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URI Group in Pakistan Receives President's Award for Earthquake Relief |
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Written by Muhammad Ijaz Noori
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Sunday, 20 May 2007 |
The Pakistan Council for Social Welfare
& Human Rights, a Cooperation Circle of URI, received a President's Award from the Government of Pakistan to acknowledge its splendid efforts for immediate relief and rehabilitation for victims of the October 8th earthquake.
On October 8, 2005, a massive earthquake, one of the largest natural disasters of Pakistani history, destroyed the beauty of Azad Jammu & Kashmir, which is called paradise on the Earth. Thousands of buildings collapsed in the worst affected districts of Muzafarabad, Bagh, Neelam valley and Rawalakot. Independent observers claimed that there was a loss of more than 80 thousand human lives and that there were tens of thousands more injuries as well as expensive damages of property in AJK and NWFP.
At that crucial time, like several other National and International organizations, the Pakistan Council for Social Welfare & Human Rights (PCSW&HR) took initiative and performed many activities for the relief and rehabilitation of Earthquake victims with the financial assistance of different National and International donors. They collaborated with Youth Groups, philanthropists, and other organizations to collect and distribute millions of rupees worth of goods, including food, blankets, medicines, children’s toys, clothes, drinking water, and other necessities.
They also established seven temporary tent villages around Pakistan for families that had lost their homes in the earthquake They wanted to make sure that these families had immediate shelter so that they would be protected from weather, like severe cold, snow, and rain.
Once the temporary well-being of the victims was taken care of, PCSW&HR distributed 500 CGI sheets in Nakker Tehsil Dheer Kot. These were distributed among 30 families so that they could build permanent shelters using material that had been saved from the earthquake. In addition to this, they provided 58 permanent shelters in Kari Kotli, 145 Permanent Shelters in Bermong Rawalakot that included kitchens and bathrooms, and another 80 permanent shelters in Akhorban Rawalakot.
While implementing all of these projects for the rehabilitation of earthquake victims,' PCSW&HR has ensured community participation at all levels and has promoted work on a self help basis. During the rehabilitation projects, PCSW&HR also arranged several orientation workshops at various locations of AJK in the earthquake hit areas for the local community, youth groups, village based volunteer groups. These workshops looked at conflict resolution, problem analysis and solutions, needs’ assessments, team building, self-sustainability, etc, to build the capacity of community. PCSW&HR is also planning to launch others projects for community empowerment, which will include skill training for women, vocational trainings for men etc.
PCSW&HR also established 2 mini children’s parks in Bermong, hoping that by providing these recreation facilities, the effected children may find relief from such a traumatizing situation.
PCSW&HR is also going to establish a very big Public PARK at Neela Butt Tehsil Dheer Kot with the collaboration of Jewlers Association Sialkot and the Goverment of AJK. The foundation stone of this park has been laid out by HE Sardar Attique Ahmed Khan, Prime Minster of the Government of AJ&K. The Prime Minister has announced that the Government will extend this park once there has been an extension of land area with provisions for wild life and other codes to make sure it meets the standards of a national park.
Acknowledging the above mentioned humble efforts and activities for the rehabilitation and reconstruction of the homes and lives of earthquake victims in different parts of Azad Jammu & Kashmir, the Government of AJK in Pakistan has awarded PCSW&HR the Presidential Award during the Humanitarian Conference held on May 7, 2007. Mr. Muhammad Ijaz Noori, Chairman of the Pakistan Council for Social Welfare & Human Rights, received the Presidential Award on behalf of PCSW&HR. During this conference, about 150 National and International Organizations, UN Departments, Pakistan Army Generals, Prominent Media Persons and others who performed their services for the relief and rehabilitation of earthquake victims at earthquake hit areas, were also awarded Presidential Awards.
President AJK His Excellency Raja Zulqarnain, His Excellency Sardar Muhammad Abdul Qayyum Khan, Saudi Ambassador, Deputy Chairman ERRA Lt. Gen. Nadeem applauded the efforts and presented the salute to all organizations and departments for their splendid and extraordinary efforts for the relief and rehabilitation of earthquake victims without discriminating at all on the basis of religion, race and area, but rather working purely on humanitarian grounds. At the ocean of the Humanitarian Conference, the National Flags of 25 countries were hoisted by the Government of AJ&K to officially acknowledge the services of those who have performed splendid efforts for the rehabilitation of earthquake victims and of those who still work for the rehabilitation of earthquake victims in earthquake hit areas of AJ&K.
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