Deadly Earthquake

this is a terrible tragedy.. worse than katrina by an order of magnitude

but musharraf misses an opportunity



Musharraf misses chance to mend fences
(Filed: 11/10/2005)

The earthquake in the Hindu Kush literally shook the foundations of the boundary between India and Pakistan in Kashmir. Yet it took a while to jolt General Pervez Musharraf out of accustomed ways of thinking on one of the great political faultlines of our day.

On Sunday, India offered to put helicopters at the general`s disposal. At first, Islamabad said they weren`t needed, which, given the scale of the disaster, was manifest nonsense. Then it came up with the feeble excuse that there could be no question of joint rescue operations because there was no population on the line of control. Finally, it agreed yesterday to accept a 25-tonne planeload of relief supplies.

The greatest natural disaster in Pakistan`s history offered a rare chance to warm the slight thaw in relations with India. By first prevaricating, then accepting only limited help from a neighbour with vast resources, Gen Musharraf has displayed a depressing lack of imagination. And that small-mindedness at the highest level was yesterday reflected in the refusal of the Pakistan High Commission in London to grant a visa to Krishnan Guru-Murthy, the Channel 4 News presenter, because his parents were born in India.

Natural disasters and shared grief have the power to break barriers of prejudice. That happened after the earthquake in northwest Turkey in 1999, when the Greeks sent rescue workers and ships and planes loaded with relief supplies, bridging the gap between neighbours who had been at odds for decades over the Aegean and Cyprus.

A few weeks later, the Turks were able to reciprocate when a smaller earthquake struck Athens. More recently, the Indian Ocean tsunami hastened a peace agreement between the Indonesian government and the separatist Free Aceh movement, thus ending a struggle that had lasted nearly 30 years and taken 15,000 lives. However, there was no breakthrough in Sri Lanka, another tsunami sufferer, which has long been racked by a vicious war between the government and the Tamil Tigers.

In the wake of Saturday`s earthquake, Pakistan has not totally snubbed India. But it should have made much quicker and more extensive capital out of New Delhi`s offer. With a faultline like that across the sub-continent, you need leaders with the political courage to seize the moment.

In failing to do so, Gen Musharraf has let down the earthquake victims and damaged the long-term interests of his country.

Re: # 81

My friend I understand your anger. I`ll admit I was being a bit naive expecting that in such a volatile region we can look pass our thorny political differences. And I guess the events on the ground (especially ones that you mentioned) are enough for a reality check anyways....

I`d answer your specific questions, but once again I think that will drag us into a lenghty debate, and this particular thread is not the place for it. And actually really that was my original point.

I would at some point really like to talk to you about those issues....just not here :-).

... this is very, very painful ... I am saddended beyond belief. This is an unparalleled tragedy. My heatfelt condolences to those who suffered ... they all remain in my most fervent prayers. Let`s help in any way we can ...

Consider this >

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/SP306176.htm

Troops involved in the search and rescue operation have fought militants and in the worst encounter late on Saturday eight guerrillas were killed in a gunbattle.

Soldiers ran into the militants trying to infiltrate into Indian Kashmir from the Pakistani side near the ski resort of Gulmarg in Baramulla district.

Elsewhere, militants shot dead 10 Hindus in two separate attacks late on Sunday on remote villages in Rajouri district, also affected by the earthquake. Rajouri is about 170 km (110 miles) north of Jammu, Indian Kashmir`s winter capital.

//....Folks PLEASE let`s not bring Pakistan-India politics/conflict into all of this....//

I agree... but consider this:

Indian soldiers go into pakistan and save lives of quake-victim pakistanis by airlifting them to hospitals in India....[ NYtimes report:]

On the same day - paki jihadis come into India and KILL quake-victim hindus in their broken homes...

I mean - what do you want Indians to do?... How do you reconcile this , really?.....

Mujnoon...no more than 50 soldiers died in India. Atleast 1000 Pakistani soldiers perished though according to initial estimates , and scores of `freedom fighters`.

Re: # 78

I am sorry for the families of those soldiers and for those of the 200 soldiers who died in India. For the families of most of those I am sure they were the sole bread winners....

Positives to be found : Over 1000 Paki soldiers killed.

It is hard to fathom the pain people are feeling. I have only visited the cities that have been flattened and it`s really hard for me to watch the devastation on tv. I can only imagine what it must be like for people who actually belong to those regions.

Anyways, what I really want to say is this:

Folks PLEASE let`s not bring Pakistan-India politics/conflict into all of this. It is extremely disappointing to see people conveniently interpret such a gruesome disaster through the prism of their animosities towards India or Pakistan.

Please let`s not be reactionary and offensive.

sri: Wood is scarce in the subcontinent relative to what is available in the US, Canada, Europe. Another reason for reforestation and proper management of natural resources, which would make it possible over time to do what you correctly say. Wood does not work for hi-rises though - other techniques for making hi-rise buildings earthquake resistant are available and should be enforced thru building codes.

#73 by rsridhar

Well, seemingly, 7th century jihadi retards have now gone insane. They seem to be taking revenge against an act of god by killing innocent people...

Seemigly, god will be angry again at these 7th century retards...

9 Hindus slaughtered in J&K

Mohit Kandhari / Jammu

After killer quake, killers strike

---

At a time when people in earthquake-ravaged Jammu and Kashmir were struggling to get their life back on the rails, showing no mercy, terrorists struck Budhal tehsil in the border district of Rajouri, slaughtering nine members of two Hindu families around Sunday midnight.........

......... Budhal was among the worst hit in Rajouri district as more than 100 houses collapsed and several others developed cracks after Saturday`s devastating earthquake.

I don`t understand the obsession of desis with brick, mortar and concrete construction. Solid, thick brick walls are very brittle and heavy. Simple physics tells us that once any momentum sets in to a heavy object it would be difficult to stop. Home construction in western countries is very nice. The homes are essentially wood frames where the entire unit acts as a single frame. As a result, theoritically, one can move the entire home to a different location and still the frame remains intact. We should fundamentally change our building practices.

re:#67 by kaalchakra
BTW, I already sent in my contributions to Pakistan through Oxfam, an organization i trust. Can u honestly say this rat Ali would have sent any money to India during the Tsunami disaster? I think not.
Sridhar

re:#67 by kaalchakra on October
It was a rhetorical question. It had one unintended result though and u can see it in this Ali character`s post. It seems it is difficult for some Pakis to forget animosities even in this hour.
Now, someone actually wrote a whole article sometime ago in chowk claiming Katrina was Allah`s wrath on USA. Am i not even allowed to ask a rhetorical question?
Sridhar

#66 by rsridhar
[re: Just nature`s fury or is there a message here?
In this earthquake, POK is hard hit, with Muzaffarabad the capital of POK razed to the ground. The militant organization Lashkar-e-toiba and its affilitated fronts have been wiped out in the area. It is now known that the organization was gearing up for more attacks on Indian Kashmir after having received the green signal from Mushy the rat.
Is this all just a coincidence or is there a message here?]

rshridhar, it is not a coincidence. It seems like your rat bhagwan, snake bhagwan, monkey bhagwan and sai baba have gotten their act together and are working in tandem now to destroy Pakistan.

cipram: ina liliah wa inna alayhai rajaioon. Please accept my condolences on the death of your cousin in this terrible earthquake.