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| November 18, 2005 | Friday | Shawwal 15, 1426 |
UN chief sees misery, needs of Pakistani quake zone MUZAFFARABAD, Pakistan, Nov 18 (Reuters) United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan visited earthquake-hit Azad Kashmir on Friday to highlight the misery of people living in the disaster zone and Pakistan's dire need for over $5 billion of world aid. Brought by helicopter, Annan and President Pervez Musharraf saw from the air some of the miserable tent villages sheltering thousands of families amid the ruins of Muzaffarabad, before visiting one on the outskirts. "I have been impressed by what I have seen...and depressed," Annan told a news conference at the camp by the bank of the River Neelum. "Depressed by the number of the houses that have been destroyed and that need to be rebuilt, but impressed by the level of cooperation and determination." Accompanied by their wives, Annan and Musharraf also saw medics administering anti-polio drops and measles jabs, as part of a massive vaccination campaign to ward off the threat of disease outbreaks. "We often talk of tsunami, and we did because it did kill so many people and affected so many countries," Annan said. "But you look at the terrain here and logistical challenges which have to be overcome in order to get aid to the people --it is really, really a gigantic task we have ahead of us." (First Posted@14:37 PST Updated@ 15:17 PST)
Oxfam blasts "severely lacking" UN effort on Pakistan quake ISLAMABAD, Nov 18 (AFP) - Aid organisation Oxfam Friday blasted the United Nations' relief effort in quake-hit Pakistan as "severely lacking" and said the lives of thousands of people were at risk as a result.The damning statement came as UN Secretary General Kofi Annan travelled to the Azad Kashmir capital of Muzaffarabad, where thousands of people left homeless by the devastating October 8 quake are living in tented camps. "The UN response is severely lacking in resources and personnel on the ground," it said in a statement. "If lives are to be saved, the relief operation must be dramatically scaled up; the international donors conference will be a test of commitment," added Jane Cocking, Oxfam's humanitarian coordinator in Pakistan. "If the political will of these aims is there, effective relief and reconstruction is possible," Cocking said. Estimates put the death toll at more than 73,000 while Oxfam says the figure is closer to 80,000. Aid workers say more needs to be done if relief is to be brought to thousands of people in stricken isolated mountain villages before the oncoming Himalayan winter makes it almost impossible to reach them. Musharaf has said his government needs 5.2 billion US dollars but so far only 2.5 billion dollars has been pledged and far less has been actually handed over. "Many countries have failed to properly fund the UN appeal, leaving hundreds of thousands of survivors more vulnerable," the statement said. "We must ensure that this conference is not just another talking shop but a real opportunity."(Posted @ 11:35 PST)
PM constitutes Oversight Committee to monitor Relief Fund ISLAMABAD, Nov 18 (APP): The Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz Friday constituted an 'Oversight committee' for the President's Relief Fund with the objective of keeping a close watch on the manner in which the proceeds from the fund are utilised in providing relief and reconstruction for the earthquake affected people. The committee will be headed by Dr. Ishrat Hussain, currently Governor State Bank of Pakistan and will have members from all the provinces as well as the government of AJK.(Posted @ 21:52 PST)
Prime Minister constitutes Task Force ISLAMABAD, Nov. 18 (APP): Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz Friday constituted a 'Task Force' to oversee the revival of tourism infrastructure in the earthquake affected areas of AJK and NWFP on fast track basis. Addressing a meeting here Aziz said it was essential that tourism activities were aggressively facilitated and ensured for the 2006 summer and for economic revival and rehabilitation of the earthquake hit areas. It was decided that tent motels at key locations like Naran and Bisham will be set up. The proposal to set up a tourism training institute at Saidu Sharif, Swat will be pursued. Skill training institutes at Balakot, Bisham and Muzaffarabad will be set up for tour and trekking guides training, hotel staff training and other need based vocational.(Posted @ 21:46 PST)
