Deadly Earthquake
Chowk Staff October 8, 2005
#101 Posted by MantoLives on October 13, 2005 10:31:54 pm
Friday, October 14, 2005
Quake unites Sikhs, Hindus, Christians as Pakistanis
MANSEHRA: Radesh Singh, a Pakistani Sikh and his group of Hindu, Christian and Muslim friends have joined forces to help survivors of the devastating earthquake in northern Pakistan.
They hope efforts to provide relief and care would send a clear message of tolerance in the predominantly Muslim Pakistan. “We are here without any religious bias for people who are in dire need of help and care,” Radesh told Reuters in Mansehra, a district in Northwest Frontier Province now in ruins after Saturday’s disaster.
“We are also hoping that our efforts will give out a message that people from different religious backgrounds and communities can live peacefully together and help each other,” he said. An estimated 96 percent of Pakistan’s population are Muslim, about 1.7 percent are Christian and some 2.0 percent are Hindu, while others account0 for less than 0.5 percent.
Minorities in Pakistan have been targeted by Islamic militants recently. Just last week there was a bomb attack on a religious centre of the Ahmadiyya sect in the central province of Punjab that killed eight and wounded more than a dozen.
Radesh, who runs his own business in the province’s capital, Peshawar, came with a truckload of medicines, blankets, clothing and dry food mustered by his Sikh friends Rajinder and Ranjit Singh, Hindus Prakash and Diyaram and Emmanuel, a Christian. “It is simply an effort on our parts for the earthquake victims, who are in dire need of help. We have come here as human beings not as Sikhs, Christians, Hindus or Muslims,” Ranjit said. Rajinder and his Sikh friends were born in Peshawar and say they are Pakistanis first, second and last. “I even ran for the local bodies elections this time but lost,” Rajinder said. On Wednesday night they were faced with a different kind of problem. Having heard of incidents of looting of private relief vehicles and violence in badly hit areas, Rajinder and his friends stopped over in Mansehra, saying he and his friends wanted to distribute the goods under the supervision of the army.
“We just want these goods to reach the deserving people. We have come here as human beings and don’t want to get involved in any violent incidents,” Emanuel said. reuters
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2005 10 14 story_14-10-2005_pg7_39
Quake unites Sikhs, Hindus, Christians as Pakistanis
MANSEHRA: Radesh Singh, a Pakistani Sikh and his group of Hindu, Christian and Muslim friends have joined forces to help survivors of the devastating earthquake in northern Pakistan.
They hope efforts to provide relief and care would send a clear message of tolerance in the predominantly Muslim Pakistan. “We are here without any religious bias for people who are in dire need of help and care,” Radesh told Reuters in Mansehra, a district in Northwest Frontier Province now in ruins after Saturday’s disaster.
“We are also hoping that our efforts will give out a message that people from different religious backgrounds and communities can live peacefully together and help each other,” he said. An estimated 96 percent of Pakistan’s population are Muslim, about 1.7 percent are Christian and some 2.0 percent are Hindu, while others account0 for less than 0.5 percent.
Minorities in Pakistan have been targeted by Islamic militants recently. Just last week there was a bomb attack on a religious centre of the Ahmadiyya sect in the central province of Punjab that killed eight and wounded more than a dozen.
Radesh, who runs his own business in the province’s capital, Peshawar, came with a truckload of medicines, blankets, clothing and dry food mustered by his Sikh friends Rajinder and Ranjit Singh, Hindus Prakash and Diyaram and Emmanuel, a Christian. “It is simply an effort on our parts for the earthquake victims, who are in dire need of help. We have come here as human beings not as Sikhs, Christians, Hindus or Muslims,” Ranjit said. Rajinder and his Sikh friends were born in Peshawar and say they are Pakistanis first, second and last. “I even ran for the local bodies elections this time but lost,” Rajinder said. On Wednesday night they were faced with a different kind of problem. Having heard of incidents of looting of private relief vehicles and violence in badly hit areas, Rajinder and his friends stopped over in Mansehra, saying he and his friends wanted to distribute the goods under the supervision of the army.
“We just want these goods to reach the deserving people. We have come here as human beings and don’t want to get involved in any violent incidents,” Emanuel said. reuters
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2005 10 14 story_14-10-2005_pg7_39
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#100 Posted by ZahraJ on October 12, 2005 5:56:23 pm
I am posting an email that was sent out by Samina Rizwan addressed to a friend on a mailing list. She can be reached on Samina. Rizwan@oracle.com
We went up as far as Balakot yesterday with some goods that
Sheraz and Zeb had organized. They collected over RS. 300,000 and also
purchased the stuff which included blankets. kafans, long lasting food items and
clothing we had collected together from family and friends. Some facts so that
everyone can make sound decisions:
1. The road upto Balakot is completely clear. There is no damage
up until Shinkiari. Abbottabad has some fallen buildings but nothing
substantial. Shinkiari and beyond things get bad, but access is very easy and
possible.
2. There is a huge traffic jam now, perpetual and unending, most
of it caused by cars accompanying trucks who just want to see. Better
to ride in the trucks in case someone wants to go personally.
3. There is tremendous chaos and ill-discipline. No PROJECT
OFFICE where all relief organizations can come together and establish a pattern
of operation. I think 60% of their time is being spent running about doing
nothing.
4. The only two organizations working in a disciplined manner
with regard to delivery of goods and establishing services are the Army and
Edhi. Their camps are organized, their delivery is substantial and the
process seems to be running smoothly. We delivered some clothes at the Mansehra
relief centre. Subsequently, the truck was taken directly to a village
called ``Ouggi`` which had received very few supplies.
5. There is no need anymore for food. In fact, it is not wise to
send uncooked items since there is no means for cooking. What is
required now are tents and kafans as first priority, and blankets and
epidemic controlling drugs as second priority.
6. Ofcourse, the shortfall is happening seriously in terms of
machinery to pull ppl out of the debris. International teams have been very
effective, Pakistani teams utterly non-existent except for whatever the
Army could pull together in terms of machinery.
7. The first emergency medical camp we saw was in Abbottabad, at
Ayub Medical College. It was full of injured and dead. Also quite
chaotic but somewhat more organized than the one in Mansehra.
8. The camp in Mansehra needs a PMO! There is all sort of
political manouvreing going on to get goods and supplies to specific spots
thru specific groups. I saw many politicians there - wont name them!
- who were shaking hands and just generally checking up alongw/ their
individual camera crews. For the 2 hours that we were there trying to find out
who would take custody of our goods, we saw no progress other than doctors who
were exhausted with looking after an unending line of injured. I saw
more dishonest activity going on than I did serious work other than
by the doctors. There were rooms full of medical supplies but they
were all getting wet and dirty due to the rain and hailstorm. I didnt
see anyone make an effort to move them to safer, closed structures.
8. In terms of communication etc., cellular service is working
all the way to the top, i.e till Sinkiari, in patches ofcourse. Whatever
communication network you intend to set up, make sure you put ONE TEAM
INCHARGE, to organize it. I would advise do it in collaboration with either
Edhi or the Army. There isnt any other organization there that I felt was
equipped to handle any substantial cross-town, across-territory work.
Rgds.
S
We went up as far as Balakot yesterday with some goods that
Sheraz and Zeb had organized. They collected over RS. 300,000 and also
purchased the stuff which included blankets. kafans, long lasting food items and
clothing we had collected together from family and friends. Some facts so that
everyone can make sound decisions:
1. The road upto Balakot is completely clear. There is no damage
up until Shinkiari. Abbottabad has some fallen buildings but nothing
substantial. Shinkiari and beyond things get bad, but access is very easy and
possible.
2. There is a huge traffic jam now, perpetual and unending, most
of it caused by cars accompanying trucks who just want to see. Better
to ride in the trucks in case someone wants to go personally.
3. There is tremendous chaos and ill-discipline. No PROJECT
OFFICE where all relief organizations can come together and establish a pattern
of operation. I think 60% of their time is being spent running about doing
nothing.
4. The only two organizations working in a disciplined manner
with regard to delivery of goods and establishing services are the Army and
Edhi. Their camps are organized, their delivery is substantial and the
process seems to be running smoothly. We delivered some clothes at the Mansehra
relief centre. Subsequently, the truck was taken directly to a village
called ``Ouggi`` which had received very few supplies.
5. There is no need anymore for food. In fact, it is not wise to
send uncooked items since there is no means for cooking. What is
required now are tents and kafans as first priority, and blankets and
epidemic controlling drugs as second priority.
6. Ofcourse, the shortfall is happening seriously in terms of
machinery to pull ppl out of the debris. International teams have been very
effective, Pakistani teams utterly non-existent except for whatever the
Army could pull together in terms of machinery.
7. The first emergency medical camp we saw was in Abbottabad, at
Ayub Medical College. It was full of injured and dead. Also quite
chaotic but somewhat more organized than the one in Mansehra.
8. The camp in Mansehra needs a PMO! There is all sort of
political manouvreing going on to get goods and supplies to specific spots
thru specific groups. I saw many politicians there - wont name them!
- who were shaking hands and just generally checking up alongw/ their
individual camera crews. For the 2 hours that we were there trying to find out
who would take custody of our goods, we saw no progress other than doctors who
were exhausted with looking after an unending line of injured. I saw
more dishonest activity going on than I did serious work other than
by the doctors. There were rooms full of medical supplies but they
were all getting wet and dirty due to the rain and hailstorm. I didnt
see anyone make an effort to move them to safer, closed structures.
8. In terms of communication etc., cellular service is working
all the way to the top, i.e till Sinkiari, in patches ofcourse. Whatever
communication network you intend to set up, make sure you put ONE TEAM
INCHARGE, to organize it. I would advise do it in collaboration with either
Edhi or the Army. There isnt any other organization there that I felt was
equipped to handle any substantial cross-town, across-territory work.
Rgds.
S
#99 Posted by Godot on October 12, 2005 10:58:45 am
Chowk: The article below is for you...
AFTER THE QUAKE
A World Turned Upside Down
The aftershocks of Pakistan`s temblor will be felt for years.
