Displaced people from Afghan/Pakistan border

We went to the camp where we had given medicines! $1440 was collected from friends and Rotarians in US & Singapore for medicines. These were bought in Peshawar and distributed by Relief International at the camp for displaced people from Bajour, one of the Tribal Territories.

These are photos of people in the camp. Not many people were left since most had been moved to another camp closer to Peshawar.

Below are sewing & literacy classes for girls and women, something they never could have had at home in Bajour. The women were uncovered and very friendly until I took my camera out.

The Pakistan government estimates 190,000 people have been displaced by the fighting but Relief International says it is 300,000.

These people will not be able to return home for a long time. Most houses and farmland have been destroyed. The Pakistan Army says it will take only a few more months to eliminate the rebels. This is not about religion but about uneducated people empowered by drugs, who ravage most of Afghanistan as well as across the border into Pakistan. Al Qaeda is also hiding out in FATA so American drones are bombing certain targets.

Peshawar

Peshawar is not the same as before. People are afraid and you can hear military planes flying over at all hours. I spoke to a guy from UNCHR and he said this is the first time he has seriously starting to consider leaving his own country. He is worried about the future of his children if he stays here. One lady said she used to walk for exercise every day but now she is afraid to go out.

I am staying with Rotarian Zamarud Shah. We have just submitted a Matching Grant application partnering my Rotary Club, Ipswich, with his club, Unitown. The grant is to help a school near Charsadda, closer to FATA (Federally Administer Tribal Agency). It has rooms but no desks or trained teachers. Among the things the grant will provide are a well, washrooms, computers, teacher training, & books. Our partnering organization is DOSTI. We went to one of their better schools today.

A beautiful Day

I brayed at this baby donkey and he thought I was his mother until he saw I only had 2 legs! Had him fooled for a minute...

Photo above left is myself with Shehzad and new Rotarians. Next is Bali, the head of the Kujer Buffalo Project, and a villager. Bali got married on Nov. 22, 2008.

This photo is the villagers cooking the sugarcane water into a thick sweet paste for us to eat.

These are Shehzad & Maimuna's lovely kids!

Maimuna


Shehzad, also known as "ZORO"

We went to Kujer on a lovely day with a clear blue sky! This is something many of us take for granted, but in developing counties often the atmosphere is clouded by smog and dust...

It was a trip with Shehzad & Maimuna Ahmad and their children, plus his father and his brother and sister and their families. The Kujer villagers made us sugar in every form you can imagine. Chewing the juice out of the stalk and drinking the juice were most popular.

Shehzad is not only incoming District Governor for Rotary District 3270, he is also an inspiration to many others to start Rotary Clubs. Representatives from four new clubs came over to shake his hand!

Lunch was served on tables out in the farm field where they had just harvested a fresh crop of sugar cane. This they served to us in numerous ways, all of which were very tasty.

American in Pakistan

Last night I arrived in Pakistan. It is a holiday and things are quiet in Lahore. Only bad news sells so there is always way to much bad news going around!

Today I rode 2 horses at the Lahore Polo ground. Tomorrow morning I will have the honor of an annual visit to Kuger, with the family of Shehzad Ahmed (Rotary District 3270 incoming governor for 2010-2011). Kuger village is the sight of the wonderfully successful Buffalo Project of Lon & Helen Penna. For more info see : http://helenstravels.com/WaterBuffalo.html

I call Shezhad "Zoro" because he is the initiator, organizer & problem solver for so many wonderfully successful profects including my first Matching Grant for Revolutionary Association for the Women of Afghanistan. For info on RAWA see http://www.rawa.org/index.php

For info on Zoro see his club website :

$1,420 collected!

In spite of the worrisome economic situation here in the US, $1,420 has been donated for medicines to assist the displaced people from Bajour. These funds will be transferred immediately from Ipswich Rotary Club to Unitown Peshawar Rotary Club past president Zamarud Shah to arrange for the purchase of wholesale medicines, supplies and transport to the camp new Charsadda.

Latest on suffering of the innocent in northern Pakistan

Pls see this article from the New York Times.

Go to Oct. 1 post if you would like to help these refugees.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/03/world/asia/03pstan.html?_r=1&ei=5070&emc=eta1&oref=slogin

Urgent appeal for refugees in FATA, Pakistan

In war it is always the helpless, poor and the innocent who suffer. These photos are of a newly started refugee camp in desparate need of help. The doctors are from Relief International who are in need of medical supplies to help the displaced people.

