This article talks about the neglected part of socio-psychological rehabilitation of victims of floods and other natural hazards in Gilgit-Baltistan and Pakistan.
This year, floods have wreaked havoc across Pakistan. Like the rest of the country, the signs of the recent flood in different parts of Gilgit-Baltistan still remind us of the scenes of the apocalypse.
The nature of the flood and its impact in mountainous areas is different from the plain areas. Unlike Sindh and Punjab, floods in Gilgit-Baltistan are caused by lightning, glacier outbursts, and river overflow. A huge mass of debris consisting of boulders, sediments, mud, and broken trees descends on the valleys from the top of the mountain. It takes away everything on its way, destroying human settlements, and agricultural land. Contrary to the plains, the damaged land cannot be used again for centuries to come. Furthermore, the flooding is so fast that most people seldom are lucky to escape.
After the recent devastating floods in Gilgit-Baltistan, the rescue work was initially slow. However, the relief work in later days has been commendable which is still going on. It is hoped the relief work will continue with the same zeal and zest.
After flooding, the main task of the government and concerned institutions is the resettlement and rehabilitation of the affected. This is a daunting task for government agencies and local communities, requiring both skill and resources to overcome. In the context of mountainous areas, rehabilitation includes the provision of land and reconstruction of houses for displaced people as the most basic and fundamental requirement. Let’s hope the government will not leave any stone unturned in the construction of 418 completely and 252 partially destroyed houses in G-B along with restoration of the infrastructure.
Let’s also hope the government does not repeat the treatment meted out to the victims of Attabad, Hunza in the 2010 tragedy. The victims of the Attabad tragedy are still living miserable life in temporary camps.
The most important part of the rehabilitation process is the socio-psychological rehabilitation of the victims. Unfortunately, this important part is overlooked in the whole process. In other words, along with rebuilding the physical infrastructure, the socio-psychological rehabilitation of the victims is essential. Unfortunately, the socio-psychological rehabilitation and connected mental issues developed after every natural disaster have been neglected. Thanks to ignorance on part of policymakers, the neglect of the psychological part of rehabilitation have been a fundamental cause of multiple other related mental issues among the victims of natural disasters.
A person’s house, settlement, neighborhood, or village where his/her ancestors lived are not only the houses, walls, and streets made of stone and mud. They all have rather a deep psychological and spiritual connection stored in the memories of the victims from generation to generation. Their destruction, all of a sudden, comes as a severe mental and psychological shock to the inhabitants with deeply associated memories and emotions.
The feelings of these victims can only be understood by those who have gone through similar trauma. Recently, an elderly man in the flood-hit valley of Buber in the Ghizer district of Gilgit-Baltistan did not leave his home despite being warned of the flood possibility. For him, it was pointless to stay alive if his house was destroyed. The old man later died along with many other members of his family as all of a sudden flood engulfed the whole area. His body has not been found yet.
According to experts, mental health problems are two to three times more common among victims of natural disasters. The victims feel pain and distress when they remember their lost houses, streets, and villages. Every moment is indescribable and unforgettable for them. This is called a post-traumatic disorder.
Israruddin Israr
The victims of post-traumatic disorder usually include women, children, the poor, the elderly, ethnic, people belonging to linguistic and other minorities, single people, families, or people who have lost their loved ones. They also include homeless people, people already suffering from mental illnesses, weak-hearted people, and those who have lost their jobs. Unemployed, drug addicts, people rejected from home and society, and the volunteers who devote themselves to helping people with mutual disabilities and accidents are also affected by post-traumatic disorder.
Experts divide the situation after the occurrence of natural disasters into four phases i.e. Heroic phase, the honeymoon phase, the disappointment phase, and the recovery phase
1. Heroic Phase
The initial phase of any natural disaster is called the heroic phase. This is the initial one-week time when people from the vicinity rush to rescue disaster-hit areas. The people from the immediate surrounding perform heroic acts of saving lives, transporting the injured to hospitals, delivering food, removing debris, performing funerary rituals, and moving people to safe places.
