3rd I New York will be screening On a Razor's Edge on January 19th 2006 as part of the "Urban Hum of Pakistan": A Shorts Program.

Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy's diary from Balakot in Pakistan:

Diary from Bissian (12 km from Balakot) Pakistan. Monday December 12th 2005: Snow has covered the mountains surrounding Balakot. At night, the temprature drops to -15 degrees as families huddle close together to keep warm. The tents provided by the relief organizations do little to keep the cold wind from blowing through. Balakot is a graveyard and everyone here has a story that breaks your heart.
I arrived at the Khanpur Medical relief Camp to volunteer as a translator for the Cuban doctors who have come on a 6 month stint to provide medical assistance in the earthquake affected zone. As the helicopter hovered above, i could see the destruction below. The city of Balakot and its surrounding areas are now refugee zones. Entire buildings have collapsed, roads have split open, houses crushed underneath the mountains. Amidst the debris rows of UNHCR tents line the side of the road. The stench of dead bodies still lingers in the air, and there is a sense of desperation amongst the refugees, for them their world has come crashing down and the relief organizations can never fill the void the earthquake has left in their lives.
Some 400 patients visit Khanpur Medical camp each day to get free medicines, consultations, x rays, ECG tests, Ultra sounds. The camp run by Cuban doctors provides much needed relief to the people in this area who are suffering from broken bones, pneumonia, severe respiratory diseases, severe kidney problems, diarrhea, scabies, urinary infections and post traumatic disorders. These are the lucky ones, they made it through the brutal earthquake and the aftershocks...But they know that they will not survive the winter in these conditions.
On my first afternoon as a translator for the Cuban doctors, i saw two babies who were about to succumb to severe pneumonia. The doctors watched helplessly, they couldnt find the words to comfort the parents. The babies died two days later. A woman arrived with crushed pelvic bones. A wall already weak from the tremors had come crashing down on her that morning. Her left leg had been crushed in the earthquake more than two months ago and she weighed less than 45 kg.
The tent i was sharing with two other volunteers was freezing cold that night. Gas heaters are not allowed inside tents because of the danger they pose. Already several fires in nearby camps have claimed the lives of young children. My fingers and toes were numb as i struggled to sleep. In the tent behind me a baby wailed the night through. These are the brutal living conditions that these people have to endure on a daily basis. No photograph, television news piece can do justice to what these people are going through.
At 2:47 a.m. an earthquake (not a tremor) on a 6.6 richter scale rocked the area. The refugees rushed out of their tents, the babies started howling and fear spread through the camp. The earth shook with intensity, a loud bang and then silence. Then, the wailing began again. The fear of not knowing which building will fall next, which family member will succumb next has shaken these people to the core. Everywhere i went, the same question was repeated, "why are we being punished, what have we done to deserve this?" For many in Balakot, the world has already come to an end, the lights have already dimmed...Some time later, most people returned to their tents. They had seen another earthquake through and when the call to prayers was announced at dawn, they headed to the mosque to thank god for saving them yet again.