Recently I have been recieving urgent pleas for medical supplies for those fleeing the fighting in the tribal areas (Federally Administered Tribal Areas) of northern Pakistan. This is a result of military action in Bajaur, in the border of Pakistan & Afghanistan.

Here is the first email I recieved from Dr. Maria Tsvetkova, of Relief International,via fellow rotarians in Pakistan & Afghanistan, Rotary District 3270.

Here are some of the emails from the Relief International doctor:

Date: Monday, August 25, 2008, 10:29 AM

Dear All,

Over 80,000 displaced residents of Bajaur Agency (FATA)> have arrived in Lower Dir by today. New families keep arriving every day andthe displaced are in need of immediate assistance. Relief International . Relief Pakistan is planning on intervening, first and furthermost via dispatching volunteer doctors / donated medicine and organizing mobile medical clinics on site.

Her next correspondence on the situtation :

Unfortunately, with the end of Ramaddan the military offensive is expected to intensify. The displaced people are counted inthousands and they keep coming, primarily women, children and the elderly. Health is a huge issue but so is water, food, education. We are running themedical clinic in 2-3 camps in various locations trying to respond to themost pressing urgent needs. Very few NGOs are out there due to it being aharsh land with Shariat Law... I visit systematically, undercover... it'stough out there but we will stay as long as we are needed, and it will be,unfortunately, for a while.

and then:

Time is of essence here and these mobile medical clinics are a life line...Just the other day, a spontaneous camp was formed in Lower Dir - twochildren died overnight, due to exhaustion and dehydration - and our cliniccould not make it over there because we were swamped in the other camp. The life of each lost child is heavy on my conscience.

SincerelyMaria Tsvetkova>Country Director / Pakistan>Relief International>House 155, Street 40, F10/4, Islamabad>Tel: +92 51 2298135>Fax: +92 51 2298136>Mobile: +92 301 855 4993>Email: maria.tsvetkova@ri.org>Web: http://www.ri.org/

I am starting an info campaign here and request to have donations checks marked FATA REFUGEES and sent to Ipswich Rotary Club, PO Box 543, Ipswich, MA 01938. Checksare tax deductable (501C) if they are made out to "Ipswich Rotary Charitable Endowment" and marked FATA refugees. These will be collected and wired to theRotary Club of Peshawar Unitown who has a doctor as a member. He will buy wholesale medicines and will deliver them to Maria. I personally will be visiting Charsadda in December so will verify all donations. Rotarians in District 3270 are already mobilizing and they need our help! ! Donations are tax deductable.

Faces of Pakistan Photo Exhibition

OPEN HOUSE
Fri. Sept. 12, 6-8pm
The Hamilton Athletic Club
300 Main St. Wenham (978) 468-1931

These portraits are faces of people from a variety of locations and walks of life in Pakistan. They are vibrant, friendly and peaceful. Their country is a place full of history, beauty, spontaneity, art, talent, politics, elegance, freedom & chaos.

Only a quarter of all children in Pakistan finish 6th grade. In the northern regions of Pakistan, ignorance has given way to violence. Education is the answer to these problems. Rotary in your area is launching an Adopt-a-School Program to help people of these troubled regions similar to Greg Mortenson of “Three Cups of Tea”. Through The Rotary Foundation grants and partner clubs in Pakistan, we can multiply our original funds by 3.5. We can fight terrorism by fighting ignorance with the International Family of Rotary around the world.

Meet Rachel Williams, District Literacy Program Coordinator 07-09 & Photographer
Tele: 978-372-1106 email: rachfit@mindspring.com

Contribution can be made out to Rotary District 7930,
Note on the check ‘Adopt-A-School’
Mail to: 83 School St. Groveland, MA

Rachel will leave for her annual trip to Pakistan in early Dec.

Sept. 11 7th anniversay

This is what I have been giving out at my presentations this week :

Rotary District 7930
Literacy: NOW more than ever!

Every day this second week of Sept.’08 is International Literacy Day. Literacy is directly related to peace. Ignorance and poverty anywhere endangers and threatens us everywhere. An increase in education levels world wide give us a better chance for peace on earth. Rotarians are in a position to make a difference in the world now more than at any other time in history.

Our community schools are making do with ever shrinking funds. When students don’t get the help they need in our public schools they become marginalized. Their grades slip along with their future. This directly affects our projected increase in the national crime rate for the next decade. The better our schools are, the less crime we have in our neighborhoods.

