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American Morning
Pakistan Government Attempts to Crack Down on Gun Ownership
Aired November 01, 2001 - 11:20 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: As we all know, Pakistan is certainly a key and critical player in the current conflict. But the country there also battling its own battles, sometimes quite literally, a bit closer to home.
Carol Lin now, and an inside look on an ongoing battle over guns.
Carol is live in Quetta, Pakistan. Carol, hello.
CAROL LIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Bill.
You're absolutely right, the battle is over guns -- trying to get serious weapons out of people's closets, average families here who are armed to the teeth. Now, a year and a half ago the Pakistani government was pressured by the international community, as well as the United States, to try to disarm its citizens -- trying to crack down on terrorism, trying to take the weapons out of their hands that's fueling the violence in this region.
It is no surprise that there are many guns around Central Asia, but Pakistan, in trying to do something about it, did crack down. They literally banned all new gun licenses, as well as all guns -- in particular, automatic weapons. So what we wanted to look at, given the present situation -- we wanted to look into whether Pakistan's government really does have the ultimate influence over its own people.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(voice-over): It's pretty clear in the frontier town of Quetta that the average family's idea of home protection means more than just a handgun.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You've got Russian Kalashnikovs, then you've got Chinese Kalashnikovs, and you've got local-made Kalashnikovs, which are obviously not as good as the Russian or Chinese ones.
LIN: When Pakistan outlawed high-powered weapons and demanded its citizens turn in their guns, no one seemed surprised when doctors, lawyers, shopkeepers, showed up with an arsenal powerful enough to outfit an army. Police showed us just a fraction of the automatic rifles, the rocket launchers and the hand grenades that people turned in to the government in the last year. Today possessing an automatic gun could get you life in prison. But this is Pakistan's Wild West, where a man is measured by the size of his weapon, and guns are still easy to get.
(on camera): What's that?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING ARABIC)
(voice-over): In downtown Quetta, gun dealer Haji Qasim (sic) says he only sells low-caliber hunting rifles, which are still legal for sportsmen with a government license. But as he showed us what's in stock, our translator overheard the store clerk assuring two men he could help them get automatic weapons, but to come back when the TV camera was gone.
How do people get banned weapons? The deals are easily made after dark. It only took a couple of hours for a gun dealer's salesman to meet us. After a drive through town and up a dirt road, we ended up in a vacant lot, where he pulled out a nine-millimeter automatic handgun, ours for $100.
(on camera): Not licensed; untraceable.
(voice-over): For another $100, he said he could get a Kalashnikov rifle. We said no, but plenty of people stay well armed.
CHUDEHRI SUJHA, GUN DEALER: If we have a gun, we feeling very protective.
LIN: Storekeepers still quietly stash their weapons. We're told the dry cleaner on this street owns a Kalashnikov. Pakistan's government says it still confiscates 150 illegal guns every day, but authorities admit for every weapon collected, they have no idea how many citizens are still heavily armed.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LIN: And consider this: That the Pakistani police only have legal authority over 5 percent of the total territory in this country. Ninety-five percent of the territory is still legally controlled by local tribal chiefs who really have the ultimate credibility with their own people. And those people believe that in order to be a true, for example, Pashtun tribesperson -- the majority ethnic group here -- you have to own a weapon -- Bill.
HEMMER: Really gives a lot more clarity about what's happening there. Carol, thanks; Carol Lin live in Quetta, Pakistan with us. Carol, thanks.
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