Eyewitness: 'Sick and injured left in Swat'

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Eyewitness: 'Sick and injured left in Swat'
As the Pakistani army continues its offensive against the Taliban in Pakistan's Swat valley, a female student in the town of Saidu Sharif describes the harsh conditions for the people who never managed to flee the fighting.


Read her previous account about life in Swat



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About two million people have been displaced by fighting in the north-west
The situation for those who have not left the Swat valley is getting more and more difficult. The curfew is continuing and there is shortage of food and other daily necessities.

We haven't received any relief from the government or any donors.

The sick people and those who have been injured are left without treatment. Pregnant women die during labour. Those who rely on taking medication regularly are in trouble.

I myself haven't been feeling well over the last two weeks. I've got kidney stones and I am in pain. I've also got fever because of the infection. I have become so weak I can hardly move around the house. But I haven't been able to find a single tablet to relieve the pain.

We are mostly eating fruit and that's how we survive. We also slaughter our animals, but not everybody has them

People are dying due to the shortage of medicine and food. We have no source of income because of the army operation. Now is the season for the summer fruit: we have invested a lot, but we are unable to sell our fruit because of the curfew.

We are mostly eating fruit and that's how we survive. We also slaughter our animals, but not everybody has them.

'No trust'

The Taliban have moved out of Mingora and Saidu Sharif although they are still in control of other areas of Swat.

Despite this, we still have no trust in the government. The Taliban will return and resume their activities if the government doesn't kill or arrest their leaders. And it's a bit disconcerting that this hasn't happened already.

The Taliban turned the people of Swat into internally displaced people (IDP). When the people who are in IDP camps return to Swat, so will the Taliban. If the government is serious about cleaning Swat of these militants, they need to create a powerful police force and provide them with the latest weapons and vehicles.

We can see that there is good quality food available to the army. They are enjoying the cool Swat weather while our kids are dying because there's no bread. Where are our rights? If the army can arrange food for their soldiers, why can't they do the same for the people of Swat?
I have been thinking about my education. I don't think it will be possible for many years to come for a woman to get education in Swat. I have changed my plans for the future. I will go into nursing, so that I can serve the poor and innocent people of Swat.

 

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Struggling for survival in Swat


The fighting in the Swat valley between the Pakistani army and Taleban militants has almost completely destroyed the communications network and links with the rest of the country.

Tens of thousands of people have fled the area, but there are some who have not been able to escape.

One female student in the town of Saidu Sharif has managed to send e-mails to the BBC News website describing the struggle to survive.



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I am still in Swat and I will die here. I will not leave my homeland because of the Taleban and I'll fight against them with every possible means.
Our communication system is not working. My phone hasn't been working for many days, it only gets a signal occasionally, especially when the curfew is removed.

There is no electricity and we are using a generator but we have a limited supply of oil to run it. We are only using it for half an hour every 24 hours to charge the laptop and the phones. I am writing this in a hurry.

Most of the people in our town and surrounding villages have left. The ones who have remained want to leave, but most have no money for transport.

Everybody here is against the Taleban. But for me there is a big question mark over the dedication of the Pakistani army

Pregnant women and sick people, who can't walk, have been left behind. In the whole of Swat there is not a single lady doctor. Even a male doctor is hard to find, as they have left.

I know that people in refugee camps in Pakistan live in bad conditions, but the government and international donors are ignoring those remaining in Swat.


Food shortages

People are hungry. Because of the curfew there is a shortage of food. We are running out of stored food items. But we are at risk every time we go out as we might be targeted by the Taleban or the army.

There are many Taleban commanders in my village. Their intelligence is so good, they know what we discuss in our homes.

Six days ago one of my relatives was slaughtered in Mingora city. His dead body was left on the road for four days and nobody handed it over to his parents.

A militant group from a nearby village, all of them young boys, used to come to our girls' college to intimidate the girls. They were checking the faces of girls and were saying things like "I love you" and similar nonsense. One day this group tortured a female school teacher.

I wanted to complete an MBA course. Now the colleges are closed, schools are destroyed, education is impossible. Women can't even go out on the streets any more.

I know who the local Taleban are. I know them personally. Some of them are my distant relatives. A friend of mine works for the police here and he knows them too, but he can't do anything. The ISI [Inter-Services Intelligence] targeted and destroyed the police force structure, clearing ground for Taleban activities.

In the past, when people have come forward with the details of Taleban they know, they have been betrayed.

So I don't know who we can trust with that information now.

Everybody here is against the Taleban. But for me there is a big question mark over the dedication of the Pakistani army.

The Taleban have their own FM radio station. How come they can be traced by foreign media to give interviews, but they can't be traced and killed by the Pakistani army?

Mingora city is under Taleban control. What is the army doing about it?

 

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Aid warning amid Pakistan unrest

The homeless are being given water, electricity and a roof
Major aid agencies have warned that a funding crisis is threatening attempts to help people who have fled the fighting in Pakistan's Swat valley.

The nine charities said they needed $42m to provide emergency supplies for 2.5 million displaced people.

They have fled fighting between the army and the Taliban which has spread to other parts of the north-west.

In South Waziristan, dozens of militants attacked army posts stationed in a tribal region.

Three soldiers were killed in the co-ordinated attacks on bases in Jandola, Chakmalai and Splitoi towns in South Waziristan.

South and North Waziristan are semi-autonomous tribal districts where al-Qaeda and the Taliban are believed to be entrenched.

Waziristan has been described by US officials as "the most dangerous place on earth". It is said to harbour some of the world's most wanted men including al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden.

The army is currently involved in an operation targeting militant hide-outs adjacent to Waziristan. Analysts say the operation signals their determination to remove militants sheltering in these districts.

But there have been fears of an insurgent backlash in response to the army's military campaigns.

A previously little-known group Abdullah Azzam Shaheed (Martyr) brigade has claimed responsibility for Tuesday's attack on the Pearl Continental Hotel in Peshawar which left 18 dead.

Aid crisis

Since April, when the Pakistani military launched its campaign to take back control of the Swat valley region from the Taliban, aid agencies have been struggling to cope with the sheer number of people who have had to flee their homes.

Oxfam's Humanitarian Director, Jane Cocking, has described this as the worst funding crisis the agency has faced for a major humanitarian emergency in over a decade.

Aid workers fear that the onset of monsoon rains in July could stretch resources even further - increasing the risk of diarrhoea and malaria for displaced people.

Things could actually be a lot worse than the already dire warnings.

The head of another charity, Carolyn Miller of Merlin, said they would be facing a "humanitarian meltdown" were it not for the generosity of Pakistani families and communities of modest means who are looking after the vast majority of these people.

The world's richest nations, she said, needed to dig much deeper in their pockets to help.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/default.stm

It is responsibility of whole nation to help them including expatriates,a massive campain required at war footing to help SWAT IDP's