Pakistan is one of the world’s most generous nations, and a recent study found that 98% of Pakistanis donate time or money to charity (Credit: Banaras Khan/Getty (Images)
We got hit before Pakistan. I am talking about the Coronavirus. January 21st now seems so long ago, but that is when the first case was diagnosed in the U.S. Then there were more, then more, all on the West coast. By late February we were getting excited about our trip to Pakistan on March 2. Then we got word: two cases of corona in Pakistan.
I called my sister, “We are not coming.” I will skip the disappointment, hers and mine. Down the list, I started calling family members in Pakistan.
“But there are more cases in United States, than in Pakistan.” The implication being: You will be safer here.
On March 1st, New York City got its first case; next day, it was Westchester County, and then more, and more.
The Pakistan-U.S. family chatter started on my WhatsApp.
“It’s just hype,” said family in Pakistan.
“It is not. People have died in China,” that was us in America.
Pakistan: “People die of the flu every year. How is this different.”
America: “It is highly infectious. Look at how quickly it is spreading.”
Pakistan: “You may be over-reacting.”
. . . days later:
Pakistan: “You keep saying ‘don’t shake hands,’ but everyone at work is shaking hands.”
America: “OMG! Did you shake hands?”
“Well, what was I supposed to do when one extends their hand?”
“Put your hand on your heart. Now promise me you won’t shake hands.”
. . . days later:
America: “It has hit home. New York is the epicenter. People are dying.”
Pakistan: “There have been no deaths here.”
Sensitive me heard the unspoken words: And you were afraid to come to Pakistan.
That was before scores of Pakistani Shia pilgrims returning from visiting holy sites in Iran started testing positive. Iran had had a major outbreak of Coronavirus. Two cases became four, four became more.
Pakistan government took action. The lock-down was swift. Swift and efficient. Efficient and impressive.
Pakistan: “When Pakistanis make up their mind to do something, they do it and they do it well.”
Thermal scanners installed at airports to monitor every passenger;
A law passed to punish hoarders;
Strategic lock-downs: areas where even one case pops up, the whole area is completely locked down;
Gated communities: No entry, no exit;
Public transportation: 100% shutdown;
Gatherings: no more than 4;
Cars: Only 2 in a car, and only with reason.
Mosques closed to Jumma congregational prayers;
WHO lauds the efforts of Pakistan on handling coronavirus;
All efforts coordinated from one point: National Command Center overseeing National Disaster Management Authority with backing of Pakistan army.
Pakistan Air Force picking up ventilators from wherever.
America: How is the social distancing working out?
Pakistan: People are not taking social distancing seriously. [Read here]
I had a flashback of Florida beaches during spring break.
Pakistan: Some say that the time of death is written.; if it’s not now, Corona or no Corona, I will survive; others need to work to survive. And some of the religious leaders are refusing the order to stop congregational prayers; they say ‘God will protect us.’
I can list a few houses of worship here.
America: So how is the government enforcing it?
Pakistan: Did you see the photo in today’s Dawn newspaper. That is how.
This photo drew chuckles: The cop is inflicting the murgha punishment (Murgha is a rooster). It is a form of corporal punishment prevalent in south Asia, primarily for boys in schools, for petty mischief. The young men in the photos have been made to disembark from their motorcycles, lined up, and made to assume a position resembling that of a rooster, by squatting and then looping the arms behind the knees and holding the ears. I can’t explain why the cop isn’t in uniform, or why the young men are not being social distanced, particularly if they are not wearing masks. Prior to seeing this photo, I had never encountered men—as in adults—being humiliated by being made a murgha.
Pakistan: “I went grocery shopping with my mask on, and the guard at the door—mask on—wiped down the handle of the cart with a disinfectant wipe, poured hand sanitizer in my hand, and only after that, let me in.”
I don’t get that treatment here.
“We are not out of any food supplies. All food is locally produced, so there are no supply chain issues.”
There is a lesson there.
Philanthropists in Pakistan have set up food distribution centers for the day workers out of a job. Private citizens have hired Uber drivers to deliver food in poverty-stricken areas. Shoppers will stand outside grocery stores giving out groceries and cash to people on the street. Women are offering their houses as collection points for staple ingredients, such as flour, oil and lentils. People are giving, and giving, and giving. [Read: The Law of Generosity Combating Coronavirus in Pakistan]
As of today, April 17th, Pakistan, with a population of 212 million, has 6,919 cases with 128 deaths; U.S with a population of 328 million, has 651,310 cases and 33,332 deaths.
Pakistan has contained it.
**********************************************
