The Catholic Church in Pakistan has begun distributing relief aid to people affected
by the recent earthquake in a remote part of Balochistan province. On November 1,
parishioners of St. Pius X Church in Quetta, a city 1500 kilometres away from Islamabad,
travelled about 80 kilometres to Wam village and distributed aid they collected among
themselves. "Announcements were made in church for the collection of essential commodities
for the quake victims. After visiting the affected families for a few hours, we handed
over packets of lentils, tea and sugar," said Father Maqsood Nazir, the parish priest.
He said this was the first aid response from the Catholic Church following the Oct.
29 earthquake. The priest led a group of seven parishioners who travelled overnight
to reach Wam, one of the worst-hit villages. "It was a dangerous journey on narrow
and winding roads in the mountains," he recalled. "Village children started following
our vehicle as we came close to the rubble of mud houses." About 300 people died
and an estimated 40,000 were left homeless when the 6.4-magnitude quake struck before
dawn. It flattened mud-brick houses as people slept, forcing survivors to sleep outdoors
because of continuing aftershocks, at altitudes of about 2,500 meters in very cold
temperatures. Kashif Daud from Caritas Pakistan Quetta, the local Catholic Church's
social-service agency, went to the affected area the day of the quake. Meanwhile,
religious organizations and political parties have set up collection centres on roads
in cities across the country, at which people have donated money and warm clothes.
All Pakistan Minority Alliance, a Christian political party, set up two such centres
in Quetta on November 1.