Manchar Lake Issue: Panos Pakistan  holds Peoples' Assembly

Raising Debate – Transparency & Ownership in
Poverty Reduction Strategies: Report – 2006

Ghurbat ki kahani, Ghareebon ki zabani
Stories of poverty as told by the poor

More than 1,200 residents of Manchar and its environs gathered beside Manchar Lake to raise their voice against the steady pollution of the lake waters and the resultant degradation of their livelihoods. Fisherman and farmers alike have become poorer over the years since agricultural wastewater began to be drained into the lake. This has decimated the fish in the lake which was the main source of income for the fishing communities residing on the lake. Agricultural activity has also been impacted. The farming communities that used lake water to irrigate their land complain that the polluted water is not suitable for agriculture.  

Panos and Shirkat Gah selected Manchar for the collection of Oral Testimonies of poverty in a Panos London initiative to give the poor a voice through the media in policy debate. Collected by a group of print and broadcast journalists in 2005, Panos decided to use these testimonies in a series of media outputs that would highlight the livelihood concerns of the people of Manchar.

Panos Pakistan was keen to maximize the power and potential of people’s voices and their experience of living in poverty. This human face of poverty is often missing from policy debate in the media. Policy makers also need to be reminded that the poor should have a say in the policies that are being devised for their benefit. 

A series of meetings were held with Shirkat Gah to plan the People’s Assembly, which was scheduled to take place in December 2006. Representatives from Panos, Shirkat Gah and the Omar Asghar Khan Development Foundation (who pioneered the People’s Assembly concept in the Hazara region of the North West Frontier Province) traveled to Manchar in November 2006. They met representatives of local fishing and farming communities affiliated with the Manchar Bachao Ittehad (Save Manchar Alliance) to plan the social mobilization activities in preparation for the Assembly.

During this meeting, the rationale for social mobilization in the form of a People’s Assembly was shared with the community. The idea that a People’s Assembly is an opportunity for the poor to speak and policy makers to listen was discussed. Logistical arrangements for mobilization of affected communities at Manchar were discussed in detail. The team visited various sites to decide on a venue for the People’s Assembly. They also met with the town Nazim (local government representative) to apprise him of the event and invite him to participate. 

Over the next two months, activists of the Alliance visited villages in the area to inform people about the People’s Assembly and invite them to participate.  
Meanwhile, Panos mobilized the media to participate in the People’s Assembly and generate outputs that would capture the voices of the poor. The Oral Testimonies were shared with broadcast journalists (Aaj TV and Uks’ radio producers) who familiarized themselves with the issues in preparation for producing programming of and around the People’s Assembly. The testimonies were also shared with the Interactive Resource Centre, an organization of theater activists who developed a play based on the problems highlighted by the poor.

The idea was to use the oral testimonies to catalyse policy debate at a forum like the People’s Assembly where there is significant representation from the community and policy makers.

IRC’s theatre presentations are interactive and geared towards social change. They encourage participation in the theater by the audience. The play highlights a problem, or a series of problems and the audience is invited to participate in the play as ‘spec-actors’ to change the script and therefore the outcomes of the play. The idea is to empower people to make choices that can change their destiny.

In the latter half of November, a team from Aaj TV also visited Manchar to see the site selected for the People’s Assembly. This would help them bring decide on arrangements to record the event. Oral testimonies were also shared with the producer and anchor of Seyasat (Politics) an Aaj TV weekly prime time programme. The People’s Assembly was to be recorded as an episode of the show.

Invitations were sent to politicians from Manchar represented in the Provincial and National Assemblies. Secretaries of Irrigation and Fisheries departments were also invited to participate in the People’s Assembly. Manchar Bachao Ittehad in collaboration with Shirkat Gah and Panos issued joint invitations to the following individuals

Liaquat Jatoi – Federal Minister for Water & Power
Murad Ali Shah – Member, Sindh Assembly from Manchar
 
Many local landowners were in attendance, however, and sat on the floor with the rest of the gathering. The former Sindh Chief Minister Abdullah Shah’s brother, Syed Gul Mohammad Shah, also participated in the event. (Although local organisers were a bit nervous about the floor seating, saying it might offend the ‘landlords’ there were no complaints of this from anyone and seemingly no offence taken).  

