Pakistan: helping quake survivors cope with a tough winter
Photos and text by Mubashir Fida, Information Officer, Pakistan Delegation
Website: http://www.ifrc.org
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Muhammad Asif stockpiles wood to burn. He says the assistance he recently received from the Red Cross and Red Crescent will be a big help, but he fears this winter will be more severe than last year. (p15286)
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and the Pakistan Red Crescent are distributing shelter materials and relief items in earthquake-affected areas of northern Pakistan to help still-vulnerable families survive the cold months ahead.
Snow has fallen in the higher altitudes and hundreds of thousands of people are still without permanent shelter more than a year after the October 2005 earthquake.
Red Cross and Red Crescent distributions began in early December around the devastated town of Balakot and are due to continue until the end of January. Shelter and basic relief items will be given out to 13,500 families, or close to 100,000 people, across the North West Frontier Province (NWFP) and Pakistan-administered Kashmir.
As conditions worsen, aid agencies are finding it increasingly difficult to transport supplies to remote areas. The International Federation and the Pakistan Red Crescent are expected to use helicopters, supplied by the United Nations Humanitarian Air Services, for distributions in rural locations this month.
A key component of the distributions is corrugated galvanized iron sheets, which are used to improve shelters, as well as repair kits, quilts, blankets, and tarpaulins. These items will be given to people who have not yet received enough assistance to get them through the winter.
The task is an urgent one. Pakistan Red Crescent Field Officer, Irfan Hameed, warns that conditions will be extremely challenging judging by the earlier-than-usual snowfalls in the Allai Valley in northern Pakistan.
"It will be a harsh winter this year, harsher than the previous one," he says. "Last winter we saw winterized tents collapsing in heavy snow, but this year we are giving out corrugated galvanized iron sheets which are more durable than the tents," he adds.
Sixty-year-old Mast Alam, a grocer and head of a family of 12, is still living in a tent in the village of Shohal Najaf near Balakot - nearly 15 months after the disaster.
He says the iron sheets he has received will be vital in helping him improve his shelter situation.
"I am asthmatic and it was very difficult for me to cope with the cold last yearÃÂ
I will be constructing my shelter in a week so that I am able to survive the cold. It was a blessing for me to have them in time," he says.
Like Mast Alam and his family, many quake survivors still face desperately difficult conditions, with the bitter chill of Himalayan winds adding to the challenge of survival. Muhammad Asif, who lives in Patlang village north of Balakot, is bracing for a tough time.
The 37-year-old lost his wife in the quake and is now bringing up his two young children alone, while caring for his elderly parents. He continues gathering wood as he tells of his concerns about how his family will cope.
"My father got pneumonia last winter and the temperatures weren't even as cold as they are this year," he says. "We are lucky to get assistanceÃÂ
the iron sheets and kitchen sets are of very good quality, which makes a difference. We are also glad to be treated with care and respect by the volunteers from the Pakistan Red Crescent."
While conditions are tough for everyone during winter in northern Pakistan, the snow and freezing temperatures are particularly hard on vulnerable groups, such as the elderly, children and especially women, who can find it difficult to get access to the help they're entitled to because of cultural attitudes.
Irfan Hameed says this is of particular concern to the International Federation and the Pakistan Red Crescent.
"We work hard to ensure that we abide by cultural norms and pay careful attention to local customs. For example, we have worked out a system by which a male family or community member is nominated to collect items on behalf of women, especially widows. This approach has been warmly welcomed in the community," he explains.
"We have also established a good relationship with village elders and clerics, which allows us to work with them as a partner and enables us to ensure that assistance reaches the people who need it most."
[ Any views expressed in this article are those of the writer and not of Reuters. ]
