Iconography of Karachi

October 07, 2015 | Pulitzer Center

Matthieu Aikins

Posters of Uzair Baloch, a notorious gang leader and prominent politician, in Lyari. Image by Matthieu Aikins. Pakistan, 2014.

Uzair's predecessor, Rehman Baloch, is pictured with Benazir and Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, former leaders of the Pakistan People's Party. Image by Matthieu Aikins. Pakistan, 2014.

After Uzair fell out with the Pakistan People's Party, new posters appeared showing him with the country's founder, Muhammad Ali Jinnah. Image by Matthieu Aikins. Pakistan, 2014.

Posters show Uzair with the country's founder, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, as well as the Army's leadership, hinting at powerful new patrons. Image by Matthieu Aikins. Pakistan, 2014.

A local crime tabloid features photos of notorious gangsters, including Uzair and his feared ally, Baba Ladla. Image by Matthieu Aikins. Pakistan, 2014.

The streets of Lyari. Image by Matthieu Aikins. Pakistan, 2014.

Wall graffiti for the Sipah-e Sahaba Pakistan, a banned terrorist group that has targeted Shias with bombings and assassinations. The SSP is a growing presence in Pakistan. Image by Matthieu Aikins. Pakistan, 2014.

A media monitoring room at the headquarters of the Mottahed Qaumi Movement, or MQM, the People's Party's principal rivals in Karachi. Image by Matthieu Aikins. Pakistan, 2014.

Frere Hall, Karachi. Karachi is one of the world's largest megacities. Image by Matthieu Aikins. Pakistan, 2014.

The streets of Lyari. Image by Matthieu Aikins. Pakistan, 2014.

Karachi is the world’s most violent city, with about 2,000 murders in 2013 (compared to 787 in Juarez) as a result of its virulent gang politics. The city’s gangsters, unlike their South American counterparts, are not simple outlaws; rather, they are openly linked to Pakistan’s national politics, in an ecology that runs from the street-side bhatta extortions up to the highest corridors of state office.

For a journalist attempting to navigate this story, the streets of Karach contain a complex weave of symbols and imagery—and it is important to know how to read them.