People with access to internet have
all seen photos of people returning to their homes after Hurricane Sandy wreaked
havoc in USA and parts of Caribbean last week.
We have all seen pictures and footage of people helping others out in
getting their lives back together.
In the aftermath
of a disaster, most people with empathy would want to reach out to the others
and try and help them in whatever way they can. We saw it in Pakistan after the
earthquake of 2005 and in Haiti in 2010, the 7/7 bombings in London and the
2004 tsunami that affected many countries in Asia. A friend who lives in New
Jersey wanted to volunteer in the disaster relief activities but did not know
how she could contribute with two children under the age of three. Nonetheless,
she was seen asking around if there was any place where children can also be
taken for volunteer work. It is all very commendable that people want to
contribute in whatever way they can to make the lives of others a little bit
better. The difference between developed nations and others such as ours is
that the spirit of volunteerism is seasonal and only comes out when we are
struck with a disaster.
In most developed
countries, there are established volunteer programmes and people are generally
encouraged to take part in volunteer activities in their communities. School
children volunteer, housewives volunteer, retired people volunteer in whatever
way they can; they visit the terminally ill in hospices, work in soup kitchens
or schools, help immigrants assimilate in society, manage traffic during rush
hours in the towns where the town administration cannot afford full-time
traffic police, help raise funds for their communities and assist in keeping
the atmosphere clean among other things.
A country like Pakistan
can benefit immensely from such a spirit of volunteerism. There is so much
that needs to be done and there are so many people who have the time and
ability to make a difference in the lives of those who are less fortunate.
There are many people who need to be taught how to read and write and other
life skills, the state-owned schools and hospitals are always under-staffed and
if a greater number of organized volunteer groups, which want to help others,
step up to help build the skills of such people, not only will it help in
meeting the human resource problem, it can also work as a stepping stone for
establishing training programmes for those who want to enter a particular
field.
Volunteerism does
not just help a small group of people who are the direct beneficiaries but also
works for society in general and the individual who volunteers. Their efforts
build stronger ties of trust, harmony and reciprocity among its citizens
through creating opportunities for participation for groups and individuals who
would have remained either indifferent or on the fringes.
There are many
groups in Pakistan where Pakistani volunteers can register and contribute in
their own way; there is the United Nations
Volunteers programme, the Pakistan Youth Alliance, the Pakistan chapter of
the World Volunteer Web, The
Citizen’s Foundation’s Rehbar programme, among others. There must be
several other options in all the towns and cities of the country where one can
contribute. Volunteerism is great; not only does it help in building societies;
it also tells the volunteers that they don’t have to be rich, famous or perfect
in order to make a difference.
First published in The Express Tribune
