Fredsutvikling og stammeomraadene (FATA) av Atilla A Iftikhar juli 25, 2009 - Kommentarer (0) Den internasjonale innsatsen i Pakistan, baade den humanitaere og sikkerhets/militaere kampanjen, staar ovenfor ”one step forward, two steps back” tilstand fordi store deler av stammeomraadene er fortsatt “no-go areas” for utvikling og fremskritt. Frem til naa har penger for FATAs opploefting enten gaatt til korrupte regjeringsmedlemmer eller andre mektige personer fra stammene. Det internasjonale donormiljoet og Norge boer gjoere en sterkere innsats nettopp i FATA. Baade FN-organisasjonene og de andre store hjelpeorganisasjonene kan bidra, men disse store internasjonale organisasjonene har en tendens til aa tiltrekke masse oppmerksomhet og blir tolket med “mistenklige intensjoner” blant lokalbefolkningen. Det er en utbredt holdning i FATA at internasjonale hjelpeorganisasjoner har ofte en skjult agenda og at de sentrale pakistanske styresmaktene heller ikke kan stoles naar det kommer til stammefolkets beste. Loesningen er at det internasjonale donorsamfunnet sammen med lokale NGOs og ressurspersoner fra stammene hjelper frem en endring uten masse med PR og medieoppmerksomhet. ______________________________ Emergency Relief and Rehabilitation Assistance to Waziristan IDPs, Pakistan SUMMARY Project Duration Immediate/1 August 2009 – December 2010 (18 months) Main Activities 1. Distribution of Food items, Medical and essential household items 2. Women facilitation Centers 3. Child friendly Spaces and Schools 5. Islamic mode of financing 6. Health Services 7. Free Medical Camps Area of Operation Tribal areas of North and South Waziristan with initial entry point from district Karak, NWFP. District of Karak in southern NWFP is an ideal point of entry into Waziristan and a large number of IDPs from Waziristan have found temporary refuge in the neighboring district. Number of Direct and Indirect Beneficiaries 4,000 to 8,000 households (25,000 to 50,000 incl. Indirect Beneficiaries) Implementing Partners Daswandi (DK) will implement most activities in N/S Waziristan with local NGOs in NWFP and FATA Khwendo Kor and Friends of the MIND, in coordination with Political Agent and other authorities. DK keeps itself informed about policy advice and other data circulated by UNHCR, UN OCHA , Federal Government in Islamabad and the media. It is mentioned in this context that few international aid agencies have been discouraged with aid activities in region due to security concerns. Responsible for Management and Implementation Atilla Amir Iftikhar, Islamabad Application Amount PKR 26.7 mill - Equiv. in NOK 2.3 mill ______________________________ 1. Background Information about DK and the IDP Relief and Rehabilitation Project Daswandi (DK) (see attached draft) is a foundation (“stiftelse”) established by a Pakistani-Norwegian family in Stavanger, Norway, to assist needy families and individuals in Pakistan in normal as well as emergency situations. DK uses collective efforts and community support (“dugnad”) as a basis for its work, with participation from Pakistani-Norwegians in Norway and in Pakistan, and their family and business contacts in the two countries. Donor support is required for the current emergency relief and rehabilitation project for Waziristan IDPs. DK has limited implementation experience in Waziristan but good overall competence and an excellent network of local partners. The founder of the DK initiative is an expert on Pakistan political and society affairs with particular interest in the tribal agencies and the NWFP. DK has defined the current emergency relief and rehabilitation project as a separate project. Its objective and outcome is to provide relief, rehabilitation and reconstruction related aid to the most deprived IDPs from Waziristan following the current military intervention. DK has already made an impact for Malakand IDPs from May to July 2009 reaching out to about 1000 direct recipients (about 6,200 indirect recipients) using its own resources and donations from Norway and Pakistan, notably from individuals, families and private companies, mainly in Gujrat, Pakistan and in Norway (Stavanger & Oslo). The items distributed include ration relief packages of food items, incl. water bottles/containers and some medical and hygiene articles to non-camp IDPs and hosting families in locations in Mardan and Islamabad. Non-food relief items have also been distributed inside and outside the camps, such as blankets, air fans, air coolers, water coolers, etc., noting that most IDPs are used to cooler climates than the sweltering heat of hosting areas at the current time and during the forthcoming summer months. 2. Justification for this Emergency Relief Project Taliban presence in the area has been remained an issue of international concern in the War on Terror particularly since the 2001 Afghanistan invasion. As a result of the military operation tribes have migrated from FATA to other districts in the south of NWFP and Punjab. People has also been fled crossed the border and living as refugees in Afghanistan. The migrated population is living in miserable conditions without giving proper IDPs status by government and any external support to them. The Waziristan IDPs are hardest hit. Thousands are living in neighboring district of Karak in NWFP and in Bakkar. Minimum 45,000 IDPs are living in school buildings, rented building at various district in the south of NWFP and Punjab. The humanitarian conditions in North and South Waziristan are generally deplorable and much more neglected than Swat/Malakand. IDPs from Waziristan have as a result of multiple factors been neglected by the Pakistani government and international donor community and are still ignored in the relief and reconstruction efforts. The IDP plight in Waziristan must be taken more seriously and international aid agencies should reinforce their presence in parts of the tribal areas which are relatively secure. The geo-strategic position of Waziristan makes the overall military efforts against insurgents in Pakistan very likely to be won or lost in this area. Any long-term success against the insurgency depends crucially on how the local population in Waziristan perceives the efforts of Pakistani government, armed forces and the international community. With the on-going drone-attacks and more pressure against the insurgents from Afghanistan, the public perception of Waziristan is critical to government and hence all efforts should be made to create a sympathetic perception of Pakistans fight against insurgents. The most convincing tool in this respect is to reinforce humanitarian relief and rehabilitation projects and initiatives for the IDPs from Waziristan. To ”win hearts and minds” of the IDPs in/from Waziristan will also determine the success ratio of military operations in Pakistan and Afghanistan. With a combined population of ca. 