Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto´s government may have bludgeoned Karachi into submission, but independent observers are asking whether the apparent peace is here to stay.
It is true that the terror that long held the city in its grip has subsided. Several pockets of the city are still considered unsafe to venture into after dark, but they no longer resound with the gunfire of rival factions battling it out. Kidnappings for ransom and the all-too-familiar daily headlines of 'Eight gunned down' or 'Twelve killed in sniper fire' seem now to be a nightmare of the past. Tortured, bullet-riddled, blood-stained bodies tied in gunny sacks no longer turn up on roadsides.
Once again, Karachi´s roads are buzzing with activity, restaurants are crowded at meal-times, and business has picked up in the shops and bazaars. Employees at multinational companies, banks and businesses no longer quail at working late nights, and taxi drivers now accept fares to volatile areas like Korangi.
Over the last couple of months, the government has been thumping its chest in victory, citing the relative peace that now reigns over the city as a measure of its success. The loudest self-congratulatory statements have come from the powerful Interior Minister Major-General (retd) Naseerullah Babar, whose ruthless crackdown on Karachi has been heavily criticised by human rights groups. Gen Babar says that there is little chance of the city being overrun by militants again, and his confidence is echoed by the Prime Minister herself.