“The Situation in Pakistan Is Dire,” Says Ambassador Masood Khan at National Press Club Briefing
By Elaine Pasquini
Washington: Masood Khan, Pakistan’s ambassador to the US, held a briefing at the National Press Club on September 9 to discuss the historic floods that have devasted his country over the past two months.
“These floods are devastating, and you can’t compare them with any other natural disaster we have had in the past,” he said. “The situation in Pakistan is dire.”
The ambassador enumerated the following statistics caused by the catastrophe:
- 1,400 people have died.
- More than 13,000 seriously injured.
- 33 million have been affected by flooding.
- 6.6 million in need of immediate assistance.
- 81 of Pakistan’s 160 districts are disaster zones.
- 800,000 farm cattle have died.
- 5.5 million acres of rice, cotton, wheat and corn destroyed.
- 7,000 km of roads destroyed or washed way.
- 246 bridges destroyed.
- 33 percent of the country submerged under water.
- 637,000 people living in relief camps.
- Two million homes destroyed of which 560,000 houses have been completely washed away.
Last week, the European Space Agency presented satellite images showing that a new lake had emerged on the Indus River that is 100 km long and tens of kilometers wide. “This has created its own disaster within a mega-disaster,” Khan reported. “And there is a freshwater lake called Manchar Lake, which normally is 35 square kilometers, but now it has swelled to about 350 square kilometers.”
These unprecedented floods, even surpassing the devastating one in 2010, “are a direct result of climate change,” Khan noted. “This has been established by scientists…over several decades.” The ambassador pointed out the climate catastrophes Pakistan experienced this year, including forest fires, scorching heatwaves and monsoon rains. “It is estimated that these downpours were ten times higher than our national average in the past 30 years,” he explained.
While the country was prepared, “we were not prepared for this kind of calamity,” the ambassador acknowledged. “This was beyond our capacity and beyond the capacity of the mechanism that we had created.” In the future, he insisted, Pakistan must focus on “better infrastructure, better construction protocols and streamlining our regulatory regime in regard to all the construction that we do in the country.”
Although Pakistan’s government responded quickly in mobilizing all its resources along with disbursing $313 million in aid assistance to the affected people, he noted: “We need to do better.” The federal government, along with all three branches of the armed forces, supervised the rescue and relief operations. “I think that we are succeeding,” Khan said. “If we had not made these interventions in the last fortnight, we would have lost many more lives.”
After his recent visit to Pakistan’s flood-ravaged Baluchistan and Sindh provinces, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres launched an appeal to raise $160 million. The cost estimates cumulatively range between $25-$30 billion for recovery, rehabilitation and reconstruction. The World Bank, Khan noted, has repurposed $300 million for dealing with this catastrophe.
The ambassador stated his gratitude to the United States government for its $31.1 million in humanitarian assistance and its commitment to long-term support to Pakistan. “I think the United States government and the US Congress have been responsive and have expressed their solidarity with the people of Pakistan,” he said. “In practical terms they have given assistance to Pakistan, and we appreciate that deeply.” During a recent visit to Pakistan led by Rep. Sheila Jackson (D-TX), chair of the Congressional Pakistan Caucus, a congressional delegation expressed the solidarity of the US Congress with the people of Pakistan.
Pakistani-Americans have done a remarkable job in providing humanitarian assistance to flood victims, Khan said. They have professional and philanthropic organizations in the US which have been very active and supportive.
“American enterprises, corporate entities, banks and tech giants have also contributed to Pakistan’s relief effort and made long-term commitments,” he added. “The United States corporate sector has invested heavily in Pakistan. There are some 80 American enterprises there who employ 120,000 people there, and, therefore, we look to them for support not only in this immediate phase of rescue and relief but also for the later phase when we will need more resources for rehabilitation and reconstruction.”
Pakistan’s immediate needs are food, shelter and medicine, in addition to clean water, tents, toilets, clothing, blankets, kitchenware, medical equipment, hygiene kits, evacuation vehicles, Khan related. Waterborne diseases are a major concern as are infectious diseases, such as diarrhea, cholera and dengue fever. In addition, exposure to flood waters has caused skin problems. “This is almost an epidemic and is beyond our capacity, although we are doing our best to cope with the situation,” he said.
Ambassador Khan also discussed the current debate about the responsibility of the Global North, which has contributed to carbon emissions at a higher rate than other countries, to financially assist climate-affected countries which have contributed less to global warming.
Pakistan is one example and has had the most serious consequence of climate change and extreme weather patterns. “Pakistan’s contribution to global warming is less than one percent, in fact, it’s 0.4 percent,” he stated. “Pakistan is the eighth most vulnerable country in the world affected by climate change. This is a catastrophe for which we were not solely responsible.”
The ambassador appealed to Americans, who are “at the forefront of championing humanitarian causes,” to come forward to help and “we will ensure that whatever help you give to Pakistan is used correctly for the purpose for which you send it,” he said. “We are grateful to the leadership of the Pakistani community in the US and the response the Americans have given to the people of Pakistan.”
(Elaine Pasquini is a freelance journalist. Her reports appear in the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs and Nuze.Ink.)
