Bach Christian Hospital Qalandarabad May 2006

Dr Luke is a 3rd generation Pakistan worker, born in Pakistan and the Director of the Bach Christian Hospital, as well as its chief surgeon. The administrator is Peter Massey.


Whilst the earthquake area may look like a war zone, said Dr Luke ‘It is not like a war. All the damage was done in just 90 seconds.’ The hospital was able to help with initial injuries, but now continuous care is needed for the long haul. All the earthquake affectees were given a package of shelter (tent), blankets/ quilts, plastic ground sheet, provisions and cooking utensils – in order to be able to return to their village

Co-ordination is a big issue. A lot of Christian groups have been using Bach as a base. The hospital has to focus and ensure its ongoing work continues. Matthew heads up the special task force need to wait out winter, before can start the reconstruction The hospital is currently looking at the availability of a house in the local town as a Hospitality Centre for international volunteers. An example of good co-operation is the local mosque providing food for patients for 3 months.

In order for there to be co-ordination there needs to be good communication, Dr Luke lamented the fact that he has not been able to even log on to the Team website to check on the donations that have come in for the work,



CMS ex-mission partner, Dr Ruth Coggan returned to Bach, out of her retirement, shortly after the earthquake to help in whatever way possible so that the hospital could respond to the earthquake victims. Taking up the less complex tasks as she put it, she has so far performed 14 Caesareans! ‘We need helpers but people who can do a specific task and hopefully can speak the language’

More Earthquake updates

Mike, Project leader in Lahore 13 October 2005

There is confusion among some friends as to how I'm involved in the effort from Lahore when the affected area is in Islamabad and up north. My responsibility is to resource the relief effort, as much as possible, from Lahore aimed primarily at two Christian hospitals in the north that are in the disaster struck area. This is the immediate work I am involved in. The long term hope is to be engaged for years to come in Kashmir and northern Pakistan with a Kingdom perspective.

As you pray for our nation please pray against the spirit of greed and turning a quick buck that has gripped suppliers of goods and transport services. Prices for items like tents, blankets, medical supplies and even essential eatables have risen sharply and transportation has skyrocketed. Trucks are not available and the few that are ask for exorbitant prices. We are having to pay three times the normal and it hurts in more than one way. Unfortunately, such is human nature but as you pray I am sure God will make it possible for us to meet with men of peace who will be of assistance to us.
Tomorrow night (Friday) we will receive and send our first shipment of tents to one of the Christian hospitals up north for distribution to the victims. Our distribution is non-sectarian and almost all of those being helped are Muslims. Please pray for the shipment to arrive at the hospital safely and for effective distribution to take place.

Yvonne, English woman in Peshawar Friday, October 14, 2005

There is still a big need for more helicopters and  good weather. The Gov estimates 2 million homeless and 1 million in urgent need of help. All around Peshawar are "camps" set up by different organisations to collect goods - blankets, food, clothes etc - and money, it is clear that there is a great desire by everyone at every level to do something to help. One of my colleagues was telling us this morning how his wife said she did not want to watch any more news about the earthquake on the television - but then she donated for the victims two new pieces of good cloth that he knew she really liked and was planning to make into suits for herself. (And she will need new clothes for the end of Ramazan.) I think this grassroots feeling, among people who don't have much surplus themselves, is very strong.
I know of a couple of organisations who have sent their own vehicles in with some aid and to check on colleagues in the affected area. Several NGOs here are making surveys and putting together plans. Unfortunately many mountain roads that had been cleared of landslides became clogged with large lorries which are too heavy for the terrain, rented privately to send aid in. The church of some of my local colleagues is collecting goods and money but they are waiting until next week to check what the needs are in an area where little help is being sent. They were aiming to collect mainly from the chr community and were surprised how many from the majority also gave to them - maybe they are more respected locally than they realise.

Yvonne in Peshawar Sunday, October 16, 2005

The BBC now reports 38,000 dead and still rising, 60,000 injured, many of whom are exposed to the elements, with more rain this weekend grounding relief flights (it even rained heavily down here), and an estimate of 3.5 million homeless. It is hard not to feel very helpless. I just read about the loss of one helicopter and its crew because of the bad weather.
At the meeting this morning there was some news of what some Peshawar-based int'al NGOs are doing. 2 NGOs are working together through Bach C. Hospital, probably to get more aid to Garri Hajibullah hospital. The meeting took up a special collection for Bach. Another organisation was talking about Habitat for Humanity who are working on longer term plans for rebuilding homes. They are asking for SHORT TERM VOLUNTEERS (3 - 6 months?) with some knowledge of the culture and preferably some language, people who have been here previously - probably men - to help in this work.

