University students and faculty are working to publicize the relief effort for victims of widespread flooding in rural Pakistan, which has displaced some 20 million people and has left more than 1,500 individuals dead.
During a panel discussion Monday evening discussing the Pakistani disaster, Politics Prof. John Echeverri-Gent said flooding is expected to continue until October, which will cause considerable damage during planting season. This is especially detrimental for Pakistan, where the agricultural sector represents 20.8 percent of its national gross domestic product.
Echeverri-Gent said the magnitude of damage in Pakistan is much larger than that of the earthquake in Haiti, both in terms of those affected - 17 million more individuals - and the impact on the economy.
"I think that by those measures, there is much greater need than there is in Haiti, which is not to say there wasn't great need, but it is to say that the problems in Pakistan shouldn't be ignored due to a 'foreign aid fatigue,'" he said.
The disaster largely remains under the radar, as compared to the earthquake in Haiti, because of its lack of proximity to the United States and its less-than-welcoming stance toward foreign journalists.
Political suspicions surrounding Pakistan-U.S. relations, Echeverri-Gent said, also may play a role in the lack of attention the flooding has received.
"I think that people are scared to give money because they feel that it would be going to a terrorist organization," second-year College student Nabilah Jiwani said. "What they fail to realize is that there are humans who live there."
Fourth-year College student Saamia Noorali said some of the most catastrophic effects of flooding are not often felt until weeks after it begins. She noted that one-fifth of the country is still underwater, and water levels in some places have reached six feet.
"There are so many waterborne illnesses that the effect doesn't take place right away," she said. "The health effects of floods can last six weeks after the water [recedes]."
Noorali, who was born in Pakistan, founded Hoos for Pakistan Flood Relief. The group is working with other student organizations to promote relief efforts at the University. Noorali said the organization will work with Student Entrepreneurs for Economic Development and Second Year Council to sell Silly Bandz bracelets shaped in the letters "PK," the proceeds from which will be sent to relief organizations.
Kappa Alpha Theta sorority will offer support, and FedEx will provide 100 boxes of flood supplies to be delivered for free.
The group also will host a benefit concert Sept. 30 featuring groups such as the Academical Village People, Virginia Belles and Ektaal - the University's South Asian a cappella group.
Noorali said that limited news coverage for the disaster has not entirely hurt the organization's cause. She said students tend to be more receptive precisely because it is not being shown on the news, adding that they are "slowly but surely" building a base of support.
"Even if the media isn't giving it attention, University students still feel the social responsibility to care," she said.
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