Union Council nazims, who are represent the people of Manchar in the local government system including Makhdoom Zameer Ahmed Abbasi, Nazim UC Boobak, Aftab Shahani of UC Dal and Zahid Shah, Nazim UC Jhangara were also present in the programme.
Moula Bakhsh Mallah of Manchar Bachao Ittehad welcomed the people of Johi, Sehwan and other areas around Manchar to the People’s Assembly. After recitation of a verse from the Holy Quran, Moula Bakhsh made an introductory speech, in which he thanked the participants for coming. He said the fishermen and farmers were both facing similar problems since the lake was their only source of livelihood. He appealed to the fishermen as well as the farmers to join in the struggle to save Manchar Lake.  

Next, Ms. Zubeda Birwani, Program Officer of Shirkat Gah, briefed the audience on the aims and objectives of the program. She reminded the audience that the campaign to save Manchar was initiated in the year 2000, with the setting up of the Save Manchar Alliance (the representative forum of local fishermen and farmers) to fight for the problems faced by the people of Manchhar. She also explained that the People’s Assembly was a follow-up to an earlier activity carried out in 2005. A group of journalists sponsored by Panos South Asia and Shirkat Gah visited Manchar to collect Oral Testimonies of people living in poverty in Manchar which were highlighted in the print and broadcast media.

Zubeda explained that politicians representing the people of Manchar in the provincial and national assemblies, as well as representatives of the irrigation and fisheries departments had been invited to participate in the Assembly. None of them had taken the trouble to be present. She said: “Those who are responsible and accountable don’t care about the problems of the people. However, we do and we will take these problems to them if the policy-makers can’t come here.” She praised the efforts of Mohammed Ali Brohi, a founder member of Manchhar Bachao Ittehad, and who was murdered by dacoits some time earlier.  

Mumtaz Tanoli of the Omar Asghar Khan Foundation explained the rationale behind the People’s Assembly to participants. He said this was different from the assemblies where elected representatives formulated policies and made major decisions about governance. He emphasized that “This is a People’s Assembly. It is your own forum in which you can talk about your own problems. There is no stage and no chief guest to sit on it. We are all seated together on the floor. There will be no speeches. You are the chief guests and you can talk freely here.”

He also pointed out that people have gathered together here because they want a change, since the future of the coming generations is at stake. He encouraged people to come forward and unite “because it is the only way to wage the struggle for our rights. Unity is the only solution to our issues. Today, we have the opportunity to take this issue through media to the policy makers sitting in the Parliament.”  

Following these introductions, Mr. Mohammad Waseem took the stage and introduced the concept of interactive theater. He explained that the play could be changed, forwarded, rewound, actors changed, characters added. He encouraged the audience to move beyond being spectators to ‘spec-actors’. Explaining the magic of interactive theater, he said men could play a woman’s role and women a man’s. He also explained that the play was incomplete and had to be completed by the people of Manchar. (See section on Media Outputs below for details about the theater presentation.)

Following the theater presentation, Waseem asked participants of the People’s Assembly if they were satisfied with the theater or if they would like to change anything to improve it or make it more accurate. Most participants challenged the Managing Director of the Water and Sanitation Authority, and questioned various policies over the years which have destroyed the lake. Ashraf Ali wanted to know why water from the lake was not released into the River Indus when it had risen dangerously threatening to flood the surrounding areas. Mohammed Zahid Shah (a union council nazim) wanted to know whether WASA had been tasked with destroying the lives and livelihoods of Manchar’s fishing and farming communities. He said effluent from the Right Bank Outfall Drain had destroyed hundreds of acres of fertile land and displaced fishermen and farmers who had migrated to Punjab or other areas in Sindh looking for employment. None of them had received compensation for their losses.
Another participant, Sher Mohammed, reiterated Ashraf Ali’s line of questioning, asking the MD of WASA what would happen when the current swollen Manchar waters at 14 feet rose to 16 feet breaching the embankment. Could he not imagine the loss of lives and properties?

