Killing of Amjad Fareed Sabri is indicative of Karachi's fragile peace

On Wednesday, 22 June, 2016, renowned Sufi qawwal Amjad Fareed Sabri was gunned down near his house in Karachi’s Liaquatabad area. Amjad Sabri, 45, was travelling in his car with an associate when he was intercepted by two unidentified men, riding a motorcycle, who fired at his vehicle. He was rushed to the hospital immediately where he succumbed to his injuries. The music fraternity lost an icon. Pakistan lost a cultural treasure.

Amjad Sabri came from a celebrated family of qawwals which traces its lineage all the way back to the legendary Tansen. His father, Ghulam Farid Sabri, and uncle, Maqbool Sabri – known as the Sabri Brothers — were one of the first people to introduce the hallowed tradition of Sufi qawwali to the West in the 1970s.

The Sabri Brothers infused their qawwalis with a unique blend of steady melody which had a hypnotic effect on the listeners. In doing so, they furthered the art form of qawwali and made it their own. Amjad Sabri dedicated his life to doing justice to his musical heritage. Anyone familiar with his work would agree that he was successful in living up to the high bar set by his father and uncle. He was one of the most sought after qawwals, even in India, which is a testament to his talent and dedication to his art.

Everyone who heard the news of Sabri’s death was shocked and condemned the attack. Amjad Sabri was predictably trending on Twitter and other social media. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, Chief Minister of Sindh and the top leadership in police unanimously expressed an urgent need to bring the perpetrators to justice. Police officials have been suspended. Reports on the incident have been demanded. Sadly, Pakistanis and particularly those from Karachi, know better than to expect much from such statements which have become trite and meaningless.

It is important, however, to see Amjad Sabri’s murder in the broader context of violence in Karachi.

Karachi seemingly enjoyed a brief respite from the target killings and crime that had become ubiquitous a few years ago. Many attribute the improvement in the security situation of the city to the ongoing Rangers operations which have relentlessly targeted criminal and terrorist groups. A cursory look at the headlines of local news outlets is enough to establish a correlation between the intensity of Rangers operations and a decrease crime and violence. However, there was a sudden spike in both crime and target killings last month despite the presence of Rangers in the city.

The nature of target killings in Karachi also warrants a closer examination. Over the last couple of months, the victims of target killings have disproportionately been religious minorities, journalists and human rights activists. A case in point is the murder of Khurram Zaki, a local Shia journalist and human rights activist, who was killed last month in a manner similar to Amjad Sabri’s killing. Just three days ago an Ahmadi doctor was also gunned down by unknown assailants on motorcycles. Last year Sabeen Mahmud, a prominent activist, was also gunned down by extremists. This incident was followed by the horrendous Safoora carnage which left 45 members of the Ismaili community dead. Amjad Sabri too was the subject of a controversy two years ago when he was issued a notice in a blasphemy case by the Islamabad High Court for singing a qawwali on a TV show which was deemed offensive.

It is still unclear whether Amjad Sabri’s murder is related to the blasphemy case from two years ago or not. Such incidents are, nonetheless, indicative of just how fragile peace in Karachi is. As Pakistan mourns the loss of Amjad Sabri and hopes for swift justice for his killers, it must not forget to identify what motivates target killings. After all, in a city where unknown assailants on motorcycles kill at will, soon there will be no Sabris, Mahmuds and Zakis.

The author is a social development professional and works on countering violent extremism in Karachi.