of Hindus and Muslims between India and Pakistan was expected to keep the two majority religions in their own realms, however, to quote Inskeep: “"There was a mass exodus of people who found themselves on the wrong side of the dividing lines. Hindus left Karachi by the hundreds of thousands, and even more Muslims came. You would think that would make it more stable. It actually became less stable over time."

The novel hinges around the event of the Ashura (10th day of the holy Muslim month of Muharram) bombing of December 28, 2009, which, apart from the bloodshed, further crippled an already fragile infrastructure and made Karachi's citizens and the world to sit up and ask ‘why?’

The tragedy which claimed the lives of innocents in a religious procession still has people baffled about the motive of the offenders. Was it motivated by a spiritual cause or political vengeance, or the brainchild of ruthless businessmen to raze old buildings to pave way for new development in the heart of the city. The Ashura bombing plays a pivotal role in the book, and Inskeep attempts to look for answers. He portrays the constancy of life and death as he connects to the pulse of the citizenry, touching on tales of murder, mayhem and terror, probing deep into the very heart of darkness. The narrative captures in depth the havoc that forces of religion, ethnicity, politics and violence wreck on the streets and in the homes of Karachi.

Inskeep paints a vivid picture of the instant city by giving in-depth views of and from people like Dr Seemin Jamali, deputy director / emergency section-in-charge at the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre, who has selflessly and tirelessly striven to help the injured and their families in the aftermath of the Ashura bombing; Nisar Baloch who ‘forecast his own death’ while condemning a political party involved in a land grab; Mayor Mustafa Kamal, who borrowed ideas from other cities for use in Karachi, trying to emulate the storm drains of London and seeking to adapt techniques of garbage collection from Shanghai; and Faisal Edhi who continues the task of saving the lives of injured, following in the footsteps of his father Abdul Sattar Edhi, the founder of the Edhi ambulance service.

He brings out the flavour of Karachi, the heat, the dust and the wreckage of violence, right into our drawing rooms with a true-to-life portrayal of the instant city, giving the reader a peek into an intriguing world few of us have or ever will experience.

Excerpt
“If only it were so easy to find relief from the violence that stalks the city. Much of the world knows Karachi as the scene of the videotaped murder of the journalist Daniel Pearl in 2002, but Karachi residents are intimately familiar with many other killings… Karachi is hardly the deadliest city in the world, but it’s notable for spasms of political killings that can shut down parts of the city for days.

“Everything that makes this instant city vibrant can also make it violent. Its swift and disorderly growth creates room for corruption and organized crime. Ethnic groups migrate here from different places, speak different languages, and coalesce into rival political parties that battle over money, power, and real estate. It’s notable that most of Karachi’s violence is not blamed on Islamist extremist groups. But extremists have established a presence in Karachi, attracted by many of the same factors that make the city rich…. Taliban fighters are believed to visit Karachi when they need places to hide. In the years before al Qaeda founder Osama bin Laden was found and killed in northern Pakistan in 2011, several of his associates were based in Karachi or arrested there; al Qaeda used the city as a receiving station for militant recruits and a base for attacks outside Pakistan. This should be no surprise; the international airport and financial system offer links to the outside world, while some universities and religious schools have become centres of Islamist political thought. If militants merely hid in the mountains, they would only be a local threat, but like so many people, they have seized the global opportunities of the instant city.”