{"id":3229,"date":"2022-09-10T19:41:10","date_gmt":"2022-09-10T19:41:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/un-chief-sees-great-heights-of-human-endurance-and-heroism-amid-climate-carnage-in-pakistan\/"},"modified":"2022-09-10T19:41:10","modified_gmt":"2022-09-10T19:41:10","slug":"un-chief-sees-great-heights-of-human-endurance-and-heroism-amid-climate-carnage-in-pakistan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/?p=3229","title":{"rendered":"UN chief sees \u2018great heights\u2019 of human endurance and heroism amid \u2018climate carnage\u2019 in Pakistan |"},"content":{"rendered":"


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The UN chief landed in Sindh province before flying over some of the worst-affected areas on his way to Balochistan, where he met with local residents, some of whom were directly impacted by the floods. Many had lost their loved ones, homes and everything they owned, amid the near continuous monsoon rainfall, flash flooding, and rain-induced landslides that have pummeled the country since mid-June.\u00a0<\/p>\n

More than 1,300 lives have been lost<\/strong>, and according to the United Nations, tens of millions of people are now homeless, one-third of this vast country is submerged, and livestock and crops have been wiped out. Moreover, education and learning has been interrupted for an estimated 3.5 million children, including in at least 61 refugee schools.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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Beyond the human suffering of the affected people in Pakistan, I have also seen great heights of heroism.<\/p>\n

I thank the civil society, humanitarian organizations, and the UN teams who have rushed in, for their tireless work.<\/p>\n

We stand in solidarity with the people of Pakistan. pic.twitter.com\/eFzBoOecxo<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Ant\u00f3nio Guterres (@antonioguterres) September 10, 2022<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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\u2018Climate carnage\u2019\u00a0<\/h2>\n

\u00a0\u201cI have seen many humanitarian disasters in the world, but I have never seen climate carnage on this scale. I have simply no words to describe what I have seen today: a flooded area that is three times the total area of my own country, Portugal,\u201d Mr. Guterres told reporters as he concluded his field visits.\u00a0<\/p>\n

While he had been struck by the \u201cunquantifiable depths of human suffering\u201d<\/strong> he had witnessed, he stressed that he had also seen \u201cgreat heights of human endurance and heroism \u2013 from emergency workers to ordinary people helping their neighbors.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Earlier Saturday morning Mr. Guterres traveled from Islamabad to Sukkur in Sindh by plane, accompanied by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari. His visit ended in Karachi on Saturday evening, where he held a joint press conference with the Foreign Minister at the airport.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Speaking on the tarmac, they were flanked by a freshly arrived aid shipment from the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, that will be heading to help the effected communities.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Secretary-General paid tribute to the massive response efforts of the Pakistani authorities \u2013 civilian and military, national and regional.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

He added: \u201cI also want to thank the civil society, humanitarian organizations and my UN colleagues who have rushed in. I also want to take profit to thank all those donors who have started to support Pakistan in this terrible hour.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

The needs are enormous<\/strong>, and that\u2019s why \u201cI urge massive and urgent financial support for Pakistan. And this is not just a question of solidarity or generosity. It is a question of justice.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Foreign Minister Zardari thanked the Secretary-General, said that the UN chief had visited \u201cPakistan in our time of difficulty and witnessed first-hand the devastation that has been caused by the catastrophic monsoon rains that we faced for many months.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

He stressed that not only the crisis is not made by Pakistan, \u201cbut the response to this crisis must also be a global response<\/strong>.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Displaced and destitute\u00a0<\/h2>\n

Scenes of the submerged lands were clearly visible as the aircraft that carried the UN and Pakistani officials flew over the country\u2019s southern areas; flood damage and high waters stretched as far as the eye could see.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In addition to witnessing damage first-hand, the Secretary-General also met with local officials, and residents who are now homeless, and he also met with first responders and \u201cselfless\u201d locals who rushed to help when the floodwaters began to rise.\u00a0<\/p>\n

At Sukkur airport, Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah painted a dire picture of the scale of the disaster in Sindh province. \u201cLiterally, all the rural areas on both sides of River Indus… have been affected,\u201d he said. \u201cWe know that almost 600 people died, less than 10,000 injured and a rough estimate of 12 million people effected.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

He added that currently, relief equipment was the focus, for instance providing tents for shelter, as well as mosquito nets to help those who were displaced.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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UN Photo\/Eskinder Debebe<\/span><\/p>\n

Secretary General Ant\u00f3nio Guterres and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif meet Perwin, a baby born in Usta Muhammad, Balochistan. Just a few weeks old, Perwin and his mother were displaced by the devastating floods in Pakistan.<\/span><\/p>\n

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The Sukkur area was severely affected by the floods of 2010 and 2011, and again is among the most severely affected areas.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

For his part, Mr. Guterres said that there has clearly been loss of life and destruction and loss of property and loss of livelihoods, but he told the Pakistani official: \u201cListening to you, I see that there is no loss of hope.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

From the Sukkur airport in Sindh to the next stop in Usta Muhammad in Balochistan, the scenes of devastation were equally vivid. The approximately 25-minute journey between the two areas by helicopter was just as heartbreaking: there was almost no sign of life in the areas that once were inhabited by people who are now simply homeless.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In Usta Muhammed, the Secretary-General and the Pakistani Prime Minister and Foreign Minister heard the harrowing accounts of displaced people. One of them was a man who lost everything in the floods, he lived in the outskirts of the town, and owned a goat.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

