While the ongoing floods are wreaking havoc on people, all the preparation to celebrate Pakistan's 63rd Independence Day has been relegated to the backburner. As Prime Minister Gilani describes the floods “the worst in Pakistan's history”, the whole nation is in a state of shock - an agony quite similar to that which prevailed during 14th August 1947 in terms of human sufferings, killings and displacement of people. The unprecedented scenes of mass misery, towns and farms submerged in flood waters, human desperation for survival and other countless episodes telecast on the TV have moved even strong-hearted individuals.

The Muslims of India struggled very hard and won Pakistan against unimaginable odds under the charismatic leadership of Quaid-e-Azam. About 7,226,000 Muslims crossed the border and came to Pakistan from India; 5.5 million settled in Punjab and around 1.5 million settled in Sindh.

Natural catastrophes can not be avoided. Undoubtedly, the death and destruction spread by this year's monsoon and floods has surpassed records of the last hundred years or so. It is the biggest catastrophe and the nation is facing it with fortitude and determination. Of course, the whole nation is nervous but not flabbergasted. These testing times will be over and the people of Pakistan will overcome these challenges just as they won their independence from the British in 1947.

Within no time after the deadly floods, relief and rescue operations were started by the Pakistan Army on a war footing. According to one estimate, over 1,600 people have drowned, 14 million have been displaced, 252,000 homes have been washed away and the infrastructure in large areas has been completely destroyed.

The brilliant volunteering spirit, first discovered during the 8th Oct earthquake, once again ignited unprecedented enthusiasm and spirit amongst Pakistanis to help settle the survivors of the flood. The nation recognises heroes who act promptly in the face of extreme odds to save human lives. I think Pakistan must observe “Independence Day” with austerity on 14th August to commemorate the immense sacrifices rendered by the people of the subcontinent. The day would help raise awareness among the new generation about the struggle of the people for creating Pakistan.

On this 63rd anniversary of Pakistan, let us make a pledge to work together as one unit so as to overcome all types of threats.

KHALID PALEJO
Mirpurkhas

(II)

WE are celebrating the 63rd Independence Day of Pakistan with shattered hopes under an unstable democratic political system, bad governance, disappointing socio-economic indicators and the country's worst humanitarian disaster in the form of turbulent rains and floods.

UN systems and some international NGOs working on disaster management and Humanitarian Affairs have already declared that the number of people suffering from the massive floods in Pakistan could exceed the combined total in three recent mega-disasters the Indian Ocean tsunami (2004), the Kashmir earthquake (2005), and the 2010 Haiti earthquake (2010). This comparison would help to understand the scale of the crisis and to frame a foolproof strategy to deal with it.

The science of disaster mitigation suggests that initiation of four clusters (Health, Shelter & NFI, Food and Water, and Sanitation & Hygiene), as explained by the Dawn editorial (Aug 11), is an immediate must. Rehabilitation and resettlement of millions of displaced will be another great challenge for the government in the near future. On the other hand, the UN aid envoy to flood-stricken Pakistan has already warned that the people's misery can always be exploited by those who have political or militant aims. Victims' access to aid and basic livelihood items is the fundamental responsibility of the state.

Hundreds of people are dead, millions are displaced, waterborne diseases are emerging rapidly and the relief and protection systems of the government are inadequate to meet the challenges of this tragedy.

Looting and plundering of the valuables of religious minorities and other vulnerable groups goes on in the affected areas located in Sindh as law and order forces are engaged in relief work. According to the rural survivors in Sindh, their lives may have been spared by the flood but now hunger is killing them.

Disaster neither possesses civic sense nor does it care about gender, culture and history. So the recent wave of monsoon and flood are ruining different archeological, historical and cultural sites of great importance from Kashmir to Keti Bandar. The centuries-old Sadh Bello temple under the mouth of the Indus at Sukkur barrage has been heavily damaged by the flood. Moen Jo Daro is already in a vulnerable situation due to criminal negligence of the authorities concerned and now due to heavy monsoon rains.

Although the government has made high claims to control the situation, but the people are not going to trust its words as it has lost its credibility due to its governing style, corruption and capacity to deal with such great crisis. I have visited some of the areas of rural Sindh; hence I am of the view that if all parliamentarians treated this disaster as their election campaign work, there would be a different scenario in Sindh.

Now every stakeholder needs to make sure that the victims of this unprecedented disaster are provided full support, including food, water, medicine and shelter to enable them to stand on their own feet. I request everyone to kindly help as much as they possibly can. Your support will make a huge difference.

ZULFIQAR HALEPOTO
Convener, Sindh Democratic Forum (SDF)
Hyderabad