Xeric
RETIRED THINK TANK
- Joined
- Mar 31, 2008
- Messages
- 8,297
- Reaction score
- 42
- Country
- Location
Haiti Pain Felt in Pak Muslim Charities - IslamOnline.net - News
Haiti Pain Felt in Pak Muslim Charities
Aamir Latif, IOL Correspondent
We have faced equally bad times, that is why we feel their miseries more than others, Edhi said.
We have faced equally bad times, that is why we feel their miseries more than others, Edhi said.
ISLAMABAD In Pakistan, the sufferings of people thousands of miles away in quake-ravaged Haiti are felt in Islamic charities which are eager to help out of their religious duty to serve humanity anywhere in the world.
Islam exhorts us to help those who are in trouble; no matter they are Christians or Jews, Naimatullah Khan, president Ak-Khidmat Foundation, Pakistans largest Muslim NGO, told Islamonline.net.
Humanity comes first.
Ak-Khidmat, the relief wing of the countrys largest Islamic party, Jammat-e-Islami, is among several Islamic charities in Pakistan that are working in full swing to relieve millions of helpless people in Haiti, which was struck by a deadly 7.0-magnitude earthquake last week.
No matter, which religion Haitians belong to. They are human beings and our duty is to help them in this testing time, Khan affirmed.
Maulana Abdul Sattar Edhi, the Pakistani famed philanthropists and social workerand founder of the Edhi Foundation, agrees.
Our services should not be restricted to any particular religion or race, said Edhi.
Edhi noted that Pakistani charities and NGOs particularly sympathize with Haitians because they were hit with similar calamities in the past.
We have faced equally bad times, that is why we feel their miseries more than others, Edhi said, referring to 2005 earthquake in Azad Kashmir and parts of the northwestern frontier province that killed over 80,000 people, and injured thousands.
However, though various Islamic charities started preparations for taking part in the rescue operation few hours after the massive earthquake, their campaign to help is halted due to visa delays.
We were ready to go there on the very next day, says Khan. Its just the geographical and diplomatic hurdles, due to which we are still not there. Otherwise, our preparations are fully complete.
The quake caused massive destruction in the Caribbean country, with dead bodies littering across the streets.
More than a week days after the disaster, homeless, injured and traumatized Haitians still trawl the streets desperate for food, water and medicine.
Image
Islamic charities believe that their help can make a difference in the frantic rescue operations in Haiti as they did before in disasters hitting at home.
Our workers are more trained than any other organizations, because we have been grappling with the natural calamities for last five years, Khan, who commands 100,000 trained rescue workers, affirmed.
Pakistans Islamic charities earned a huge reputation for its relief operations in the 2005 earthquake.
They also came to the limelight after their efforts to reach out to hundreds of thousands of displaced Pakistanis after the military operations in the restive Swat valley and South Waziristan region last year.
However, the charities still face image problem in the West, where they are accused of harboring militant groups.
There has been a one-sided propaganda against Islamic charities by the western media, Khan, also former Karachi mayor, lamented.
He hopes that Haiti rescue operations can be a good opportunity to wipe out stereotypes about Islamic charities.
Our rescue operation will clear the misunderstanding among common Christians about Muslims and their organizations.
This will earn a good name to Pakistan and Islamic charities.
Haiti Pain Felt in Pak Muslim Charities
Aamir Latif, IOL Correspondent
We have faced equally bad times, that is why we feel their miseries more than others, Edhi said.
We have faced equally bad times, that is why we feel their miseries more than others, Edhi said.
ISLAMABAD In Pakistan, the sufferings of people thousands of miles away in quake-ravaged Haiti are felt in Islamic charities which are eager to help out of their religious duty to serve humanity anywhere in the world.
Islam exhorts us to help those who are in trouble; no matter they are Christians or Jews, Naimatullah Khan, president Ak-Khidmat Foundation, Pakistans largest Muslim NGO, told Islamonline.net.
Humanity comes first.
Ak-Khidmat, the relief wing of the countrys largest Islamic party, Jammat-e-Islami, is among several Islamic charities in Pakistan that are working in full swing to relieve millions of helpless people in Haiti, which was struck by a deadly 7.0-magnitude earthquake last week.
No matter, which religion Haitians belong to. They are human beings and our duty is to help them in this testing time, Khan affirmed.
Maulana Abdul Sattar Edhi, the Pakistani famed philanthropists and social workerand founder of the Edhi Foundation, agrees.
Our services should not be restricted to any particular religion or race, said Edhi.
Edhi noted that Pakistani charities and NGOs particularly sympathize with Haitians because they were hit with similar calamities in the past.
We have faced equally bad times, that is why we feel their miseries more than others, Edhi said, referring to 2005 earthquake in Azad Kashmir and parts of the northwestern frontier province that killed over 80,000 people, and injured thousands.
However, though various Islamic charities started preparations for taking part in the rescue operation few hours after the massive earthquake, their campaign to help is halted due to visa delays.
We were ready to go there on the very next day, says Khan. Its just the geographical and diplomatic hurdles, due to which we are still not there. Otherwise, our preparations are fully complete.
The quake caused massive destruction in the Caribbean country, with dead bodies littering across the streets.
More than a week days after the disaster, homeless, injured and traumatized Haitians still trawl the streets desperate for food, water and medicine.
Image
Islamic charities believe that their help can make a difference in the frantic rescue operations in Haiti as they did before in disasters hitting at home.
Our workers are more trained than any other organizations, because we have been grappling with the natural calamities for last five years, Khan, who commands 100,000 trained rescue workers, affirmed.
Pakistans Islamic charities earned a huge reputation for its relief operations in the 2005 earthquake.
They also came to the limelight after their efforts to reach out to hundreds of thousands of displaced Pakistanis after the military operations in the restive Swat valley and South Waziristan region last year.
However, the charities still face image problem in the West, where they are accused of harboring militant groups.
There has been a one-sided propaganda against Islamic charities by the western media, Khan, also former Karachi mayor, lamented.
He hopes that Haiti rescue operations can be a good opportunity to wipe out stereotypes about Islamic charities.
Our rescue operation will clear the misunderstanding among common Christians about Muslims and their organizations.
This will earn a good name to Pakistan and Islamic charities.