750,000 people, the IDPs from Waziristan are less in numbers compared to the more populous Malakand division, hence even more important that the Waziristan IDPs are given due attention and support. New out fluxes of IDPs are still expected from North and South Waziristan as long as the military operations continue. It is essential that emergency relief assistance is provided for humanitarian reasons and in order to avoid unrest among the IDPs and inhabitants of the hosting areas. It is essential that major outbreaks of communicable and other diseases, such as cholera, are avoided, and that the occurrence of other illnesses, such as malaria, is also keep as low as possible. In addition to the immediate tangible support, it is also important to include the psychosocial support, including recreational activities, which should always be included in immediate response to emergencies as per modern thinking among specialists. Presently the Waziristan IDPs are in a “worst case” situation, many without any access to aid relief or government support. All IDPs have immediate needs for protection, food, shelter and health services. In addition, there is urgent need for social support for adults and children, including education, recreation and play activities for children and adolescents, and psychosocial support and trauma heeling, as most IDPs suffer some form or the other of trauma. It is essential that these activities are not postponed to a later time but that resources are allocated soonest and activities begun immediately to avoid further frustration, discomfort, abuse, unrest, etc. Children, adolescents and women are in special need of support. It is also essential that the young and adult men find meaningful activities, preferably gainful employment and provision of help to hosting families, communities and organizations. Support of this kind is also important in order to prepare IDPs for return home, and thus encouraging them to make the stay away from home as short as possible. Realistically though, relatively large percentages of uprooted people (refugees as well as IDPs) stay away from their homes longer than one would often consider necessary, as seen judged by outsiders, and some IDPs will use the displacement situation as a springboard for moving away from their habitual home areas, where the crisis originated. This is a further argument for assisting IPDs in preparing them for their future life, either at home or resettled elsewhere. This includes providing help in order to make them as useful and active citizens as possible, in education and jobs. 3. Objectives for this Emergency Relief and Rehabilitation Project DK’s objective with the current Waziristan IDP relief and rehabilitation project is to provide following aid and development services for: 1. Give essential food, medical and household items for survival, 2. Women, children and adult males are supported by providing basic necessities of life and psycho-social support throughout the relief and rehabilitation process, 3. Women skills enhancement by establishing two (2) women skill development centers at IDPs camps and government building 4. Advancement of the social, psychological and emotional skills of female IDPs by providing psychosocial support and post stress management 5. To provide educational and co-curricular opportunities to min. 900 children by establishing 4 child friendly schools 6. support in-house income generation to women through providing small loan for establishing of home based businesses under Islamic mode of financing (non-interest based loans) 7. at least 5000 women and children are supported by providing health facilities against seasonal, viral, psychiatric and related female diseases through establishing of health centers and free medical camp. One objective with schools and centre for children and women is to highlight the sol These activities will positively reflect improvement of Norwegian ties in FATA and express solidarity between Norwegian citizens of Pakistani hereditary and tribal peoples in FATA and NWFP. This initiative advances the collective efforts and spirit of community volunteer support (“dugnad”), especially in large humanitarian crises of the current type. Hopefully, such grass root efforts in for Waziristan IDPs may also play positively for Norwegian interests and stakeholders in Afghanistan. All recipients can be characterized as ‘needy recipients’ and all, or almost all are traumatized in some way or the other, mostly caused by the recent military actions and more than one displacement over the last 2-3 years. Vulnerable and EVIs must be prioritized, including women-headed households, unaccompanied minors, the handicapped/sick persons, visibly traumatized, and others. About 80% of refugee/IDP populations are normally women and children. Etc. __________________________________ DK Foundation will try to make a difference av Atilla A Iftikhar august 6, 2009 - Kommentarer (0) Waziristan IDPs are still too neglected and DK Foundation is trying to make a difference Share Today at 12:03am | Edit Note | Delete Best course of action would be that as the exodus starts from the South Waziristan into the NWFP, return of Malakand IDPs should start at the same time. This would not only save NWFP government and people from lots of pain and hassle. Camps are already there, and these camps have got rudimentary facilities barely enough to get the migrants going for some time, though with acute suffering. Tactically, government should move out the Swat IDPs from the camps and the homes of the people to th ecleared areas of Malakand. This would also boost the confidence of the people and people won’t call the Operation Rah-e-Nijat a ‘bungled vision.’ President Zardari’s announcement on June 12 that an army cantonment would be established in Swat to prevent a return of the Taliban has provided some semblance of relief to the people, but until and unless the civilian set up isn’ t restored in the taken-back areas of Swat, IDP’s aren’t likely to return. The imminent operation in the Waziristan is going to disturb the civilian population from the tribal areas that will swell up the number of displaced people and aggravate the challenge of catering for them. Already people have started to move to the Bajaur and even to the suburbs of the Peshawar. Some have moved out to Afghanistan in Kunar and Paktika provinces. But majority of them are likely to head towards the already set up camps in Swabi and Mardan and Peshawar. NWFP government and the federal government must show some initiative, sense of urgency, planning and governance and chalk out as what they plan for the Waziristan IDPs. They should broadcast it through media, so that when people move out from Waziristan, they know where they should go. As Clemenceau said, “war is too important a matter to be left to the generals.” __________________________________