Preparing for IDPs
It is important to involve international groups swiftly in the process of planning for a large-scale displacement.
The NDMA’s reluctance to bring others on board has sometimes added to the problems IDPs face. PHOTO: FILE
A series of meetings have been held in Peshawar, following a visit by Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali to Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P), to determine what arrangements would be needed if there was an influx of displaced persons from North Waziristan Agency (NWA) to settled areas of the province. The possibility of such movement is high, given the military operation currently underway in the agency, and given that even before it had begun, people had started moving in with relatives or to rented homes in Bannu and other places. It is thought this process could gain pace in the coming days, if aerial raids continue.
The meetings involved the chief minister, the governor and officials of the disaster management authorities in K-P and Fata. Of course, the sad truth is that we have had plenty of experience with Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) over the past few years, and even now tens of thousands remain displaced in the country. An influx from NWA would obviously increase this number and tax limited resources. As things stand even know, IDPs from Khyber Agency and other places still complain of a lack of sufficient assistance and concerns about resource shortages have been voiced by international agencies. This is a situation that needs to be urgently addressed. The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) should be taking the lead role in this. While it is good to see some steps towards preparedness, with camp sites and other logistics discussed, it is important to do more. The people forced to leave their homes need all the help that can be offered to minimise the disruption they will face and the hardships they will suffer.
Based on what has been seen before, it is important to involve international groups swiftly in the process of planning for what seems likely to be a large-scale displacement. The NDMA’s reluctance to bring others on board has sometimes added to the problems IDPs face, and for the sake of these innocent victims of conflict, this must not be the case this time round.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 2nd, 2014.
The meetings involved the chief minister, the governor and officials of the disaster management authorities in K-P and Fata. Of course, the sad truth is that we have had plenty of experience with Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) over the past few years, and even now tens of thousands remain displaced in the country. An influx from NWA would obviously increase this number and tax limited resources. As things stand even know, IDPs from Khyber Agency and other places still complain of a lack of sufficient assistance and concerns about resource shortages have been voiced by international agencies. This is a situation that needs to be urgently addressed. The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) should be taking the lead role in this. While it is good to see some steps towards preparedness, with camp sites and other logistics discussed, it is important to do more. The people forced to leave their homes need all the help that can be offered to minimise the disruption they will face and the hardships they will suffer.
Based on what has been seen before, it is important to involve international groups swiftly in the process of planning for what seems likely to be a large-scale displacement. The NDMA’s reluctance to bring others on board has sometimes added to the problems IDPs face, and for the sake of these innocent victims of conflict, this must not be the case this time round.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 2nd, 2014.