Building for floods in India

In the light of the floods in Pakistan, I am reminded of a trip I took a couple of years ago along the Brahmaputra river in Assam, India.

We visitted an unnamed island in the middle of the river and went for a wander across the crop fields and through the village. Like the Indus in Pakistan, the Brahmaputra floods every year. Every year, this island disappears under the flood waters, washing away everything in its path.

A couple of us were talking to one of the villagers, who was leaning against one of the stilts that his house - and all the others in the village - are built on as you can see above. He explained to us that every year they gather the crops, take in the animals and sit out the floods. I asked him why he didn't just move. He said that the silt depositted made the ground very fertile and the crops were good. And the flood water? "It happens every year so we are ready for it."

My somewhat dim-but-nice friend asked him how high the water comes up? He replied by placing his hand on one of the stilts about a foot below the floor level of his house. "About here", he replied.

The Chinese have the same problem with the Yangtze which is one of the reasons they built that enormous dam to help regulate it. They have problems at the moment too, but they are doing something about it not just holding out their begging bowl.

The Indus is not dissimilar to the Brahmaputra. It does this every year. Admittedly this year it has been extreme, but perhaps the Pakistanis could be a little more like the Assamese and be just a bit more prepared for it?

And perhaps their government could help by releasing just a small chunk of that $2 billion they are spending on developing nuclear power...

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ANT and DEC - The Charity Appeal

As the President of Pakistan is visiting Chequers today, I thought it would be a good time to roll out my good friends, ANT and DEC.

No - not that Ant and Dec! - ANT (Another Natural Tragedy) and DEC (the Disasters Emergency Committee). These two are once again asking for your money to bail out the flood victims in Pakistan.

Perhaps when Asif Ali Zardari is taking to David Cameron today and, no doubt holding out the begging bowl for Britains cash, he should be reminded that Pakistan is the same nation whose people last week were out in the streets burning our national flag and effigies of the man he is talking to. Perhaps he should also be reminded that our government has already pledged millions for their aid.

That aid is, of course, not government money. It is taxpayers' money. Donated without a mandate on our behalf. Money we don't actually have.

So whilst the appeal launched last night is tugging at your heart strings, do what I do and remind yourself of this : "I already gave"

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Paki bashing

Seems that Call-me-Dave has pissed off the Pakis!

Those of us that grew up in the sixties will remember that Paki bashing was a national pastime in those days. Then we got used to seeing them everywhere and them having a shop on every corner, so we accepted them as part of the national landscape.

Nothing wrong with that. The vast majority are law abiding, hard working citizens - so it's a good thing that the bigotry has gone.

Also, the Pakistanis in this country are a damn sight safer than they would be in their country of origin. It should be remembered that until recently, Pakistan was a military dictatorship which is about as far from a democracy as it is possibe to get! And old habits die hard...

Pakistan nominally allys itself with the United States in the global war on terror. However, terrorism is rife in the country mainly due to reactions to General Zia ul-Haq's controversial "Islamization" policies and his involvement in the Soviet-Afghan War, which led to greater influx of ideologically driven Afghan Arabs in the tribal areas and the explosion of kalashnikov and drugs culture. The state and the CIA encouraged the "mujahideen" to fight the proxy war against the Soviet Union, most of these groups were never disarmed after the war and were later encouraged by the Taliban to achieve the state's agenda in Kashmir and Afghanistan. The same groups are now taking on the state itself.

Between 2007 and 2009, more than 5,500 people were killed in terrorist attacks on civilians. These are attributed to a number of sources: sectarian violence - mainly between Sunni and Shia Muslims, the easy availability of guns and explosives of a "kalishnikov culture" and influx of ideologically driven "Afghan Arabs" based in or near Pakistan, Islamist insurgent groups and forces such as the Taliban and Lashkar-e-Taiba, and secessionists movements blamed on regionalism problematic in a country with Pakistan's diverse cultures, languages, traditions and customs.

So Pakistan has a double problem. It needs to be seen to support the US in its war in Afghanistan, and at the same time is being terrorised at home by sectarian and separatist terrorists. But on the other hand, it has been manouevred by the Taliban to support actions in disputed areas such as Kashmir. So at the same time it is trying to both fight and support the Taliban.

This would seem to make David Cameron's remarks about them trying to look both ways highly pertinent...

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