'Armed diplomats' violation of Vienna Convention

[Naveed Yaseen]

There have been over the past few weeks half a dozen incidents in which diplomats were caught carrying arms in violation of the Vienna Convention. –File photo Pakistan

Evidently the stress of living in the midst of all that has been happening in Pakistan’s capital city seems to be getting too much for foreign missions. As a report in yesterday’s Dawn points out, there have been over the past few weeks half a dozen incidents in which diplomats were caught carrying arms in violation of the Vienna Convention.

The security of foreign missions and diplomats is the responsibility of host governments the world over, and diplomats are usually cognisant of the fact and do not carry arms — otherwise they would run the risk of being exposed by the local media. But in Pakistan, some diplomats, mostly western, appear to go against this standard practice and flout the Vienna Convention — rather brazenly it would seem. What they are forgetting is that violations of the sort could result in ugly incidents involving bloodshed. This, however, is only one way of looking at things, because there are extenuating circumstances.

To begin with, foreign missions are conscious of the fact that Pakistan’s security forces have been overstretched because of the war on terror, and perhaps they think they are lightening the burden of the government by arranging for their own security.

Another reason could be their lack of trust in our security agencies, especially because of the lapses that have led to such incidents as the attack on the Sri Lankan team in Lahore and the terrorists’ audacious attack on the GHQ lately. More unfortunately, the Foreign Office and the interior ministry do not seem to see eye to eye on the issue, the latter adopting a stance that appears to suggest that it condones the diplomats’ behaviour. There is also confusion about licensed and unlicensed weapons. The FO now has reportedly decided to 'get tough' on the issue. However, before the FO does this it would be appropriate for the two ministries and the various security agencies to develop a policy consensus on how armed diplomats — an oxymoron — are to be tackled.

http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn...macy-am-02