The floods of 2022 are not the first natural disaster that Pakistani citizens have experienced. Devastating floods that swept the nation in 2010 and 2011 harmed parts of each province. Before that, there was the 2005 Kashmir earthquake, which devastated large areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and Kashmir to ruins.
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Surprisingly, recovery work in these areas is still ongoing, with a legacy of people who were crippled by the earthquake when roof beams and other structures collapsed on them; tragically, they have not recovered from their horrible injuries. Children who were injured in the terrible earthquake are unable to run or walk. The promises made at the time have yet to be fulfilled. The hospitals that were intended to be built remain unbuilt, as do the schools that were supposed to serve the crippled.
However, one amazing thing we witnessed in 2005, as well as after future floods or other natural calamities, including a cyclone in Baluchistan, was the feeling of national solidarity. People hurried to the scene of the accident in a random fashion, seeking to lend whatever assistance they could. Some collected supplies, while others attempted to rescue individuals and collected products for the affected areas.
Flash floods have once again swept away entire cities and towns. Pakistan has become one of the world's first demonstrations of the consequences of climate change and how fast and cruelly it may destroy humanity. Because of the floods, agricultural patterns are changing, and farmers at all stages will struggle for years to come. Now, these floods have left awful images of people being swept away by monstrous rivers, as well as ruined houses and abandoned individuals, the majority of whom have received no assistance for political reasons.
Local politicians in flood-affected communities are said to have taken relief supplies brought by humanitarian organizations such as the Al Khidmah Trust in to distribute them personally and gain political favor. Other political games have also been played, mostly at the expense of affected people's wellbeing and lives.
It's also worth noting that, while the floods have clearly made the headlines in most major newspapers, they're not the only ones. Instead, we have accounts of what appear to be minor political occurrences now, such as PTI incidents or party activities. These occurrences, as well as political leaders' words, are unimportant currently. The nation's and its officials' sole focus should be on recovering flood victims and understanding why the well-funded NDMA and PDMAs did so poorly in averting this calamity.
We also must make plans for the future and evaluate what has to be done if a similar calamity occurs in the future. With climate change sweeping the globe, there is a chance that this will happen again soon.
The most pressing question is, "What happened to national unity and humanity?" People who had previously come together appear to have gone their separate ways. Yes, there are groups that are assisting, especially a number of young people, but they are operating in isolation, and the widespread concern that we witnessed during previous disasters appears to be missing, at least in part. We wonder if the country's political divisiveness has contributed to this and the blame games. Of course, this is a dreadful calamity.
It means that, rather than assisting those in need, people have fallen into the trap established by political parties, pointing fingers and blaming each other of being to responsible for the calamity. The truth is that no single political party is fully to blame for this disaster. A major factor is the country's long-term mismanagement. This calamity is absolutely massive in scope. Sindh has been ravaged, with many areas completely destroyed, and residents in Baluchistan, such as Lasbela, have been left without food or supplies for days.
According to accounts from the ground, several children have lined up along road side begging for a single roti to satisfy their hunger. In other occasions, victims have stated that despite the deployment of rescue helicopters and drones to give help, they have gotten nothing.
This time, there is a lack of national unity and true empathy for those affected. Tens of thousands of people have been made homeless, and millions have lost their family or had their homes severely damaged. Empathy, like so much everything that was wonderful about our country, has fled. There is little justification for this, save that individuals are either so busy with their own lives that they have no time or room in their hearts to address the needs of others. Another explanation for this apathy is political polarization, which has so divided the people that they are unwilling to work together as a single unit to support everyone in need, regardless of party allegiance.
On his visit to Sindh, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif heard allegations of intentional discrimination against PML-N workers. To his credit, he did not give much attention to this, and Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah, who has visited flood-affected areas multiple times, has also vowed that such behavior will not happen and has given district administrations orders in this regard.
But has polarization affected us so severely? Can we no longer collaborate to address our country's concerns? Can we no longer marshal the forces of young people, architects, doctors, and attorneys who flocked to Kashmir in disorderly caravans after the 2005 earthquake? This is a question we must consider.
A nation that is not unified even when a calamity of this magnitude strikes is bound to failure. Politics has no importance right now and must be abandoned. Far larger efforts should be made to both emphasize the hardship of flood-affected people, as is happening to some extent in the media, and to mobilize a rescue team. We should also ask what happened to the organizations formed after 2005 to deal with disasters, and why they are unable to do so today, when we need them the most.
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