BRIDGING DIFFERENCES
AMIDST DISASTER
Repairing the broken world of millions devastated
and disrupted by the recent 7.6 magnitude South Asian
Earthquake in Kashmir region will take decades. Ninety
percent of the buildings near the epicenter of the
massive temblor at Muzzafrabad, the capital of the
Pakistan-held Kashmir, are in ruins. The adjoining
North West Frontier Province suffered massive loss
of life and devastation. There was also considerable
damage and nearly 1,500 deaths caused by the quake
in adjoining areas of India and Afghanistan.
The struggle and urgency of the moment is to reach
nearly 500,000 who are still cut off and stranded
in the rugged folds of the Himalayan ranges and remote
settlements; to provide medical assistance to over
80,000 injured and shelter for an estimated 3 million
homeless. The full scope of the disaster and humanitarian
nightmare is still emerging.
Besides the fear of disease and additional deaths
due to inadequate and timely critical medical assistance,
treatment of injuries with potential for infections,
and warm shelter and food, there is the looming threat
of more deaths with the approaching cold and harsh
Himalayan winter. Time is of the essence, since some
of the remote villages will be totally cut-off from
the established support centers once snows block critical
supply routes to these areas.
The national anguish of Pakistan, where a majority
of the over 79,000 perished with many, mostly children
attending schools that fateful Saturday morning of
October 8th, still trapped under the collapsed buildings
throughout the quake area is simply unbearable. We
cannot fully comprehend the heartbreak of the survivors
and their families over the losses of their loved
ones and the hardships they face.
Thousands of lives have been saved by the quick response
and emergency relief supplies to Pakistan from around
the world, but the task of reaching and caring for
all those affected by the quake is formidable. Friendly
nations, regional neighbors, the United Nations and
global relief organizations, and Pakistani authorities
are providing much-needed assistance and making valiant
efforts to save lives during this catastrophic humanitarian
disaster.
The nuclear neighbors, India and Pakistan, for one
brief moment, have set aside their own differences
and long-standing hostilities, and Pakistan is welcoming
Indian helicopters, personnel, and support to assist
Pakistani relief efforts. Pakistan recently opened
the border at Amritsar to allow urgent supplies, and
India is permitting victims to cross borders to seek
shelter. How wonderful that helping those in desperate
need and saving lives has been an overriding concern
between these neighbors who share more than geography,
languages, history, and culture.
Relief organizations, businesses, foundations, schoolchildren,
and faith communities from around the world are once
again rallying their friends and supporters and collecting
funds and materials to further complement the international
relief effort. The spirit of generosity and goodwill
again has reached across continents, religious and
cultural frontiers and is expressing solidarity with
a nation devastated by one of the worst natural disasters
in modern times. Miraculously, many significant Buddhist,
Hindu, Muslim, and Sikh historic monuments and sacred
structures, located in the earthquake area, have survived
major damage.
Sikhs, Muslims, Hindus, Christians, and others have
united in the common cause to help survivors. Truckloads
of blankets, tents, plastic sheeting, medical supplies,
and other essentials are being sent across the border
into Pakistan. Among others, Sikh organizations in
Delhi, Amritsar, and Sikh congregations throughout
the world are contributing time, talents, resources,
and offering support and comfort in the face of this
catastrophic human tragedy on the Indian subcontinent.
Serving others in faith is an important tradition
in many religions. In the Sikh faith, seva (selfless
service), is elevated to a sacred passion and form
of worship. God's universal benevolence is beyond
territorial and spiritual confines. We are witnessing
that in our increasingly interconnected and interdependent
world, the faith lesson that "no one should be
outside this circle of human compassion," especially
in his or her hour of darkness or tragic events is
well remembered and honored.
In big and small ways, we are rebuilding hope and
expressing friendship with those who have lost so
much in the latest disaster. We see the "brother"
in the stranger, and in giving and sharing, an affirmation
of our common humanity. We know that the agony of
victims defies description, and the future will be
torturously grim without vital and generous help at
this time. We have moral accountability and responsibility
to provide a sustained lifeline of hope and support
to ease some of the painful uncertainty of the survivors
and assist them in rebuilding their lives.
My prayer is that the world community will come through
the tragedies of 9/11, the 2004 cataclysmic Asian
Tsunami, recent destructive Hurricane Katrina, and
now the devastating South Asian Earthquake, a little
wiser and more compassionate, less confrontational
and more understanding as a civilization and as nations.
One has to wonder, do we need disasters to bring neighbors
together? Will nations abandon raw politics, cultural
divides, and traditional rivalries at other times?
We can, and should, imagine humanity to live someday
in peace as an unconditional gift to all.
Kanwal Prakash "KP" Singh
Indianapolis, Indiana USA
www.KPSinghDesigns.com