BY RUSSELL SEITZ
When Kipling was a cub reporter in Lahore, the area struck by Saturday`s earthquake was a blank on the map separating British India from the ``Independent Khanates of Chinese Turkistan.`` Washington scarcely cared if the Victorian Empire needed a weapon of mass destruction called the Maxim gun to deter hotheads along the Northwest Frontier, for it was a long way from anywhere. Now America`s concerns are more ecumenical and acute: Pakistan`s 1998 bomb test conjoined the world`s three great monotheistic religions in a nuclear trinity (to say nothing of the polytheistic Hindus nearby, with their own nuclear saga).
There`s no predicting the outcome when a natural disaster strikes an inexperienced nuclear state bordering two others. The aftershocks may loosen Pakistan`s postcolonial grip on its wild and woolly Northern Areas, or shake its fragile truce with India in long-partitioned Kashmir. The quake rattled Pakistan`s armories, nuclear and conventional, shattered its military academy, and left some of its general staff sleeping in the streets alongside a million other traumatized citizens.
It also severed the Karakoram highway, the amazing but fragile artery linking Pakistan to its conflicted frontiers and providing western China`s only direct connection to world trade. The new North-South strategic highway runs through a landscape as unstable as the region`s politics, for the Indian subcontinent has been thrusting into the heart of Asia since the days of the dinosaurs, raising some of the highest mountains like the bow wave of a dreadnaught and garlanding them with metamorphic treasures like the sapphires of Kashmir and the rubies and lapis lazuli of Hunza and Badakhshan.
This tectonic beauty comes at a high human cost. Last December, the far edge of the Indian Plate popped open a 1,000-kilometer split in the Andaman seabed, raising the tsunami in which 300,000 perished. Now the same great plate`s 60-mile-deep keel has surged forward, nudging peaks like K-2 and Nanga Parbat a little higher, and knocking the ground out from under everyone from Kabul to Kashmir.
North of Srinagar, in India`s Vale of Kashmir, villagers blocked highways demanding aid for stricken mountain hamlets. Scientists and climbers are missing, too, for the stunning exposure of living rock on 25,000-foot peaks and the flanks of the Indus gorge make the region a geological and mountaineering Mecca.
The exaggerated verticality of northern Pakistan makes it scientifically transparent but politically opaque, with borders hard to define and harder to guard. The chaos in the quake`s aftermath has put the field in motion for fugitives of all stripes. Al Qaeda cadres and Islamist Kashmiri separatists can readily lose themselves among the flux of refugees in a region famed for discreet hospitality. It cannot have escaped Osama Bin Laden`s attention that in the 19th century the Aga Khan spent tranquil years in Hunza while internecine war made him a hunted man elsewhere in the Islamic world. Today, the Raj has evaporated in India, but in Pakistan`s Northern Areas some local notables` business cards still read ``Head of State.`` Political parties--some religious, some ethnic--have proliferated in the Punjab and the parts of southern Pakistan that share an Urdu culture with India; but in the North, men owe their first allegiance to where they were born, not to where politicians in Islamabad want borders to be.
The region`s isolation in the months to come could erode Pakistan`s often-resented efforts to integrate the linguistically and ethnically distinct populations of areas like Baltistan, a ``Little Tibet`` where mountains five miles high enforce local autonomy--and where the central government`s authority fades out of sight of the now-obliterated roads built to enforce it. The temblor`s timing is itself disastrous, for the north helps feed Pakistan, and harvests have been isolated from the urban markets by the wholesale destruction of infrastructure. Far away, in Karachi and Quetta, the political impact is being felt, as food prices soar despite the imposition of price controls. A month ago, polo was being played at 11,000 feet in the summer pastures of the north. Now the monsoon has combined with the quake to set slow-motion boulder-falls down the Indus Valley, with a hard freeze to follow. Only come spring will Pakistan know the true toll in areas too high for helicopters.
The Indo-European frontier was already an ethnic and religious crossroads when Alexander the Great passed through. It has seen the rise and fall of whatever gods were worshipped in the era of the proto-Hindu Mohenjo-Daro civilization, and then of Gandharan Greco-Buddhism; but only in the last few decades has the upper Indus begun to see much of the outside world. Even in four-mile-deep valleys isolated as Kipling`s not-quite-fictional ``Kaffiristan,`` Internet cafés are up and running; and this winter, un-wired teahouse firesides may be enlivened by well-armed Afghans driven across the borders of Kunar and Badakhshan by U.S. or U.S.-backed forces. Still, equating Islam on the Upper Indus with the Taliban is as inane and dangerous as representing the Ku Klux Klan as typical of American Christianity; for while hidebound Salafist mullahs may prevail in one mosque, a valley away female education may be compulsory and Ismaili merchants may come and go from around the world.
Mountains like the Karakoram and the Hindu Kush will go on rising whether borders or empires stand or fall, and the erosive force of the Indus River will sweep away whatever the angry earth throws down as the tectonic plates continue their collision. Saturday`s quake was as powerful as the one that leveled San Francisco, but one of these centuries the rafting together of the Asian and Indus plates will rock the subcontinent with quakes a hundred times stronger, as it has before. It may take a harder shock than Saturday`s to persuade the subcontinent`s capitals to recognize that, partition notwithstanding, they are in the same tectonic boat. The region`s conflicts may seem intractable, but the Earth is ever patient in its diplomacy. The civilizations of South Asia have a half-billion years` grace in which to resolve their age-old differences before the slow tectonic violence that has put fossil seashells atop Everest crumples Ceylon--unserendipitously--into the mountainous seashore of Tibet.
Mr. Seitz is a physicist in Cambridge, Mass.
#98 Posted by rsridhar on October 11, 2005 7:55:18 pm
re: joint Indo-Pak rescue operations
While Ali shows his true class in this forum (did i tell u guys his name in Tamil means Eunuch and he is indeed behaving like one), there is at least one person whose heart jives with mine. Kashmiri leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq calls for a joint Indo-Pak rescue operation.
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2005 10 12 story_12-10-2005_pg7_2
Sridhar
While Ali shows his true class in this forum (did i tell u guys his name in Tamil means Eunuch and he is indeed behaving like one), there is at least one person whose heart jives with mine. Kashmiri leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq calls for a joint Indo-Pak rescue operation.
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2005 10 12 story_12-10-2005_pg7_2
Sridhar
#97 Posted by Gandiv on October 11, 2005 3:05:24 pm
A terrible tragedy indeed!
May humanity manifest itself in terms of relief efforts and give strength to the victims and those who have lost their loved ones.
For the hotheads, let`s be gracefully polite and put your neurons to a more constructive purpose and do the best that you can.
For, if you want the kick, you can always start another thread about political morality followed by the usual south asian mud-slinging.
May humanity manifest itself in terms of relief efforts and give strength to the victims and those who have lost their loved ones.
For the hotheads, let`s be gracefully polite and put your neurons to a more constructive purpose and do the best that you can.
For, if you want the kick, you can always start another thread about political morality followed by the usual south asian mud-slinging.
#95 Posted by ali_1 on October 11, 2005 10:09:15 am
#94 by rsridhar
[I am sorry for my post # 89]
Rest of the chowk community is sorry that you were born...... I hope they start making sturdier condoms in India.
In the situation that we have, it takes a black, hateful heart to write the spiteful, hatefilled posts that we see coming from rsridhar. Although being a Hinju, he is immune from getting flushed on chowk.com.
[I am sorry for my post # 89]
Rest of the chowk community is sorry that you were born...... I hope they start making sturdier condoms in India.
In the situation that we have, it takes a black, hateful heart to write the spiteful, hatefilled posts that we see coming from rsridhar. Although being a Hinju, he is immune from getting flushed on chowk.com.
#94 Posted by rsridhar on October 11, 2005 9:44:11 am
re:#89 by rsridhar
I am sorry for my post # 89
I only bemoan the fact that the 2 nations could not come together even during this tragedy.
It would have been great if India and Pak had formed a common Task force to work together towards rescue efforts. The world would have applauded such effort. But that did not happen. Politics won over compassion and common sense.
I saw the videos of small children affected by the tragedy. It is really tragic to see small innocent children affected the most.
Sridhar
I am sorry for my post # 89
I only bemoan the fact that the 2 nations could not come together even during this tragedy.
It would have been great if India and Pak had formed a common Task force to work together towards rescue efforts. The world would have applauded such effort. But that did not happen. Politics won over compassion and common sense.
I saw the videos of small children affected by the tragedy. It is really tragic to see small innocent children affected the most.
Sridhar
#93 Posted by ana on October 11, 2005 7:07:43 am
if pakistan is a sick place then why are certain interactors professing to have made contributions? is it to show how good and kind your heart is? and why is this same person asking if other interactors have made contributions.
the deeds of people speak for them. no one has to talk about how they have given or what they have given.
the deeds of people speak for them. no one has to talk about how they have given or what they have given.
#92 Posted by tahmed32 on October 11, 2005 5:22:45 am
r.a.janjua: this is indeed a terrible tragedy.
as for those few still carrying on ``mud-slinging-business as usual`` on chowk, just ignore them. as catchy wrote about qazi hussain muhammed on unplugged, ``zameen jumbud, na jumbad gul muhammed``.
as for those few still carrying on ``mud-slinging-business as usual`` on chowk, just ignore them. as catchy wrote about qazi hussain muhammed on unplugged, ``zameen jumbud, na jumbad gul muhammed``.
#91 Posted by harish_hyd on October 11, 2005 2:35:50 am
I don`t know if this is relevant here, but here is a letter from an American reader in today`s Dawn:
IN the aftermath of hurricanes Katrina and Rita, we Americans heard an earful from Muslims worldwide about how God was punishing the United States for its actions in Iraq and Afghanistan. I wonder if the same reasoning is now being applied to the devastating earthquake in Pakistan? I am interested in hearing from all the self-appointed Muslim apologists whose knee-jerk reaction to all that happens in the world is to blame America.
STEVE ELISHA
Colorado Springs, CO, US
IN the aftermath of hurricanes Katrina and Rita, we Americans heard an earful from Muslims worldwide about how God was punishing the United States for its actions in Iraq and Afghanistan. I wonder if the same reasoning is now being applied to the devastating earthquake in Pakistan? I am interested in hearing from all the self-appointed Muslim apologists whose knee-jerk reaction to all that happens in the world is to blame America.