When parents don’t know the importance of pre-literacy their children become less teachable. US prisons forecast future crime rates through the literacy of children in kindergarten.

Our international scene is dominated by war in a vacuum of dialogue and education. In many parts of the world there are no schools &/or schools are a propaganda machine. In these places PolioPlus is not successful.

Of the worlds 6 billion people, 25% are illiterate. 70% of these people are in 10 countries, 7 of which are Muslim. Lack of education and opportunity breed ignorance and misunderstanding. We, of the International Family of Rotary, can change this. The key to peace and understanding is education.


Presentation by Rachel Williams ’08-‘09
District Literacy Program Coordinator
rachfit@mindspring.com 978-374-1106

Please help build Kalusha School for Girls in Northern Pakistan

Kalusha Girls High School
is to be built 50 miles from Peshawar,
20 miles from Charsadda and 10 miles
from the tribal area of northern Pakistan.

The school will be built and run by the
Dosti Foundation which already
has 18 schools in the area. This
organization is headed up in Pakistan by Rotarian (past-president of Peshawar Unitown) Zamarud Shah. Zamarud Shah is a Pakistani-American Philanthropist who has moved back to his old country in retirement to help Dosti.

There are no other girl’s high schools in the area for 9 miles on either side so it is important to have one located in this area. This school will facilitate the education for a minimum of 300 girls. It will cost $72,000 to build and will also include a primary school for 250 children since the local school nearby is very overcrowded. The building will have the first sanitation facilities in the area and will include this aspect in its education curriculum.

Rotary donations checks are tax deductable and can be made out to Ipswich Rotary Club (pls note Pakistan girls school on check) and send to the club at PO Box 543, Ipswich, MA 01938

For more info about Dosti see :
http://www.dosti.org/

Helping Burma

The tragedy in Burma is beyond belief. Even more incomprehensible is the manner in which the government of Burma is hindering relief efforts.

Actually, if you know about this government you will not be surprised. Not only do they shoot their own people, they shoot their people’s monks! Plus, I have met government ministers from Asia who have met their counterparts in the Burma military junta and they say that the individuals know nothing about what their posting is supposed to do. They live in their own vacuum and have even built their own new city to live in outside of Rangoon.

The best ways to help with the present tragedy to find ways that involve minimal contact with the terrible people who operate as the government. Anything that is flown in and has connections with USA or UK will not get far. Avoid newly created contacts with the country as this will mean greater involvement with the government and greater likelihood the donations will sit in Rangoon &/or end up as property of those in the junta. Avoid Christian faith based organizations as Burma is a deeply Buddhist country and they don’t need someone else’s religion pushed upon them...

Doctors Without Borders has had a presence in the delta region for years and is doing huge work! Look them up and contribute at
http://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/news/report.cfm?id=2689

The Monks are the locals doing most of the work to help people of the delta. You can contribute to this fund by going through the Mahasatipatthana Meditation Center of Malden which is linked to the Amercia Burma Buhhdist Association website at http://www.mahasiusa.org/

I visited the country a couple of times and fell in love with it. What wonderful people! After the election of Aung San Su Kyi I told my family to send money so we could buy a place in Burma. This all changed with the military crackdown after the election. For inkling on what it must be like to live in Burma, read “Finding George Orwell in Burma”.

Three Cups of Tea : Greg Mortenson

"THE CUPS OF TEA"

If you haven't read this book, please do the world a favor and do so ASAP!
Another story of how it is up to the grassroots organizations to build WORLD PEACE!
We can see what happens when it is left up to governments....


#1 New York Times & Boston Globe Besteller
Three Cups of Tea
One Man’s Mission to Promote Peace...One School At A Time
By Greg Mortenson and David Oliver RelinVIKING Hardcover 2006 / PENGUIN Paperback 2007

“Three Cups of Tea is one of the most remarkable adventure stories of our time. Greg Mortenson’s dangerous and difficult quest to build schools in the wildest parts of Pakistan and Afghanistan is not only a thrilling read, it’s proof that one ordinary person, with the right combination of character and determination, really can change the world.” -Tom Brokaw

"A stunningly simple story of how to make peace" -Bloomsbury Review
"Fascinating...one only hopes U.S. policymakers read Mortenson's book" -Philadelphia Inquirer

"Astonishing tale of compassion - and of promise kept" -Time Magazine Asia Book of the Year

"Laced with drama, danger, romance, and good deeds" -Christian Science Monitor

see http://www.threecupsoftea.com/Intro.php