“Indescribable suffering and often unknown damage ......people Chitral, the everyday disasters they are ... undertaken by the community and the development organizations during last

“Indescribable suffering and often unknown damage- required urgent attention

of humanity”

The situation for thousands of people in the mountain

region of Hindukush region Chitral KPK Pakistan, is now

beyond critical, urgent action to deal with what many

are describing as one of the worst humanitarian crises

in the civilized world today. There are no words to

describe what we see in chitral, and it is one of the

biggest shocks of my entire disaster and climate risk

management career of over 20 years.

I'm so disgusted to see the flood and earthquake

devastated district of Chitral, I born and gown and lived

for over 30 years. It's a sad future our new generation

is asking us what would be the future of Chitral? What

is our security and safety and where is the

government? Are we really Pakistani and part of KPK?

I'm shocked and ashamed of governance and

treatment of KPK government, ignored the disaster

victims of Chitral over a year.

The post disasters emotional, psychological, mental,

socioeconomic, physical and ecological miseries of the

people Chitral, the everyday disasters they are

encountering with over a year owing to the failure of

the state to restore the damaged critical infrastructure,

really shocked me.

As a disaster risk management practitioner, researcher

over 20 years at National and International level, I have

ever seen ignorance of the disaster victims by the state

and the humanitarian organizations, and I completely

lost to answer the questions of the young generation

raised during my last visit to Chitral.

The forgotten humanitarian crises required urgent

support from government and humanitarian

organizations on war footing basis. The failure of the

government and the humanitarian sector to ensure

that aid and reconstruction plans do not ignore the

same communities, again and again.

The landlocked, marginalized, and opposed people of

the mountain region of Hindukush in Chitral living under serious threats of emerging disasters of GLOF,

Landslide, climate change, erosion, earthquake, avalanche, road accidents, collapsed bridges and constant

road blockage in summer due to river erosion and heavy snowfall, avalanche, rock fall, land sliding in the

winter. This unique part of the world that is cutoff from rest of the country over 5 months a year in 21st

century is now internally disconnected from village to village and valleys to district headquarter around

the year.

My heart is truly bleeding and my eyes are

full of tears to see the suffering of the

people, despite of constitutional guarantee

of human rights under the constitution of

Pakistan, binding agreements and

protocols on International Human Rights

and International Humanitarian Law,

SFDRR, and Paris Conference on Climate

Change. I feel guilty not being able to

support the innocent children/students

dying owing to damaged roads, dilapidated

bridges, contaminated water and poor

malnutrition. Hundreds of students have

no access to education because they lost

their school in flooding and an earthquake

Up to 28 government schools and 12 private schools/colleges were destroyed in the flooding and

earthquakes and have not been repaired since, more than a year ago. The post disaster temporary

arrangements to link the roads are now vanishing due to increased volume of water in the streams owing

to the melting of glaciers and snow. The protection walls, check dams and other mitigation measures

undertaken by the community and the development organizations during last three decade were washed

away in last flooding, exposing the leftover assets of the community highly exposed to complete

devastation. The temporary restored roads and bridges may not able to resist the roaring rivers/streams

power, soon or later will be completely washed away. Over 32 valleys and villages may soon be

disconnected with the district headquarter and the Chitral city with rest of Pakistan.

The alarming threats and probability of more rains, more glacier melting and GLOF propagated by many

agencies in chitral is creating serious panic among the people. Migration from Chitral is already in progress

and people living in down country in winter use to

go back to Chitral in summer, are avoiding to go due

to this panic and alarming situation. The expected

destruction and food insecurity, in case of any

eventuality of disaster will be beyond the capacity of

Govt and the humanitarian organization, if

appropriate and comprehensive strategy is not

develop to cope with the existing and emerging

situation in Chitral.

Over the past decade, more than 300 people lost

their lives, over 2,500 injured and almost the entire

population of the district are homeless as a result of 29 disasters. Overall, the people of the district have

been affected by disasters in many ways.

The fatalities and economic loss in the two major events in Chitral during the year 2015 that killed over

100 people and 2,000 injured, 20,000 houses destroyed, 80% of the infrastructure destroyed, and the

total reconstruction cost worked out to be over 11.375 billion PKR, excluding the losses of over 800 micro-

enterprises, medicine plants-the major part of livelihood, fruit bearing trees, including walnut, apple,

grips, apricots, Charry and millions of trees. The post disaster damages and lives lost at the result of poor

roads and dilapidated bridges as well as the social and biodiversity losses are not included in the

assessment. The total cost of the disaster, if included as mentioned above would be over 20 billion.