Following these ‘interactions’ with the theater, several participants used the opportunity to engage directly with the audience. Mohammed Zahid Shah pointed out, just as Keenjhar Lake is main source of water for Karachi, Manchar could store water for Hyderabad city. Hence, it should be developed into a freshwater reservoir. He said Manchar currently has 2 million acre feet of water. If the government refilled the lake with fresh water, imagine what a resource this could be. He appealed to the participants to think above political affiliations and unite on the one-point agenda to save Manchar Lake.

Another participant informed the audience about fresh water sources that could refill the lake. He said six rain-fed rivers coming from mountainous areas feed the lake near Chhani Town. These include River Gaj, River Angai, River Nehing, River Nali/Nari, River Khandhani and River Kakrani. The second source of filling Manchhar Lake is three canals, including Danistar, Aral and Morak barrage.

Despite Waseem’s attempts to invite women to participate in the interactions, women remained spectators at the People’s Assembly. There were between 80 – 100 women and children present. Special arrangements had been made to provide privacy to them behind a screen dividing the seating arena. They were thus able to remain behind the screen yet still view the theater presentation.

Following the People’s Assembly, the radio journalist was able to interact with one of the women through an interpreter/social mobilizer (Shahzadi), This interview is included in the radio feature.

Media Outputs on Poverty in Manchar

Oral Testimonies

a. Television –  Hamari ‘Seyasat’  (Our politics)

The People’s Assembly in Manchar was featured in an ongoing Aaj TV programme titled Seyasat (Politics). This is a weekly prime time show (broadcast on Thursday at 2130 and repeated on Sunday morning). The programme is hosted by Khalid Jamil and is a discussion programme on current affairs and local politics.

The programme was recorded after the People’s Assembly, with Manchar Lake serving as a backdrop. The panelists included local government representatives, subject specialists on development, environment and irrigation, as well as local residents. Local journalists and the people of Manchar were also part of the audience. 

The discussion revolved around the pollution of the lake and its impact on the livelihoods of the fishermen and farmers. There was considerable discussion on the policies that have contributed to the situation in Manchar. Nazim Makhdoom Fazal Abassi of Bubak, one of the union councils where Manchar Lake is situated, said he had raised this issue and put it on the record during several district council meetings but it could not pass a single resolution to send to the relevant government departments and ministries.

Syed Gul Mohammed Shah, a former nazim of Sehwan, said Federal Minister for Water and Power, Liaquat Ali Jatoi had been elected from the area but had so far done nothing to develop Manchar. In fact, he was building a dam on River Gaj to irrigate his family lands. River Gaj is the main source of fresh water for Manchar Lake.
 
Educationist Sadiqa Salahuddin, Executive Director of the Indus Resource Centre (IRC) criticized the government’s concept of development. She commented on former chief minister Abdullah Shah’s policy to rehabilitate fishermen by establishing a residential colony by the lake. “We can see demarcation of plots but the people were not given lease documents,” she pointed out. This is how ‘committed’ our government and policy-makers are to development, she said. Other projects such as a cold storage and hatchery for the fishing community have also not materialized. Seated on the embankment, Sadiqa recalled her own visit to Manchar many years ago when she traveled by boat from Shah Hassan to Boobak (from one bank of the lake to the other). “I could not believe that this is the same lake,” exclaimed Sadiqa.

Nasir Panhwar of IUCN said solutions had to be found to these issues. “We need development for the people at the grassroots level. Our development projects are being designed for the elite class instead of common people.” He suggested establishing a Manchhar Development Authority and making it accountable because departments such as Sindh Wildlife, Fisheries, Irrigation and Tourism seem to have no role for improving this wetland site.

