Pakistani flood survivors already short of food and water began the fasting month of Ramadan on Thursday, a normally festive, social time marked this year by misery and fears of an uncertain future.
A US Navy ship carrying helicopters and 1,000 Marines reached Pakistan’s southern coast to boost relief efforts, as the United Nations warned the disaster was far from over, saying dams in Sindh province could still burst in the coming days.
“There is more water coming along,” said spokesman Maurizio Giuliano.
He said the UN estimated up to one-fourth of the country is or had been affected by the worst floods in a generation, though that did not necessarily mean it was under water.
President Asif Ali Zardari, who has been sharply criticised for visiting Europe as the floods began, made his first visit to victims of the disaster yesterday and toured one of the dams.
The floods, triggered by monsoon rains, hit the country’s northwest more than two weeks ago and spread down the country, inundating thousands of villages. About 1,500 people have died, and the UN estimates up to seven million people need emergency assistance.
Damage to crops, roads and bridges has caused food prices to triple in some parts of the country, adding to the pain of those marking the fasting month.
“Ramadan or no Ramadan, we are already dying of hunger,” said Mai Hakeema, 50, who sat alongside her ailing husband in a tent outside the city of Sukkur. “We are fasting forcibly, and mourning our losses.”
Observant Muslims fast from dawn to dusk each day for a month each year to control their desires and show empathy for the poor. The month is marked by increased attendance at mosques, a rise in charitable giving and family gatherings that coincide with the evening breaking of the fast.
While millions of flood-affected people were performing the fast, Mufti Muneebur Rehman, one of the country’s top religious scholars, said victims living in difficult conditions dependent on charity could miss the fast and perform it later in the year.
“I am sad to miss the first day of fasting,” said Ghullam Fareed of Gormani village in eastern Punjab province. “Later, when we reach home, we will compensate for this.”
In the northwest, where residents are especially devout, many refugees said flood or no flood, they would fast.
“I cannot disobey God, so I am fasting as it is part of my faith no matter what the conditions are,” said Fazal Rabi, 47, who was staying in a tent village in Akbarpura.
The Pakistani government’s response to the crisis has been criticised by many as too slow and patchy.
Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani flew to southwestern Baluchistan province yesterday to see flood-hit areas. He said Pakistan still needs more helicopters to assist in the relief work.
“We will try our best to reach millions of people to ensure that they get food and other basic items during and after the month of Ramadan,” he said.