MUZAFFARABAD/SRINAGAR, 9 October 2006 — Pakistan’s President Gen. Pervez Musharraf led a somber memorial service yesterday in Azad Kashmir to mark the first anniversary of a massive earthquake that killed more than 73,000 people as survivors of the disaster feared another harsh winter in makeshift shelters.
In India, the first anniversary of the earthquake was marked by prayers, commemorative functions and protests. The earthquake left more than 1,300 dead, over 6,600 people injured and destroyed thousands of homes in Indian Kashmir.
Musharraf said he had ordered authorities to probe complaints of corruption by reconstruction officials, and announced that the government would write off loans that survivors had taken out to rebuild their homes.
“Those who died cannot be brought back, but I assure you that we will give you a better life. I also thank the international community and all the countries that helped us,” added the military ruler, who shunned his usual army uniform for a traditional Pakistani smock and trousers. “It is good thing the president has acknowledged that corruption exists,” shopkeeper Abdul Rauf, 45, told AFP in Muzaffarabad’s ruined bazaar.
“But these officials have made millions of rupees and even if they are fired, they will still enjoy the looted money for the rest of their lives.” Abdul Basit, 25, said he was injured in the quake but has still not received any compensation.
“Nobody is listening,” he said, adding that he thought officials were deliberately delaying payouts to force people to pay bribes.
Sirens wailed and a minute’s silence was held at 8:52 a.m., when the 7.6 magnitude earthquake first struck across northern Pakistan and in the war-divided region of Kashmir, leaving more than 100,000 injured and 3.5 million homeless.
Gen. Pervez Musharraf led the memorial ceremony in Muzaffarabad at the grounds of the Azad Jammu Kashmir University, which was destroyed in the earthquake.
Hundreds of people stood in silence in the normally bustling main street of Muzaffarabad, one of the cities worst hit by the disaster. Hours earlier yesterday, a mild earthquake jolted parts of northern Pakistan and Kashmir.
Musharraf praised the massive relief effort, led by Pakistan’s military, that sprang into action immediately after the quake to rescue people from the rubble, provide relief and begin a large-scale reconstruction program. “It is a victory for the government, for the army, for the people, for the non-governmental organizations and for the world that supported it,” Musharraf told at least 1,000 people who attended the service. “It was due to the help and generosity of the whole world and the NGOs that we were able to improve the situation.” The Pakistani president also urged people affected by the quake to be patient, promising his government was working to improve their lives. He asked people not to vote for extremists during the next elections. “Vote for moderate candidates,” he said.
More than 600,000 homes, 6,500 schools and 800 clinics and hospitals were destroyed by the quake, as well as more than 6,000 kilometers of roads.
Musharraf said he came to Muzaffarabad the day after last year’s earthquake and was “stunned to see the devastation.” “I saw grieved women, elderly people and children. Hospitals had been destroyed, all infrastructure had gone,” he said.
“Today when I was coming here by helicopter, I wanted to see where destruction had occurred. I am glad that the destruction was not so much visible today, all praise to Allah. This all was made possible with your courage and support by armed forces, NGOs and the entire world.”
Saudi Ambassador to Pakistan Ali Awadh Asseri said at an iftar party in Islamabad on Saturday: “The Kingdom has made a commitment to build 10,000 houses. Funds have been allocated and work would begin once the land is made available by the governments of Kashmir and NWFP.”
US Ambassador Ryan C. Crocker said the United States would train 30,000 teachers and build 50 schools in quake-affected areas. He made the announcement during the inauguration by Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz of the first school built by United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in Dadar village in North West Frontier Province.
In Muzaffarabad, the force of the quake toppled hundreds of buildings, trapping thousands under the rubble.
Hundreds of memorial services were held across Pakistan to mark the disaster, which sparked a massive outpouring of humanitarian relief and reconstruction aid that continues in many of the affected areas.
In the Pakistani capital, Islamabad, about 200 people observed a minute’s silence at the site of the luxury Margalla Towers apartment building that collapsed in the quake, killing 74 people. Among those attending the memorial were relatives of those who died. Many hugged each other, wept and placed flowers at the site where the apartment block once stood.
“We have gathered here to pay our respects to the departed souls and to renew our commitment to helping those still in need,” UN Humanitarian Coordinator in Pakistan, Jan Vandemoortele, said at a separate ceremony held near the towers.
In Uri town, about 100 kilometers west of Jammu and Kashmir state capital Srinagar, victims of the earthquake held a demonstration to protest against the slow pace of reconstruction, PTI news agency reported.
More than 400 houses were destroyed in Uri and several thousand more in surrounding villages.