STEVE ELISHA
Colorado Springs, CO, US
#90 Posted by rsridhar on October 10, 2005 10:06:48 pm
re:#74 by sri
Good point. Also, do not forget most deaths in earthquakes occur following collapse of buildings than by earthquake itself. If homes are made of wood, death toll would be much less (just my guess).
Sridhar
Good point. Also, do not forget most deaths in earthquakes occur following collapse of buildings than by earthquake itself. If homes are made of wood, death toll would be much less (just my guess).
Sridhar
#89 Posted by rsridhar on October 10, 2005 10:02:46 pm
re:#85 by warpster
As i have said already, Pak is a sick place and their dictator is a weirdo.
Sridhar
As i have said already, Pak is a sick place and their dictator is a weirdo.
Sridhar
#88 Posted by rsridhar on October 10, 2005 10:00:37 pm
re:#86 by r.a.janjua
F*ck off Ahole.
BTW, did u send some contributions or yippee-dee-do-dah is all u can say.
Sridhar
F*ck off Ahole.
BTW, did u send some contributions or yippee-dee-do-dah is all u can say.
Sridhar
#87 Posted by obiabani on October 10, 2005 9:35:21 pm
ONLINE DONATION FOR EDHI AND PRESIDENT`S RELIEF FUND
You can donate to
1) Edhi
2) President`s Relief Fund
at www.DevelopPakistan.org
Your donation is not only tax deductible in US but will also be matched dollar for dollar.
You can donate to
1) Edhi
2) President`s Relief Fund
at www.DevelopPakistan.org
Your donation is not only tax deductible in US but will also be matched dollar for dollar.
#86 Posted by r.a.janjua on October 10, 2005 9:04:27 pm
``In Tsunami, while thousands died, worst affected were from militant prone areas. Militancy in the island of Banda Aceh and Srilanka`s North was hard hit.
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?``
thousands of children have died to vindicate this sh1thead`s sick existence - or so he thinks.
``BTW, I already sent in my contributions to Pakistan through Oxfam``
yippee-dee-do-dah.
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?``
thousands of children have died to vindicate this sh1thead`s sick existence - or so he thinks.
``BTW, I already sent in my contributions to Pakistan through Oxfam``
yippee-dee-do-dah.
#85 Posted by warpster on October 10, 2005 7:56:01 pm
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.
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.
#83 Posted by sattar2 on October 10, 2005 4:03:45 pm
... 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 ...
#82 Posted by Edge on October 10, 2005 2:43:28 pm
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.
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.
#81 Posted by mohar11 on October 10, 2005 2:39:45 pm
//....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?.....
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?.....
#84 Posted by mujnoon on October 10, 2005 5:52:13 pm
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 :-).
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 :-).
#80 Posted by Edge on October 10, 2005 2:34:37 pm
Mujnoon...no more than 50 soldiers died in India. Atleast 1000 Pakistani soldiers perished though according to initial estimates , and scores of `freedom fighters`.
#78 Posted by Edge on October 10, 2005 1:10:37 pm
Positives to be found : Over 1000 Paki soldiers killed.
#79 Posted by mujnoon on October 10, 2005 1:43:01 pm
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....
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....
#77 Posted by mujnoon on October 10, 2005 1:05:29 pm
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.
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.
#76 Posted by tahmed32 on October 10, 2005 12:45:51 pm
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.
#75 Posted by sri on October 10, 2005 12:44:21 pm
#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.
#74 Posted by sri on October 10, 2005 12:27:19 pm
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.
#73 Posted by rsridhar on October 10, 2005 10:37:17 am
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
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
#72 Posted by rsridhar on October 10, 2005 10:23:20 am
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
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
#71 Posted by ali_1 on October 10, 2005 9:52:06 am
#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.
[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.
#70 Posted by tahmed32 on October 10, 2005 9:23:57 am
cipram: ina liliah wa inna alayhai rajaioon. Please accept my condolences on the death of your cousin in this terrible earthquake.
#68 Posted by irfanhamid on October 10, 2005 8:19:21 am
Many thanks to all those who are contributing. For people like me who are away from the homeland the feeling of helplessness is overwhelming. In order to facilitate those who wish to help, I have set up a webpage with direct links (where possible) to donation pages of reputed organizations, or with addresses to where you can send those donations to.
www.enst.fr/~hamid/donate.html
If you know of any other legitimate, trustworthy organization (preferably with an online payment method), drop me an email at hamid[at]enst[dot]fr and I will add it to the list.
Regards,
Irfan.
www.enst.fr/~hamid/donate.html
If you know of any other legitimate, trustworthy organization (preferably with an online payment method), drop me an email at hamid[at]enst[dot]fr and I will add it to the list.
Regards,
Irfan.
#67 Posted by KaalChakra on October 10, 2005 7:23:47 am
rsridhar
Please don`t get stuck on those kinds of things. Also, the talk of messages etc insults your own considerable intelligence.
(Governments don`t need help. People do. That can be provided through third parties. The nature couldn`t care less whether an Indian is killed or Pakistani, a Hindu or a Muslim)
Please don`t get stuck on those kinds of things. Also, the talk of messages etc insults your own considerable intelligence.
(Governments don`t need help. People do. That can be provided through third parties. The nature couldn`t care less whether an Indian is killed or Pakistani, a Hindu or a Muslim)
#66 Posted by rsridhar on October 10, 2005 6:01:35 am
re: Just nature`s fury or is there a message here?
In Tsunami, while thousands died, worst affected were from militant prone areas. Militancy in the island of Banda Aceh and Srilanka`s North was hard hit.
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?
Sridhar
In Tsunami, while thousands died, worst affected were from militant prone areas. Militancy in the island of Banda Aceh and Srilanka`s North was hard hit.
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?
Sridhar
#65 Posted by rsridhar on October 10, 2005 5:57:33 am
re: Pak refuses joint relief efforts with India
This is from TOI.
http://www.sulekha.com/news/nhc.aspx?cid=436135
Pak refuses joint relief operationsAdd to Clippings
(PTI[ MONDAY, OCTOBER 10, 2005 05:36:02 PM ]
Sign into earnIndiatimes points
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan today ruled out joint relief operations with India in quake-hit Kashmir region and instead made a counter offer to help New Delhi in its efforts to deal with the crisis.
``There is no possibility of any joint relief operations on both sides of the LoC. There is no population on the LoC,`` newly-appointed Pakistan Foreign Office spokesperson Tasleen Aslam told reporters here.
The Pakistan army is operating in villages and towns in Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) including far-flung areas but not on the LoC, she said.
``We remain willing to help Indians if we are needed for any kind of assistance like the Indians offered us any kind of assistance``, she said.)
So, even in times of great need, all Paki ruler cares for is politics and oneupmanship.
Shame on Mushy.
Sridhar
This is from TOI.
http://www.sulekha.com/news/nhc.aspx?cid=436135
Pak refuses joint relief operationsAdd to Clippings
(PTI[ MONDAY, OCTOBER 10, 2005 05:36:02 PM ]
Sign into earnIndiatimes points
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan today ruled out joint relief operations with India in quake-hit Kashmir region and instead made a counter offer to help New Delhi in its efforts to deal with the crisis.
``There is no possibility of any joint relief operations on both sides of the LoC. There is no population on the LoC,`` newly-appointed Pakistan Foreign Office spokesperson Tasleen Aslam told reporters here.
The Pakistan army is operating in villages and towns in Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) including far-flung areas but not on the LoC, she said.
``We remain willing to help Indians if we are needed for any kind of assistance like the Indians offered us any kind of assistance``, she said.)
So, even in times of great need, all Paki ruler cares for is politics and oneupmanship.
Shame on Mushy.
Sridhar
#64 Posted by Cadbury on October 10, 2005 5:15:34 am
For all those intrested in donating in UAE, you can bring your donations to Pakistan Association Office Dubai or Pakistan Counslate in Dubai or Pakistan Embassy in Abu Dhabi. Both places are receiving commodity items as well as monetary donations. Please extend your help and resources in anything you can do for the relief efforts.
#63 Posted by sheelajaywant on October 10, 2005 4:00:05 am
Oh no, not another calamity is what we all thought when we heard the news (we were out of urban limits). A government officer who handled a part of the tsunami rehab program in south India said NGOs and kind folk helped with shelter, food, and clothes, but no one came to clear the debris, cremate the dead, clear the decaying garbage. For that, only the government agencies were responsible. I feel sorry more for the living who may have lost all they had. Rehabilitation is hard. As for those who perished, may their souls rest in peace.
#61 Posted by Edge on October 10, 2005 1:18:55 am
And in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK) , also called as `Azad Kashmir` by some ,
``The Kashmir Earthquake`` is not a story that can be told in numbers. Twenty thousand dead? What does it mean?
Perhaps it would make sense to ask the living. But they do not seem to be interested.
The only thing that brings fire to their eyes is a mention of the government.
``The bastards want us to be a part of Pakistan,`` a young man spits out the words as if he had never intended them to taste his tongue.
``The Kashmir Earthquake`` is not a story that can be told in numbers. Twenty thousand dead? What does it mean?
Perhaps it would make sense to ask the living. But they do not seem to be interested.
The only thing that brings fire to their eyes is a mention of the government.
``The bastards want us to be a part of Pakistan,`` a young man spits out the words as if he had never intended them to taste his tongue.
#60 Posted by cipram on October 10, 2005 1:16:17 am
my cousin died in Muzaaffarabad.she was principal of the school.she used to go with other staff members in vagon .The moment they were in side the school ,building collapsed.the place is 16 miles away from capital no acces as yet.may be some miracle happen and some of them would be saved.Rescue work is started yesterday and that too in the capital.
there is no place even for burial.Allah bless them.
ameen.
there is no place even for burial.Allah bless them.
ameen.
#59 Posted by Edge on October 10, 2005 1:03:30 am
And in the meanwhile , quake or no quake , its business as usual >>
8 Islamic terrorists among 16 killed in quake-hit J&K
Srinagar, October 9
Sixteen persons, including eight Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) infiltrators and a self-styled district commander of the Harkat-ul-Mujahideen, were killed in Jammu and Kashmir since last evening, an official spokesman said today.