Mohsin Babar, a journalist from Islamabad, said the government’s policies are for its own political as well as personal gains. “They do not get people involved in policy making.” For instance, the former chief minister of Sindh Syed Abdullah Shah established an airport in Manchar, which lies deserted.  The current Federal Minister for Water and Power, Liaquat Ali Jatoi, is building a dam on River Gaj presumably to irrigate his family’s land holdings. “These political leaders do not think about the interests of the poor. There are never plans to build schools or basic health centers.”

Naseer Memon, Coordinator, LEAD Sindh quoted a feasibility report prepared by WAPDA, who recommended the release of effluent from Shikarpur, Larkana and Dadu into Manchar Lake. At the time they believed that it could not affect the environment. The study was conducted when the lake received more fresh water from River Indus and precipitate from the hills during the rains. Since Indus flows have reduced, and the area has experienced a drought, the effluent has killed the flora and fauna of the lake.
“The study is no longer relevant and has, in fact, been proved wrong.   Policy makers also believed that the RBOD project would not be harmful for Manchar Lake. But now its adverse impact is visible.

Nazeer Memon, a water expert from Hyderabad, explained that increasing pollution in Manchar had affected the groundwater reservoir in the area. Hundreds of thousand acres of fertile land had turned saline. “Employment and water are basic universal human rights, but the people of Manchhar have been deprived of these rights.” He feared that people of Sindh were being impoverished and marginalized. “The government is using Manchar Lake and River Indus to release effluent from Punjab and Balochistan provinces into it.”

Another panelist, Aijaz Qureshi of SIDA, said Manchar Lake irrigated 400,000 acres of land in the area but now about 200,000 acres had become barren because of increasing salinity. Moreover, the lake used to produce 70-80 tons of fish daily but now there are no fish and many fishermen have migrated to other water bodies in Punjab, Balochistan and Karachi to seek employment.

Finally, local resident Zahid Shah said that increasing salinity had destroyed his family land. “Earlier, I would produce 800 sacks of wheat annually but now I have to buy wheat to feed my family.” He said two former chief ministers of Sindh belonged to this area but neither of them had done anything for the development of their constituency.

Mumtaz Manganhar, an activist from Manchar, suggested that the government should announce a free fishing policy immediately and abolish all taxes on fishing so that fishermen could be rehabilitated.

The event generated considerable interest among the local media, especially TV media. Representatives of private TV channels interviewed participants of the People’s Assembly as well as the panelists. These reports were broadcast on Urdu and Sindhi language channels.

b. Radio – Ghurbat ki kahani ghareebon ki zubani (stories of poverty as told by the poor)

Uks produced two radio features highlighting the problems of Manchar. Using the Oral Testimonies as their main source of background research into the problems of Manchar, the Uks radio producer traveled to Manchar during the People’s Assembly and after to collect sound bytes for the features.

Based on the People’s Assembly and the discourse that took place during the event, the first feature creates a nostalgia about the lake and how it was once a thriving wetland teeming with life. Over the years, the fish and birds and even the indigenous varieties of grass and vegetables have all but disappeared. A community that was once well able to make a living primarily from fishing, is severely decimated and impoverished. Thousands have migrated to other parts of the country in search of employment. Those that remain are poor, malnourished, diseased, their new generations are illiterate, and they are above all increasingly despondent and disillusioned. These thoughts in the voices of men and women from Manchar have been captured in the radio feature.

The second feature focuses specifically on women’s lives, and how these have changed over the years due to the ecological changes in Manchar. There are voices of women residing in the villages on the banks of the lake. Seemab complains that once their main source of drinking water was Manchar. Since the water has become polluted, the government launched a water supply scheme for which they had to pay. When they were unable to pay because they had meager income, the government disconnected their water supply. “They only ask us for our votes,” said Seemab.

On the lake, the story is no different. Amina disagreed with the government’s policy of providing housing in a colony for the fishermen and their families who live on boats in the lake. Dwindling fish stocks in the lake have deprived these communities of their livelihood. However, the solution does not lie in providing them land for housing. “We will only go if there is employment,” says Amina. While residing on the lake, they are at least able to fish and feed themselves.

