Crime in Pakistan
Encyclopedia
Crime
in Pakistan
is present in various forms. Organised crime includes drug trafficking, money laundering
, forged
Indian currency printing, extortion
, murder for hire
and fraud
. Other criminal operations engage in human trafficking
, corruption
, black marketeering, political violence, terrorism
, abduction etc.
Pakistan falls under the Golden Crescent
, which is one of the two major illicit opium producing centres in Asia
. Opium poppy
cultivation in Pakistan is estimated to be 800 hectares in 2005 yielding a potential production of 4 metric tons of heroin. Opium is cultivated primarily in the North-West Frontier Province
and Pakistan-Afghanistan border. Until the late 1970s, opium production levels were relatively static; it increased after 1979.
Since the beginning of the 1980s, drug trafficking is flourishing in Pakistan. Opium production in Pakistan increased in part due to the "Taliban Effect"(the increasingly conservative views towards both the freedom of women and religion) in Afghanistan. One of the results was the influence on Afghan women to move their families to Pakistan. Once in Pakistan, they were more able to take on important economic roles such as poppy cultivation. Pakistan is a key transit point for Afghan drugs, including heroin, opium, morphine, and hashish, bound for Western countries, the Arab states of the Persian Gulf
, and Africa.
An estimated $4 billion is generated from drug trafficking in Pakistan.
Petty crime like theft is common.
Crime
Crime is the breach of rules or laws for which some governing authority can ultimately prescribe a conviction...
in Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
is present in various forms. Organised crime includes drug trafficking, money laundering
Money laundering
Money laundering is the process of disguising illegal sources of money so that it looks like it came from legal sources. The methods by which money may be laundered are varied and can range in sophistication. Many regulatory and governmental authorities quote estimates each year for the amount...
, forged
Counterfeit
To counterfeit means to illegally imitate something. Counterfeit products are often produced with the intent to take advantage of the superior value of the imitated product...
Indian currency printing, extortion
Extortion
Extortion is a criminal offence which occurs when a person unlawfully obtains either money, property or services from a person, entity, or institution, through coercion. Refraining from doing harm is sometimes euphemistically called protection. Extortion is commonly practiced by organized crime...
, murder for hire
Contract killing
Contract killing is a form of murder, in which one party hires another party to kill a target individual or group of people. It involves an illegal agreement between two parties in which one party agrees to kill the target in exchange for consideration, monetary, or otherwise. The hiring party may...
and fraud
Fraud
In criminal law, a fraud is an intentional deception made for personal gain or to damage another individual; the related adjective is fraudulent. The specific legal definition varies by legal jurisdiction. Fraud is a crime, and also a civil law violation...
. Other criminal operations engage in human trafficking
Human trafficking
Human trafficking is the illegal trade of human beings for the purposes of reproductive slavery, commercial sexual exploitation, forced labor, or a modern-day form of slavery...
, corruption
Political corruption
Political corruption is the use of legislated powers by government officials for illegitimate private gain. Misuse of government power for other purposes, such as repression of political opponents and general police brutality, is not considered political corruption. Neither are illegal acts by...
, black marketeering, political violence, terrorism
Terrorism
Terrorism is the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion. In the international community, however, terrorism has no universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition...
, abduction etc.
Pakistan falls under the Golden Crescent
Golden Crescent
The Golden Crescent is the name given to one of Asia's two principal areas of illicit opium production, located at the crossroads of Central, South, and Western Asia...
, which is one of the two major illicit opium producing centres in Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
. Opium poppy
Opium poppy
Opium poppy, Papaver somniferum, is the species of plant from which opium and poppy seeds are extracted. Opium is the source of many opiates, including morphine , thebaine, codeine, papaverine, and noscapine...
cultivation in Pakistan is estimated to be 800 hectares in 2005 yielding a potential production of 4 metric tons of heroin. Opium is cultivated primarily in the North-West Frontier Province
North-West Frontier Province
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa , formerly known as the North-West Frontier Province and various other names, is one of the four provinces of Pakistan, located in the north-west of the country...
and Pakistan-Afghanistan border. Until the late 1970s, opium production levels were relatively static; it increased after 1979.
Since the beginning of the 1980s, drug trafficking is flourishing in Pakistan. Opium production in Pakistan increased in part due to the "Taliban Effect"(the increasingly conservative views towards both the freedom of women and religion) in Afghanistan. One of the results was the influence on Afghan women to move their families to Pakistan. Once in Pakistan, they were more able to take on important economic roles such as poppy cultivation. Pakistan is a key transit point for Afghan drugs, including heroin, opium, morphine, and hashish, bound for Western countries, the Arab states of the Persian Gulf
Arab states of the Persian Gulf
"Arab states of the Persian Gulf" or "Arab Persian Gulf states" or "Persian Gulf Arab states" or "Arabic Persian Gulf states" or "Arab States of The Gulf", are terms that refer to the six Arab states of Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman, bordering the Persian Gulf....
, and Africa.
An estimated $4 billion is generated from drug trafficking in Pakistan.
Petty crime like theft is common.