By Barnes Mawrie
It is said that “tragedy unites people” and this is borne out by what happened in Nepal. The whole world is sympathizing with the people of Nepal. Yesterday I was deeply touched by the TV report of the little child who was rescued from the debris after 22 hours. The child escaped without a scratch and is hale and hearty. These days daily news about the Nepal tragedy is being telecasted by TV channels all over the world and it is eliciting worldwide sympathy and support for that ailing nation.
The devastation that the massive earthquake of 25th April brought upon the people of Nepal in particular, is terrifying. We have witnessed loss of thousands of lives (about 7000 as of now), thousands more injured, destruction of properties, and even the erasing of history of many centuries. The Nepal people are going through not merely a physical suffering, but a psychological and spiritual pain as well. There are no words to describe the trauma that these poor people are going through during this period of time. To think that this tragedy may not be over yet, is still an added doze of suffering. After a natural disaster of this magnitude there is always the problems of the aftermath. When the earthquake of 9.0 magnitude and the tsunami struck Japan on 7th April 2011, the destruction to life and property was comparatively less since Japan is a country prepared for such calamities. Japan being a highly developed country was able to cope up with the damages and the loss. Consequently, we witnessed an unbelievably quick recovery made by that determined nation in the course of a few months. But when it comes to Nepal it is quite another situation altogether.
Nepal being a poor country, this tragedy has come as a doomsday upon the people. So many poor people have lost their only shelters and means of living and now how are they going to fend for themselves? Thank God that it is not winter yet or else the misery would have been multiplied. There are many families who have lost their parents or the earning members. How will such families survive? With so many heritage buildings completely razed to the ground especially in the old town of Dharahara, tourism has been badly hit. Can Nepal restore these historical sites so as not to lose the flow of tourists in the years ahead? This is unlikely as Nepal’s economy is rather weak and with the absence of monarchy and the country being in a period of transition, things are not going to be easy.
The people of Nepal as a nation are going through a great trial which appears insurmountable for anyone of us. However, the human spirit is always un-put-down-table and it is sure to surge up and triumph. No problem or difficulty however enormous can sap the spirit of man. I am sure the people of Nepal will rise up like the Phoenix from the ruins of this calamity. It is so heartening to see nations all over the world, governments and NGOs rushing to the aid of the suffering people of Nepal. International aid (money, food, clothes, tents, medicines etc) is pouring in. This moment of tragedy has brought all hearts together and we all feel that we belong to “one human community”. Perhaps this is one positive outcome of tragedies of this sort where we see convergence of minds and hearts. It is in moments like these that the true human qualities are exhibited.
What can happen during these kinds of tragedy, is sometimes tragic in itself. It was known that during the great tsunami of 26th December 2004, much of the humanitarian aid (especially monetary) did not percolate to the poor victims. A huge amount of foreign donations was just siphoned away by some greedy individuals at the cost of the suffering poor. We only hope and pray that in Nepal no such man-made tragedy will occur, that humanity may prevail over greed and ambition. We hope the Indian Government and the Indian people in general will play more humanitarian roles in this tragedy. Perhaps Indian tycoons like the Ambanis, the Tatas, the Mittals, the Birlas or rich showbiz personalities and individuals could exercise their sense of solidarity with the suffering humanity by donating generously to this cause. It is more worthy and nobler to invest in alleviating suffering than invest in election campaigns because the former builds people while the latter corrupts individuals. We look forward to more expressions of solidarity from the part of religious groups not only by means of prayer but also through tangible material aid. Considering the fact that there are many Nepali families in Meghalaya who will have one relative or the other who are victims of the tragedy in Nepal, the Government of Meghalaya, the Church and other NGOs of our State should come forward to express their solidarity with these suffering people. God bless the people of Nepal.
