I visited Abbas town today on the eve of the first
anniversary of the biggest day of destruction Karachi has ever seen. On 3rd
March 2013, the terrorist organization Lashkar-e-Jhangvi blew up a bomb in the
centre of two residential apartments Iqra City and Rabia Flower. More than 160
families fell victim losing their homes, savings and loved ones. Amongst the
martyred were Shias and Sunni. The bomb did not discriminate between sects.
Children were orphaned, men and women were widowed and parents lost infants. The
bomb also did not discriminate between age and gender.
It was my visit to the site of the blast one year ago that changed
me the most as a person because I realized that the bomb and the terrorist did
not discriminate between its victims but it was us the civil society which
discriminated when reaching out to victims.
Abbas Town is
popularly believed to be a Shia Majority area. The common view was that almost
everyone killed or affected by the Abbas Town blast was a Shia. Hence it was
not surprising to see that the NGO’s working on ground were majority Shia. The
protestors on the streets were majority Shia. The politicians condemning the
attack most vocally were majority Shia. Thus if not the victims then at least
the tragedy was mostly Shia. When I along with fellow members of the Abbas Town
Humanitarian Response, a youth initiative formed overnight to collect funds for
the victims, reached out to the affectees we were greeted with confused faces
and inquiries about our real motives as we were a majority Sunni group of youth
activists.
I and a few others were allowed access to go and witness the
devastation ourselves as we were taken through apartment after apartment. Amongst
the debris on the floor, there were broken family photo frames, shoes, toys,
ripped clothes and blood. On the third floor of Iqra city, I came across a
broken baby cot with its sheet drenched in blood and stuffed fawn teddy bear
lying nearby. To us that infant was just a statistic, a number which was reported
in the news. To the people who lived in that apartment, that infant was perhaps
made their family complete, their most cherished treasure.
3 days of Medical camp in Abbas Town dealing with people
suffering from physical injuries and mental traumas it hit almost everyone who
were part of the Abbas Town Humanitarian Response that we were living in a bubble.
War was really upon us. It was just a few kilometers away from our streets and
home. It was just a matter of time. As a Karachite this incident was our 9/11,
our 26/11.
That day the only way forward for me was politics. Charity
seemed damage control. We as people need to play our part to ensure that damage
does not happen to begin with and for that we have to actively participate in
policy making and government administration.
Today Iqra City and Rabia Flower are standing tall again.
Karachi has fought back. Karachi has shown its resilience. I have arranged
pictures taken from my phone a year ago with the pictures I took today to show
the destruction and the subsequent development. I have photographed the exact
same building and apartments to show how these buildings have risen again from
the ashes.
The families who were
forced out of thess apartments are to return soon. But the fear has not gone
away. Nothing has been done by the Government to make Abbas Town safer. I for
one casually strolled in the area with my camera without anybody stopping me or
asking me questions. It could very well have been a terrorist in my place
carrying out another survey for another attack.
The nearby residents told me that through the course of last
one year many construction workers ran away complaining they heard strange
noises at night and can't sleep at the site.
Perhaps these buildings have become haunted. Perhaps those
voices are there telling us to wake up to protect ourselves or be reduced to
another haunted voice speaking out from another home destroyed by terrorists.
A memorial is being held tomorrow at the blast site at
3:00pm. Those who cannot attend in person are requested to remember the
victims, our brothers and sisters, our fellow Karachites in their prayers. May
God be pleased with them and may their family be blessed with the courage to
carry on. Ameen!
#3MarchNeverForget #DownWithTTP #DownWithLEJ #AbbasTown
#KarachiFightBack
