In flood-hit Balochistan and Sindh, activists slam government for poor response

The worst-ever floods in Pakistan’s history have killed 1,033 and injured 1,527 people. Over 5.7 million people have been affected and nearly one lakh homes have been damaged in the rain induced flooding.

Islamabad’s response has been widely seen as inadequate and ineffective as it has been caught up in extraneous political activities.

Zafar Sahito, the Founder & Central Chief organizer of the Jeay Sindh Freedom Movement (JSFM) whose ancestral house in Karachi lies half-submerged in water, told India Narrative that the tragedy is made worse by an incompetent administration and the PPP government in Sindh. Sahito said: “We say in clear words that Sindh has been drowned not by nature, but by the Punjabi bureaucracy, army, and their incompetent anti-Sindh policies of the PPP government, whose sole purpose is to destroy the existence of Sindh”.

Similarly, a Baloch activist, who refused to be identified, told India Narrative from Balochistan that of the 32 districts, 27 have been totally washed away by the floods. “People are left with no options other than to spend their lives under the open skies with insufficient food and clothes”, the activist said.

The Baloch are also angry that instead of rescuing people and providing aid to them, the army has been raiding homes and kidnapping people. The latest to be kidnapped was Faheem Baloch, publisher and blogger who was taken away from his office on Saturday.

Earlier in August, a Pakistani Army helicopter had crashed in conflict-torn Balochistan, which was supposedly providing flood relief to the Baloch people. All six people including Commander XII Corps, Lt. Gen. Sarfraz Ali, were found dead. However, the Baloch rebels claimed that they had downed the army helicopter which was on a surveillance mission.

Ironically, even the Tehrik-e Taliban Pakistan (TTP) has blasted the Pakistani government over its tardy effort in helping people.

On Monday, Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif called a multi-party meeting in which he invited the all-powerful Pakistani army as well. Marriyum Aurangzeb, Minister for Information and Broadcasting said that all provincial chief ministers have been invited to the all-party meeting.

Sharif cancelled his proposed trip to the UK on August 25 and returned back to the country from Qatar where he had gone to raise funds for a beleaguered economy. Similarly, Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto too cancelled his European trip to Germany, Denmark, Sweden and Norway following the crisis in Sindh province.

Though the floods struck in July, the main political parties were jostling for power with none paying heed to the burgeoning humanitarian crisis.

The Pakistani army was busy battling insurgency in Balochistan and playing carrot and stick with the TTP militants on the Afghan border in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

The country has no money and is chasing the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for another bail out. Lack of financial resources have hindered the government from providing adequate rescue and relief work.

Experts blame the development model that Pakistan has chosen to follow over the years for the calamity.

Many countries have responded to Pakistan’s calls for relief. These include the European Union (EU), the UK as well as a number of Muslim countries like the UAE. The Express Tribune says that Iran and Turkiye too have pledged support to Pakistan as have many European countries.

The floods have only compounded the existential problems of Pakistan. Besides political instability, it is also facing rising radicalism and extremism, massive unrest on the Afghan border and increasing Chinese debt over mega infrastructure projects. It is also on the brink of defaulting debt payments and is chasing the IMF to avoid a complete rout of its economy like Sri Lanka.

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