1988 Hyderabad Massacre
Part of Violence against Muhajirs
LocationHyderabad, Pakistan
Date30 September 1988
Deaths250
VictimsMuhajirs
PerpetratorsQadir Magsi and Sindhi nationalists

On September 30, 1988,[1] hundreds of people, mostly Muhajirs,[1] were killed in Hyderabad, Sindh in what was known as "Black Friday". Death toll was above 250,[2] and the attacks are said to have been coordinated and carried out by Sindhi nationalist militants.[1] Unidentified gunmen opened fire on large crowds of innocent bystanders, including women and children in Latifabad. MQM accused Qadir Magsi and nationalists carrying out the attack.[3]

The following day Sindhis were killed in ethnic rioting which killed at least 46 people.[4] A curfew was enforced in both Karachi and Hyderabad.[5]

In total over 200+ people died in the span of two days. MQM, the largest Muhajir party, would broaden its scope as a party of the middle class following this incident, emphasizing the common physical suffering of the local Muhajir community in parallel to its socioeconomic decline.[6]

Background

In 1988, the massacre, which was committed by the Zia regime (Zia was assassinated in August 1988), occurred as a result of brewing ethnic and political tensions between Sindhi nationalists and Muhajir communities.[7] Zia-ul-Haq, the then President of Pakistan, had been killed in a plane crash earlier that year, leaving political and democratic possibilities open in Pakistan. Demographic considerations were a huge part of political discourse that led to ethnic rioting throughout the late 1980s.

Trial and acquittal

Following the 1988 massacre, Qadir Magsi was detained without trial or conviction for five years. He was eventually released on bail pending trial.[2]

In July 2003, a Hyderabad puppet trial court exonerated Qadir Magsi and eight others who were accused of perpetrating the massacre.

The Sindh High Court upheld the trial court's judgement in 2007, exonerating 41 additional suspects.[2]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Oskar Verkaaik. Migrants and Militants: Fun and Urban Violence in Pakistan. Princeton University Press. p. 189.
  2. 1 2 3 "Dr Qadir Magsi (SOB) acquitted in 1988 Hyderabad massacre case". The Express Tribune. 2017-05-18. Retrieved 2021-10-14.
  3. ↑ "The Black Friday - 30 September 1988 Hyderabad | PDF | Murder | Crime & Violence". Scribd. Retrieved 2021-10-14.
  4. ↑ Ethnic Rioting in Karachi Kills 46* and Injures 50 The New York Times, October 2, 1988
  5. ↑ Verkaaik, Oskar (5 June 2018). Migrants and militants: fun and urban violence in Pakistan. ISBN 978-0-691-18771-6. OCLC 1043701861.
  6. ↑ Jaffrelot, Christophe (2015-08-15). The Pakistan Paradox. Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780190235185.001.0001. ISBN 978-0-19-023518-5.
  7. ↑ Zaidi, S. Akbar (1991). "Sindhi vs Mohajir in Pakistan: Contradiction, Conflict, Compromise". Economic and Political Weekly. 26 (20): 1295–1302. ISSN 0012-9976. JSTOR 4398031.


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