Earthquake 2005: Survivors who cannot go home

They are suffering from paraplegia – complete paralysis of lower half of body, caused by damage to spinal cord.

ISLAMABAD:

From the time the October 8, 2005 earthquake left them paralysed, they have seen little else than confinement in hospital beds.

Up to 11 women, all hailing from different areas of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), are ‘residing’ at the orthopedic department of the National Institute of Rehabilitative Medicine, (NIRM), Islamabad.

These earthquake survivors are suffering from paraplegia – the complete paralysis of the lower half of the body, caused by damage to the spinal cord. Their lives are only restricted to the hospital bed and the wheelchair.



The women have undergone therapy and can perhaps restart their lives in their hometowns.

“But these earthquake survivors can’t return to their homes because Muzaffarabad and other areas of AJK are not wheelchair-friendly,” said Dr Sadaf Baqir, the medical officer at NIRM. Meanwhile, the absence of wheelchair-friendly public transport along with the mountainous terrain of the area, it is not feasible to send these women back home.

“On the other hand, their family members and relatives are also reluctant to accept them in this condition. A majority of them had their families with them till they were getting donations from national and international organisations as well as the government. But as soon as the flow of assistance ceased, so did their support and love, it seems,” she said.

These 11 women spend Eid and other festivals while waiting for their family members and relatives, but no one arrives, Dr Baqir said.

One such survivor is 25-year-old Naseem Bibi. She was preparing for her Intermediate second-year exam on the morning of October 8, 2005, when her life changed forever. She lost her home and her parents, but she and her brother survived.  “But my brother hardly calls me once a month. He just wants to check whether I am dead or alive,” said Naseem.

For Ishrat Bibi, it is very painful to see her 14-year-old son working in a canteen and sleeping in the hospital’s corridor. “He is my only son and I wanted to see him become a government official after a higher education. But the earthquake destroyed not only our homes, but also our dreams,” she said.

Dr Shaista Habibullah, the NIRM director technical, said that they had written several letters to the AJK government to establish a rehabilitation centre for such earthquake survivors, but they have not received a response till date.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 8^th, 2013.