Troops foiled an infiltration bid when they gunned down eight LeT infiltrators near the Line of Control (LoC) at Jamia Galli Gulmarg this morning, the spokesman said, adding a soldier was also killed while two others were injured in the gun-battle.
Security forces killed another LeT militant in an encounter at Dangiwacha in the north Kashmir district of Baramula last night. An AK rifle, four magazines, four hand grenades and 80 rounds were seized from the slain ultra.
Three militants, including a self-styled district commander of the Harkat-ul-Mujahideen, were gunned down by the security forces during a search operation late last night at Sayan village under the Kokernag police station.
An AK rifle, five magazines, two pistols, one hand grenade, 108 rounds were seized from the slain ultra.
Two charred bodies of militants along with two AK rifles, five magazines and 19 rounds were recovered from the debris of the Janwari Complex at Sopore where security forces and ultras were locked in a gunfight on Friday, the spokesman said.
Militants kidnapped and later killed Mohammad Yousuf at Bansal Mahore in the Udhampur district last night, he said. — UNI
8 Islamic terrorists among 16 killed in quake-hit J&K
Srinagar, October 9
Sixteen persons, including eight Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) infiltrators and a self-styled district commander of the Harkat-ul-Mujahideen, were killed in Jammu and Kashmir since last evening, an official spokesman said today.
Troops foiled an infiltration bid when they gunned down eight LeT infiltrators near the Line of Control (LoC) at Jamia Galli Gulmarg this morning, the spokesman said, adding a soldier was also killed while two others were injured in the gun-battle.
Security forces killed another LeT militant in an encounter at Dangiwacha in the north Kashmir district of Baramula last night. An AK rifle, four magazines, four hand grenades and 80 rounds were seized from the slain ultra.
Three militants, including a self-styled district commander of the Harkat-ul-Mujahideen, were gunned down by the security forces during a search operation late last night at Sayan village under the Kokernag police station.
An AK rifle, five magazines, two pistols, one hand grenade, 108 rounds were seized from the slain ultra.
Two charred bodies of militants along with two AK rifles, five magazines and 19 rounds were recovered from the debris of the Janwari Complex at Sopore where security forces and ultras were locked in a gunfight on Friday, the spokesman said.
Militants kidnapped and later killed Mohammad Yousuf at Bansal Mahore in the Udhampur district last night, he said. — UNI
#58 Posted by chowkstaff on October 10, 2005 12:46:03 am
DONATIONS FOR EARTHQUAKE VICTIMS
AMAL is trying to link up with two NGOs, Islamic Relief and Sungi working in Azad Jammu Kashmir and Abbotabad. The drop of point for donations is the AMAL office located at #7, St.62, G-6/4, Islamabad. Incase of questions you can contact
Nighat Rizvi on 0300 5003175
Imran Rizvi on 0300 8551208 and
Mehrunnisa Yusuf on 0300 5002657
Please donate the following items
· Clothes, shoes
· Dry food items such as lentils, sugar, milk, water etc
· Basic medicines and medical supplies
· Blankets and pillows
· Tents
· NO PERISHABLE ITEMS and NO MONETARY CONTRIBUTIONS.
AMAL is trying to link up with two NGOs, Islamic Relief and Sungi working in Azad Jammu Kashmir and Abbotabad. The drop of point for donations is the AMAL office located at #7, St.62, G-6/4, Islamabad. Incase of questions you can contact
Nighat Rizvi on 0300 5003175
Imran Rizvi on 0300 8551208 and
Mehrunnisa Yusuf on 0300 5002657
Please donate the following items
· Clothes, shoes
· Dry food items such as lentils, sugar, milk, water etc
· Basic medicines and medical supplies
· Blankets and pillows
· Tents
· NO PERISHABLE ITEMS and NO MONETARY CONTRIBUTIONS.
#57 Posted by ana on October 9, 2005 10:25:02 pm
can anyone living in california (SF, silicon valley, LA) point me in the direction of donation receivers here? i know the mercury news listed the red cross but anything else where the money will directly go to the affected. some of the websites listed have not been working for me.
thanks in advance,
ana
thanks in advance,
ana
#56 Posted by supersize on October 9, 2005 9:35:39 pm
In all the commotion, arrives our very own JI man, Qazi Hussain Ahmed, and insists that Pakistan should reject US and UK aid. *shakes head*
#55 Posted by r.a.janjua on October 9, 2005 9:04:19 pm
way too depressing - spent quite a few years up in those beautiful mountains amongst some very fine people - the names are so familiar - ghari habib ullah - that used to be the resting place on our drive to muzzafarabad.
they say whole villages have fallen into the neelum (kishanganga) river.
they say whole villages have fallen into the neelum (kishanganga) river.
#54 Posted by KaalChakra on October 9, 2005 8:11:24 pm
It is time for Pakistanis to do whatever they can to reduce the pain of the victims, and for outsiders to help in anyway they can. A group of Indians is getting together tomorrow to coordinate a fund-collection drive. Hopefully we will be able to make some small contributions to both India and Pakistan.
#53 Posted by Ras on October 9, 2005 7:21:00 pm
Forget about the Indo-Pak boxing match for the moment.
Pakistanis & Kashmiris need help immediately.
This one is a horrific calamity.
Let us do our best from here in America & Canada.
PLEASE HELP!
Ras
#50 Posted by Saminasha on October 9, 2005 5:33:30 pm
Did anyone catch Mushy Sahib`s comment comparing the Bush administration`s slow response to Katrina to his in earthquake affected Pakistan. The obvious point is there; that catastrophe takes time to address-even for industrialized nations.
But Mushy`s press secretary should advise him to think twice before associating his govt with Bush in New Orleans. Not a very saavy comparison in the long run....
But Mushy`s press secretary should advise him to think twice before associating his govt with Bush in New Orleans. Not a very saavy comparison in the long run....
#49 Posted by rsridhar on October 9, 2005 5:29:56 pm
re:#45 by SR
Very well said.
My heart goes out to the victims. Earthquake is a great leveller (No pun intended!). I was looking at the news items and what struck me was that experts predict an even stronger earthquake in future, one they say will kill more than a million people. Fault line goes from India to Pakistan.
Do we have a choice but to coopearate?
Poet Aeschylus said:
``Even in our sleep
Pain which cannot forget
Falls drop by drop upon the heart
Until in our own despair
Agaist our will
Comes Wisdom
Through the awful grace of God``
I think the awful grace of God is visiting the subcontinent right at this moment. It comes in many forms, sometimes even as a calamity.
Perhaps out of pain, rulers of the subcontinent will have the wisdom to seize this opportunity to cooperate, not just now, but in future.
Sridhar
Very well said.
My heart goes out to the victims. Earthquake is a great leveller (No pun intended!). I was looking at the news items and what struck me was that experts predict an even stronger earthquake in future, one they say will kill more than a million people. Fault line goes from India to Pakistan.
Do we have a choice but to coopearate?
Poet Aeschylus said:
``Even in our sleep
Pain which cannot forget
Falls drop by drop upon the heart
Until in our own despair
Agaist our will
Comes Wisdom
Through the awful grace of God``
I think the awful grace of God is visiting the subcontinent right at this moment. It comes in many forms, sometimes even as a calamity.
Perhaps out of pain, rulers of the subcontinent will have the wisdom to seize this opportunity to cooperate, not just now, but in future.
Sridhar
#52 Posted by teshah on October 9, 2005 6:09:07 pm
Re: # 49
Good poetry but atleast Pakies won`t be made any wiser by the calamity. They have of course become all the more ritualistically dehumanised. I just hear the loudspekers blaring with all the more vehemence their `sonic terrorism` (Souti dehshatgardi). Since they have been lead astray in the name of Allah nothing can guide them to the right path of wisdom and human compassion. They can massacre the poor helpless Ahmadies while praying only because they allegedly believe in more prophets than they do.
Good poetry but atleast Pakies won`t be made any wiser by the calamity. They have of course become all the more ritualistically dehumanised. I just hear the loudspekers blaring with all the more vehemence their `sonic terrorism` (Souti dehshatgardi). Since they have been lead astray in the name of Allah nothing can guide them to the right path of wisdom and human compassion. They can massacre the poor helpless Ahmadies while praying only because they allegedly believe in more prophets than they do.
#46 Posted by Edge on October 9, 2005 3:55:37 pm
A salute ...
To Shri. Narendra Modi , Chief Minister of Gujarat , who was one of the first to promise help to the quake affected of Pakistan.
To Shri. Narendra Modi , Chief Minister of Gujarat , who was one of the first to promise help to the quake affected of Pakistan.
#45 Posted by SR on October 9, 2005 3:19:06 pm
SILVER LINING
Man must have hope to live on, particularly in the face of calamity. It is hard to see anything positive coming out of such a terrible tragedy, but we must still look for it.
Once the dust settles down I hope that the Pak-Bharat people and their rulers wake up and realize that they are not enemies, but comrades who face the common twin enemies of poverty and ignorance. They must jointly fight these common enemies and ignore their own petty differences. If that spirit can come alive then this wave of mass death will not have been for nothing.
...SR
Man must have hope to live on, particularly in the face of calamity. It is hard to see anything positive coming out of such a terrible tragedy, but we must still look for it.
Once the dust settles down I hope that the Pak-Bharat people and their rulers wake up and realize that they are not enemies, but comrades who face the common twin enemies of poverty and ignorance. They must jointly fight these common enemies and ignore their own petty differences. If that spirit can come alive then this wave of mass death will not have been for nothing.
...SR
#48 Posted by Netizen on October 9, 2005 3:58:05 pm
Re: # 45
``Once the dust settles down I hope that the Pak-Bharat people and their rulers wake up and realize that they are not enemies, but comrades who face the common twin enemies of poverty and ignorance. ``
well written SR.
I heard on NPR that Mushy has politely refused indian help whereas he is still asking for international aid/help. Is it true?
