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Mr. President,
Mr. Secretary-General,
Distinguished Parliamentarians,
Keeping in view the contemporary context of events, the Inter-Parliamentary
Union (IPU) has indeed taken up a very relevant theme for this session. A high
intensity earthquake of 7.6 Richter scale epicentered in Pakistan and close to
the surface brought about massive destruction in Afghanistan, India and mainly
Pakistan. Given our experiences in Pakistan, it can be argued that the early
warning preparedness and coordinated response in dealing with natural disasters
is of utmost importance. This cannot be possible without devising elaborate
mechanisms for the protection of the people threatened and suffering in crisis
situations.
As you all may be aware, the impact of the October 8th earthquake proved to be
the worst tragedy that any country or possibly the world has ever witnessed in
recent times. It resulted in colossal loss of human life and property. So far,
over fifty-four thousand people have been killed and seventy-eight thousand
injured, most of them with multiple fractures. Over 32,000 children have died.
Thousands have been maimed, handicapped, widowed and orphaned. This toll is
continuously escalating and by the hours. More than 3.3 million people have been
left homeless. This includes many elderly and senior citizens. The quake badly
affected a 30,000 square kilometers area. The infrastructures, including
government offices, roads, bridges, civic facilities, hospitals and educational
institutions, in these areas have been completely destroyed. The damage is way
beyond the resources of any one country to cope with.
This massive earthquake is an issue of global importance. It has brought about
an unprecedented disruption in civil society and the economy, and threatens the
livelihood of the millions because of the loss of life and the damage to
property and businesses.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Earthquakes, tsunamis, torrential rains, heavy snow, high winds (typhoons,
hurricanes, tornados, etc.) floods, landslides, volcanic eruptions, forest and
bush fires, droughts, and other natural disasters cause serious damage in
various forms in countries throughout the world every year. Many developing
nations are vulnerable to natural disasters, and have difficulty in recovering
from the resulting damage and rebuilding their social infrastructures.
Over 90 per cent of those who died in natural disasters from 1978 through 2002
were people in the developing nations. Moreover, in developing countries in
general, the socially vulnerable poor are frequently the ones who suffer the
most and end up becoming displaced persons or refugees. The secondary effects of
natural disasters, such as food shortages, inappropriate medical facilities and
the deterioration of sanitary conditions, become prolonged, and develop into
equally or even more serious problems. Just the scarcity of potable water causes
major problems and leads to water-borne and other diseases. Pakistan is facing a
severe spread of possible epidemics, dehydration and diarrhoea.
Mr. President,
Governments and Parliaments must give priority to preparing and maintaining,
even rehearsing, effective disaster management plans. There is a dire need to
make elaborate preparations for disasters long before they occur. It is
understandable that diverting time and money away from existing problems in
order to plan and strategize for a potential disaster is generally and sometimes
politically difficult. Given our experience of earthquakes and other recent
examples including that of Tsunami, it can be argued that governments have to be
prepared to respond quickly and practically to such threats and disasters. This
is only possible if both governments and Parliaments are appropriately prepared
and well resourced. Governments should have mandatory and regular reviews of
disaster preparedness, including updates to Parliaments.
Preparations for disasters include development of policies that take the
potential disasters into account and avoid exacerbating them, practices such as
unsafe buildings in known flood plains or seismically sensitive areas,
deforestation, damaging natural drainage systems, eco damage, indifference to
environmental needs and contribution to global warming are man-made
contributions to “natural” disasters.
Parliaments have a direct role and responsibility in addressing crisis
situations. In preparedness or during the crisis situations and post-crisis
phases like rehabilitation and reconstruction, parliaments – have a crucial role
in forging national consensus and assisting all national and international
organizations involved.
Parliaments have several key functions to perform in the event of disasters.
These include passing the necessary emergency preparatory and response
legislation, approving budgets and preparing communications strategies. The
members, as opinion leaders, can provide information to the public to curb
rumours, and scrutinize executive readiness and mobilize the public and all
resources so that the emergency relief can be provided as soon as it is needed.
Resolutions to declare states of emergency and procedures to pass supplementary
budget to cope with disasters should be immediately ready when required.
The recent events, including the devastating earthquake we have experienced,
demonstrate the need for Parliamentarians to be proactive instead of reactive.
The political will to keep disasters on the agenda must be maintained
particularly for the long reconstruction phases, so that sustained support
remains.
In scrutinizing the executive’s use of extra emergency authority, we need to be
constructive and ready to play our key role in the warning and post-disaster
phase. Parliamentary involvement in disaster response will help ensure that the
executive’s extra authority is properly synergized while responding to a crisis
situation. There should be overall transparency and good governance.
In addition, Parliaments should support the training of emergency professionals
and should ensure that the governments plan for various possible threats and
disasters, not just the last disaster, and keep the planning, up to date. We
must identify availability of relevant equipment (such as needed for excavation
from collapsed buildings or re-establishing land communications or setting up of
temporary housing etc.); human and other pertinent resources required. Because
of the topography of our affected area, air transport, specifically helicopters
were a dire need. Because of the very fast approaching (in a couple of weeks)
winter, snow and blizzards; the priority is shelter, blankets and warmth. Large
scale amputations make it imperative for the provision of appropriate artificial
limbs and trauma treatment; so that thousands can be more functional and with
self respect.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is indeed very important to involve local communities in crisis situations so
that the people can play their roles in recovery, rehabilitation and
reconstruction, identify availability of needed equipment, HR and other relevant
resources.
There is a need to involve the local people especially the women and youth so
that the new homes and facilities actually meet local needs. Roads, schools,
health clinics, water and food supplies need to be planned in consultation with
local community.
Warning systems must be directly linked to the communities under threat. The
volunteers should also be involved with communities as they are trained in how
to respond and to give timely warnings and advice to local people.
Mr. President,
There is a need for greater sharing of resources, experiences, expertise and
information so that the regional and global responses can be mobilized rapidly
and effectively when disasters strike. Some international cooperation is already
in place, but much more sharing of information and expertise of this kind is
still needed for early warnings also. We must move quickly on the 2005 Kobe
Summit and Japan initiated suggestions.
Besides Parliaments and governments, Non-governmental Organizations and
citizens’ groups have also to be involved as natural disasters of the magnitude
seen recently far surpass the capacity of governments and countries to deal with
on their own. A global emergency fund must be established. Even a small
percentage of GDP’s of developed nations will provide adequate contribution to
such a concept.
I express my deep gratitude and appreciation for the fact that the United
Nations and its specialized agencies, as well as many governments and
international organizations have come forward immediately to provide urgent
humanitarian assistance to the earthquake victims in Pakistan and other South
Asian countries. May God Almighty rewards them for this.
I thank you, Mr. President, for providing me an opportunity to share my views.
May God Almighty protect and bless us all.
Thank you.