International aid was reaching Pakistan yesterday, as the military and volunteers desperately tried to evacuate many thousands stranded by widespread flooding driven by “monster monsoons” that have claimed more than 1,000 lives this summer.
Cargo planes from Turkey and the United Arab Emirates began the international rush to assist the impoverished nation, landing on Sunday in Islamabad carrying tents, food and other daily necessities.
Trucks carrying tents, food and water arranged by Pakistan were also being dispatched to various parts of the nation by the National Disaster Management Authority for tens of thousands of flood victims.
Photo: AFP
They were among the nations that pledged to help Pakistan tackle the crisis after officials called for international help.
The UN is to launch an international appeal for Pakistani flood victims today in Islamabad.
Pakistani Prime Minister Shabaz Sharif yesterday said that the rains are the heaviest Pakistan has seen in three decades.
“I saw floodwater everywhere, wherever I went in recent days and even today,” Sharif said in Charsadda, one of the devastated towns.
He said the planes carrying aid from some nations had already reached Pakistan and he predicted more.
Sharif has said the government would provide housing to all those who lost their homes.
However, many people displaced by floods said they not only lost their homes, but their crops and small shops as well.
“I am sitting with my family in a tent and how can I go out to work? Even if I go out in search of a job, who will give me any job as there is water everywhere,” said Rehmat Ullah, a flood victim in Charsadda in the northwest.
Zarina Bibi, another flood victim, said troops evacuated her by boat.
“We were given a tent and food by soldiers and volunteers,” she said.
Bibi cried when she said her house had collapsed in the floods.
“Floodwater will recede soon, but we have no money to rebuild our home,” she said.
Rehan Ali, 24, a laborer in southern Sindh Province, reported a similar ordeal.
He said he cannot rebuild his home without government help and he was unable to work to get food for his family.
Ali said he was relying on donations.
The exceptionally heavy monsoon rains that triggered flash floods across the nation have affected 33 million Pakistanis, damaged nearly 1 million homes and killed at least 1,061 people.
Pakistani authorities said this year’s devastation is worse than in 2010, when floods killed 1,700 people.
General Qamar Javed Bajwa, Pakistan’s military chief, on Sunday said that his nation might take years to recover. He appealed to Pakistanis living abroad to generously donate to the flood victims.
Pakistani Minister of Climate Change Sherry Rehman has described the unusual rainfall as a “monster monsoon.”
She said Pakistan suffered heavier rains this year mainly because of climate change, which also caused forest fires.
However, critics have said the Pakistani government has hardly any interest in building new dams and water reservoirs.
WHEELING AND DEALING? Hou You-yi, Ko Wen-je, Eric Chu and Ma Ying-jeou are under investigation for allegedly offering bribes for the other side to drop out of the race Taipei prosecutors have started an investigation into allegations that four top politicians involved in attempts to form a “blue-white” presidential ticket have contravened election regulations. Listed as defendants are Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) presidential candidate and New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜), KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫), former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) of the KMT and Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Chairman and presidential candidate Ko Wen-je (柯文哲). The case stemmed from judicial complaints filed last month with the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office alleging that the KMT (blue) and the TPP (white) had engaged in bribery by offering money or other enticements
EXPOSED: Some Taipei wardens reported joining the trips out of peer pressure, while others said they were relieved it was made public so they could refuse, a city councilor said Nearly 30 percent of Taipei borough wardens have joined group tours to China that were partially funded by the Chinese government, leading prosecutors probing potential Chinese interference in January’s elections to question local officials, an investigation showed. Democratic Progressive Party Taipei City councilors Chien Shu-pei (簡舒培) and Chen E-jun (陳怡君) have reported cases of Taipei borough wardens inviting residents to join inexpensive privately organized group tours to China that were partially funded by the Chinese government. The six-day trips reportedly cost NT$10,000 to NT$15,000, the councilors said. An investigation by the Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister newspaper) showed that nearly 30 percent
ELIGIBLE FOR JANUARY: All presidential candidates and their running mates meet the requirements to run for office, and none hold dual citizenship, the CEC said Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Legislator and vice presidential candidate Cynthia Wu (吳欣盈) is working with the Central Election Commission (CEC) to resolve issues with her financial disclosure statement, a spokesman for the candidate said yesterday, after the commission published the statements of all three presidential candidates and their running mates, while confirming their eligibility to run in the Jan. 13 election. Wu’s office spokesman, Chen Yu-cheng (陳宥丞), said the candidate encountered unforeseen difficulties disclosing her husband’s finances due to being suddenly thrust into the campaign. She is also the first vice presidential nominee to have a foreign spouse, complicating the reporting of
GOOD NEWS: Although open civic spaces are shrinking in Asia-Pacific countries and territories, Taiwan’s openness is a positive sign, an expert said Taiwan remains the only country in Asia with an “open” civic space for the fifth consecutive year, the Civicus Monitor said in a report released yesterday. The People Power Under Attack 2023 report named Taiwan as one of only 37 open countries or territories out of 198 globally, and the only one in Asia. Compiled by Civicus — a global alliance of civil society organizations dedicated to bolstering civil action — the ranking compiled annually since 2017 measures the state of freedom of association, peaceful assembly and expression around the world. Researchers assign each country or territory one of five rankings describing the