``Once the dust settles down I hope that the Pak-Bharat people and their rulers wake up and realize that they are not enemies, but comrades who face the common twin enemies of poverty and ignorance. ``
well written SR.
I heard on NPR that Mushy has politely refused indian help whereas he is still asking for international aid/help. Is it true?
#44 Posted by tainted on October 9, 2005 2:51:29 pm
to donate:
All Mobilink and Ufone users - SMS the word Donate to 436. Rs.3 will be deducted from your balance and given towards the relief fund.
Donations can be deposited in any branch of UBL in Pakistan giving following details.
Account Title MKRF - Pakistan Earthquake Relief Fund
Bank Name United Bank Limited
Account No. 0102598-5
Branch Code 1234
Branch Name Al-Rehman Branch
Branch Address I. I. Chundrigar Road, Karachi , Pakistan
For international telegraphic transfer from any bank abroad also indicate
Swift Code U N I L P K KA
To contribute via PayPal - click here: Help Pakistan
Contact the following organizations:
Edhi Foundation
Karachi - 021-2201261
Lahore - 042 - 5414211
Islamabad - 051 - 2827844
Multan - 061 - 4583906 / 4549938
Quetta - 081 - 2830832 / 2830861
Fatamid Foundation
Dr. Sagher - 021-2225285 / 0300 - 9210647
Ansar Burney Welfare Trust
Sarim Burney - 0300 - 8243459 / 0301 - 8243459
Rotaract Club 3270
Lahore:
Natash Ali Mian - 0300 - 9464209
Farooq Abdul Qadir - 0333 - 4227114
Karachi: Ali Hafeez - 0333 - 2298048
National Academy of Youth Trust
Mrs. Samina - 0333 - 3114726
Khidmat - e - Khalq Foundation
Karachi - 021 - 6328464
Al Khidmat Foundation
Lahore - 042 - 5433038
Islamabad - 051 - 2277343 / 2877933
Unicef - http://www.supportunicef.org/site/pp.asp?c=iuI1LdP0G&b=45523
International Red Cross - http://www.icrc.org/Web/eng/siteeng0.nsf/html/South%20Asia-news-091005%21OpenDocument
Mensa Pakistan Disaster Relief Fund - http://karachi.metblogs.com/archives/2005/10/mensa_pakistan.phtml#more
SA Tribune: Sending donations if you live abroad - http://www.satribune.com/archives/200510/P1_RELIEF_AD.htm
Lahore University of Management Sciences` Charity Drive - http://lahore.metblogs.com/archives/2005/10/relief_drive.phtml
The Karachi Metblog [http://karachi.metblogs.com] and Lahore Metblog [http://lahore.metblogs.com] are posting news updates and details of charity drives constantly.
All Mobilink and Ufone users - SMS the word Donate to 436. Rs.3 will be deducted from your balance and given towards the relief fund.
Donations can be deposited in any branch of UBL in Pakistan giving following details.
Account Title MKRF - Pakistan Earthquake Relief Fund
Bank Name United Bank Limited
Account No. 0102598-5
Branch Code 1234
Branch Name Al-Rehman Branch
Branch Address I. I. Chundrigar Road, Karachi , Pakistan
For international telegraphic transfer from any bank abroad also indicate
Swift Code U N I L P K KA
To contribute via PayPal - click here: Help Pakistan
Contact the following organizations:
Edhi Foundation
Karachi - 021-2201261
Lahore - 042 - 5414211
Islamabad - 051 - 2827844
Multan - 061 - 4583906 / 4549938
Quetta - 081 - 2830832 / 2830861
Fatamid Foundation
Dr. Sagher - 021-2225285 / 0300 - 9210647
Ansar Burney Welfare Trust
Sarim Burney - 0300 - 8243459 / 0301 - 8243459
Rotaract Club 3270
Lahore:
Natash Ali Mian - 0300 - 9464209
Farooq Abdul Qadir - 0333 - 4227114
Karachi: Ali Hafeez - 0333 - 2298048
National Academy of Youth Trust
Mrs. Samina - 0333 - 3114726
Khidmat - e - Khalq Foundation
Karachi - 021 - 6328464
Al Khidmat Foundation
Lahore - 042 - 5433038
Islamabad - 051 - 2277343 / 2877933
Unicef - http://www.supportunicef.org/site/pp.asp?c=iuI1LdP0G&b=45523
International Red Cross - http://www.icrc.org/Web/eng/siteeng0.nsf/html/South%20Asia-news-091005%21OpenDocument
Mensa Pakistan Disaster Relief Fund - http://karachi.metblogs.com/archives/2005/10/mensa_pakistan.phtml#more
SA Tribune: Sending donations if you live abroad - http://www.satribune.com/archives/200510/P1_RELIEF_AD.htm
Lahore University of Management Sciences` Charity Drive - http://lahore.metblogs.com/archives/2005/10/relief_drive.phtml
The Karachi Metblog [http://karachi.metblogs.com] and Lahore Metblog [http://lahore.metblogs.com] are posting news updates and details of charity drives constantly.
#43 Posted by hush on October 9, 2005 2:08:41 pm
My Dear Friends,
This is the time for us to stand united and reach out
to the victims of the biggest catastrophe in the
history of our country. Please come forward and help
the needy in any way possible, because this is our
duty towards the humanity and towards our country. We
can help the needy in some of the following ways:
1) MKR Foundation (Mir Khalil UR Rehman Foundation):
Pakistan EarthQuake Relief Fund
UBL 0102598-5
For International Transfers
SWIFT CODE ( U N I L P K K A )
6)Ary Digital advertised:
For the reliefs efforts and victims of earthquake
please send your donations to
Khawaja Gareeb Nawaz Trust
Account # 010-4843-0
United Bank Limited
7) Pakistan-Canada Association
http://www.pakcan.com/pakistan_earthquake_relief.shtml
PAKISTAN EARTHQUAKE RELIEF FUND
Royal Bank of Canada
Branch No: 05600
Transit No: 003
Account No: 1009067
8) Canadian Red Cross
http://www.redcross.ca/article.asp?id=014928&tid=001
9)Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA) Donations to
Victims of earthquake:
https://icnany.org/Donation/Donation.php?a=relief
10) Oxfam is also collecting donations
http://www.oxfam.org.uk/what_you_can_do/give_to_oxfam/donate/asian_quake.htm
11)Chk Payable to President of Pakistan Relief Fund
Address: Habib Allied International Bank Plc
97 Cannon Street London EC4N 5AE
Sort Code 60-95-11 A/C 04916670
Please come forward and lend a hand to those who are
in the most difficult time of their life and look up
to you for your support.
God bless the departed souls & God bless the affectees
of this calamity.
This is the time for us to stand united and reach out
to the victims of the biggest catastrophe in the
history of our country. Please come forward and help
the needy in any way possible, because this is our
duty towards the humanity and towards our country. We
can help the needy in some of the following ways:
1) MKR Foundation (Mir Khalil UR Rehman Foundation):
Pakistan EarthQuake Relief Fund
UBL 0102598-5
For International Transfers
SWIFT CODE ( U N I L P K K A )
6)Ary Digital advertised:
For the reliefs efforts and victims of earthquake
please send your donations to
Khawaja Gareeb Nawaz Trust
Account # 010-4843-0
United Bank Limited
7) Pakistan-Canada Association
http://www.pakcan.com/pakistan_earthquake_relief.shtml
PAKISTAN EARTHQUAKE RELIEF FUND
Royal Bank of Canada
Branch No: 05600
Transit No: 003
Account No: 1009067
8) Canadian Red Cross
http://www.redcross.ca/article.asp?id=014928&tid=001
9)Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA) Donations to
Victims of earthquake:
https://icnany.org/Donation/Donation.php?a=relief
10) Oxfam is also collecting donations
http://www.oxfam.org.uk/what_you_can_do/give_to_oxfam/donate/asian_quake.htm
11)Chk Payable to President of Pakistan Relief Fund
Address: Habib Allied International Bank Plc
97 Cannon Street London EC4N 5AE
Sort Code 60-95-11 A/C 04916670
Please come forward and lend a hand to those who are
in the most difficult time of their life and look up
to you for your support.
God bless the departed souls & God bless the affectees
of this calamity.
#42 Posted by hush on October 9, 2005 2:06:30 pm
My Dear Friends,
This is the time for us to stand united and reach out
to the victims of the biggest catastrophe in the
history of our country. Please come forward and help
the needy in any way possible, because this is our
duty towards the humanity and towards our country. We
can help the needy in some of the following ways:
1) MKR Foundation (Mir Khalil UR Rehman Foundation):
Pakistan EarthQuake Relief Fund
UBL 0102598-5
For International Transfers
SWIFT CODE ( U N I L P K K A )
6)Ary Digital advertised:
For the reliefs efforts and victims of earthquake
please send your donations to
Khawaja Gareeb Nawaz Trust
Account # 010-4843-0
United Bank Limited
7) Pakistan-Canada Association
http://www.pakcan.com/pakistan_earthquake_relief.shtml
PAKISTAN EARTHQUAKE RELIEF FUND
Royal Bank of Canada
Branch No: 05600
Transit No: 003
Account No: 1009067
8) Canadian Red Cross
http://www.redcross.ca/article.asp?id=014928&tid=001
9)Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA) Donations to
Victims of earthquake:
https://icnany.org/Donation/Donation.php?a=relief
10) Oxfam is also collecting donations
http://www.oxfam.org.uk/what_you_can_do/give_to_oxfam/donate/asian_quake.htm
11)Chk Payable to President of Pakistan Relief Fund
Address: Habib Allied International Bank Plc
97 Cannon Street London EC4N 5AE
Sort Code 60-95-11 A/C 04916670
Please come forward and lend a hand to those who are
in the most difficult time of their life and look up
to you for your support.
God bless the departed souls & God bless the affectees
of this calamity.
