STAMPEDES AT FLOUR DISTRIBUTION CENTRES KILL 23 IN PAKISTAN

Since the beginning of the holy month of Ramzan, at least 23 people have lost their lives due to stampedes at distribution points for flour in various provinces of Pakistan, as reported by Asian Lite International. Women and children are among the casualties, with thousands of flour bags also stolen from trucks and distribution points.

One such incident occurred on March 23 in the Charsadda district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, resulting in one fatality and four injuries. Another incident on March 28 led to the deaths of two women and injuries to 45 people during a free flour distribution in Punjab’s Sahiwal district.

These distribution centres have seen large crowds gathering since the government launched an initiative in March to offer free flour to low-income families during Ramzan, in response to record-breaking inflation that has pushed poverty rates up to a 50-year high of over 30 percent.

Media reports suggest allegations of preferential treatment to those with “connections” or who have bribed government officials at the distribution centres. Videos and images on social media show people waiting for hours and being mistreated to buy a few bags of flour.

Private businesses and non-profit organisations are also distributing essential food items to those in need, but tragic incidents like the March 31 stampede, during which at least 12 people died, including women and children, continue to occur. This incident occurred during Zakat distribution to families of workers at a private company in Karachi.

The Pakistan Human Rights Commission (HRCP) has attributed these stampedes to the governmentestablished wheat flour distribution centres. In a tweet on March 31, the HRCP called on the government to improve the distribution system, which it described as “adding insult to injury of the marginalised people of Pakistan who are braving the economic injustice perpetuated by the elites who dominate the state.”

The opposition party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-insaf (PTI), led by Prime Minister Imran Khan, is reportedly using these incidents to target the PDM alliance and gain political ground in Punjab. They are spreading misinformation about stampede incidents and questioning the “quality of flour” to create chaos and anger among the public against the ruling government.

Pakistan’s economy is in crisis, with millions struggling to afford two meals a day due to rising prices, inflation, a depreciating currency, a current account deficit, and a foreign exchange crisis. The cost of necessities like flour has increased by nearly 45 percent in the past year alone. The recent stampedes paint a grim picture of the desperation of the Pakistani people in this economic predicament.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) predicts a considerable decrease in Pakistan’s economic growth, falling to 0.6 percent in FY2023 from 6 percent in FY2022. Similarly, the World Bank has drastically reduced Pakistan’s growth prediction for the current year from 2 percent to 0.4 percent. Additionally, according to the Global Climate Risk Index, Pakistan is among the “ten most vulnerable nations” globally, exacerbating the country’s economic struggles.

The government’s free or subsidised wheat distribution scheme for the poor during Ramzan, in the absence of immediate financial assistance, aimed to provide relief for those struggling economically and bolster the PDM coalition’s political position. However, it ended up being a colossal failure, causing international embarrassment for Pakistan.