Join hosts Mishaal Hasan Shirazi and Sarah Shamim as we delve into the repercussions of flooding in Pakistan, and its disproportionate effect on Pakistan’s Hindu and Christian communities. Featuring insights from expert guests, this podcast unpacks the complexities of these environmental issues, the country’s poor urban planning, and the government’s unsatisfactory response.
Visit the Pulitzer Center for complete details.
English translation of Urdu speakers:
Aadil Ayub: A video on Twitter went viral. The view was such that it was completely dark, but you could make out outlines of slum houses, and someone on the loudspeaker was heard saying, 'The government has ordered everyone to vacate their homes by 7 am tomorrow. People whose houses were built on the banks of the drain had to vacate their homes by 7 am because their homes were getting demolished.
Aadil Ayub: I took my first visit to Sadiq Nagar Gujjar Nullah (natural drainage in Karachi), where I was interviewing people. There was one guy who came out, his name was Masih, and he didn't have a leg. He told me he used to be a People’s Party Worker (the ruling political party in Karachi), and now the same party has forsaken him and his family. He lost his leg in a workshop accident.
Aadil Ayub: I just went there (Gujjar Nullah) expecting to volunteer, but the way things escalated (was very fast) because the very next week the guy (Masih) lost his home to the demolitions.
Mohini Prakash: The Vadera (Influential) in my area breaches the protection by breaking the riverbed so his land is protected from flooding.
Mohini Prakash: How much rainwater can the ground even absorb? He just protects his land by breaking the riverbed, not caring about us or those poorer than us. As long as his land is safe, every act is justified.
Mohini Prakash: I have never even seen the Vadera, nor do I know him, but I have heard he has a lot of power, and this is why we are scared of him.
Muhammad Toheed: If someone's house is demolished, it is very sad for them and it is a human rights violation. However, it is still easier for Muslim families to rent a house afterward compared to Hindu families. If Hindu families are displaced from their current community, they would always opt to live in an area with a Hindu majority. The case is similar with Christians too.
Muhammad Toheed: We followed these families to Pahar Ganj (a neighborhood in West Karachi). They went to a neighborhood where they had extended family members who could provide them with support in terms of social and financial aspects.
Muhammad Toheed: The biggest takeaway we got was that they can no longer afford to send their children to school as now they have an added layer of expense in the form of rent, and they cannot afford both costs. This geography of the city shows that there are only specific pockets left for minorities in Pakistan where they can be rehabilitated.
Muhammad Toheed: The government only looks through the lens of illegal or legal settlements. This is a big problem because in Karachi, a lot of people, despite being flood-affected, fall into a grey area and are not counted. When you say 65% of people are living in informal settlements across the city, among these, many settlements are not even recognized by the government. When they are not legally recognized or regularized, their water provisions, sewage, sanitation, and hygiene are not looked after, and the responsibility falls on the residents. They are referred to as encroachers and illegal, so the government doesn't consider them.
Muhammad Toheed: So when the government makes policies, they only look at the settlements that are legal in their eyes, and that's why when the policies are applied to the ground, they fail because the communities are not asked how they want to live or what they prefer. Previously five big plans have failed due to this reason.