This is the time for us to stand united and reach out
to the victims of the biggest catastrophe in the
history of our country. Please come forward and help
the needy in any way possible, because this is our
duty towards the humanity and towards our country. We
can help the needy in some of the following ways:
1) MKR Foundation (Mir Khalil UR Rehman Foundation):
Pakistan EarthQuake Relief Fund
UBL 0102598-5
For International Transfers
SWIFT CODE ( U N I L P K K A )
6)Ary Digital advertised:
For the reliefs efforts and victims of earthquake
please send your donations to
Khawaja Gareeb Nawaz Trust
Account # 010-4843-0
United Bank Limited
7) Pakistan-Canada Association
http://www.pakcan.com/pakistan_earthquake_relief.shtml
PAKISTAN EARTHQUAKE RELIEF FUND
Royal Bank of Canada
Branch No: 05600
Transit No: 003
Account No: 1009067
8) Canadian Red Cross
http://www.redcross.ca/article.asp?id=014928&tid=001
9)Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA) Donations to
Victims of earthquake:
https://icnany.org/Donation/Donation.php?a=relief
10) Oxfam is also collecting donations
http://www.oxfam.org.uk/what_you_can_do/give_to_oxfam/donate/asian_quake.htm
11)Chk Payable to President of Pakistan Relief Fund
Address: Habib Allied International Bank Plc
97 Cannon Street London EC4N 5AE
Sort Code 60-95-11 A/C 04916670
Please come forward and lend a hand to those who are
in the most difficult time of their life and look up
to you for your support.
God bless the departed souls & God bless the affectees
of this calamity.
#41 Posted by tahmed32 on October 9, 2005 1:20:00 pm
The Pakistan government has set up a relief fund, as well as some other Pakistani-American organizations, as noted below in press release from Pakistan Embassy.:
Earthquake Relief Efforts
Today the worst ever earthquake in the history of Pakistan caused widespread damage to the lives and properties in Punjab, NWFP, Tribal Areas and Kashmir. The intensity of the earthquake measured 7.6 degrees on the Richter scale. The death toll is estimated in thousands.
The entire Government machinery has been mobilized to speed up the relief operations throughout the disaster hit areas. President Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz are personally monitoring rescue and relief operations. The President has also directed the Pakistan Army and the Air Force to provide assistance to the civil administration in the earthquake stricken areas.
President’s Relief Fund has been established with an initial allocation of Rs. 1 billion by the Government to provide assistance to the affectees of the massive disaster. The President and the Prime Minister have appealed to the Pakistanis and overseas Pakistanis to donate generously in the President’s Relief Fund.
An Earthquake Relief Cell has also been established in the Prime Minister’s Secretariat which will work under the direct supervision of the Prime Minister.
The US Department of State immediately responded to the tragedy and offered US Government’s assistance to Pakistan for the relief of the affectees.
The Embassy of Pakistan in Washington D.C. has established a Crisis Management Cell to provide round the clock consular services to the Pakistanis and Pakistani-Americans who wish to travel to Pakistan. The Cell is also coordinating the travel of relief teams to Pakistan. The Cell will be providing information on damage and rescue operations.
Charge d’Affaires Mohammad Sadiq has appealed to the Pakistani community to contribute generously to help their Pakistani brothers and sisters in this hour of need. The Embassy has opened a designated account to receive donations for the President’s Relief Fund. Donations can be sent to the Embassy of Pakistan, 3517 International Court, NW, Washington, DC 20008. Cheques should be made payable to the President’s Relief Fund. All donations made by the community organizations and individuals will be announced on the Embassy’s website.
Pakistani organizations including Association of Pakistani Physicians of North America(APPNA), Rising Leaders, Pakistan Public Affairs Committee (PAKPAC), Council of Pakistani-Americans (COPA), Pakistani-American Leadership Council (PAL-C) and several other community organizations are also doing the fund raising.
Washington, D.C.
October 8, 2005
Earthquake Relief Efforts
Today the worst ever earthquake in the history of Pakistan caused widespread damage to the lives and properties in Punjab, NWFP, Tribal Areas and Kashmir. The intensity of the earthquake measured 7.6 degrees on the Richter scale. The death toll is estimated in thousands.
The entire Government machinery has been mobilized to speed up the relief operations throughout the disaster hit areas. President Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz are personally monitoring rescue and relief operations. The President has also directed the Pakistan Army and the Air Force to provide assistance to the civil administration in the earthquake stricken areas.
President’s Relief Fund has been established with an initial allocation of Rs. 1 billion by the Government to provide assistance to the affectees of the massive disaster. The President and the Prime Minister have appealed to the Pakistanis and overseas Pakistanis to donate generously in the President’s Relief Fund.
An Earthquake Relief Cell has also been established in the Prime Minister’s Secretariat which will work under the direct supervision of the Prime Minister.
The US Department of State immediately responded to the tragedy and offered US Government’s assistance to Pakistan for the relief of the affectees.
The Embassy of Pakistan in Washington D.C. has established a Crisis Management Cell to provide round the clock consular services to the Pakistanis and Pakistani-Americans who wish to travel to Pakistan. The Cell is also coordinating the travel of relief teams to Pakistan. The Cell will be providing information on damage and rescue operations.
Charge d’Affaires Mohammad Sadiq has appealed to the Pakistani community to contribute generously to help their Pakistani brothers and sisters in this hour of need. The Embassy has opened a designated account to receive donations for the President’s Relief Fund. Donations can be sent to the Embassy of Pakistan, 3517 International Court, NW, Washington, DC 20008. Cheques should be made payable to the President’s Relief Fund. All donations made by the community organizations and individuals will be announced on the Embassy’s website.
Pakistani organizations including Association of Pakistani Physicians of North America(APPNA), Rising Leaders, Pakistan Public Affairs Committee (PAKPAC), Council of Pakistani-Americans (COPA), Pakistani-American Leadership Council (PAL-C) and several other community organizations are also doing the fund raising.
Washington, D.C.
October 8, 2005
#40 Posted by tuees on October 9, 2005 12:26:42 pm
AssalamoAlaikum,
I am just searching islamic relief web sites to donate for Earthquake disaster. For USA residents you can quickly donate on
www.irw.org
www.hidaya.org
JazakAllah khairan
I am just searching islamic relief web sites to donate for Earthquake disaster. For USA residents you can quickly donate on
www.irw.org
www.hidaya.org
JazakAllah khairan
#39 Posted by MantoLives on October 9, 2005 12:16:45 pm
A salute...
First and foremost to the Pakistani people who have shown a unity and spirit that has not been on display in many years... in coming together and rescuing the hapless millions... in whatever way possible... the people of Pakistan have shown that this country is truly great ... and will always be great...
To the Pakistan Army, which in other times is a symbol of tyranny, but which has come to the rescue most effectively and remarkably... fighting against all odds ...
To the UK rapid team... which landed and was on its way within 5 minutes of arrival... and which helped save many many many lives...
To CNN, BBC, SKY and other foreign channels... for putting the spotlight on and getting the message out to the rest of the world.
To Turkey, China, US, Germany, UK and other nations that have sent help..
To the Indian Prime Minister for his generous offer of help...
To Pakistanis living abroad who have graciously donated millions of dollars, pounds and dirhams...
To citizens of the world who have responded to our calls and come to our aid
To all chowkies, across party, religion and national lines, who have made efforts to help us out...
First and foremost to the Pakistani people who have shown a unity and spirit that has not been on display in many years... in coming together and rescuing the hapless millions... in whatever way possible... the people of Pakistan have shown that this country is truly great ... and will always be great...
To the Pakistan Army, which in other times is a symbol of tyranny, but which has come to the rescue most effectively and remarkably... fighting against all odds ...
To the UK rapid team... which landed and was on its way within 5 minutes of arrival... and which helped save many many many lives...
To CNN, BBC, SKY and other foreign channels... for putting the spotlight on and getting the message out to the rest of the world.
To Turkey, China, US, Germany, UK and other nations that have sent help..
To the Indian Prime Minister for his generous offer of help...
To Pakistanis living abroad who have graciously donated millions of dollars, pounds and dirhams...
To citizens of the world who have responded to our calls and come to our aid
To all chowkies, across party, religion and national lines, who have made efforts to help us out...
#96 Posted by Behram1 on October 11, 2005 11:47:06 am
Re: # 39
Dear Yasser,
Thanks for the inspirational post. Keep up the good work in bringing people together.
I know now is not the time. But today`s Washington Post has a column by George F. Will. Here is the clip that should be looked at, even in these darkest hours of our countries. Keep this in your back pocket for easy reference....
After Earth`s heavings subside, they reverberate in people`s minds. Winchester says that after the 1755 Lisbon earthquake killed 60,000, ``priests roved around the ruins, selecting at random those they believed guilty of heresy and thus to blame for annoying the Divine, who in turn had ordered up the disaster. The priests had them hanged on the spot.``
The 1883 eruption of Krakatoa in what is now Indonesia fueled the growth of an extremist strain of Islam, bent on purging society of impurities displeasing to God. That strain has twice recently been heard from in Bali.
San Francisco`s 1906 disaster prompted the explosive growth of a Pentecostal movement based in Los Angeles, a movement then embryonic but now mighty.
Remembering this cataclysmic tragedy with utmost and deepest sorrow, I just remain
Dear Yasser,
Thanks for the inspirational post. Keep up the good work in bringing people together.
I know now is not the time. But today`s Washington Post has a column by George F. Will. Here is the clip that should be looked at, even in these darkest hours of our countries. Keep this in your back pocket for easy reference....
After Earth`s heavings subside, they reverberate in people`s minds. Winchester says that after the 1755 Lisbon earthquake killed 60,000, ``priests roved around the ruins, selecting at random those they believed guilty of heresy and thus to blame for annoying the Divine, who in turn had ordered up the disaster. The priests had them hanged on the spot.``
The 1883 eruption of Krakatoa in what is now Indonesia fueled the growth of an extremist strain of Islam, bent on purging society of impurities displeasing to God. That strain has twice recently been heard from in Bali.
San Francisco`s 1906 disaster prompted the explosive growth of a Pentecostal movement based in Los Angeles, a movement then embryonic but now mighty.
Remembering this cataclysmic tragedy with utmost and deepest sorrow, I just remain
#38 Posted by Salim_Chauhan on October 9, 2005 11:09:07 am
The response here in Turkey is admirable. People, mosques, Islamic charities, schools, and the government are all focused on helping their brethren in Pakistan. My wife and relatives are busy collecting relief supplies. With our own horrible experiences with earthquakes in Turkey, everyone here is feeling Pakistan`s pain and is eager to help. Turkish earthquake teams are already in Pakistan. More is on the way.
