Galvanised for a cause

ISLAMABAD: As donations for flood-victims continue to trickle in from all over Pakistan, the denizens of the twin cities have not forgotten their social responsibility. People in small groups have been working hard to collect donations and to ensure that these donations find their way to deserving people.

Owais Barlas and Samad Khurram, with the help of their friends, have managed to raise Rs2million so far. Both of them started their fund-raising campaign through Facebook, reaching out to their friends in Pakistan and abroad.

At first, they would donate the relief goods they had bought to the army for distribution. But now, after having visited various flood-affected areas, they are actively participating in relief-goods distribution.

They have also launched a website of their own and call their initiative Khushaal Pakistan, which distributes free food and other relief goods (such as blankets, medicines and clothes) among flood-victims.

The group has been to various flood-hit areas including Charsadda, Risalpur, Kalam, Nowshera and Multan. They have also identified areas, such as Kalam, where they plan to carry out long-term reconstruction efforts.

More than 1500 people have been killed and about 5 million people displaced by the floods that were brought on by monsoon rains in the country. A total of 15.4 million people have been affected in some way, according to Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, quoted in the August 16 update by the Food and Agriculture Organisation.

“We have prepared a package worth Rs5000 per family which lasts for 15 days and contains food, mattress and blankets,” said Samad Khurram, a Harvard graduate.

Some relief workers have observed a sense of social responsibility more so in the middle class than the upper one. Masood Haider, 46, former president of the Islamabad-based Anjuman Janisaran-e-Ahlebait (AJA), said, “I remember people coming on their bikes and handing over Rs5000 to us.”  In comparison the response from well-off people was decidedly tepid, he said.

His organisation collected about Rs6million in donations so far and has distributed relief-packets among 1500 families in Laiyyah, Kot Addu and Daira Deen Panah. Each flood-affected family is given a packet (which has enough rice, sugar and pulses to last a family of six for about a month) and a sack of flour, which costs AJA about Rs3000.

One of the reasons why these organisations have managed to earn the trust of their donors is because they try to ensure utmost transparency in their dealings. AJA frequently updates their website with pictures and lists of people who have been given relief goods.

Khushaal Pakistan also updates its website regularly so that people can see what the initiative has done with the donated money.

“We have kept everything transparent and [we believe that] our sincerity towards the cause has made us successful. People are giving us donations because they trust us,” said Owais Barlas, a member of Khushaal Pakistan, who is currently working for IBM in Islamabad.

Apart from these collective efforts, there are many instances where individuals got together with their friends to do their bit for the flood victims.

Hira Sohail, a third year university student, decided one day that she could not just sit back and watch people suffer on television. She convinced eight of her friends to join her in a campaign to collect funds and other relief goods.  They managed to collect more than Rs35,000 along with items such as toys, clothes, shoes, milk, juices, ORS packets and water bottles, which they later handed to an acquaintance working in flood-hit areas.

Another student, Abdul Arif, set up food stalls all over Rawalpindi with the help of his friends. In about 10 days they were able to raise Rs65000.

Similarly, Fariha Rahed, a young professional, managed to collect more than Rs100,000 with the help of her friends.

The recently created Pakistan Youth Senate has also kicked-off their Iftar-project under which they arrange Iftar at various relief camps throughout Pakistan. Former youth parliamentarians are collecting donations for the project, said a youth senate member. Additional reporting by Sehrish Wasif/Usman Iqtidar

Published in The Express Tribune, August 30^th, 2010.