Demilitarization to help strengthen the process for resolution of Kashmir: Mirwaiz NEW DELHI, Nov 18 (APP): Chairman, All Parties Hurriyat Conference Mirwaiz Umer Farooq today pleaded for demilitarization of the Kashmir region. Addressing a press conference here at the Foreign Correspondents Club, senior Kashmiri leader regretted that there was hardly any respite for the common man in Indian Occupied Kashmir notwithstanding peace process and certain confidence building measures announced in this regard. He said there could be gradual withdrawal of forces along the Line of Control in a phased manner. In response to a question, Mirwaiz said that the situation viz a viz human rights violations in Occupied Kashmir was still "as bad as it was", with slight improvement.(Posted @ 21:40 PST)
Transparency and accountability in distribution of funds to be ensured:President MUZAFFARABAD, Nov 18 (APP): President General Pervez Musharraf Friday said highest standards of transparency and accountability would be maintained to ensure that the money donated by the world, reaches the real affectees. Talking to newsmen here at the Thori relief camp along with the UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, ahead of the Nov 19 International Donors Conference, he said, "total transparency and accountability will be ensured of every money that we get." Musharraf said he would unveil measures, taken by the government, including audit by foreign auditors, during the Nov 19 conference for donations received for the people affected by the Oct 8 earthquake.(Posted @ 21:34 PST)
UN aid office urges donors to keep money flowing for Pakistan GENEVA, Nov 18 (AFP) Donors must keep money flowing to the United Nations appeal for earthquake-hit Pakistan because aid operations there depend on them to keep going, a relief official said Friday. Elizabeth Byrs, spokeswoman for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), said the world body has received 23 percent of the almost 550 million dollars it needs for its operations. "The response isn't fantastic, but the money is slowly coming in. We hope it will continue," Byrs told journalists.(Posted @ 19:28 PST)
Kashmiris get ready to cross border to aid quake-hit kin SRINAGAR, Occupied Kashmir, Nov 18 (AFP) "The Line of Control (LoC) will be thrown open for civilians to cross on Saturday," foreign ministry official L. Sree Ramulu said Friday. On Saturday Kashmiris from occupied territory will be allowed to use the Tithwal-Nauseri crossing, 180 kilometres northwest of Srinagar, said Ramulu. Ramulu could not immediately say, however, how many civilians would be allowed Saturday to cross over. Ramulu said he did not expect any Kashmiris from Azad Kashmir to cross over into their side. "I don't think anyone from that side has been cleared so far," he said.(Posted @ 19:24 PST)
EU commissioner urges Kashmir peace after Pakistan quake ISLAMABAD, Nov 18 (AFP) Pakistan and India should harness the mood of cooperation forged in the wake of the massive South Asian earthquake to achieve lasting peace in Kashmir, Benita Ferrero-Waldner, the EU's commissioner for external affairs, said Friday. "There's a small light in (the quake) for the difficult conflict in Kashmir," Ferrero-Waldner said after touring quake-devastated cities in the mountainous north. "I think this is a good opportunity and more positive steps should be encouraged," she added. Ferrero-Waldner described the border crossings as a good first step but said Islamabad and Delhi needed to make more gestures to bring lasting peace. The commissioner is in Islamabad for an international donors' conference on Saturday that is aimed at raising the 5.2 billion dollars needed to bring relief and reconstruction to the quake-stricken area. The EU Commission will pledge 112 million dollars, mostly in grants, and individual EU states were likely to bump that up to 300 million dollars, she said.(Posted @ 19:05 PST)
No time-frame for LoC crossing points: FO ISLAMABAD, Nov 18 (APP): Foreign Office spokesperson, Tasneem Aslam said there was no mention of any time-frame in the joint Indo-Pak statement as to how long the five points at the Line of Control will remain open for the cross movement of Kashmiris. "We expect that it should be a long term plan", she told Radio Tehran. To a question she said the basic objective of opening the five crossing points across the LoC was not for aid activities, rather they were opened for the movement of Kashmiris from both sides. She said Pakistan expected that all five points would open daily but due to India’s administrative difficulties, it was not made possible. She expressed the hope that India will be able to overcome its administrative difficulties by December 12 and the points would open for the people (daily).(Posted @ 17:48 PST)