I just want to wish all my Punjabi, Pathan, and Kashmiri brothers and sisters my sincere hope for Allah`s protection and I beg for His mercy in saving as many lives as He can for us. My heart goes out to the 250 schoolgirls who met their deaths in Manshera. May God give them peace in heaven.
Be hopeful and save lives, yes everyone of those precious lives.
I just want to wish all my Punjabi, Pathan, and Kashmiri brothers and sisters my sincere hope for Allah`s protection and I beg for His mercy in saving as many lives as He can for us. My heart goes out to the 250 schoolgirls who met their deaths in Manshera. May God give them peace in heaven.
Be hopeful and save lives, yes everyone of those precious lives.
#37 Posted by Salim_Chauhan on October 9, 2005 11:00:51 am
sbhardwa, Dillidost, Shankar, and other sincere and caring Indian friends,
Thank you for your compassion, warm wishes, and genuine expressions of grief and consolation. Your neighbors love you for your sincere feelings. May Allah unite us all in our common humanity. May we all love each other as much in life as we obviously care so much for each other in death.
The people of Pakistan, Kashmir, Afghanistan, and India are a patient people who know how to suffer and survive. May God bring us all together.
Thanks,
Thank you for your compassion, warm wishes, and genuine expressions of grief and consolation. Your neighbors love you for your sincere feelings. May Allah unite us all in our common humanity. May we all love each other as much in life as we obviously care so much for each other in death.
The people of Pakistan, Kashmir, Afghanistan, and India are a patient people who know how to suffer and survive. May God bring us all together.
Thanks,
#36 Posted by aquaris on October 9, 2005 10:57:08 am
I have just visited the PAF ... Base....
and My God... the response we are having ...... its overwhelming....No distiction of rich or Poor.... just the desire to help......
It has really Made me proud .... even in this moment of sorrow.....
May God/Allah/Ram ... whoever and whatever is out there....
Help ease the Pains of those who have and are suffering....
#35 Posted by mohammedamjed on October 9, 2005 10:13:22 am
AT 6:OO PM (cst) ON OCTOBER 8, I TURNED ON PTV, THE ``PROFOUND VIEWING EXPERIENCE`` TO WATCH ANY COVERAGE ABOUT THE EARTHQUAKE IN PAKISTAN. THEY WERE AIRING BILLO KA DHABBA. IS PTV IN DENIAL OF THE CALAMITY THAT HAS GRIPPED HAPLESS VICTIMS IN PAKISTAN, INDIA, AFGHANISTAN AND KASHMIR ON BOTH SIDES OF LOC?
IS THIS MISMANAGEMENT, APATHY, OR BOTH?
IS THIS MISMANAGEMENT, APATHY, OR BOTH?
#34 Posted by mohammedamjed on October 9, 2005 9:53:18 am
CAN WE CHOWKIES ESTABLISH AN EXCLUSIVE LINK AT CHOWK TO COLLECT CASH DONATIONS FOR FAMILIES AFFECTED BY THE EARTHQUAKE. WE CAN COLLECT A SUBSTANTIAL AMOUNT HERE IN NORTH AMERICA, JUST LIKE THE PAKISTANIS IN UK.
MOHAMMED AMJED
amjed12841@hotmail.com
MOHAMMED AMJED
amjed12841@hotmail.com
#33 Posted by temporal on October 9, 2005 8:48:59 am
shanker-da
here is a list from the net...i tried to call and the lines were busy...be patient...keep dialling
and thank you for your thoughts and help...may god/bhagwan/the power bless us all
t
USA USA Edhi international Foundation.
42-07 National street
Corona, New York, 11368 USA
Tel: (718)(639-5120)
Fax:(718)(335-1978)
United Kingdom United Kingdom Edhi International Foundation,
7 Shakespeare road,
Finchley, Central London N3 IXE,
United Kingdom.
Tel:(081)(346-9232), (081)(349-0296)
Canada Canada Edhi Charitable Foundation, Inc.
100 McLevin Avenue,
Scarborough, Ontario B 2V5, Canada.
Tel/fax: (416)(293-4899)
Japan Japan Edhi International Foundation,
RM 101 COPO Nikkei, 1-25 4-Chome,
Minami-ohi Shinagawa -KU-Tokyo 140 Japan.
Australia Australia Abdul Sattar Edhi International Foundation,
Level 20, Picadly tower,
133, Castle reagh street, Sydney 2000,
Austrailia.
Tel: 02-2646499, 03-3767-7282
Fax: 03-3764-4395, 02-264-7337
Bangladesh Bangladesh Edhi International Foundation Inc,
2/2 Purana palton, 3rd Floor,
Dhaka - 1000
here is a list from the net...i tried to call and the lines were busy...be patient...keep dialling
and thank you for your thoughts and help...may god/bhagwan/the power bless us all
t
USA USA Edhi international Foundation.
42-07 National street
Corona, New York, 11368 USA
Tel: (718)(639-5120)
Fax:(718)(335-1978)
United Kingdom United Kingdom Edhi International Foundation,
7 Shakespeare road,
Finchley, Central London N3 IXE,
United Kingdom.
Tel:(081)(346-9232), (081)(349-0296)
Canada Canada Edhi Charitable Foundation, Inc.
100 McLevin Avenue,
Scarborough, Ontario B 2V5, Canada.
Tel/fax: (416)(293-4899)
Japan Japan Edhi International Foundation,
RM 101 COPO Nikkei, 1-25 4-Chome,
Minami-ohi Shinagawa -KU-Tokyo 140 Japan.
Australia Australia Abdul Sattar Edhi International Foundation,
Level 20, Picadly tower,
133, Castle reagh street, Sydney 2000,
Austrailia.
Tel: 02-2646499, 03-3767-7282
Fax: 03-3764-4395, 02-264-7337
Bangladesh Bangladesh Edhi International Foundation Inc,
2/2 Purana palton, 3rd Floor,
Dhaka - 1000
#32 Posted by Naqshbandi on October 9, 2005 8:17:28 am
I pray that no one on Chowk has any relatives/friends/loved ones who have been affected by this disaster.
The response by the public to this has been astonishing. Already British Pakistanis have collected hundreds of thousands.
May Allah have Mercy on us.
Amin.
The response by the public to this has been astonishing. Already British Pakistanis have collected hundreds of thousands.
May Allah have Mercy on us.
Amin.
#31 Posted by MantoLives on October 9, 2005 8:06:01 am
NHK...
Are you referring to the Fakhr-e-Alam fundraising drive?
I saw something on Aaj TV.. and it was so moving and heartwarming that I had to change the TV Channel...
Its amazing how caring our people are...
#30 Posted by nazarhayatkhan on October 9, 2005 7:05:41 am
Helicopters, Yes
But Musharraf should no have been begging for tents, blankets and medicine on the CNN.
There are plenty of tents, blankets and medicine in the country.
A small announcement by TV 1 for commodity donation caused a traffic jam in the car park of PAF museum Karachi - and few plane loads seemed to have been donated in just a few hours.
The public response was outstanding - most did not know where to donate.
nhk
But Musharraf should no have been begging for tents, blankets and medicine on the CNN.
There are plenty of tents, blankets and medicine in the country.
A small announcement by TV 1 for commodity donation caused a traffic jam in the car park of PAF museum Karachi - and few plane loads seemed to have been donated in just a few hours.
The public response was outstanding - most did not know where to donate.
nhk
#29 Posted by cipram on October 9, 2005 7:05:27 am
islamabad is less effected than Azad kahmir ,balacot and muzaffarbad are the worst.
And Geo didn`t give any coverage to Azad kashmir except the high court building .that portion remain without any help from any quater.Many schools collapsed and number of the students are countless who died .well done India, they gave good coverage .
the people are sitting in the open in rain without food water and electricity.
now today president has ordered to repair road immediately so that people can go and share the grieve of their dear one`s.Allah please help them.
And Geo didn`t give any coverage to Azad kashmir except the high court building .that portion remain without any help from any quater.Many schools collapsed and number of the students are countless who died .well done India, they gave good coverage .
the people are sitting in the open in rain without food water and electricity.
now today president has ordered to repair road immediately so that people can go and share the grieve of their dear one`s.Allah please help them.
#28 Posted by friend on October 9, 2005 7:02:34 am
Is Edehi foundation registered somehwere in USA where checks can be sent?
#28 Posted by freethinker on October 9, 2005 7:02:35 am
sbhardwa`s post is admirable. India`s offer of help and sympathy is definitely a healthy turn in the political climate of the subcontinent. It was reported in today`s Dawn:
``Earlier on Saturday, Dr Singh in a message to the president said: “While parts of India have also suffered in this unexpected natural disaster, we are prepared to extend any assistance with rescue and relief which you may deem appropriate.”
Earlier the PTI reported from Islamabad that Pakistan was not averse to coordinate with Indian army in providing relief to earthquake-hit people on both sides of the LoC and the two armies could use the hotline facility if needed.``
Mohammad Gill
``Earlier on Saturday, Dr Singh in a message to the president said: “While parts of India have also suffered in this unexpected natural disaster, we are prepared to extend any assistance with rescue and relief which you may deem appropriate.”
Earlier the PTI reported from Islamabad that Pakistan was not averse to coordinate with Indian army in providing relief to earthquake-hit people on both sides of the LoC and the two armies could use the hotline facility if needed.``
Mohammad Gill
#27 Posted by semipreciousme on October 9, 2005 6:31:40 am
...for all of those interested in donating, here`re a few of reputable organizations working to help the earthquake affectees...
