IRIN
AFGHANISTAN: Landslides and avalanches threaten Badakhshan locals
11 November 2007


BADAKHSHAN, 11 November 2007 (IRIN) - Over 1,000 poor people living on 
the steep slopes of a mountain in Badakhshan province in northeast 
Afghanistan are being urged by aid agencies and authorities to move as 
they are at risk of being killed in landslides and avalanches.

A joint survey conducted by the Afghan Red Crescent Society (ARCS), the 
UN and the provincial government found that seismic activity is creating 
widening gaps in the middle of Sia Shakh mountain in the Batash area of 
Faizabad city, the provincial capital of Badakhshan. Concerns are that 
this movement could dislodge large boulders which would cause severe 
damage to settlements below.

"We have recommended that all residents should evacuate the area before 
winter," said Mohammad Othman Abuzar, president of the ARCS in 
Badakhshan.

In winter, rain and snow typically blocks access to rural areas in 
Badakhshan's Hindu Kush and Pamir mountain ranges. In addition, heavy 
weather conditions would increase the probability of landslides and 
avalanches.

Nowhere to go

Hundreds of families who could afford to move have already left the 
mountain side, Abuzar said. However, about 300 destitute families who 
still live in the area say they cannot afford to abandon their homes and 
livelihoods and move to other locations permanently.

"This is everything we have," said resident Niaz Mohammad while pointing 
to a one-storey house adjacent to the affected mountain.

"There is nowhere we can move to and have a house of our own," added the 
poor father of five.

The ARSC-led survey also found that several locations across Badakhshan 
province are vulnerable to varying levels of tectonic activity.

"About 2,000 people in Badakhshan live in insecure areas where there are 
serious risks of landslides and avalanches," Shamsurahman Shams, deputy 
governor of the province, said.

Provincial officials concede that little has been done so far to tackle 
this vulnerability and avert possible human tragedy.

"We all know one day a human catastrophe will happen in this province if 
the problem is not solved promptly and appropriately," Abuzar said.

Long-term solution

Though Badakhshan is sparsely populated, with its estimated 700,000 
residents averaging 16 people per square kilometre, local officials say 
access to land, both for housing and agriculture, is a major problem in 
the province.

One solution Shams offered is the distribution of land in neighbouring 
provinces, such as Kunduz and Takhar, for vulnerable Badakhshi families.

Any decision on relocation and land distribution in other provinces, 
however, can only be taken in Kabul, the capital, and would require 
strong political backing in the Afghan government and National Assembly.

An assessment team from Kabul is expected to visit Badakhshan province 
in the near future to recommend solutions after consultation with 
concerned community and provincial authorities, Mohammad Aslam Fayaz, 
deputy head of the Afghanistan Disaster Management Authority (ANDMA), 
told IRIN.

"There needs to be a long-term solution to the problem of vulnerable 
families in Badakhshan," said Abdul Karim, deputy head of the UN 
Assistance Mission (UNAMA) in Badakhshan province, adding that any 
solution should entail the right to housing and livelihoods.

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