The programmes are ready for broadcast on local FM radio stations.

c. Theater – A Tale of Two Families

Interactive Resource Centre worked with 8 members of the Murk Theater Group from Hyderabad, Sindh to prepare a play about Manchar. The play was developed using information from video documentation, Oral Testimonies. Two theater activists from Manchar who participated in the workshop also provided information and feedback on Manchar’s problems.

The play incorporates music, singing and dancing to make it appeal to a largely village audience. It resembles folk theater. The duration of the play is 22 minutes.  Besides being performed at the People’s Assembly on January 14, 2007, this play was also performed at IRC’s Theater Festival in MUltan in December, before an audience of 600.

There are two main protagonists in the play, a fisherman and a farmer. The story of the lake’s degradation and its impact on the lives and livelihoods of the fishermen and farmers of Manchar is told through the stories of the two protagonists and their families.

INTERACTIVE THEATER ON MANCHAR  

Scene One: Fisherman’s family
All characters enter the stage signing and dancing.

Narrator: Will our prayers be addressed? Will Manchar Lake regain its glory? We all need to think how we can regain the lost glory of Manchar Lake.

The characters resume singing and take their positions. (The characters live on a boat and get busy in their daily chores.)

A father and son discuss a malfunctioning motor driving the engine on the boat. The father advises his son to buy a new one but he says he can’t afford it; he is already under debt. The mother asks them both to work harder so that they have enough to eat. Then they talk about the scarcity of drinking water. One of them says they should use water from Manchar Lake. They then discuss how the water carries diseases that make them ill. This polluted water has depleted fish species, their nets are tattered and they can no longer afford to replace them, there are fewer birds species frequenting the lake, and the indigenous varieties of vegetables once growing in abundance are becoming scarce.
 
In the background, the cries of a baby boy suffering from diarrhea and vomiting can be heard. His poor parents do not have the money to take him to a doctor for treatment. The baby boy finally dies because he does not receive proper treatment.

Song (Repeat of opening song)

They wonder if they should leave Manchar and settle down somewhere else. When this option is rejected the son proposes to do something to change the situation, like taking part in the Manchar Bachao Ittehad (Save Manchar Alliance). An uncle is pessimistic, however, and says no matter how hard they try the situation won’t change. Meanwhile someone knocks at the door and tells them that a woman in their neighborhood has died after drinking the poisonous water of Manchar Lake.

They discuss how fish are dying in the lake, there are waterborne diseases, and poverty is increasing – all a result of the poisonous water of Manchar Lake. Then one of them suggests moving to the upper deck of the boat lest water enters the boat. Suddenly, the boat starts to sway because of the rising water. All of them struggle to stabilize the boat and take it to the bank.

Song (Opening song is repeated)

Second Scene: Farmer’s family
All the characters are picking cotton.

Narrator: Manchar Lake not only supports thousands of people but plants, birds and animals also benefit from it. It will be a half presentation of truth if we omit them from the story.

The characters discuss how poisonous water from the lake is affecting the crops resulting in declining yields. They have had to borrow money and are now trapped in debt. Because of increasing poverty they can’t get their daughters married.

The son asks for his father’s permission to find a job and help pay off the debt. If they do not pay, the landlord will take control of their land. One of the women suggests that they should sell their remaining goats (which have not died from polluted water) but even this option is rejected because this will not generate enough money to repay the debt.

The family then discusses people’s indifference towards solving the problem They voice the view that a combined effort is needed by the community to solve this problem. IN the current season, they have become further indebted to the tune of 10,000 rupees. All characters join in singing the song.

Song (Opening  song is repeated)

Third Scene
 All the characters are part of the protest movement.

Narrator: We could organize protests, processions, press conferences but would this effort bear fruit? Can we force the government departments to treat Manchar lake water?

All characters suddenly become afraid and change their positions.