Lack of legal, institutional and financial

mechanism and rule/regulation in

assessment, payment of compensation to

disaster victims on loss of life and property is

a major concerned, here is a need for

effective institutional framework to cope

with future disasters assessment and

compensation. Lack of technical and

scientific capacity in undertaking DNA and

conventional relief destitution

methodologies without proper monitoring

and evaluation system is seriously

questioning transparency and accountability

in overall relief distribution and payment of compensation. Lack of comprehensive compensation policy

is creating conflict and misunderstanding among the disaster affected people and one of such example

practiced in Chitral during flash flood and earthquake of 2015 is quoted for reference and information.

“The flood victims were paid Rs 300,000 for loss of life while the earthquake victim were paid Rs 600,000.

Similarly damaged houses of flash flood were compensated with Rs. 100,000 while for earthquake affectes

it is Rs.300, 000”

According the information from district government, only 500 million funding was released by the

government of KPK for rehabilitation against

the damaged infrastructure of over 11 billion.

The unplanned reconnection of road and

bridges cost of 350 million leaving 150 million

towards rehabilitation. Although the cost of

relief and restoration was not included in the

assessment. The recurring small-scale and slow-

onset disasters predominantly affect

communities and households, and constitute a

high percentage of all losses. The challenge is

particularly severe in this marginalized, remote

and landlocked areas, as they are both more

likely to be affected and less able to cope with

the impact of multi-disasters. Poor governance, climate

change, lack of capacity, substantial growth of

population, and assets in areas exposed to natural

hazards are the major causes of increasing levels of

disaster risk.

As a result, people are agitating, protesting over a year

against the injustice and violation of human rights by

both relief agencies and the government across the

district. They are threatening to migrate to Afghanistan

and other neighbor countries.

People in Brep are threating to start poppy cultivation

against the injustice in relief distribution, payment of

compensation to the affected families.

In Reshun valley people are protesting against the failure of channelization of the stream that is threating

to the entire village of Reshun. People across the villages in Upper Chitral are joining the people of Reshun

in protest against the failure of the govt to initiate the Reshun Power Unit that was completely destroyed

in the flooding. Over two hundred thousand people are without electricity owing to destruction of the

Reshun Power Unit.

Political parties are also joining the protesters, due to the failure of the government with the rehabilitation

and reconstruction of critical infrastructure in Chitral. And the people of Chitral are threatening to

approach the Court of Justice, if any single casualty occurs owing to failed rehabilitation and

reconstruction of the infrastructure by the State.

The failed disaster risk governance in Chitral is a living example of poor governance and lack of capacity

and capability in the present history of government from local to national level, but also of humanitarian

and development practitioners. It seems that no one feels responsible for the protection of lives and

properties, the wellbeing of students, the passengers risking their lives when travelling on dilapidated

roads and bridges, the people using contaminated water with serious impacts on human health,

entrepreneurs and the public without electricity over

a year, the food and livelihood insecurity of the

people, and the students who lost their education

owing to school destruction. People are still living in

dark shelters without electricity for more than a year.

The people are in serious shocked, depression,

frustration and stress due to the conditions narrated

here above and they don’t see hope of recovery. The

change phenomenon of weather and the onset events

in Chitral further accelerating their hopeless ness with

passage of every single day.

The government and the humanitarian organizations are loosing their credentials, moral, ethical,

professional and humanitarian responsibilities. This tendency, unfortunately compelling the people of

Chitral to loss their trust and confidence on the Government and development organizations. The huge

funding provided by the donors and government over three decades for the development of Chitral went

to drain in just two events of last year. The organizations with conventional approach of development are

neither accountable to public nor the donor funding agencies are interested for the accountability of the

development organizations.

The people are now has the feeling that:

“By pumping in money without achievements to match, the donors partly contribute to making extractive

politics sustainable. They should recognize that when a scheme doesn't deliver the promised results, the

money has still paid for something: such as the empowerment of the corrupt, deeper inequality, and loss

of public faith”

The unplanned and ad hoc development activities undertaken by the organizations accelerated the

intensity and magnitude of the disasters and the increased warming of weather added fueling to

devastation. The new generation is asking the questions:

What is the accountability system in place for spending the donor funds by the development

practitioners?

Are the development practitioners are accountable to public for spending the donor funding?

Are they accountable to donor for proper use of funding in the public interest?

Are the donor agencies accountable for spending tax money on non-viable and non-resilient

projects?

Are the public representatives are accountable to public for the transparent use of tax money?

Is there any accountability system for mis-use of public money by the political representatives?

Is the government is responsible for risk awareness and risk reduction?

Is the government responsible for early warning to public and their safe evacuation?

