Section A · Page 8
The University Daily Kansan
Thursday, November 4, 1999
India continues to clean up battered country
The Associated Press
PHUILNAKHARA
India
PROLUNKHARA, India — Bulldozers dumped bloated corpses onto the beaches yesterday in cyclone-ravaged eastern India, where troops worked to protect relief convoys from angry, starving mobs.
Hundreds of people tried to stop every car, bus or jeep that passed, seizing not only food but whatever was available. Army Col. Shokin Chauhan said there were widespread complaints of looting, robbery and women being raped.
With 20 million people affected by the cyclone and floods, the biggest challenge now was to deal with increasing instances of lawlessness and vandalism, said Jagganan Patnai, the state's revenue minister.
A senior army officer involved in the rescue operation told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity that 10,000 to 20,000 were dead. That would make the storm India's worst, topping the 10,000 killed in a 1971 cyclone. State officials have confirmed only 250 deaths.
Army and police, unable to reach
the worst-hit areas, feared that epidemics and violence would increase the death toll from the cyclone, which flattened homes, toppled trees and buried rice fields under a sheet of water.
"Everyone is drowned, and there is nothing to eat," said a tall woman in a dirty, wet sari.
She was too stunned to say her name or what had happened to her family in Paradwip, a port whipped by winds and waves for eight hours on Friday.
"It was sheer horror. The water just
rushed in from the sea and thousands were running in every direction," said Raj Kumar Behara, an engineer who fed Paradin to a small village.
Parents clutched babies above their heads as they ran from the waves, only to feel the fierce winds snatch the children away.
"I saw an old man who was clutching his child desperately for several minutes as the waves came in. Then he let go, the child was sucked under the waters and he was thrown in a different direction," Behara said.
Scores of boats had sunk, the port's railway connections were submerged, and survivors said hundreds of trawlers and fishermen were missing.
The stench of thousands of decaying pig, cow and goat carcasses filled the air, and port employees collected bodies left behind by the storm. A bulldozer scooped up corpses, blackened with mud and rot, and dumped them on the sand. "I could not identify a single one of my workers," said D.K. Basu, who works for Paradiwap port. "It's ghastly."
The army still has not been able to reach Paradawp five days after the cyclone hit. The navy cleared a channel for two landing craft, which delivered food Tuesday for 1,500 people.
Hundreds of thousands are starving, thirsty, homeless and sick. Rain still was falling yesterday, and rivers overflowed their banks.
International aid workers were beginning to reach the area, however, and President Clinton announced a donation of more than $2 million in food and $100,000 in tents and plastic sheeting.
Puppy play
Holly Wilson, Hutchinson sophomore, plays with her dog, Godot, at Alvamar Golf Course. Wilson took advantage of the warm November weather yesterday. Photo by Kate Levenson/KANSAN
Pakistan attempting to organize after coup
Leader Musharraf to work on reforms before referendums
The Associated Press
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan—Pakistan's military ruler said yesterday that a referendum on his government would be too costly and divert attention from the reforms he wants to complete before restoring civilian rule.
The final decision on whether to hold a vote to gauge support for his Oct. 12 army takeover will be made by the National Security Council of army officers and civilians who are ruling Pakistan.
"I'm not afraid of it," Gen. Pervaiz Musharraf told Pakistan's official news agency. "But the result will be
in our favor... The poor nation does not have a choice."
In an interview with a panel of reporters, Musharraf also said he expected a more severe reaction to his takeover from the international community.
"I was surprised. The reaction was more mild than I had expected," he said.
Western nations have been asking for a timeframe for a return to democracy in Pakistan, ruled by the army for 25 of its 52-year history. But, Musharraf has refused, saying he has a list of things to accomplish before holding elections.
At home the coup was welcomed because of the runaway corruption of the country's political leaders, he said.
Musharraf promised to crack down on those who have not repaid bank loans. He warned: "The clock is ticking... Maybe we will put them behind bars. They should be prepared."
"I'm not afraid of it, but the result will be in our favor... The poor nation does not have a choice."
Gen. Pervaiz Musharra
Pakistan's Military Ruler
Musharraf has set Nov. 16 as the deadline to repay the loans or face criminal charges.
Setting an example for other politicians, Musharraf released details of his assets on Monday saying it was the first step toward cleaning out a corrupt system that has frustrated most of Pakistan's 140 million people and left them disillusioned with
their politicians.
Chief Admiral Abdul Aziz Mirza released a report of his assets today.
Musharraf dismissed the elected government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, charging he had undermined the constitution, weakened institutions and threatened the army.
Sharif has been in army custody since the bloodless coup, despite repeated demands from international and domestic human rights organizations that he be charged or released. Musharraf has assured the international community that Sharif will receive a fair trial.
Musharraf staged the coup after Sharif dismissed him and appointed a more junior army general as army chief of staff. The coup culminated several months of tense relations between Sharif and the army general.