I believe the Government is also planning to set up IDP camps for the homeless - including some in this area. They are desperate for tents, blankets etc. There are no tents left in Pakistan, and the Govt has lifted the import tax on them. They are appealing for tents to be donated and sent to Dubai where PIA would collect them.

Ahmad in Kabul Afghanistan Sun Oct 16

Yes, the earthquake changed things so dramatically in such a short time, which is unbelievable - so much loss and damage.... Some people here believe it is the cost of sin, but I do not know what is the truth from this point of view.  What will be your comment?  I just read that the infiltration still continue and has not stopped despite all this.... Anyway, " Mullah Nasruddin was asked, what is doomsday? He replied there are two doomsdays, small and big.... When my wife dies, it is a small one and when I die, it will be a big one” Is Mullah N. right?!

Update from CMS London 17th Oct

We are able to support medical relief work and have people associated with CMS in the area. MP Nigel has been seconded to Tearfund in Islamabad to coordinate relief work into Bagh and Dr. Ruth is returning to Bach Christian Hospital for three months. If anyone would like to donate through CMS the money can bee used to support these two people and the work they are associated with and also Kunhar Christian Hospital which is quite close to the epicentre. There will be plenty of after care needed and Church World Services Pakistan/Islamabad are already drawing up a trauma counselling programme. There will be many opportunities to explain why Christians are helping in the months to come that CMS can help to support.

To live and to die for - Kabul - Nov 2003

We did a project visit and it was great to see the chowkidar (watchman) from my old Office in Peshawar - He had been a medical student then and was doing night shifts to support his study. Now some 5 years later he is a doctor and running a basic health clinic and a small hospital for women and children in Kabul. It is very impressive work and he has a lovely 'spirit' to him.

I was told about Pul-e-Charki, the last main check post on the road from Jelalabad, before you get to Kabul. The same NGO has run a basic medical clinic there for years, all during the fighting. Apparently Coalition forces were doing live target practice on a range there and 4 children, who strayed onto the range, were accidentally killed. Both the community and the military were devastated and they offered to make amends in some way. After discussion with community elders, it was agreed that they would build a small kindergarten and a secondary school, plus a medical clinic for the community. They kept their word.

The community then insisted that this same NGO run the clinic since they were the only ones who had demonstrated any commitment to them over the past few years. It is being opened as a mother and child clinic.

So it was both a vote of confidence from the community and an example of hope thriving in the midst of despair - of good coming out of awful and evil situations.

I haven't seen many UK International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) troops here so far. At present Canada is taking the lead but I did meet some of the Finnish troops. They were amazed to meet a Finnish lady who has been here 26 years working with an NGO. Her commitment impressed them no end. She was taking us on a brief 'tour' to the British Cemetery. It had been tidied up for Remembrance Sunday last week  and was looking very neat and green, especially after the rain.

I saw the grave of the Dutch/Finnish couple who had been murdered about 20 years ago resulting of the withdrawal of the whole NGO team in protest. There were other expats:   a Danish explorer, a British pilot; Czech, Polish, German, an Italian cyclist who had died in Kandahar  - There were also hippies, who had been in the ‘Dilaram House’ run by Floyd McClung in the 1970s. It was more of an International 'Christian' cemetery, than a British one and well reflected the international expatriate community in Kabul.
There was also one wall with gravestones from British troops, who had died during the second Afghan War in the 1870's – recently restored by current UK troops on duty in Afghanistan. And the opposite wall had memorial plaques to the troops of ISAF,  who had died as peacekeepers over the past 2 years. Including the Spanish troops whose plane crashed and the Germans, whose helicopter had been brought down, as they were leaving the country, on their way ‘home’ after a tour of peace-keeping duty.
 
It certainly makes you think - about people’s lives and what they stand for! And also what we live for and what are we prepared to die for?  

From your own correspondent

Kabul November 2003