Situation at relief camps goes from bad to worse
The situation is getting worse as frequent reports of brawls and police torture have been reported.
The situation at relief camps throughout the province is getting worse as frequent reports of brawls and police torture have been reported. Beggars have also taken refuge at certain relief camps. At others, people complain that food is being distributed between local politicians.
Rajanpur Klan:
A police constable reportedly tortured flood victims at a relief camp for asking for relief goods, allegedly on the orders of the district coordination officer (DCO).
Two men were severely injured in the brawl. Later, nearly 600 flood victims surrounded the union council as well as the car of the DCO, while he was trying to escape the scene. The secretary of the union council was beaten up by the crowd and later shifted to the local hospital.
According to eyewitnesses, Katcha Chohan residents Allah Dewaya and Chakar Wali resident Ghulam Haider went to union council (UC) seeking rations. When they entered the office, DCO Muhammad Aslam asked the constable on duty to beat them up. Due to police torture Haider’s leg broke and Allah Dewaya was severely injured.
After news of the incident spread, a large group of flood victims gathered outside the UC office and shouted slogans against the DCO. When the DCO tried to escape from the scene they caught him and beat him up. The people released the DCO after locals intervened. In the meantime the DCO sought shelter in a hotel as 300 flood victims entered the DCO office and thrashed the union secretary.
They protested for two hours as Ghulam Haider and Allah Dewaya were shifted to Rajanpur Klan hospital.
The flood victims accused the DCO and the secretary union council of misbehaving with women who had come to the relief camps seeking food. “Not only were they hoarding the supplies but they also misbehaved with our women,” said Arif, a flood victim among the protesting crowd. They demanded that action should be taken against the DCO and secretary council.
Meanwhile, DCO Chaudhry Muhammad Aslam said that everything was going smoothly.
“The situation worsened due to the mistake of the constable. I had no idea what was happening and they just attacked me,” he said. Secretary UC said they worked under the DCO and that the DCO had directed the police to ‘admonish’ the two men seeking aid. The DCO insisted that the police acted of their own will and baton charged the people. “Ghulam Haider and Allah Dewaya were injured during a stampede,” Aslam said.
There are also reports of beggars taking up residence near most of the relief camps in the district. Flood victims have demanded that the government take action against beggars at the camp who were taking their food.
Muzaffargarh:
The dead bodies of people who drowned in the floods are now being recovered. On Wednesday, nine corpses were shifted to Nishtar Hospital.
Sadiqabad:
Hundreds of flood victims from dozens of villages in Musa Nagar’s Nurpur area are still without aid. The local administration has provided only 30 tents for over 400 families and the remaining people are living without shelter. Anjuman Shehrian president Mian Muhammad Aslam visited the affected areas and told reporters that the people needed more aid. “There is not enough aid. These people will starve if aid doesn’t come through soon,” he said. He appealed to the chief minister and other government officials to help the people.
On Guddu Road in Nawazabad’s areas Nurpur and Musa Nagar, dozens of villages have been submerged. Village Master Allah Din’s 60 houses, village Sharif’s 30 houses, village Khuda Bukhsh 20 houses, village Kaka Khan 20 houses, Ahmed Abad 70 houses have been decimated. The government has failed to provide food or tents to the people in the region. The flood affectees including Allah Data, Jam Muhammad Elahi, Jabbar and others said the local administration was only providing facilities to the people who had been visited by the chief minister.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 26th, 2010.
Rajanpur Klan:
A police constable reportedly tortured flood victims at a relief camp for asking for relief goods, allegedly on the orders of the district coordination officer (DCO).
Two men were severely injured in the brawl. Later, nearly 600 flood victims surrounded the union council as well as the car of the DCO, while he was trying to escape the scene. The secretary of the union council was beaten up by the crowd and later shifted to the local hospital.
According to eyewitnesses, Katcha Chohan residents Allah Dewaya and Chakar Wali resident Ghulam Haider went to union council (UC) seeking rations. When they entered the office, DCO Muhammad Aslam asked the constable on duty to beat them up. Due to police torture Haider’s leg broke and Allah Dewaya was severely injured.
After news of the incident spread, a large group of flood victims gathered outside the UC office and shouted slogans against the DCO. When the DCO tried to escape from the scene they caught him and beat him up. The people released the DCO after locals intervened. In the meantime the DCO sought shelter in a hotel as 300 flood victims entered the DCO office and thrashed the union secretary.
They protested for two hours as Ghulam Haider and Allah Dewaya were shifted to Rajanpur Klan hospital.
The flood victims accused the DCO and the secretary union council of misbehaving with women who had come to the relief camps seeking food. “Not only were they hoarding the supplies but they also misbehaved with our women,” said Arif, a flood victim among the protesting crowd. They demanded that action should be taken against the DCO and secretary council.
Meanwhile, DCO Chaudhry Muhammad Aslam said that everything was going smoothly.
“The situation worsened due to the mistake of the constable. I had no idea what was happening and they just attacked me,” he said. Secretary UC said they worked under the DCO and that the DCO had directed the police to ‘admonish’ the two men seeking aid. The DCO insisted that the police acted of their own will and baton charged the people. “Ghulam Haider and Allah Dewaya were injured during a stampede,” Aslam said.
There are also reports of beggars taking up residence near most of the relief camps in the district. Flood victims have demanded that the government take action against beggars at the camp who were taking their food.
Muzaffargarh:
The dead bodies of people who drowned in the floods are now being recovered. On Wednesday, nine corpses were shifted to Nishtar Hospital.
Sadiqabad:
Hundreds of flood victims from dozens of villages in Musa Nagar’s Nurpur area are still without aid. The local administration has provided only 30 tents for over 400 families and the remaining people are living without shelter. Anjuman Shehrian president Mian Muhammad Aslam visited the affected areas and told reporters that the people needed more aid. “There is not enough aid. These people will starve if aid doesn’t come through soon,” he said. He appealed to the chief minister and other government officials to help the people.
On Guddu Road in Nawazabad’s areas Nurpur and Musa Nagar, dozens of villages have been submerged. Village Master Allah Din’s 60 houses, village Sharif’s 30 houses, village Khuda Bukhsh 20 houses, village Kaka Khan 20 houses, Ahmed Abad 70 houses have been decimated. The government has failed to provide food or tents to the people in the region. The flood affectees including Allah Data, Jam Muhammad Elahi, Jabbar and others said the local administration was only providing facilities to the people who had been visited by the chief minister.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 26th, 2010.