Concerns grow for vast numbers of children fleeing Pakistan fighting
THE large number of children fleeing fighting in Pakistan has sparked serious concerns for their welfare, children's organisation Plan International said today.
The NGO has just released £100,000 of emergency funds to help deal with the estimated 1 million people who are trying to escape the conflict between Taleban and government forces in the North West provinces.
An unusually high number of the displaced who are flooding into refugee camps and towns are children - thought to be up to 70% in some areas. The North West Frontier Province authorities have said an additional 500,000 people from the conflict areas in and around Swat could swell numbers of displaced to 1.5 million.
Plan said facilities in the 18 camps which have been set up in various locations in the Mardan, Nowshera, Peshawar, Charsadda and Swabi districts are not sufficient to cope with the massive influx of people.
"Most of these people, including children and women, are in a state of shock from the firing and shelling they have experienced," said said Director of Plan in Pakistan Haider Yaqub.
"Children especially still feel frightened in the camps and cry when there is a loud noise.
"The community in the camp is getting further distressed mentally, emotionally and physically since there is a lack of basic necessities, especially food, medicine and electricity.
"Children are the most vulnerable, they have lots of needs. They are under great trauma and need special attention but there are no special arrangements for them. There are lots of girls and boys who now have no safe place to go."
One of Plan's aims is to set up child-safe and friendly areas in the camps where trauma counsellors can help affected children - exercises that proved successful in the recent Pakistan earthquake.
Plan staff in Pakistan said they are also worried that people who have been driven from their homes by the fighting will struggle with their temporary living conditions. Many had walked great distances on foot carrying their few belongings and many experienced problems finding the camps.
"The people of Swat, Buner and Dir are accustomed to cooler mountain weather and are not used to the hot seasons but unfortunately, the camps have been established in these hot areas - which is adding to their distress."
It is estimated that around 80% of displaced people are staying with relatives, friends or host communities, with 20% in the camps.
But Mr Yaqub said this would still cause problems for the already fragile local economy: "These are poor areas and poor families and if this conflict and situation continues for say, another 10, 15 days, it is obviously going to put a serious strain on their resources.
"It's still a very fluid situation. Numbers are changing rapidly and needs will change too.
Even if the estimated numbers are conservative at around 1 million, that is still around 600,000 children that will be in need of continuing help."
ENDS
For further details contact:
Natasha Kamal
Communication Manager
Plan Pakistan
Mobile: +92 301 854 8296
Natasha.Kamal@plan-international.org
Stuart Coles
Plan International
Senior Press Officer
+44 (0) 1483 733 211
07985 61 62 05
Stuart.coles@plan-international.org
[ Any views expressed in this article are those of the writer and not of Reuters. ]
Sakhawar (L) sits next to her 25-year old daughter Tajmaroo, who lied injured, in a Peshawar hospital on May 13, 2009, a week after she was injured by a mortar attack ...
