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Press Release from PODA, Pakistan: IDP Mothers Lack Access to Basic Services
PRESS RELEASE
IDP mothers lack access to basic services, need urgent help
10th May 2009 (Islamabad): "Internally displaced mothers are suffering economically, physically and emotionally and need urgent help from all of us in Pakistani society" said Sameena Nazir, Director PODA during a meeting on Mothers' Day. A four member PODA team spent Mothers' Day with a group of 50 Internally Displace Persons (IDPs) mothers in a locality of Rawalpindi at Mohalla Safdarabad near Pirwadhai where over 200 families have taken refuge from Taliban took over their home towns.
Mothers Day is celebrated worldwide on the 2nd Sunday of May annually. PODA decided to spend this day with IDP mothers who have left their homes and belongings to save their children especially girls from harsh edicts of Taliban. PODA team took sweets and donations for IDP women and talked with mothers to understand their gender specific problems.
During this visit, PODA has learned that all these families are rural and low income households and mostly illiterate. They come from Swat and Kohistan areas from villages of Purana Gaun, Bebrain, Kalam, Ramir, Lati Kot, Khushal, Panjgaram, Sataal, Aieen, Naji Gahri, Satgaran. Out of the 50 women, only two had ever gone to school in Swat to study up to class three. " But all our children were going to school until the Taliban came and started ordering people to stop sending children to schools", said one woman whose 7th grade daughter was stopped from schooling after the Taliban bombed her school. The girl became paralyzed from waist down due to fear and shock from the bombing.
One mother told PODA that they had to leave due to constant threats to their lives. "I was afraid to send my children to school or outside fearing they may not come back alive". Many women could not go out themselves after the Taliban ordered that women can not leave home without men. "We were made prisoners in our own homes", she said adding that Taliban are cruel and local people did not support them. "If we supported them, we would not be leaving our homes and livelihoods" she said. We had to leave to save our lives and for children's education. Another woman said the Taliban used to insult them and humiliate their families.
Unfortunately, their sacrifices seem to be going in vain. After they moved to Rawalpindi the local government schools are not allowing IDP children to attend the neighborhood schools. There is a government girls high school and a government boys schools in Safdarabad but both are not admitting the IDP children because the children do not have proper identification even though their parents have Pakistani ID cards. The IDP mothers told PODA that most women give birth at home in Kohistan and do not get birth certificates and most families left in a hurry and could not bring their documents and belongings with them either because they did not have them or because they lost them. " We are Pakistani citizens but our children are not allowed to study in government schools in Rawalpindi, one mother complained adding that their small children stay out all day instead of going to school because they are already living in crowded homes of their relatives. Each house has four to five families. Each family has an average of 7 to 10 children. " Our girls are locked at homes all day like in Swat and our small boys collect garbage or try to find some small job to earn some livelihood for the families that have no income". said one mother. They appealed to the government to allow their children to study in local schools or arrange special schools for them so that they can have some normalcy in their lives. The mothers appealed for help with child care and health.
PODA team interviewed all 50 women and learned that IDP mothers and their families face multiple and complex problems. Concerned government departments should pay urgent attention to their needs. The main problems of IDPs include lack of housing, discrimination in renting homes (most people are afraid to rent homes to IDPs fearing that they are coming from terrorist areas), schooling for IDP children, access to health care and some income to pay their bills. Most families are not able to have two meals a day due to lack of money.
So far the IDP mothers have not received help from any sector of the government. Although they are ideal candidates for Benazir income support fund, they do not know how to access those funds and do not have transportation money to visit government offices. They are not receiving any Zakat or Baitul Maal funds/help from the Social Welfare department. They have no source of income from any side and depend on help from their relatives.
Most families taking refuge in Safdarabad were farming families in Swat. All of them were sad that they had to leave their wheat fields ready for harvest and fruit trees full of apricots and peaches. May and June are fruit picking months in Swat. Many had to leave their animals and belongings and some had to leave their elder sons and husband to take care of their homes and belongings. The mothers were missing their children left behind in Swat and praying for the safety. The only connect with their families in Swat is via mobile phone. They are still able to speak with their sons and husband. Most IDP families came to Safdaraabad because some of their relatives were living here earlier, working in Rawalpindi or Islamabad. Some families came three months ago and the latest came two days ago.
Another major need for IDP mothers and their families especially children is trauma counseling. All of them are traumatized after months of bombing and fearful living. Children have seen their school being bombed and their parents humiliated in public. Most IDPs have lost one or more family member and are afraid for the lives of others. Earning families have lost their income and businesses and are now dependent on others in a city that they do not know, have no support networks other than their low income relatives. Most speak Kohistani or Pushto languages and some speak Urdu and are shy to ask for help. They are culturally proud people and do not like being dependent on others. They are in urgent need of trauma counseling and income generation help and should get such help very soon.
After meeting with IDP women for three hours, PODA team distributed sweets among the women and children and gave donations. PODA team explained the significance of Mothers Day. This was the first time that the IDP women ever heard about such a day. They appreciated the gesture by PODA and thanked them for spending mothers day with them. PODA prepared a banner for the event that read ‘PODA presents salaam to the brave mothers of Sarhad - a message from sisters and mothers in Punjab to mothers and sisters in NWFP'.
Potohar Organization for Development Advocacy (PODA) is a women's rights NGO
working for the promotion and protection of human rights in rural areas of Pakistan.
Contact: poda.pakistan@gmail.com or (051) 586 2460 or cell 0300-850-5185
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