Why we're slow to help Pakistan

Two weeks ago the United Nations declared the massive floods in Pakistan had affected 13.8 million people and eclipsed the scale of the devastating 2004 tsunami. Pakistan government and UN officials appealed for urgent relief efforts. Then UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon inspected the affected areas and was shocked by what he saw, as Pakistan's disaster was being described as the worst in living memory.

'A heart-wrenching day for me and for my delegation. I will never forget the destruction and sufferings I have witnessed today,' he said. 'In the past I have visited scenes of many natural disasters around the world, but nothing like this.'

Estimates of the number affected are now being put at 20 million, and the crisis is deepening as torrential rains continue to fall across the country. The biggest fear remains potential epidemics of waterborne diseases such as diarrhoea, cholera and hepatitis. Malaria outbreaks are also a concern, particularly in areas that remain cut off from the outside world by the flood waters.

But compared to previous emergencies such as the Haiti earthquake at the beginning of this year, international assistance has been slow to arrive.

There has been little clear explanation of why this is so. There is no doubt that potential donors are put off by reports of extremists meddling in relief efforts, though it's likely they are simply human beings helping others in need. Nevertheless they are seen to be exploiting the devastation for political purposes, attempting to win the hearts and minds of flood victims.

There are also 'credible' reports that Pakistani militants may target foreign aid workers involved in flood relief efforts, and consequently many people in western nations don't want to know about the disaster.

It seems that what could be discouraging us from reaching out to help the flood victims is the failing war effort in neighbouring Afghanistan, especially with the mounting number of deaths of Australian military personnel.

When thinking of the long-term, it is certainly relevant to consider the geo-political circumstances that affect the region's prospects. But for now, it is very unhelpful to link flood relief in Pakistan with eliminating political extremism from Afghanistan.

Media commentaries are understandably asking what Australia is doing in Afghanistan. They quote military analysts such as Hugh White, who believes the objectives we've set ourselves are unachievable, and that 'we will leave Afghanistan in a few years with Afghanistan looking very much the way it does today'.

That is hardly relevant to flood relief and attempts to prevent human catastrophe on a grand scale. It is true that the commentators themselves do not always link the Taliban to flood relief. But the problem is that the Australian public is being delivered a profoundly misleading subliminal message that is discouraging us from contributing to relief appeals for Pakistan flood victims.

We apply talk of the Afghanistan war as a wasted effort to Pakistan flood relief, which is somehow also a wasted effort because the Taliban are in the vicinity. Worse, the Taliban could use our aid to score propaganda victories. We do need to ask whether we care more about political points scoring or helping Pakistanis at their hour of need.

International relief initiatives are always hampered by politics, but the media usually manages to keep images of human suffering at the front and centre of their coverage of these emergencies. Such reporting is very effective in helping to ensure the success of the aid agencies' relief appeals.

However in the current emergency, images of flood victims have so far been less prominent than analysis of the geo-political context of the unwinnable war in Afghanistan, and news of the Australian casualties.

It's debatable whether media organisations have a moral obligation to show images of human suffering specifically for the purpose of kick-starting relief efforts. But they do make a profound difference to the success of humanitarian assistance when they do.

Australians have also been preoccupied with the election stalemate. But endless vision of politicians trying to work out their differences inevitably becomes tiresome, and a turn-off for TV viewers.

It's to be hoped that we will indeed forget politics for a while — at home and abroad — and think about the part we can play in helping Pakistanis through their crisis.

The following organisations are now accepting tax deductible donations for their Pakistan flood appeals:Jesuit Mission, Caritas, Red Cross, National Council of Churches in Australia, ActionAid, UNHCR, UNICEF, Care.