ADB urges 1.7 billion dollars in immediate help for Pakistan quake victims ISLAMABAD, Nov 18 (AFP) - The Asian Development bank Friday said 1.7 billion dollars was urgently needed to bring immediate relief to millions of survivors of last month's Pakistan earthquake before the harsh Himalayan winter sets in. Bank President Haruhiko Kuroda said he was hopeful an international donor's conference here Saturday would also come up with enough money to fund longer term reconstruction needs. "Immediate relief should better be provided as quickly as possible," he told a media briefing.ADB has lined up around 405 million dollars and will announce a final figure -- which Kuroda indicated could be more -- at the conference. Of the ADB's 405 million dollars pledged, 80 million dollars will be given in the form of grants and the rest is in low-interest loans. Another 105 million dollars has been promised to offset quake costs to Pakistan's national budget. Kuroda put the total cost for long-term relief, rehabilitation and reconstruction at 5.2 billion dollars, of which 3.5 billion dollars was needed to rebuild destroyed roads and other communications and public facilities. (Posted @ 14:39 PST)
Annan meets Pakistan's president ahead of quake aid meeting ISLAMABAD, Nov 18 (AFP) - UN Secretary General Kofi Annan met Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf here Friday ahead of a crucial donors' conference to muster more funding for survivors of last month's earthquake, an official said. Annan left immediately after the meeting for a tour of quake-battered areas in Pakistani Kashmir, foreign ministry spokeswoman Tasnim Aslam told AFP. The UN chief's talks with Musharraf focussed on Saturday's conference to be attended by delegates from around 50 countries, as well as representatives of international financial institutions and aid groups. The Pakistani foreign ministry did not give details of Annan's meeting with Musharraf but lauded the United Nations' role in highlighting the plight of survivors facing the bitter Himalayan winter "The UN has been proactive. They have been very vocal. The UN is very much aware of the requirement and urgencies for the quake affectees," Aslam said. Annan would meet Foreign Minister Khurshid Kasuri and Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz later Friday, she said. (Posted @ 11:26 PST)
India to host hockey fundraiser for South Asia quake victims NEW DELHI, Nov 18 (AFP) - Field hockey's leading stars will play a benefit match in India next month to raise funds for victims of the devastating earthquake in South Asia in October, the sport's governing body announced on Friday. At least 73,000 people were killed in Pakistan and another 1,300 in India when one of the deadliest tremors in recent history struck the Kashmir valley on October 8. The International Hockey Federation (FIH) said the match will be played in Chennai on December 8, two days before the Champions Trophy tournament opens there. The format of the match is still being finalised, but the FIH said all six Champions Trophy teams -- Australia, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Pakistan and India -- had agreed to release players for the fundraiser. FIH President Els van Breda Vriesman said she had requested the United Nations to support the match. The match will be televised lived across Asia, the FIH said. (Posted @ 11:26 PST)
No end in sight to emergency efforts in quake-hit Pakistani Kashmir MUZAFFARABAD, Nov 18 (AFP) - Relief workers struggling to aid residents of Muzaffarabad, the quake-shattered capital of Azad Kashmir, say their emergency mission is far from over, six weeks after the giant tremor. The situation is dire. A UN team of at least 100 people is working with dozens of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to co-ordinate the relief effort and bring order to the chaos wrought by more than 40,000 homeless people desperately seeking shelter. "We have lost count of exactly how many camps there are now," said Christine Neveu, the coordinator in Muzaffarabad for the UN refugee agency (UNHCR), which has been charged with getting the temporary housing in order. Neveu's efforts have been complicated by a daily inundation of thousands of people who are fleeing their isolated mountain villages before the onset of the brutal Himalayan winter, and heading to Muzaffarabad. She and her small team of mainly French workers have been scouring the city and surrounding areas in search of ideal sites for new camps to house the swelling numbers of quake survivors. Many of the camps are unsanitary and have had to be cleared to prevent outbreaks of infectious diseases, Neveu said. "It's hard telling people who have lost their homes that they must also move their temporary homes too," said UNICEF's Edward Hoekstra.