karachi - raging inferno - time to act

SEVERAL inquiry teams have been set up, suo motu notice has been taken and glib promises made about the payment of compensation. At the provincial and federal levels, officialdom has loudly reiterated that those found responsible will face that favourite of governmental red herrings, `stern action`. More than 250 people died when a garment manufacturing unit in Karachi`s SITE area turned into a raging inferno; the horror faced by most of the workers in their last moments does not bear thinking of. Can we nurse hopes that their lives were not lost entirely in vain? Could future researchers on labour reform in Pakistan look back at this tragedy as the turning point that caused the sluggish administration to wake up to its responsibilities towards enforcing labour and safety standard laws? Sadly, if the past is taken as an indicator, the chances are slim. It is in the manner of things in Pakistan that each new tragedy, each preventable accident even those as heartbreaking as this one is met with promises of good intentions to fix the system, only to be forgotten within days and weeks as the lethargy returns.

Whether it is a road accident that could have been prevented by more stringent tests for road-worthiness, a CNG cylinder explosion that could have been averted had installationand manufacturing taken place under honest governmental oversight, or a building that collapsed because the construction codes were not enforced, the administration`s response is to wait it out until some new outrage forces it to the back of society`s memory.

In cases involving the industrial lobby, groups that have a vested interest in maintaining the status quo and these are comprised of individuals for whom such tragedies have a monetary, not human, dimension find the state to be quite compliant and unwilling to improve working conditions for the voiceless labour force. The state`s predilection towards capitulating is quite clear: since the late 1990s, different administrations in Punjab and Sindh bowed before the industrialist lobby and barred inspectors from entering the factory premises to check if safety and other standards mandated by the law were being met. And while Punjab overturned the ban early this year, the dysfunction of the labour inspection system is evident from the similar tragedy that befell workers of a Lahore unit on the same day. The labour inspection system is an essential first step from where workers` rights issues can be addressed.

Will the government ever find the will to stand up in support of the rights and safety of the millions that are its raison d`être?