Sindh na Khappay?

Sindh na Khappay?

By Syed Fayyaz Hassan

The Bhola Cyclone in 1970 sowed the seeds of a new homeland for the devastated and death-stricken people of then East Pakistan. Thirty million people were displaced, thousands lost their lives, and countless were left to themselves, hoping the state would come to their help, while they were told many times that the state functions as a mother.

The state then sided with powerful West Pakistan, dominated by the Punjabi elite, who had other priorities to worry about.

Fifty-two years later, it is Pakistan again, and this time it is Sindh and Baluchistan, which are inundated with floods of biblical proportions. Thirty-five million people are displaced, millions of acres are underwater, lives and livelihoods have perished, water-borne diseases are pervasive, and hopes are dying for the rural poor.

Striking similarity? Punjab is busy with the most incredibleshow on earth as its priorities cannot be postponed for the people of Sindh and Baluchistan. When soldiers and rangers need to help the flood victims, they are called to protect the throne under the consistent threat of a long march. While the castles are being fortified and the attacking forces are sharpening their swords and arrows, Sindh and Baluchistan are not part of this game.

The message is very loud and clear, “Sindh na Khappay, and Pakistan’s resources are better spent or stay in Punjab while the rural poor of Sindh are not worth our attention.”

A few years ago, the Sindh Chief Minister was ridiculed for preparing for Covid, as it hit Karachi before it spread into Punjab. However, the lockdown in Karachi was resisted fearing that the country’s revenues could slide downward. As a result, we never heard of a national strategy on Covid until it hit Punjab’s urban areas.

We still have the flood of a historic proportion in Sindh with no rehabilitation strategy for thirty-five million people. Meanwhile, Punjab is enjoying the hustle and bustle of daily life. Battle for the “Takht e Lahore” is one grand show of entertainment for the privileged of Lahore and Islamabad.

The game of throne, where the conquest of Islamabad and preparation of legions from Punjab and KPK remain the main entertainment show on TV and social media. While the 35million flood victims struggle against death and destruction,Punjab’s amusement show cannot be stopped by the devastating flood in other provinces.

As it looks, political parties remain indifferent to the flood and the miseries it brought to the people. Imran Khan, reportedlyloading relief items from one truck into twenty trucks, providesa glaring example of insensitivity that takes us back to the memories of then East Pakistan, where the insulting attitude toward Bengalis became a norm.

While Khan is raising billions in the name of flood relief, mainly to sponsor his Punjab rallies, the federal government has found another opportunity for foreign donations. The current situation in Sindh is providing an excellent begging bowl to Pakistan.

The rescheduling of Pakistan’s debt is not a flood relief effort. The needs of flood victims in Sindh are different than duty-free imports of 6000 cc cars for the establishment or spending $450 million on buying spare parts for the American F-16 fighter jets.

If the money is not targeted for rehabilitation projects for theflood victims, who are out in the open without help from anywhere, then it should not be called a flood relief effort. Sindhis must not be taken as sacrificial lambs for Punjab’s arm-wrestling political elites.

By saying “Pakistan khappay” in the aftermath of the assassination of their most beloved leader in 2007, Sindh’s political leadership was assuring its loyalty to the state.However, the ruling junta in Islamabad is conveying acontrasting slogan this time, “Sindh na khappay.”

In a different time and space, of course, while the Bhola Cyclone sowed the seed of Bangladesh in 1971, are we trying to isolate another province further today?