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Last Chance to Avert Second Wave of Deaths in Pakistan
Islamabad, November 17, 2005 –
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Pakistani Children from the Maira Camp in the Allai valley. |
On the eve of the International Donors Conference in Islamabad, six of the largest international humanitarian aid organizations responding to the Pakistan quake relief effort have joined together to issue an emergency appeal for increased funding for life-saving efforts in Kashmir and the North-West Frontier Province (NWFP).
Save the Children, the International Rescue Committee, Catholic Relief Services (CRS), World Vision, CARE International in Pakistan and Mercy Corps urged members of the Conference to not overlook the emergency needs of this disaster despite the long-term strategic focus of the conference. The onset of winter, they warned, is likely to result in a second wave of deaths.
“We have the chance to save thousands of lives, but the world community must act now,” says Cassandra Nelson, Mercy Corps’ emergency spokesperson. “We have the capacity to respond, but we are underfunded and underequipped. This response needs more money.”
The first snows have already hit Kashmir and the NWFP. The window for responding to the crisis is closing rapidly, but major gaps in funding may leave thousands of families without adequate shelter and resources to survive the winter.
With more than 2.2 million children affected by the quake, child protection issues are critical. Since the earthquake six weeks ago, most children in the affected regions are without access to support systems—their schools, collapsed, are far from reopening; their families, overwhelmed with survival issues, have few means to respond to their trauma. Still, hundreds of thousands of children are homeless.
"Without help, these children—who were vulnerable before the earthquake—face catastrophe," says Bruce Rassmusen of Save the Children. "In addition to addressing critical shelter and health concerns, support needs to be provided for vulnerable children who have been separated from their families. More schools and child-friendly spaces need to be opened to ensure children have safe spaces to play, to learn and to regain a sense of normalcy and begin the process of recovery.”
The humanitarian aid community applauds the efforts of the Government of Pakistan and the donor community in developing a long-term recovery strategy for the region, but urges greater assistance.
“Tremendous progress has been made in the disaster response, but more—much more—is needed,” says Sigurd Hanson, World Vision Country Director for Pakistan. “We support the process for the donors’ conference, but implore the attendees to also focus on immediate, life-saving needs. The emergency phase is not over.”
Shelter remains the most pressing need. An all-out aid effort by the humanitarian community and the Pakistan Government continues to focus on providing materials and technical support to build “warm rooms”; the provisioning of self-help shelter repair kits; the provisioning of winterized tents, and the winterization of existing tents.
“More funding is needed immediately to provide basic shelter for tens of thousands of people facing the prospect of a harsh winter without adequate shelter,” says Jack Norman, CRS Country Representative for Pakistan. “If the response from the international community is too little or too late, we’ll be witnessing a second tragedy.”
Medical concerns are also mounting, particularly around the rising number of acute respiratory infection cases caused by exposure. The need to improve water and sanitation is growing by the day, with reports of thousands of cases of watery diarrhea, gastritis, scabies and communicable diseases. Infants and children face the gravest risk.
Together, these six international agencies have more than 585 staff members working directly on the emergency response and over 134 years of collective experience working in Pakistan with long-term roots in the country and strong partnerships with local NGOs and institutions. This on-the-ground infrastructure is fully supported by the Government of Pakistan including crucial support from the Pakistan military, as well as the United Nations and international agencies. Together it forms an efficient base for carrying out emergency relief operations.
“The recovery of areas affected by the earthquake depends heavily on a commitment from the international community to provide urgently needed funding to support life saving activities in the short term, and support to the rehabilitation process in the long term, “ says Alan Manski, Emergency Response Coordinator of IRC. If further loss of life is to be avoided, the international community must react immediately to the needs on the ground.”
A second disaster is now set to unfold. How many die this time is up to us.
For further information please contact:
In Pakistan :
Sonia Khush, T: +92 (0)300-852-2841 / C: +1-202-294-8998 / skhush@dc.savechildren.org
