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Tens of thousands will be left injured and an estimated two million people will be homeless. Near the epicenter in the city of Muzaffarabad, many of the city‘s 600,000 residents are now sleeping in the cold. A sports stadium is being used to house the homeless, care for survivors and distribute food and water. Tens of thousands of others are moving in massive columns of refugees to seek aid and shelter. This calamity has once again tested the generosity of Canadians, who of late have been asked to give and give more. The past 12 months have been shocking in terms of the number of tragic natural disasters, and Canadians have been incredibly generous in responding. While much of the media below the 49th were musing about donor fatigue in the wake of the latest disaster, Canadian newspapers and radio were covering wonderful and immense acts of charity. One of the most amazing collection drives was conducted by the Surrey-based Radio India. Popular and controversial Radio hosts Gurpreet Singh and Sukhminder Cheema, held round-the clock telethons. The station collected close to one million dollars within 32 hours! Another South Asian station, Shera Punjab raked in some $400,000. Most of the givers were Canadians with roots in India. Most of the dead and injured were in the Pakistan-controlled region of Kashmir. But there was no talk about the bitter India-Pakistan territorial dispute that has been going on for many years. “Everyone gave,“ said Cheema. ”There were Punjabis, Sikhs, Muslims, Gujaratis, Tamils, Chinese….and when the mainstream media like the CBC and The Province began covering the drive even more money came in.“ Pakistan‘s Surrey-based Trade Consul Shahid Yusuf, chair of the Pakistan Earthquake Relief Committee, described the response as “unbelievable.” The total private and government aid, as a result of thousands of selfless acts from coast to coast, is expected to surpass $20 million. We in Canada do not only live in the best country on the planet. We have also been sheltered from the calamities that have plagued the world. For that we give thanks. And there is no better way of giving thanks than by helping others in their time of need. | ||||
