Pro-Government Militias
Community Police (Pakistan)
Basic Group Information
| Name assigned by coder: | no |
| PGM ID Number: | 628 |
| Country: | Pakistan |
| Date formed: | June 20, 2009 |
| Accuracy of date formed: | year |
| Details of Formation: | In summer 2009, the Swat provincial government introduced a program that intended to generate local law enforcement officers. Authorities then recruited civilians to form the Community Police. |
| Date dissolved: | Unknown |
| Accuracy of date dissolved: | day |
| Details of Termination: | The Community Police was still active in 2014. |
| Termination Type(s): | not terminated |
Former and Successor Group Information
| Predecessor group(s): | none |
| Successor group(s): | none |
| Private Military Company? | no |
| Former Group? | no |
| Former Armed Group? | no |
| Former Rebel Group? | no |
| Former Rebel Group UCDP ID: | none |
| PGM Becomes Rebel Group? | no |
| Successor Rebel Group UCDP ID: | none |
Government Relation, Support, and Training
| Government Relation: | semi-official (type 2) |
| Created by the Government?: | yes | Main Creating Government Institution: | subnational government |
| Government Link(s): | sub-national government; military (institution) |
| If link to party, name of party: | None |
| Training and Equipment: | yes |
| Shared Information and Joint Operations: | yes |
| Shared Personnel: | no |
| Type(s) of Material Support: | domestic government |
| State Sponsor(s): | none |
| Other Connection(s): |
Group Characteristics
| Membership: | village/rural; adolescents; peasants |
| Primary Membership: | local |
| Alternative Primary Membership: | no information |
| Location: | Malakand division, especially in Swat district and Peshawra |
| Force Strength: | [2000, 2600] |
| Target(s): | rebels, insurgents, or other armed group |
| Purpose(s): | fight insurgents |
Ethnic Characteristics
| Ethnic Target(s): | none |
| Quality of Information for Ethnic Targeting: | not applicable |
| Ethnic Membership: | none |
| Quality of Information for Ethnic Membership: | not applicable |
| Ethnic Purpose: | none |
| Quality of Information for Ethnic Purpose: | not applicable |
Other Information
| Other Information: | The Community Police is similar to tribal militias, but while tribal militias are existing tribes that form an alliance with the government/military, the Community Police was exclusively set up and trained by the government. |
New Variables from Meta-Analysis
Purpose
| Purpose: | The main purpose of the Community Police was to fight the Taliban. The government used them to gather information on who might be a disguised Taliban member. The Community Police also made it possible to enlarge the police force; regular police officers were killed, kidnapped or deserted out of fear, and many of the new regular police recruits did not show up. |
| Relative Benefit(s) of PGM Use | knowledge; faster mobilization |
Treatment of Civilians
| Treatment of Civilians: | The Community Police are supposed to protect the public. We have no information to what degree they fulfill this task; neither do we have information on possible human rights violations. |
| Type(s) of Violence against Civilians: | unknown |
Reasons for Membership
| PGM Members Coerced? | no |
| PGM Members Paid? | yes |
| Reasons for Membership: | Community Police members receive a monthly salary of $120, which is more than double of the amount most farmers earn, and more than regular police officers receive. |
| PGM Members Killed? | rarely |
PGM Size
| Size: | In July 2009, the government was recruiting 2,000 Community Police officers. By October 2009, they had recruited already 2,600 members. A news source from March 2020 speaks of 2,500 recruits. |
Weapons and Training
| Weapons and Training: | Community Police receive formal training by the Army. Training includes counterinsurgency, recapturing buildings SWAT team-style, escorting VIPs and other military drills. |
Organisation
| Organisation: | The Community Police is a program by the provincial government. It was designed as a pilot project under the UNDP-sponsored 'strengthening rule of law programme for Malakand division (SRLPM)'. Community Police operate together with regular police, and have connections to the Army chief. |
Reference(s) for Meta-Analysis
Evidence
- Examine the evidence for this coding.