Fatima Jinnah Park: The dark heart of Islamabad
IT is so sad and paradoxical that named after the Mother of the Nation Mohtarma Fatima Ali Jinnah, the stunning F-9 Park located in the heart of Islamabad has become the rape and harassment haven for the undesirables of the twin-cities. Unfortunately this wonderful and accessible Park is fast gaining the reputation of a dangerous area to be avoided even during day time. This should be a wakeup call not only for the local police and administration but also the central government and Parliament that are located at stones through distance from the Fatima Jinnah Park.
Recent security and crime incidents, including rape, murder, mugging, robbery in Fatima Jinnah Park have highlighted the pressing need for ensuring comprehensive 24-hour security of this enchanting park in the prime location of Islamabad. Fear of increasing violence and crime is one of the most significant factors that is deterring people from using this huge and enchanting park built to showcase the nature-friendly nature of Islamabad and to provide a safe and accessible venue for citizens to undertake healthy and community-related activities.
According to police record a total of 37 incidents have been reported in the last one year, including the rape of six girls and women and the murder of the manager of a private food delivery company. In most cases, young girls and women were raped at gunpoint while other visitors have been looted and harassed. These incidents have made this beautiful park a “No-Go” area for ordinary citizens and has become central for criminals to freely abuse and rob women and men at gunpoint.
The quantity and quality of public parks in a city are considered one of the main predictors of the general wellbeing of its inhabitants. Parks can promote exercise which implies multiple physical and psychological benefits, a feeling of community and perceived support, social interaction and psychological health. Parks and recreation areas are a great asset for people of all ages in the community. But they can quickly become a liability when safety protocols are not in place. Whether the city includes an intricate network of parks, buildings and trails or just one public park, the administration needs to ensure the public can safely participate in park activities. However in the case of F-9 Park the Islamabad police and administration is failing miserably.
The original idea of public spaces was to offer a space to bring people together for business and social activities. Nowadays public spaces such as parks are still used for such purposes. Flea markets, food markets and clothing markets are examples of businesses conducted in large public spaces and used as platforms for social activities such as playgrounds, benches and tables for picnics, sport areas and walking paths. Parks, therefore, function as a space for public life to flourish, as a place for different social groups to interact or coexist, to facilitate a space for the display of symbols and images in society and to tie other urban spaces together.
The perceived safety of an individual within public spaces, particularly large parks like the Fatima Jinnah Park is dependent on several factors, such as: maintenance of the area, visibility in the area, the presence of green bushes, trees, grass, flowers, water fountains, streetlights, the number of people visiting the area at any time of day, the variety of activities, kiosks, facilities such as playgrounds and other attractions that not only add esthetic value of the park but also encourages families and people of all ages and backgrounds to enjoy their visit to the Park.
However, one of the most significant is safety and security of the visitors irrespective of gender, age and time of the visit. Arrangements like visible deployment of security personnel including dedicated, uniformed guards for the park, mobile security units that regularly circulate in the park area particularly those areas with large trees and thick vegetation, CCTV cameras, helpline telephone booths, proper monitoring of the gates, boards showing the layout of the park with clearly marked facilities and exists, small brochures that visitors can use as guide to orient themselves with the park and use in case they are lost.The perceived safety of an area by the individual has a strong influence in the decision by the individual to make use of the park or to avoid it.
Other environmental factors such as poor lighting and lack of visual control, that is the ability to have an open visual field without obstacles, reducing the potential risk of hidden offenders are essential and must be ensured while designing a park. Public spaces that are well lit are less likely to be perceived as unsafe, mostly because light gives people the ability to get an idea and overview of a space. If a space is not well lit and visibility is limited, an increased sense of feeling unsafe is triggered. A well-lit area is also associated with less potential crime that could occur; people feel that sufficient lighting will force crime to move elsewhere. However, F-9 Park stands like a black hole in the heart of Islamabad. At night one feels insecure even in a car, particularly when travelling past the park on the Margalla road side.
People are generally more comfortable with low cut green areas which gives visitors more visibility of the entire area and layout of the park. Unfortunately in F-9 Park there are huge unkempt areas with huge concentration of tall trees, long un-cut grass and undulated landscape, providing a perfect hiding place for miscreants and for undertaking undesirable activities. To make matters worse, the iron grill that marks the periphery is missing or broken at several places adding to the insecurity of the area.
It is also important to have a large number of activities and events in a large park like the F-9 Park as security is employed by the people that make use of the public space for recreational, social or business purposes; it is the basic concept of keeping an eye on each other, and therefore, leaving little room for crimes to happen. Public spaces need to be designed with flexible uses in mind, always taking into account that a mixture of sun and shade, food, water and a good view of the passing scene are essentials. We have found that a good place provides a range of things to do “uses and activities”; is easy to get to and connected to the surrounding community “access”; is safe, clean and attractive “comfort and image”; and, perhaps, most important, is a place to meet other people “sociability”. An actively used, thriving public Park is much safer, and easier to police in the long run, than an empty one.
The public’s need for gathering places is evident, now more than ever. All of these people, all of these places, help us to re-affirm the value of public life in the face of such overwhelming violence. The need to gather, to share stories, to celebrate, protest and grieve in a common place is a basic, human and universal need. We must continue to allow – and encourage – the diversity, culture and commerce of Islamabad and all our communities to thrive in a healthy, liveable city with safe and secure parks.
—The writer is former Ambassador, based in Islamabad.
Email: [email protected]
