Fearful Pakistanis fast for Ramadan
Source: Agencies |
August 13, 2010, Friday
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PAKISTANI flood survivors already short on food and water began the fasting month of Ramadan yesterday, a normally festive, social time marked this year by misery and fears of an uncertain future.
A United States Navy ship carrying helicopters and 1,000 Marines reached Pakistan's southern coast to boost relief efforts, as the United Nations warned the disaster was far from over, saying dams in Sindh Province could still burst in the coming days. "There is more water coming along," said spokesman Maurizio Giuliano.
He said UN officials estimated that up to one-fourth of the country is or had been affected by the worst floods in a generation, though that did not necessarily mean it was under water.
President Asif Ali Zardari, who has been sharply criticized for visiting Europe as the floods began, made his first visit to victims of the disaster yesterday and toured one of the dams, according to state-run Pakistan Television.
The floods, triggered by monsoon rains, hit the country's northwest more than two weeks ago and spread down the country, inundating thousands of villages. About 1,500 people have died, and the UN estimates up to 7 million people need emergency assistance. Damage to crops, roads and bridges has caused food prices to triple in some parts of the country, adding to the pain of those marking the fasting month.
"Ramadan or no Ramadan, we are already dying of hunger," said Mai Hakeema, 50, who sat alongside her ailing husband in a tent outside the city of Sukkur. "We are fasting forcibly, and mourning our losses."
Observant Muslims fast from dawn to dusk each day for a month each year to control their desires and show empathy for the poor.
The month is marked by increased attendance at mosques, a rise in charitable giving, and family gatherings that coincide with the evening breaking of the fast.
While millions of flood-affected people were performing the fast, Mufti Muneebur Rehman, one of the country's top religious scholars, said victims living in difficult conditions dependent on charity could skip the fast and perform it later in the year.
"I am sad to miss the first day of fasting," said Ghullam Fareed of Gormani in eastern Punjab Province. "Later, when we reach home, we will compensate for this."
In the northwest, where residents are especially devout, many refugees said flood or no flood, they would fast. "I cannot disobey God, so I am fasting as it is part of my faith no matter what the conditions are," said Fazal Rabi, 47, who was staying in a tent village in Akbarpura.
On Wednesday, the UN appealed for US$460 million to provide immediate help, including shelter, food, clean water, sanitation and medical care. "Make no mistake, this is a major catastrophe," UN humanitarian chief John Holmes told diplomats from several countries in launching the appeal in New York. "We have a huge task in front of us."
A United States Navy ship carrying helicopters and 1,000 Marines reached Pakistan's southern coast to boost relief efforts, as the United Nations warned the disaster was far from over, saying dams in Sindh Province could still burst in the coming days. "There is more water coming along," said spokesman Maurizio Giuliano.
He said UN officials estimated that up to one-fourth of the country is or had been affected by the worst floods in a generation, though that did not necessarily mean it was under water.
President Asif Ali Zardari, who has been sharply criticized for visiting Europe as the floods began, made his first visit to victims of the disaster yesterday and toured one of the dams, according to state-run Pakistan Television.
The floods, triggered by monsoon rains, hit the country's northwest more than two weeks ago and spread down the country, inundating thousands of villages. About 1,500 people have died, and the UN estimates up to 7 million people need emergency assistance. Damage to crops, roads and bridges has caused food prices to triple in some parts of the country, adding to the pain of those marking the fasting month.
"Ramadan or no Ramadan, we are already dying of hunger," said Mai Hakeema, 50, who sat alongside her ailing husband in a tent outside the city of Sukkur. "We are fasting forcibly, and mourning our losses."
Observant Muslims fast from dawn to dusk each day for a month each year to control their desires and show empathy for the poor.
The month is marked by increased attendance at mosques, a rise in charitable giving, and family gatherings that coincide with the evening breaking of the fast.
While millions of flood-affected people were performing the fast, Mufti Muneebur Rehman, one of the country's top religious scholars, said victims living in difficult conditions dependent on charity could skip the fast and perform it later in the year.
"I am sad to miss the first day of fasting," said Ghullam Fareed of Gormani in eastern Punjab Province. "Later, when we reach home, we will compensate for this."
In the northwest, where residents are especially devout, many refugees said flood or no flood, they would fast. "I cannot disobey God, so I am fasting as it is part of my faith no matter what the conditions are," said Fazal Rabi, 47, who was staying in a tent village in Akbarpura.
On Wednesday, the UN appealed for US$460 million to provide immediate help, including shelter, food, clean water, sanitation and medical care. "Make no mistake, this is a major catastrophe," UN humanitarian chief John Holmes told diplomats from several countries in launching the appeal in New York. "We have a huge task in front of us."
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