Scream

re: the article
A great article. Author speaks from his heart.
#9 by ijaz_gul
Great work Sir. You have been to the scene of devastation and given a vivid picture of destruction but also of hope. Was it not Dr Shahid Masood who sounded alarm (over a private channel) even before the Pak govt knew of the scale of destruction and the Minister of Information Sheikh Rashid Ahmed kept denying any vast devastation had taken place.
I salute people like you and Shahid Masood.
I also urge u to find ways by which Indian NGOs, doctors, paramedics can come across LOC to help the victims. More than a million face death due to weather, wound complications etc etc. India is a vast country and people are willing to help if Pak govt says yes. Wonder what u think?
Sridhar

My Dear Indian Interactors,

Indian soldiers are not needed on Pakistani soil. And that was the correct decision. There can be no ifs, buts, about it. Personally, their qualifications are no better or worse than that of the Pakistani soldiers. So please get off your high horse.

Respectfully submitted,

Re: # 78, Behram:-

a) In India, the Armed Forces are always the first line of rapid movement and assistance in times of natural and similar disasters. This is largely because they are not busy with ``ruling`` the people as in Pakistan. So any assistance from India for large-scale disaster will perforce involve the Indian Armed Forces, more often than not dressed in practical fatigues. Generals to Doctors to Soldiers.

And unlike the Pakistani Armed Forces, they will not change into Full Dress Brass and Monkey Caps or Western Suits or Razakar Pathan Suits when travelling abroad either.

So India and Indians are not getting on a high horse by offering assistance. We are, by nature, a helpful Nation. But we fly our own choppers, drive our own motor vehicles and most of all, behave like people on mercy missions and not as ``rulers``.

b) To the next part, about not wanting Indian soldiers, fair enough. But then why are your people going around bleating for American or NATO soldiers? Do your leaders think that they will visit and build your motorways again, or do they hope that they will leave their guns behind?

Anyway, another few days and the LOC will be wide open to accept distressed people. And I shall be there. Back to Chikoti, before the snows, at the wheel of a truck loaded with supplies.

Let me see how many Pakistani interactors will take the trouble?

Re: # 84

Dear veeresh:

Thank you so much with your response. I am not aware on the nuances of the Indian or Pakistani armed forces. What I do know is that we do not trust each other. And that is a fact. And until such time that some trust is established we have to live with that.

Indian armed forces are considered as our enemies whereas NATO or US forces are not. It is that simple. You should know that.

Respectfully submitted,

Why do the Pakistanis on this forum feel obligated to respond to Injun interactors? I mean, do you stop and bark back at the mongrels that bark at you on your way home? Let`s not waste our energies here... let them gloat, celebrate, criticize whatever. We have more important things to take care of right now.

Re: # 73

ali:

you are so right.

BTW where do you leave that you encounter mongrels barking at you while going home?

FOLKS:

WHEN I LAMENTED THE LACK OF ADEQUATE COVERAGE ABOUT THE RAVAGES OF ERATHQUAKE ON CHOWK IN ONE OF MY POSTS, THE SELF-APPOINTED CHOWKIDAAR, MR. t QUIPPED: `` .. LIFE GOES ON...`` JUST LOOK AT THE ARTICLES PUBLISHED ON CHOWK SINCE OCTOBER 8.

Its taken me a while to go through the article and all 70 responses so far. Ive been conviced and counter convinced on a number of occasions. Good intellectual masturbation. Does India want to score points? Who knows, who cares. Do Pakistanis need help. Yes. Do Kashmiries care where the help comes from? No.

It will take quite a lot to erase the decades of mistrust and latent hostility between our nations, but as individuals we can cover the distance relatively quickly if only we are prepared to make a start - and now is as good a time as any. So lets pls come back to the article and debate whether screaming makes a difference? I think it does but only if we shout in the right direction and Im afraid we are preaching to the converted.

Umair, a number of schools in the northeast -- including your successors -- are having a candlelight vigil tomorrow. And the House observed a minute of silence.

Well-written as always. I think all any of us can do is organize fundraising events and donate personally.

This is a great article and I hope efforts like this will jump start the much needed aid. I was also saddened by lack of adequate coverage in international media about this disaster, except for a few exceptions like BBC. I dont think it is because of any anti-Muslim bias thought it might and will be percieved as such. To be honest, there is a certain disaster fatigue in general which might be contributing to this...

Nevertheless, it is incumbent upon us to keep this thing alive, like this author is doing and hope that it amounts to something,

Thanks,
Avkrishna

IDRF is rasing money for the earthquake victims and have a press-release adressing some ``concerns`` of donors.

http://www.idrf.org/dynamic/modules.php?name=Hncontent&pa=showpage&pid=345

WEll Mr. Khan:

It is no use believing that that the rest of the world has a special obligation to quake-hit people in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (POK). It appears the fatigue has taken over donor nations and few are prepared open their cheque ooks.

Pakistan has occupied 1/3 of Kashmir since its birth and now should take the responsibility to help, feed and take care of the wounded and the dead. Let us see how fellow brethren tret their own Muslim brothers and sisters.

So its is NATO`s job to airlift pakistanis while your generals build estates in Pakistan and all over the world?

Your goverment is willing to spend 10`s of $ billions on nuclear weapons and F-16 fighters and it is someone else`s problem to help with disasters in your country?

What a bunch of losers....

Besharmi ki bhi had honi chaiyya...

Re: # 65

Mishra Sahib, there should be no shame in asking for help from those who can. Poor victims (over 3 million homeless, and close to 60,000 dead – # expected to go higher with winter approaching) couldn’t care less who is helping them. Those Pakistanis who can are doing the best they can. Yes, our Armed forces are corrupt and yes they spend billions on useless weapons – I personally (not that it matters) can live with their wasteful spending on WMDs; but it shames me that they will turn down offer of help from our neighbor. I think that’s the most despicable act ever by any Pakistani government. People are dying, and these behnchood Generals are worried about their false sense of self-esteem.

Hi Umair

Good to see you on Chowk!

Out in Canada, the CBC and the local channels are quite active in covering the quake--in fact the first I realised the enormity was through Canadian media, radio and TV. Canada has sent its DARE: a highly trained search and rescue team that provides fresh water, food and medical care with special equipment. Indo-Canadians--have sent a lot of money to Pakistan-. The point is that this isn`t local news, it is international news--it does`nt involve the local people of our adopted homelands--, plus quakes and such never remain front page news because no-one can be blamed for them. UNLESS the press finds an enemy or some sort of people angle out of it--news about quakes slips to the middle pages. The Katrina was a perfect front page news. Pakistan`s quake is just pure tragedy--if Pakistanis had been obnoxious, if India had been threatening to invade, THEN it would be front page news in all papers.

Re: # 64
it`s DART. canadian govenment will match dollar for dollar all earthquake relief funds raised by the indo-pakistani community till 24th october 2005. it is amazing to see the hardwork being put up by a large number of indians and pakistanis through chum fm, a local radioand tv program hosted by darshan sahota and his daughter. they are doing an amazing job through radio, tv and other media. i must be amiss if i do not mention the great work being done by volunteers from india, pakistan and bangladesh who have been working tirelessly for the last two weeks to gather as much medicine, money and other relief items, packing and freighting it to pakistan...