What is the rights of disaster victims under the law of the land and under the international

humanitarian Law and international human rights?

Is government of Pakistan ratified the above protocols?

What is the constitutional responsibility of the govt to protect the life and properties of the

citizen?

Who will answer these questions?

Or we as a national answerable Almighty God for our deed or actions, or we just accepting our

failure to His mandate?

Despite of the fact that our honorable Prime Minister

has visited Chitral twice recently, and assured the

people of a complete reconstruction within one year.

He Chief Minister of KPK, Mr. Imran Khan, Mr.

Khurshid Shah Opposition Leaders and the Chief of

Army Staff also visited Chitral made commitments to

rebuild Chitral in a better way could not be

materialized.

But foremost please review the overall disaster

management system in a country that has completely

failed to respond to one single of its districts. Else, leave the marginalized mountain people with no basic

humanitarian rights, and with no voting power, at the mercy of God. Please don’t do no more exploitation

of the sentiments of the innocent children, women and the rest of those suffering in Chitral. Please do not

raise unnecessary expectations, so you do not bring upon us yet another challenge regarding our security.

We are already under serious threats of national security.

Govt failed even to restore the damaged critical infrastructures, including roads, bridges, drinking and

irrigation water supply, power Units, schools, hospital. 80% people are still in dark with no electricity, and

50% people drinking contaminated water. Reconstruction and build back better is a dream for the people,

even the rehabilitation work of critical infrastructure is not initiated after a year.

Children are out of schools, because the damaged schools

and colleges could not be constructed. Hundreds of

people lost their lives or injured in post disaster due to

pathetic road and dilapidated bridges.

The unprecedented summer heating and hot waves are

sending serous warning single of more destructive events

in Chitral. According to NDMA, the profile of climate risk

of Pakistan increased during the current year and now the

country is up scaled to 8th most dangerous country of the

world to be affected owing to global warming and climate

change.

The mountain regions are highly sensitive to climate change and highly exposed to climate related multi-

hazards. The increased tendency of climate risk will accelerate more complex phenomenon in the region.

Few of the recent events are evidences of the increasing trends of multi-dynamic risk to community assets,

lives, livelihood, biodiversity and overall the ecosystem of the mountain communities in the norther part

of the country in general and Chitral in particular.

Shoghor village damaged last year in the flash flooding is at the brink of complete devastation

with the development of temporary river lake. Over 160 households may struck with the raising

level of River lotkoh. In case of the outbreak of the lake, it may destroy another seven/eight

villages on spell way of River.

GLOF in Brep in upper Chitral is triggering for last two weeks and already displaced over 50 families

and completely devastated the community asset and infrastructure.

Lotkoh and kalash roads are blocked and 150,000 people are now getting stranded without basic

life support.

Upper Chitral’s road may soon be disconnected and 200,000 people will get stranded.

Drinking water supply line for Chitral city that was temporarily restored after six months of the

last year disaster soon be swept away by the roaring lotkoh river.

In the outlook of the existing dilapidated conditions of the roads and bridges of Chitral, a major

setback to the district and half million people could not be overlooked.

Provincial govt failed to provide required funding for rehabilitation and reconstruction to the devastated

district, and there is no comprehensive plan to cope with the emerging threats of future devastation.

The people of Chitral wish to appeal to Prime

Minster of Pakistan, the Chief Minster PKK,

NDMA and PDMA to fulfill their constitutional,

legal and humanitarian responsibilities

towards the suffering humanity in Chitral and

develop a comprehensive strategic plan to

cope with the existing and emerging disaster

risk. The required funds may please be

provided to undertake rehabilitation and

reconstruction of Chitral through one window

operation.

If the government is not in a position to provide funding for the damaged infrastructure, please allow the

people to reach to donor and humanitarian organization across the world on humanitarian ground.

Chitral’s problem seems to be more a political. And if the donors are to be part of the solution, they must

be brave enough to publicly demand meaningful action against the entrenched public corruption, public

representatives and the bureaucracy and mafias, which are keeping our region in perpetual circle of

poverty. They should be far more willing to withdraw from corrupt schemes, and explain why. They should

gather evidence and give it to the police. And they must take action to expose and punish the corruption

in the bloated and underperforming development industry itself, which everyone knows exists.

To do so would require a willingness to spend less money, and to take more serious responsibility for

what's not working, instead of only claiming credit for any sign of improvement.

Syed Harir Shah

JAD Foundation

Shahi Masjid Road, Chitral KPK Pakistan

Whats App: +923349534503

Mobile No.+923015056433

Phone No. +92-943-412461

Dated 27-6-2016