2. Honeymoon phase
The second stage is called the honeymoon phase. In this phase, people from the immediate surrounding and far away reach out to the victims with food and other relief items such as beds, tents, donations, and all kinds of equipment, greeting them and taking pictures. People belonging to the government, political, parties, rights and welfare organizations, media, and independent medical teams reach the spot. The relief supplies and donations collected through setting up relief camps at various places and campaigns start coming. This overwhelming support distracts the victims temporarily from the tragedy they have gone through. The victims seem to forget their pain and sorrow. This phase lasts two to three weeks.
3. Phase of disillusionment
The third stage of natural disasters is disillusionment when the rush of people begins to diminish. The whole world gets busy in their routine life. People start getting distracted from victims. Politicians stop visiting, and the media, administration, and welfare agencies lose attention. Shadows of despair begin to hover over the victims’ heads. Aid supplies are exhausted. People are making baseless accusations against each other regarding the unfair distribution of relief goods.
Rulers complained about ignoring the victims. In such a situation, people who work with real passion are left behind. Now the victims realize that the sympathies they had were all temporary. At this time, the victims begin to realize the magnitude and depth of the accident. Then they start to think that what happened to them was terrible. This stage lasts from one to six months which seriously affects the mental health of these victims.
Here onwards they start to remember moments of the disaster as nightmares when they had met with tragedy. The feeling of regret of being a victim starts creating serious psychological and mental problems for the victims. They find themselves in such a state of mind characterized by not being able to control their emotions. They feel as if they are suffering from a mental illness, and their attraction to drugs increases. They start to lose interest in life and death seems good for them thus suicidal thoughts begin to appear for which they have the rationale of uncontrollable emotions.
The phase of disillusionment is the stage when the victims are in desperate need of psycho-social rehabilitation. Developed nations make a comprehensive plan for this phase with the help of experts on a scientific basis.
In the context of Gilgit-Baltistan, little effort has been made by non-governmental organizations to help disaster hit people in the disillusionment phase. This little effort is also without proper planning leading to the achievement of desired results. During this phase, there is a need for the government and relevant institutions to establish continuous contact with the victims to arrange counseling, therapies, and various types of healthy activities for the victims.
One of the reasons behind the increasing number of suicides case in Gilgit-Baltistan is major mental health problems associated with natural calamities. Where mental illness breeds despair, it also promotes domestic violence and other crimes.
4. Recovery phase
If the first 6 months of the despair phase are handled well, then the final phase called the recovery phase begins and lasts from one to two years. When the affected person is helped to come out of the first three phases, he/she could be considered to have reached the recovery stage. From here onwards, he/she is expected to live his/her life like before.
At present, there is no policy at the national level to help map out an effective strategy with reference to the socio-psychological rehabilitation of flood-affected people. However, it can be started in a small and sparsely populated region like Gilgit-Baltistan. It is imperative that the G-B government works with key development stakeholders to make the rehabilitation plan for its flood-affected people. In this connection, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) has presented recommendations in its meetings with different stakeholders in Gilgit-Baltistan. On the top of the agenda of these meetings was the proposal to develop a response mechanism in the context of human rights in regions hit by natural disasters. Nevertheless, no significant progress has been seen at the official level in this regard so far since then.
Dadi Jawari Public Policy Center can make a mechanism or formulate a comprehensive policy in this regard. Similarly, until a solid policy is formulated, different stakeholders i.e. Gilgit-Baltistan Disaster Management Authority (GBDMA), Social Welfare Department GB, health department GB, and Aga Khan Health Service can jointly work together to make an action plan with regard to socio-psychological rehabilitation and its implementation. Such intervention seems to be the only way forward to effectively deal with mental health issues and mitigate their adverse impact in the long run in Gilgit-Baltistan.
The writer is a renown journalist and human rights activist from Gilgit-Baltistan