He also met a woman who spoke about her health issues, and another who had given birth to baby boy Perwin, lying in her bed in a tent. She smiled as Mr. Guterres held the baby and inquired about her condition.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It\u2019s nearly 100 degrees (38 Celsius) in this part of Pakistan. The heat can be unbearable, but the residents have no choice. Fans are installed in the tents, and in a UNICEF-allocated tent, little children were getting some education. The high-ranking officials from the UN and the Government listened attentively to these affected people, to their stories and their hopes.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u2018I am here to help my people\u2019, says first responder\u00a0<\/p>\n

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UN Photo\/Eskinder Debebe<\/span><\/p>\n

Secretary General Ant\u00f3nio Guterres and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, of Pakistan, visit with displaced people in Usta Muhammad, Balochistan Province, after devastating floods hit the country.<\/span><\/p>\n

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The next stop was Mohenjo-Daro. Another effected area by the floods. The Secretary-General and the government officials met with displaced people. On the way to their crowded settlement, tents could be seen erected on the embankments, as desperate people try to avoid the threat of rising water.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Mr. Guterres interacted with families, and women who told him they lost everything. His message to them was: \u201cI am here to ask the whole world to give the massive support to Pakistan.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Secretary-General and Foreign Minister Bhutto Zardari also visited a nearby hospital where they met with first responders and nurses, and female health workers, as well as citizens who had rushed to help the effected communities.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Dr. Sumeira Abasi, a field medical officer, had been coming to the hospital since the flooding began, and being a mother of three, she lamented that the situation was challenging for her. But she added: \u201cI come here to serve my people; this is my passion.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Lady Health Worker (LHW), Amna Khatoon, whose house collapsed during the rains, has been lending a hand ever since. She told UN News that there was a lot of water, but she was helping pregnant ladies and providing nutrition and other treatment. \u201cThere were no road communications, we were using local boats to evacuate the people.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Mr. Muhammad Shifa Arijo, Secretary of Union Council Anwar Adab, Larkano, had risked his own life rescuing some 300 people from the slums and helping to move\u00a0them to Quaid Awam Engineering University. He was also given the responsibility of delivering food each day to hundreds of people affected by the floods.\u00a0<\/p>\n

At the press conference in Karachi, The Secretary-General said, \u201cthis extraordinary generosity of poor people has touched me deeply and I hope this example will be followed by all those in the world that have power to support Pakistan in this hour of need.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Visit to an ancient site\u00a0<\/h2>\n
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UN News\/Shirin Yaseen<\/span><\/p>\n

The archaeological ruins at Mohenjo-Daro date back to the 3rd millennium BC and represent the best-preserved urban settlement in South Asia, according to UNESCO.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Just a short drive from the hospital, the Secretary-General visited Mohenjo Daro, a UNESCO World Heritage Site impacted by the floods.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

The archaeological ruins at Mohenjo-Daro date back to the 3rd millennium BC and represent the best-preserved urban settlement in South Asia, according to UNESCO. The ruins are located on the right bakk of the Indus River, 510 km northeast of Karachi and 28 km from Larkana city in Larkana District, Sindh Province.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The head of the United Nations toured the ancient area, wearing an \u201cAjrak\u201d a traditional head cover used in the Sindh province, that he was gifted at the scene.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Humanitarian response facilities\u00a0<\/h2>\n

The World Food Programme (WFP) Humanitarian Response Facilities (HRF) are a network of warehouses at strategic locations across Pakistan, established at the request of the Government of Pakistan. The country has eight HRFs, aimed at decentralizing relief support and response across provinces. The HRF in Sukkur was completed in 2016. It has a facility area of 10 acres and a capacity of 3.200 mt.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Resident Coordinator, Julien Harneis, told UN News that HRF was essential during this disaster: \u201cWithout the warehouses there and the stocks that are in there, people would have received assistance months later.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

He added that the scale of the catastrophe is so big, but in his opinion, for the future, \u201cwe need to be thinking about how to better work with first responders, how to better work with local governments, associations, the civil society, that\u2019s one part… so, we need to be building different models for the future.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

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UN News\/Shirin Yaseen<\/span><\/p>\n

Floods inundate Balochistan province, Pakistan.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Pakistan paying the price for actions of others\u00a0<\/h2>\n

In Karachi, Mr. Guterres said that climate change caused by human activity is supercharging storms and catastrophes in Pakistan, but also in Chad, the Horn of Africa with their terrible drought and the risk of famine, and beyond.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cAll these countries did not cause the problem \u2013 but they are paying the price.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

These extreme weather events have the fingerprints of human activity all over them \u2013 specifically, the burning of fossil fuels heating our planet, he added.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

He recalled that the G20 countries are responsible for 80 per cent of today\u2019s emissions \u2013 1 per cent, 80 per cent \u2013 and developed economies are responsible for the vast majority of greenhouse gases throughout history.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cHere from Pakistan, I want to reinforce a clear point: Wealthier countries are morally responsible for helping developing countries like Pakistan to recover from disasters like these, and to adapt, to build resilience to climate impacts that unfortunately will be repeated in the future.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

He pointed that Pakistan is paying the price of something that was created by others.<\/p>\n

\u201cToday, it\u2019s Pakistan. Tomorrow, it could be your country, wherever you live\u201d and he added that all countries \u2013 with the G20 leading the way \u2013 must boost their national emissions reduction targets every year, until the world\u2019s 1.5C temperature limit is guaranteed, \u201cand we are at risk of making it irreversibly impossible.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

People living in high climate vulnerability conditions, including in South Asia, are 15 times more likely to die from climate impacts. Nearly half of humanity is now in this category, the overwhelming majority in the developing world.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cAs Pakistan is deluged, as famine stalks the Horn of Africa, rich countries must step up adaptation finance.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n