As Yasser mentioned, you can donate to the MKR foundation (they did phenomenal work for the tusnami disaster) by going to:
1) http://www.jang.com.pk/ads/msr_chmp/banner_2_full.gif
Other places you can go to where the $$ will actually make it to the people who need it the most:
2) irw.org (they`ve also been doing great work for the food crises in africa)
3) http://www.directrelief.org/sections/our_work/southasia_earthquake.html
As Yasser mentioned, you can donate to the MKR foundation (they did phenomenal work for the tusnami disaster) by going to:
1) http://www.jang.com.pk/ads/msr_chmp/banner_2_full.gif
Other places you can go to where the $$ will actually make it to the people who need it the most:
2) irw.org (they`ve also been doing great work for the food crises in africa)
3) http://www.directrelief.org/sections/our_work/southasia_earthquake.html
#25 Posted by shankar on October 9, 2005 5:22:58 am
Dear Chowkies,
At a time like this, all our differences seem very petty.
Where can I find one place that is honest, reliable & truly Islamic where I can send a check? Can someone
temporal-ji, perhaps, give me a link of a reputable place.
These people need our help.
Khuda Hafiz
At a time like this, all our differences seem very petty.
Where can I find one place that is honest, reliable & truly Islamic where I can send a check? Can someone
temporal-ji, perhaps, give me a link of a reputable place.
These people need our help.
Khuda Hafiz
#24 Posted by MantoLives on October 9, 2005 5:12:20 am
It is worst than first assumed...
We need all the help from every where and every one...
We need all the help from every where and every one...
#23 Posted by payndoojatt on October 9, 2005 5:05:50 am
I and my family in Chandigarh(India) experienced the quake and it really shook us up. We were really scared seeing our house shaking. The trees swayed from one side to another.The chandelier was moving a good 5 mins after the quake. I can well imagine how worst it must have been in Pakistan. I pray to god, that this never repeats and God give strenght to bear to all those who are affected.After experiencing this it seems frivolous to fight for territories and such stuff.
#22 Posted by Urstruly on October 9, 2005 4:24:03 am
Relief fund drives have been set up at all mosques in NOrth America. Please donate, even if you think that your donation is too small and wouldn`t make a difference. Let me assure you that it would.
#20 Posted by saazman on October 9, 2005 2:09:20 am
I heard about the earth quake in the afternoon , nd found further details on tv , my eyes well up at every single sight ...the destruction is huge ... but , most important at the moment is to rescue those trapped under te collapsed buildings ... our prayers r all with you !
-peace.
PS , i hope all the chowkies living in these areas are safe ... SIR hope u r fine !
-peace.
PS , i hope all the chowkies living in these areas are safe ... SIR hope u r fine !
#19 Posted by dullabhatti on October 8, 2005 11:46:54 pm
Really sad event. My hearts goes out to all the victims....hard to even imagine vilages after villages flattened out and people burried alive under rubble.
May god give people strength to cope with this tragidy.
May god give people strength to cope with this tragidy.
#18 Posted by ijaz_gul on October 8, 2005 10:59:56 pm
I was the first to break the news on CHOWK, within minutes of the disaster. With land lines out of order, I was able to do it through the cell phone internet. Casualties are massive and unfortunately likely to rise as more areas are reached. Some things are for sure.
Pakistan will need an unprecedented international relief effort as the most efficient machine in these areas is itself been hit very badly. Encampments, military transport and military hospitals have been obliterated, and units are working on twin fronts ie reorganising themselves and carrying out relief.
Most of the road communication system is blocked by landslides in which mountains have moved. Cargo helicopters like Chinhook in low areas and Russian high altitude helicopters like MI 17 1nd MI 24 are badly needed.
Earth moving equipment like dozers, cranes and lifts are need. But the biggest problem is , how to get them there.
There is a massive need of antibiotics, plasma, blood and field hospitals with generators to keep them warm in the upcoming sub zero temperatures.
Last but not least, the myth of Basha and Skardu Dams has been buried for good. Despite caution fro0m geoligists, there was a lobby in Pakistan that continued to advocate these projects. Kalabagh is therefore inevitable.
There is likely to be a proliferation of fly by night relief groups which will in due course disappear as soon as they came. Therefore be aware.
Well what is the relief agency. Well it remains the pakistan Armed Forces as they alone area are capable of operating in these areas. It has to be realised that everyone will have to ultimately work through the Army.
God Bless and Cheerios
Pakistan will need an unprecedented international relief effort as the most efficient machine in these areas is itself been hit very badly. Encampments, military transport and military hospitals have been obliterated, and units are working on twin fronts ie reorganising themselves and carrying out relief.
Most of the road communication system is blocked by landslides in which mountains have moved. Cargo helicopters like Chinhook in low areas and Russian high altitude helicopters like MI 17 1nd MI 24 are badly needed.
Earth moving equipment like dozers, cranes and lifts are need. But the biggest problem is , how to get them there.
There is a massive need of antibiotics, plasma, blood and field hospitals with generators to keep them warm in the upcoming sub zero temperatures.
Last but not least, the myth of Basha and Skardu Dams has been buried for good. Despite caution fro0m geoligists, there was a lobby in Pakistan that continued to advocate these projects. Kalabagh is therefore inevitable.
There is likely to be a proliferation of fly by night relief groups which will in due course disappear as soon as they came. Therefore be aware.
Well what is the relief agency. Well it remains the pakistan Armed Forces as they alone area are capable of operating in these areas. It has to be realised that everyone will have to ultimately work through the Army.
God Bless and Cheerios
#17 Posted by sbhardwa on October 8, 2005 10:31:28 pm
On behalf of the Hindus Community of Greater Akron Area (Ohio, USA) we pray for all those adversely afffected by this deadly earthquake. While we can never fully know why such disasters happen to innocent people, we want to share their pain as fellow human beings. May God give you the strength to bear this enormous burden.
#16 Posted by sbhardwa on October 8, 2005 10:29:42 pm
On behalf of the Hindus Community of Greater Akron Area (Ohio, USA) we pray for all those adversely afffected by this deadly earthquake. While we can never fully know why such disasters happen to innocent people, we want to share their pain as fellow human beings. May God give you the strength to bear this enormous burden.
#15 Posted by Kulharee on October 8, 2005 8:09:08 pm
“Seemingly, God is Angry at Pakistan” - Mohammad Gill, Circa 3 weeks ago.
#14 Posted by delhiwala on October 8, 2005 7:52:16 pm
I will do an Ardaas for the victims in the Gurudwara.
Sad news.
Sad news.
#13 Posted by KaalChakra on October 8, 2005 7:26:54 pm
What a tragedy! Beyond all human understanding. Suffering directly from hell.
#10 Posted by UmerMurtaza on October 8, 2005 2:35:32 pm
Godot,
Go for Edhi. On GEO snippets, I could see his ambulances.
Umer M.
Go for Edhi. On GEO snippets, I could see his ambulances.
Umer M.
#9 Posted by blithe on October 8, 2005 2:17:28 pm
There was a 7.6 earthquake here...
It started here at 8:55 am. We woke with the violent tremors... All of us immediately went outside under the open sky, wheeling our grandfather with us.
After about 30mins we went back in, only to find the house wobbling again (from aftershocks), and us having to run back out again... We continued this process to about 5:30pm...
We were lucky, at least as far as our immediate family is concerned (Allah has been very kind).
However, some friends and acquaintances were not as lucky. We had family fiends living on the 10h floor of one of the ‘downed’ Margalla tenements...
The rescue effort by the Military Govt/ Army has been very dismal... For up to five hours after the quakes started, they could do nothing except provide the media with bravado and jingoism on ``being fully equipped to handle the situation.`` In reality they were totally and utterly helpless, but more worried about PR.
Private TV channels brought in some horrific images, especially of a boy sandwiched between two uncompromising boulders, crying out for help. Alas, there were no tools to get the job done.
It started here at 8:55 am. We woke with the violent tremors... All of us immediately went outside under the open sky, wheeling our grandfather with us.
After about 30mins we went back in, only to find the house wobbling again (from aftershocks), and us having to run back out again... We continued this process to about 5:30pm...
We were lucky, at least as far as our immediate family is concerned (Allah has been very kind).
However, some friends and acquaintances were not as lucky. We had family fiends living on the 10h floor of one of the ‘downed’ Margalla tenements...
The rescue effort by the Military Govt/ Army has been very dismal... For up to five hours after the quakes started, they could do nothing except provide the media with bravado and jingoism on ``being fully equipped to handle the situation.`` In reality they were totally and utterly helpless, but more worried about PR.
Private TV channels brought in some horrific images, especially of a boy sandwiched between two uncompromising boulders, crying out for help. Alas, there were no tools to get the job done.
#8 Posted by Pakistan on October 8, 2005 1:40:03 pm
Today I am proud , proud of my countrymen who fought this natural disaster and won . Mother Nature I think is `capitalist` , always takes on poor and defenceless and rarely touch rich but anyway , we as a nation today won . I am proud Pakistani today , proud of my country men , proud of our courage to stand such a disaster .
I feel for those 200 girls who died in Mansehra, NWFP , Pakistan , I feel for my country`s poor soldiers who died , I feel for my mothers,sisters,brothers and others who lost there lives and relatives today . But what I learned today is that in momments of grief , we all are standing up togather from Karachi to Kyber , from Quetta to Muzzaffarabad from Islamabad to Gujar Khan , atleast for today we are united . May Allah give us strength and energy to build , what we lost .
Pakistan Zindabad !
I feel for those 200 girls who died in Mansehra, NWFP , Pakistan , I feel for my country`s poor soldiers who died , I feel for my mothers,sisters,brothers and others who lost there lives and relatives today . But what I learned today is that in momments of grief , we all are standing up togather from Karachi to Kyber , from Quetta to Muzzaffarabad from Islamabad to Gujar Khan , atleast for today we are united . May Allah give us strength and energy to build , what we lost .
Pakistan Zindabad !
#7 Posted by scout on October 8, 2005 1:32:29 pm
i don`t see the army on geo tv, i see civilians helping each other
#6 Posted by ali_1 on October 8, 2005 12:34:05 pm
I turned to the two Pakistani channels that I have at 7:15 am PST.... Geo was showing pop music program ``Katakat with Kuki`` and ARY was showing ``Heart to Heart with Samina``... I caught a 3 minute bulletin at 8:00 on Geo which gave less info than AP/AFP @ yahoo and 2 out of these 3 minutes were taken by Altaph Bhai`s condolence message... WTF? I mean WTF? I pay $25 per month to wat