The earthquake

A lot has been said on the quake everywhere. Kudos to the Pakistani media. For the news channel first that were able to finally show the difference they have brought. Qouting from an article by Qasim A. Moini in Dawn's Images:

"If, say, this tragedy had struck 10 or 15 years ago, all this would have been largely unimaginable as PTV would most likely have been airing slides of ministers and other mandarins ‘helping’ in the relief efforts. "

Also concur with him when he says:

"Why do we need a concert, play, funfair or other similar activity to raise funds? It is our moral duty as human beings to do our utmost to help those in need, so why the need for entertainment extravaganzas to get us to loosen our purse strings?"

Ayaz Amir has by far made the most sense in his columns since the quake. In his column this week he threw up a challenge to the same people who he accused of importing "bullet-proof mercedeses" while we had to wait for a rescue team from Britain to start rescuing people under the rubble of a fallen skyscraper in the capital city. He says:

"how about turning the vast acres of the Defence Housing Authority, starting from Rawalpindi and going all the way to Rewat, into a temporary housing colony for displaced Kashmiris and Hazarawals?... Defence Housing Authority in Islamabad turned into a Kashmir village: the spirit which led to the birth of Pakistan aroused all over again."

Now that is a real challenge.

Interesting also to note that Kuwait pledged 100 million dollars to the relief fund while keeping in mind that 500 million dollars "in oil" were announced as relief to the US after Katrina. Not bad, eh? I can imagine a New Orleander dad announcing to his family, "Huray folks, our house was destroyed, but we get a barrel of oil!"

The mind wanders and wonders whether the relief effort would have been better had Kashmir been an independent nation with its own airport, road system, and no Islamabad for its administrators to run to when calamity struck?

For all the people who lost their lives: May their souls rest in peace.