Yesterday’s visits to the areas that were devastated by floods in 2010 left me uncomfortable.
The village these men belong to was decimated, the rubble behind them is all that is left of the house that belonged to the man on the right, his brother died inside it.
Our response at the time was to send an immediate grant of 10,000 pounds which meant that the Diocese of Peshawar was able to respond quickly when, days after the worst of the flooding, they
heard of this village that had received no outside help; they took food and basic supplies. A year later they still have a good relationship with this (Muslim) village and continue to help.
No one in the village can remember floods as bad as last year, but everyone agrees that the present floods further south in Sindh are even worse.
On the drive back into Peshawar I saw several pathetic clusters of tents – hundreds of people still with nowhere to live, a reminder that the money for relief soon ran out and the government is unable or unwilling to act. It will be the same in Sindh. Pakistan does not have a good enough image to attract much support for relief, but the human tragedy is all too evident.
World Mission Fund has launched an appeal for Sindh and hopes to support both Raiwind and Hyderabad Dioceses in their efforts to respond.
Steve
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