Quake tents distribution 'delayed by officials'

The charges came as the UN appealed for more aid for victims of South Asia’s massive earthquake, warning of another wave of deaths if survivors don’t get shelter and food before winter comes. Nato has agreed to send up to 1,000 troops to Pakistan to boost relief efforts.

“We urgently need tents, shelter and helicopters for inaccessible areas,” said Jan van de Moortele, the UN’s humanitarian aid coordinator for Pakistan.

“Time is against us. We can buy everything with money, but not time.”

New York-based Human Rights Watch issued a statement accusing civilian authorities, working under military supervision, of storing tents and other needed relief goods at a supply depot in Muzaffarabad, the city at the heart of the quake-shattered region.

During the October 19 incident, Pakistani officials at the scene told the organisation it was being done “so that they would be able to avoid problems when senior military and civilian officials demand supplies that otherwise would not be available,” the group’s statement said.

One official said he would be fired if he gave out tents, the group added.

“Tents are the difference between life and death,” said Brad Adams, Asia director for Human Rights Watch. “It is essential for the public to know that aid is being handled in a non-arbitrary, non-discriminatory manner.”

But Pakistan’s chief army spokesman, Maj. Gen. Shaukat Sultan, rejected what he called “a totally baseless and wrong report.”

“At present there is no need to store, and there is no place to store these things, which we desperately need at this point in time to save tens of thousands of people rendered homeless due to the massive destruction,” he said.

Mr Sultan said that relief goods were being received and then distributed to forward bases in affected regions, where earthquake survivors could obtain them.

“Now we are trying to regulate more effectively the relief, which was disbursed in the first phase in chaotic conditions,” he said.

Also denying the charge, Liaquat Hussain, deputy commissioner of Muzaffarabad, said the civil government had set up a registration system for relief goods coming through official channels. He indicated that Human Rights Watch may have misunderstood what it saw.

“It is part of the system. We have a registration location ... where we do check and register the supplies coming through the official channel, and then forward them to the most deserving locations in the affected areas,” he said.

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan sent letters yesterday to all member nations, appealing for urgent contributions and repeating his fears that a dramatic increase in deaths could occur if more relief fails to arrive.

It is estimated that at the current rate, some 200,000 tents will be in the country by winter – only enough to house about half the homeless families.

The massive earthquake across a section of the Himalayan range that killed an estimated 79,000 people and left more than 3 million homeless has also created one of the most logistically challenging disasters.

Nato allies agreed Friday to dispatch up to 1,000 troops – including military engineers, medics and others – to reinforce the earthquake relief effort.

The first out of a total 500 to 600 NATO engineers will arrive in Pakistan within a few days to help clear blocked roads and ensure they stay open when it snows in winter. The engineers will also clear land so that survivors can set up tents.

Relief operations have taken on increasing urgency as temperatures begin to dip. In Kashmir, snow has already fallen in the high mountains, and some villages are experiencing subfreezing temperatures at night.

The Pakistani government’s official death toll rose yesterday to more than 51,300 dead and more than 75,000 injured, though central figures have lagged behind regional numbers.