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ACT Situation Report

Pakistan 03/06

Pakistan earthquake: CWS-ACT response

Survivor's case study

Geneva, January 26, 2006

Information supplied by ACT member Church World Service (Pakistan/Afghanistan office)

General situation

Snow at higher elevations and rain in the foothills have been cutting off access to villages and have been forcing the suspension of helicopter flights in recent weeks. However, relief and rehabilitation activities have continued in the quake-hit areas of Azad Kashmir and North West Frontier Province despite the wet weather. Pakistani army personnel have been working around the clock in affected areas of Mansehra, Battagram, Kohistan and Shangla districts to protect quake survivors from the severe cold. The army has constructed 155,000 shelters in the quake-hit areas of Azad Kashmir so far with the cooperation of various NGOs and the local population. Survivors have also received water-proof sheets as shelter against the rain and snow.

The UN is reporting that many roads in the valleys have been cut off by the bad weather over the last few days. Landslides, mud and snow have severely hampered road cargo transport. The roads between Muzaffarabad and Bagh, Muzaffarabad and Chakothi and Reshian to Leepa are also closed. The lower and upper Neelum valley and the key routes between Muzaffarabad and the airport are blocked. In the Mansehra region, a bridge has collapsed at Ghanol north east of Balakot, and the road to Kaghan valley is inaccessible beyond this point and is likely to remain so for a minimum of four to six weeks.

The focus for humanitarian aid efforts now is providing survivors with winterized tents, plastic sheeting and blankets. The major challenge for camp management at this time is the service and food delivery to spontaneous camps. Completed so far:

  • 839,997 tents distributed
  • 773,081 plastic sheets distributed with the assistance of the Pakistani military and various NGOs
  • 115, 883 shelters built above 5,000 feet
  • 158,076 shelters built below 5,000 feet

Church World Service (CWS)-ACT response

The CWS field teams continue to provide services while battling with rain, landslides and road blocks.

A training workshop was held for the new members of the psychosocial team on “Trauma and Responses to Life-threatening Experiences.” The CWS psychosocial team held meetings with women in the Hassa camp to introduce the psychosocial program. Regular meetings were held with women in the Shohal Najaf camp, and the male residents also met to talk about measures for dealing with grief and loss as well as to plan for the future. A psychosocial meeting with a women’s group was conducted in the camp after Eid, and group members shared their feelings of loss and grief, especially on such occasions.

The psychosocial team conducted meetings in the Shohal Najaf camp and Hassa camp at which the main topic of discussion was problems people residing in tents were facing due to the recent wave of cold weather. Residents raised concerns about the hazards of using kerosene oil for heating. The psychosocial program team has simultaneously started working in the United Camp close to Balakot. The tent village is presently managed by volunteers and is accommodating 223 families. The CWS team provided three tents for community meetings there. The team also visited the World Health Organization office in Balakot to discuss options for expanding the mental health care response inside the disaster zone.

The CWS health and hygiene team met with young women and adolescent girls in the Shohal Najaf tent village. At the meeting specific hygiene issues related to this group were discussed. The group received the discussion well, and they raised and deliberated on the issues openly and in a participatory manner. CWS team members also assessed the damages to the latrines and the drainage system caused by the recent snow and rainfall. A meeting was also held with the eight teachers in the Shohal Najaf camp to discuss hygiene and sanitation in the schools.

The CWS team visited Maira camp to further assess the possibilities of accommodating new families that are expected to come down from higher altitudes because of the cold weather. Construction on new shelters has started in the camp. A water tank with the capacity of 70,000 liters has been constructed, and CWS will build latrines and bathrooms in phase IV. The hygiene team also visited the Kund camp for the first time and introduced the hygiene program to residents. The hygiene team has been conducting assessment visits to various places, including Shohal Najaf tent village, Madian tent village of Battagram, the Chattar Plain area and Kund camp in order to identify the needs of the affected people following the recent rain and snow fall and to reconstruct bathrooms and latrines that have been damaged.

Two main drainage lines have been cleaned in the Shohal Najaf tent village by mobilizing some local volunteers.

Survivor’s case study

Click for larger image.

