Things are going from bad to worse for internally-displaced people from the Waziristan region in Pakistan. According to government sources, more than 500,000 people have migrated from Waziristan to different parts of Pakistan after the army operation there. Most of the people who migrated from Waziristan belong to poor families. Some of them had to walk two or three days from their homes to reach nearby cities like Bunnu and Dera Ismail Khan because of lack of transport and curfew restrictions in the area.
Worst hit in the crisis are woman and children. Several children have already lost their lives because of lack of medical facilities. The extremely-hot summer adds to their difficulties. Pictures and reports in the local media highlight the miserable plight of the displaced people. They are forced to stand long hours outside government assistance centres. Only few NGOs work in the area and that also with limited resources. Instead of helping Waziristan’s displaced people, it is a shame that political parties are fighting among themselves over petty issues.
Khawaja Umer Farooq
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