(Posted @ 10:05 PST)
Earthquake: IMF Executive Board welcomes pledges of support WASHINGTON, Nov 18 (APP)- The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has welcomed the pledges of support that have been made by the international community to address urgent needs and assist with the reconstruction and have called for substantial additional assistance, especially grants, to help Pakistan overcome the crisis without adversely affecting implementation of broader economic policies. The Board concluded the Article IV Consultations with Pakistan recently, says an IMF announcement Thursday. "In this regard, several Directors noted that they would support a request for Emergency Natural Disaster Assistance from the Fund, if the Pakistani authorities were to make such a request."(Posted @ 09:55 PST)
11 journalists died in October 8 quake ISLAMABAD, Nov 17 (APP): More than 240 persons working for media suffered personal or property losses in the October 8 earthquake. According to preliminary report prepared by Pakistan Media Foundation, eleven journalists were killed and seventeen injured while 69 family members of media personnel were killed and 15 injured. One hundred and seventeen houses of media personnel were destroyed and another 54 suffered damages .Out of 20 press clubs and union offices of journalists , premises of twelve were either destroyed or damaged. In Muzaffarabad, the buildings housing radio and television stations and the press club were destroyed, and the broadcast tower of Pakistan Television collapsed. The roof of Abbotabad Press Club collapsed and the houses of all 17 journalists of Balakot were destroyed. Other cities covered by PPF survey team included Alai, Bafa, Bakot, Batal, Battgram, Chutter Plan, Dheerkot, Dhodhiyal, Gharhi Dupatta,Gharhi Habibullah, Jabar, Jabori, Mansehra, Rawlakot and Shinkiari.(Posted @ 09:40 PST)
Relief to the disaster sufferers: U.S. commits $180 million WASHINGTON, Nov 18 (APP) The United States has so far committed $180 million to Pakistan for earthquake assistance, including $100 million for humanitarian relief and reconstruction, and $80 million obligated by the Defense Department to support its relief operations, the State Department said in a fact sheet released Thursday. It adds that America's response to "this tragic disaster" has been "immediate and generous, consistent with our humanitarian values and our deep commitment to Pakistan." The announcement said the United States would remain active in relief and reconstruction efforts through our aid programs, unique military capabilities, and private sector efforts.(Posted @ 09:20 PST)
UK pledges 70 million pound sterling for reconstruction of quake hit areas LONDON, Nov 18 (APP) :Britain on Thursday pledged 70 million pound sterling for the reconstruction of the quake-ravaged areas of Pakistan and Azad Kashmir, Department of International Development (DFID) sources told APP here late Thursday. The junior DFID Minister Gareth Thomas left for Islamabad late Thursday to represent Britain at the international donors conference in Islamabad. The new pledge brings the UK's total support to Pakistan, for both relief and reconstruction, to over 100 million pound sterling, to date. Britain has thus become the second largest bilateral donor of post-earthquake relief funds (after the US). The said amount would "be paid out over 3 years to help fund rebuilding in the quake- affected areas," DFID's Secretary of State Hilary Benn said in a statement Thursday. Benn had paid a fleeting visit to quake -devastated areas last month . Gareth Thomas before his departure for Islamabad said he hoped the British pledge would encourage other countries to follow suit with substantial reconstruction pledges of their own.(Posted @ 09:15 PST)
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