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Pakistan Struggles with Mass Exodus

20/05/09May 20, 2009

The Pakistani army says troops are making progress in their offensive against the Taliban in the Swat valley and the neighbouring districts. On Wednesday, the army regained control of Sultanwas, a town in the Buner region. Fighting in the northwest has left hundreds of thousands of people displaced. The authorities and aid agencies are struggling to cope with the massive exodus.

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Children line up to receive hot tea at a refugee camp near Mardan
Children line up to receive hot tea at a refugee camp near MardanImage: AP

It is one the most dramatic, largest and fastest displacements in Pakistan, says the UN. About 1.5 million people have become Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) since early this month. They have joined over 500,000 others who fled fighting last year. It is an exodus beyond the government’s expectations, says Aimal Khattak from the Sungi Dev Foundation in Peshawar:

“I think the government didn’t expect that so many people will flee and so it did not make enough arrangements. Suddenly, when people started coming in such large numbers, then the authorities installed temporary camps and tents.”

Desperation among refugees

Among these displaced people, nearly 20 percent have sought shelter in government camps. The rest have either rented rooms or are turning to their relatives and friends. Many have also found accommodation with so-called host families, says Javeria Malik of the ActionAid, Pakistan:

“These are the people in Mardan, Swabi and Charsadda areas, who have opened up their homes for those people who are coming without any food and shelter. It is the same belt and they have a culture of hospitality and brotherhood.”

Initially 23 camps were set up in different parts of the North West Frontier Province. All of them are now full up to their capacity and new camps are being established, as the flood of people continues.

Inside the camps, the condition is no better, particularly in the scorching heat. Khattak from the Sungi Dev Foundation says, though food and other relief supplies have improved, there is a shortage of many important things.

“People don’t have enough water or space. The authorities have sent tents, but there are no bed sheets or fans,” says Khattak.

Lack of co-ordination

There are also many breakdowns in the aid coordination and distribution system, says Malik of ActionAid:

“For example people have to cue up in order to get their share of food. And women particularly face problems here, as they don’t have enough mobility because of the purdah system so they have to wait for their male family members to be available and bring food for them. Then there is a problem of sanitation and hygiene. Toilets there are so dirty and unusable and there is no system of cleanliness.”

Concerns are also mounting for young children and infants, who, as Malik explains, are not getting nutritional food.

“The food they get is only suitable for adults. Children cannot eat it. Women are literally begging for milk for their children. They cannot even purchase milk, because they are not carrying any cash.”

Donor conference

The US has pledged nearly 80 million euros in immediate humanitarian assistance to the refugees. The EU has sent over 5 million euros, while France, separately, has promised 12 million euros and Germany has pledged about 1 million euros.

But much more needs to be done, especially in view of the fact that many thousands are still stuck in the fighting zone and are unable to flee.

An international donor conference is planned for Thursday in Islamabad to generate more funds and resources.

Author: Disha Uppal
Editor: Grahame Lucas