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Wasim Akram talks to media as he arrives at the National Cricket Stadium in Karachi on August 5, 2015, after a gunman opened fire on his car. — AFP |
Earlier last month, the former Pakistan cricket captain, Wasim Akram, narrowly avoided a brush with catastrophe when his car was shot at in Karachi, during a traffic spat with another traveller.
The news report has clear details on the sequence of events, as they happened according to Wasim Akram – how the person in the other car tried to flee after initially hitting Akram’s car; how, after the bowling legend chased him down, an altercation ensued; how, the gunman had the gun pointed ‘at me’ [Akram], but aimed at the ground upon realising who it was, and then bolted from the scene.
Words of concern poured in from all over the world after the incident, and the nation breathed a sigh of relief when the maestro managed to escape a potential tragedy.
Wasim termed the incident ‘scary’ and said, “I want legal proceedings initiated against him.”
Now, owing to some proper police work, the culprit has been identified as an ex-Army official. Recognising his mistake, the person in question has tried to preempt the situation and tendered a written apology to Wasim Akram for his behaviour, which he attributes to ‘road rage’, thereby trying to somehow justify his actions.
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A screengrab of the apology letter written to Wasim Akram. — DawnNews |
There has been a flurry of responses to the apology, which speak to many aspects of our society at large.
On the one hand are people who recognise the fault in what the attacker did, but would rather have Akram accept the apology and move on. According to them, life in Pakistan – and particularly in Karachi – is tough all over, and for the average citizen, terrifying incidents like these is a matter of routine. In this case, thank the angels that there was no damage done, get over the incident, and move on with life.
On the other hand though, people have rightly pointed out for the need to follow the law. We have to recognise that the public nature of this crime entails some tangible repercussions. The apology was written, as per the author, out of remorse and respect for the ex-cricketer. (Arguably, the shot fired was singular and intentionally aimed away for the same reason.) Does that mean that the remorse would not have been so forthcoming had it been an ordinary person instead of Akram?
Ordinary citizen or not, the beauty of law resides in its uniform application over everyone. Akram might choose to accept the apology, but that does not absolve the state of its responsibility to prosecute the wrongdoers among us.
As citizens, we can all relate to situations of road rage, where even the most level-headed are sometimes seen laying it all out for a fleeting moment of misplaced bravado. That said, reacting to such situations with a firearm is downright unacceptable.
As things stand, our society suffers from a toxic gun culture already. Firearms here stand for honour, pride, power and even arrogance.
The debate on their necessity versus harm aside, one would expect, at least a retired Major to exemplify responsible firearms handling in an already volatile environment like ours. Rather, it is the opposite that happened.
And finally, what message are we sending across by treating this matter lightly? One incident like this can expose the security and safety of everyone – including well-known public figures – in the country, undoing years of work toward image-building. That, especially at a time when we're struggling to persuade foreign cricket teams that it is safe to tour Pakistan.
Such are the times we live in. Wasim Akram still lived and received an apology too. But what should us ordinary mortals expect?