Comparing Mumbai attack to Karachi riots, an exercise in futility: Pak editorial

Karachi, Dec.2 : An editorial in the Daily Times has said that the ethnic trouble in Karachi and the recent terror strikes in Mumbai are as different as chalk and cheese, and therefore making comparisons would be an exercise in futility.

It further says that ethnic rioting in Karachi has been on for long, and has surfaced well before what happened in Mumbai last week.

It, therefore, cautions against whipping up hatred against India, saying that it is not as important as suppressing the ethnic rage in Karachi.

Ethnic rioting in Karachi has so far resulted in the death of 29 people and injuries to 200, prompting Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani to call for a report on what is happening.

"In some ways, the Karachi violence is worse than what happened in Mumbai ... If this continues, Karachi might soon have internal refugees who can't go home either because their homes have been burnt down or because they fear the killers will get them. All signs here are of ethnic conflict," the editorial warns.

"Those who are encouraging a "united stand against India" campaign in the media should look carefully into the nature of trouble inside Pakistan. It is not wise to trust a statement - concocted or real - from Waziristan that the loyal tribesmen will stand side by side with the Pakistan army if India brings its troops to the border as it did in 2001," it concludes.

ANI