Fatima is fourteen years old and currently living in a camp for people made homeless by the October 8, 2005, earthquake. Her family comes from a small town about two hours north of Balakot, which is now intermittently cut off by severe landslides.

Fatima quickly developed a strong relationship with Saima, and later with Sarah, approaching the two staff members of Church World Service-Pakistan Afghanistan (CWS) whenever she sees them in the camp. She greets them, smiles and connects with them to get a sense of strength. She tries to speak English with Sarah, saying “hello,” asking how her day is going and exchanging short remarks. Her gentle confidence and quiet smile has endeared her to both staff members. Fatima is bright and energetic and is usually accompanied by her younger sister for whom she cares. Unfortunately, Fatima stopped schooling several years ago to look after her younger sisters.

Fatima was living with her mother, father and her father’s second wife at the time of the earthquake. In the quake, their house collapsed, killing her mother. Before the earthquake there had been conflict between Fatima and her father’s second wife. Now, as she grieves her mother’s death, she moved in order to live with her aunt. However, she still struggles with the conflict inside her with regards to her father’s second wife, who is also residing in the camp. It is stressful for her, and she says she does not understand why her father married a second time or why she is not included in that family anymore. Fatima feels upset when her father’s wife chases her and shouts at her. She misses her mother and says she feels very unsafe, even though her relationship with her aunt is strong.

Forty days after the death of her mother, Fatima’s aunt helped her and her sisters to hold the rituals and prayers of Chelum (burial). She invited Saima and Sarah to attend. It is clear that they have become part of her support network as she adjusts to her new life and circumstances. While she and her sisters have stayed within their own extended family, CWS staff have offered support to it, trying to protect Fatima from being alienated, or, like many girls her age, married off.

The family is not sure about what they will do after the winter passes. Their land and home in Jared has been destroyed, and they are concerned that it will be many years before the road is reconstructed, making life there extremely difficult. The psychosocial team will continue to support the family as they gradually start making some of these decisions.

Meetings and visitors

The CWS recovery assessment and monitoring team visited Gahri Habibullah village and the Hassa camp in Balakot to test the reporting formats for recovery and assessment. The team also focused on community empowerment for managing their recovery process. They had a session with the community citizen boards and union council to liaise between CWS and the community for the recovery and reconstruction process. The monitoring team conducted training sessions to build awareness about gender issues and how to work effectively with women, men and the affected community.

The World Health Organization hosted a coordination meeting in the Shohal Najaf camp. Representatives of WHO, CWS-ACT, Church of Pakistan, other organizations and teachers were present. It was decided that they will meet weekly to ensure the smooth coordination among camp managers.

On January 17, the 23rd meeting of the Pakistan Humanitarian Forum was held on the theme of “Snow Lines and Humanitarian Response - Challenges of Relief Operations and Winterization in the Earthquake-affected areas of NWFP and Azad Kashmir.” The objectives of the meeting were: a) identification of the areas which are blocked or will be blocked until March 31; b) response so far in terms of shelter, health and food in those areas; c) logistical challenges; and d) identification of needs which still have to be addressed. The Norwegian ambassador was also present at the meeting. Representatives from the Pakistan Meteorological Department, heads of UN clusters for shelter, health, food and nutrition attended the forum along with representatives from various INGOs and NGOs. The forum focused on presentations and group discussions for critical reflection and action planning.

The UN cluster meeting was conducted in Mansehra on January 19. The participants were informed that residents of the Bari camp, Battagram have been shifted to the Maira camp and Besham camp with the exception of 30 families. These families had refused to move because their hometowns are located in Battagram.

Two staff members from CWS in Vietnam visited Islamabad to observe and gain first-hand information about CWS’s response to the earthquake. They visited Chattar plains and met with families who have remained on their land and are living in damaged homes.

Sources: Web sites of Geo TV, AAJ TV, Dawn, Reuters Television Network, Daily Time and the Nation; field reports of CWS needs-assessment team and Pakistan Humanitarian Forum meeting minutes.

Visit the Web site of Church World Service-Pakistan/Afghanistan for regular updates. Also see the Web site of the Pakistan Humanitarian Forum, which CWS is part of. The site has useful information about the NGO response to the earthquake.