IDP host families take the strain

Qayyum Khan, 50, and his wife, Durdana Bibi, who live in a small house in Peshawar, are becoming increasingly worried about the growing number of relatives landing on them from Swat and Buner in the North West Frontier Province (NWFP).



“We have 20 people here most nights, apart from ourselves and our three children. It is becoming very difficult to manage,” said Durdana Bibi. Qayyum, who left Buner 25 years ago, is now supporting the families of his three cousins - something which is becoming both a financial and a psychological strain.



“They are the sons of my father’s brothers. We are tied by blood. I will not throw them out of my home,” said Qayyum.



Employed as a security guard, Qayyum earns Rs 12,000 (US$153) a month, but this does not go far with so many additional people to feed.



Qayyum’s cousins are looking for work but this is not easy, especially as their skills are limited to farming. Qayyum is also concerned more relatives may soon seek his hospitality, given that “people are continuing to pour into the cities,” as they flee fighting between militants and government forces.



“Only one toilet”



There are also more mundane issues to consider. “We have only one toilet and when it is shared by so many people it becomes very hard to keep clean. Also, I have two teenage daughters who are distressed because they lack privacy,” Durdana said.



According to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) spokesman in Geneva, Ron Redmond, of the 83,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) registered from Dir, Buner and Swat (all in the NWFP) over the past few days, 78,000 are living outside camps, many with host families.



This fits a well-established pattern. Of the 555,000 people displaced in Pakistan before the latest influx, 462,000 were not based at camps.



Camps half empty



Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) Chairman Lt-Gen (retd) Farooq Ahmed Khan told the media in Islamabad that while existing camps had a capacity to house 80,000 people, they contained only 37,000.



The latest wave of displacements began on about 6 May, and IDP numbers were rising fast.The NDMA said 220,000 IDPs had been registered at camps both within and outside the NWFP.



“We have nearly 700,000 people who have been displaced. They need immediate help,” Mian Iftikhar Hussain, the government’s information minister, told IRIN, adding: “Many of them are living with relatives.”



Close kinship ties



The close kinship structure that binds extended families together is a factor in this. “When people come to Peshawar from my village in Swat they are like my guests. It is an insult for me if they live anywhere but at my house,” said Muhammad Yar Khan, 60. He is currently hosting about 10 villagers and says he is happy to do so.

 

But how sustainable is this situation? “International donor help is vital, otherwise things will get very difficult for families hosting the displaced people and the IDPs themselves,” said Information Minister Hussain.



The UK-based Islamic Relief (IR) organisation, which is currently working with the IDPs, has launched an appeal to raise £5 million (about US$7.57 million). “Many of these people have fled Swat with nothing but the clothes on their back,” Niyaz Muhammad, IR's media and PR officer, said.



But as aid efforts continue, host families are bearing the burden, and some have been unable to manage.



“I just could not take in more people. My brother is living with me, and my parents, but my sister’s family has had to rent a room,” Muhammad Wazirullah, who moved from Swat to Peshawar two years ago, told IRIN.



More help needed



So far little attention has been focused on the impact of the displacement on host families, but the stresses and strains appear self-evident.



“An organised plan is needed to address all aspects of displacement,” said Asma Jahangir, chairperson of the autonomous Human Rights Commission of Pakistan.



General secretary of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas Affectees Committee (representing IDPs), Sher Zaman Khan, told IRIN from Islamabad: “People need much more help, including those living outside camps.” He complained too little had so far been offered. “Those taking in displaced relatives are poor people, too, and cannot manage on their own.”



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