Tuesday December 13th 2005:
At 7 a.m. the patients start to line up. Some walk down for miles from their tents in the mountains, others come from as far away as Muzzafrabad. The Cuban doctors have built quite a reputation for themselves here and the locals have taken to them immediately. Their quiet, unassuming ways have won them respect here. Their message is clear, they are here to stay and are going to help as many people as possibl. These doctors and nurses are taking urdu language lessons from Mr. Bhatti (the camp director) so that they can communicate more effectively with their patients. Their dedication is an inspiration to the other relief workers in the area.
Kiran Bibi a twenty five year old woman who lost 3 children in the earthquake and whose only surviving child is in danger of succumbing to a respiratory disease, cannot find the words to thank the doctors for helping her. Tears stream down her face when the doctors give her free medicines, kind words and reassurances that they are here 24 hours a day for her if she needs them.
That afternoon i took a walk through the refugee camp. Outside the tents, some women washed their clothes, others cooked lunch. The poor sanitary conditions have taken a toll on their lives. Their children play in the dirt amongst piles of feces and garbage and because of the cold, there is little opportunity for them to bathe. Saima Bibi who lost her husband and a grandson in the earthquake watches her five year old son with dismay. "He has stopped going to school, he doesnt listen to me anymore," she tells me. "He is so scared at night and continues to ask me where his father is. We have lost everything, i dont know why god spared me, he should have taken me away to. Death would have been better than this miserable life." I dont have any answers for her so i walk away.
That evening i sat with a few Cuban doctors to understand why they chose to come to Pakistan, since Cuba and Pakistan do not have any diplomatic relationship, since the people of the two countries do not share the same culture, language or religion, many of us are intrigued by the help that the Cuban government has given Pakistan. Over 1500 doctors have come on a 6 month stint and are working in 30 such camps accross the devestated zone.
Maily Betancourt is a gynocologist and a mother of a 10 year old. She volunteered to come to Pakistan because she was moved by the images she saw on television after the earthquake. "It is my duty to help anyone who is in pain anywhere in the world," she tells me. Even though she is unaccustomed to the harsh winter and life in a tent she strives ahead because "the people of Pakistan need medical help now." The Cuban help has not made headlines around the world, but the work they are doing every day is making a difference in the lives of thousands of people.

Wednesday December 14th 2005

Its been three days since i've had a bath! But ive become use to the conditions in the camp. I was woken up at 5 a.m. this morning by the call for prayers. The local cleric spoke at length about the earthquake on a loud speaker making sure that people could hear him for miles. His message was disturbing to say the least, he reinforced the fact that as long as the people of the area were involved in immoral activities, the earthquakes would continue. I had half a mind to walk over and ask him what immoral activities he was referring to, but given the circumstances, i refrained.
Down the road from the medical camp, several Islamic radical groups have set up their tents. They are also providing food, shelter and medicines to the people in the area. And since these people need all the help they can get, one cannot deny that the these groups are filling a void and doing important work. However, these people have a hidden agenda no doubt, as i discovered that afternoon.
Mini vans packed with islamic religious school students whiz through the streets. On a loud speaker they announce that their camps are willing to accept everyone. They boast about the medical help their doctors have provided to the people, and reassure them that when the foreign volunteers, the Pakistan army and the Pakistani NGO's leave, they will still be there.
Before the earthquake Balakot was a fertile recruiting ground for many Jihadi Kashmiri organizations and these people want to make sure that the people of this area continue to support them. So ever so often they take to the streets announcing their feats and encouraging people to support their noble cause. A troubling sign no doubt.
Before coming to the region, i had read reports that the Pakistan army was not doing enough to help the people affected by the earthquake. But once i got there, i understood the gravity of the situation. The Pakistan army has a mammoth task ahead of them and they are trying their best to cope with the situation. No third world country is equipped to handle a disaster of this magnitude. I see Pakistani army helicopters, trucks, personnel carrying supplies, setting up camps and rebuilding broken roads and bridges. They work around the clock, but there is always something left to do at the end of the day. More demands and more expectations...
Khan Sahib a seventy year old grandfather put the situation in context for me that evening. He has lost his entire family, including several grandchildren. "When god takes everything away, all at once. Lives, property, health, wealth, well then nobody can ever replace it all, as much as they try to. We are grateful to the army, the volunteers the non profits, they are doing what they can, but they can never bring back our loved ones, our homes, our lives. so nothing they can ever do, will be enough."
That night, the director of the camp informed us that with the tempratures dropping, and the illnesses multiplying, medicines were running in short supply. He would have to start reaching out to people in order to fill the void. As the world's attention drifts away from Pakistan, the international help seems to be drying up. A second wave of disastor is around the corner for Pakistan...As soon as the first snow falls in the valley, the death toll is bound to rise...
Last year at this time, the valleys were covered with snow, so everyone here knows its only a matter of time before the first flake drifts down, bringing with it more death and destruction. =============================================================
Part 2 of the diary and photographs from the region will follow in a few days....