.:: SAMAA - Sindh dismantles refugee camps

By Arbab Chandio

KARACHI: After threats from a nationalist party, the Sindh government decided to remove the camps it set up for the expected refugees arriving from Swat to Karachi.

The camp was set up in Gadap Town but none of the internally displaced people from the northern areas had decided to approach it so far.

The strike called by the Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz and other nationalist parties was for the most part successful across Sindh Monday.

Some towns were half closed but some cities were had a complete shutter-down and wheel jam strike.

Business and schools were closed in Hyderabad, Sukkur, Larkana, Nawabshah, Khairpur and Kandh Kot.

A clash between the police and activists of some parties was also reported along with aerial firing. Some people were arrested. The police held a flag march to reassure the citizenry that security was on high alert.

KARACHI PARTIALLY SHUT

The Muttahida Qaumi Movement distanced itself from the strike called by the Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz's Aresa faction but Karachi city was partially shut nonetheless.

Home Minister Zulfiqar Mirza said any troublemakers would be shot on sight.

Schools were closed and public transport thin. People stayed at home as there was violence on Saturday.

NWFP UNHAPPY WITH REACTION

The NWFP has already angrily reacted to Sindh’s decision to limit the Swat homeless arriving at its doorstep to its border with the Punjab.

“Pakistan is no one’s fiefdom,” declared NWFP minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain at a press conference. “The people leaving their homes have made a sacrifice for Pakistan. They should be welcomed with open hearts.”

The Sindh government decision came Saturday when Karachi was virtually shut in a strike called by some nationalist parties and backed by coalition partner, the MQM, against the influx of the refugees.

Late Friday night, the ruling PPP and MQM decided that the refugees had to be stopped at the border and prevented from melting into the city. The MQM’s Dr Farooq Sattar told SAMAA that the IDPs would be kept in camps at Kashmore, Kandh Kot and Ghotki. Those who have reached Karachi would be moved to a Gadap Town camp. They will be searched by the police and then distributed according to their national identity cards.

The strike was not just for Karachi, but the Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz [Long Live Sindh National Front] said it must be held across the province against the refugees.

UGLY MOOD

The night before 13 buses were set on fire to make the point that the IDPs were not welcome.

At least three people were killed and seven were reported injured. Men from certain political groups went around forcing markets, shops and petrol pumps to close. Depending on the ethno-linguistic demographic, areas such as Guru Mandir, Patel Para, Teen Hutti, Kharadar, Tariq Road, New Karachi, Garden, Shoe Market, Lea Market, Ayesha Manzil, Shah Faisal Colony and Gulistan-e Johar were ‘tense’, the size-fits-all adjective that is understood to mean aerial firing, goons in the streets stopping cars, tyre burning and the creation of an atmosphere where it’s best to stay at home unless you want to be hit by a stray bullet. The police did, however, arrest six men and the paramilitary rangers four.

On Friday morning, a camp for the internally displaced people from Swat set up in Karachi's Manghopir was uprooted, prompting the government to send in the police to protect it along with staff to set it back up again.

Sindh Advisor Sharmeela Farooqui, who was sent to fix the problem, said that it was beyond her comprehension why someone would do this. By about 4pm, however, they were working on restoring the infrastructure.

The Sindh government has set up a camp over 40 acres at the Toll Plaza on the highway where it plans to register IDPs and provide them with relief and aid. Camps have been set up in Kandhkot, Kashmore and Ubauro as well. Farooqui said that she was aware that some IDPs were sent back from Kandhkot after waiting there six hours. She said that they probably didn't have the right documentation with them.

Some political parties have been apprehensive about the arrival of the internal refugees from the north. There is a fear that Karachi will face an influx as it did when the Afghan war happened. Farooqui acknowledged this and said that people were afraid a drug and guns culture would spread. But she assured that the IDPs would be sent back to Swat once peace returned.

JUST REGISTER

Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah said that his provincial government was only ensuring the registration of the internally displaced persons.

He visited a camp at Risalpur on Saturday accompanied by NWFP Chief Minister Amir Haider Hoti. “The people of Sindh are good hosts like the people of the NWFP. The IDPs are not being stopped from entering Sindh. The whole nation is with the affected people of Swat and Malakand,” he added.

SAMAA