Speaker 1 -  Water & Sanitation Authority Representative: “It is not possible to complete the RBOD (right bank outfall drain) project right now. It is better to temporarily drain the water in Mancher lake and when RBOD is completed, the water can be drained out.”

The protestors argue that the water is poisonous and will destroy irrigation land. They point out that the plan has not been completed for the last 20 year! How much more time will it take?
 
Speaker 2 - Irrigation Department Representative: “We have suggested in previous years that water from Manchar lake should not be dumped in the River Indus.”

The protestors argue that this water was dumped in the river when it was in flood. If it was routed to the river at the right time and not when it was in flood, it would not be that harmful.

Speaker 3 – Water and Power Development Authority Representative: “The RBOD is not any other plan. It costs billions of rupees. World Bank has provided financial assistance. Let us hope that this plan is completed in the next five years.”

Protestors discuss how Manchar’s poisonous water should be drained in River Indus. This may result in the government registering cases against them. One of the protestors said she did not think the plan would be completed. People are dying and lands are becoming barren and uncultivable; the government needs to take action.

They all look towards the department representatives and the representatives turn their backs on the group.

The protestors decide to wait for government action and till such time they decide to go on as before and pray to God for help..

Manchar is the largest freshwater lake in Asia. It was once teeming with fish, waterfowl and migratory birds. It also supported a variety of economic activities such as fishing and farming in Johi and Sehwan, parts of Dadu district in Sindh. However, since the 1990s, the lake has become an ecological disaster. Agricultural wastewater carrying chemical fertilizer and pesticide residues is drained into the lake through Sim Nullah. Lucrative varieties of fish have died out. Migratory birds have deserted the wetland site. Crop varieties and yields have dwindled. This has had a devastating impact on the livelihood of the resident populations, many of whom have migrated to other areas in search of employment. Those that remain are barely able to stay afloat, and have become indebted to moneylenders. Water related ailments are common. Federal regulatory institutions such as Water & Power Development Authority (WAPDA), Water & Sanitation Authority (WASA) in Hyderabad, and the Irrigation Department have no solution to their problems.

Print –  Newsletter Hamara Mahol
 
Hamara Mahol (Our Environment)

A two-part series on Oral Testimonies from Manchar and Sanghar (the two poor sites from which OTs were gathered in 2005) was published as part of Shirkat Gah’s ongoing Hamara Mahol (Our Environment) newsletter.  These were produced using money left over from the Oral Testimonies training workshop. The series was titled “Ghurbat ki kahani ghareeb ki zubani” (The story of poverty in the words of the poor). The issue on Manchar was distributed among participants of the People’s Assembly

Hamara Mahol comes out in poster format in single colour with line illustrations and a cartoon strip titled Hamari Gali (Our lane).

Manchar: Volume 14, Issue 1
The Manchar issue featured five write-ups, the main being a background and introduction to the degradation of Manchar Lake. Four oral testimonies were also reproduced in the issue, two of men and two of women.

Excerpted from oral testimonies, these pieces highlighted the main issues faced by fishing and farming communities in Manchar, notably unemployment, the pollution of lake water and its impact on people’s health, non-payment of compensation for farmers and fisherfolk whose livelihoods have been destroyed, lack of basic services like education, sanitation and water; the migration of a majority of the population to other areas to seek employment opportunities, environmental degradation and the decimation of species of flora and fauna (including commercial species of fish) and the increasing poverty and marginalization of the community. 

Article Headlines
1. Background to the issue of Manchar

2. “Employment opportunities are on the decline” – Hodat

3. “Compensation has not been paid” – Karim Bukhsh

4. “Life is nothing short of a disaster” – Fatima

5. “Seldom (do we) find wage labour” – Allah Bukhsh

Sanghar Vol. 14, Issue 2
The Sanghar issue featured eight write-ups, the main being a background and introduction to the poverty issues of the residents of the katchi abadis (squatter settlements) in Sanghar. Four oral testimonies were also reproduced in the issue, two of men and two of women.

Excerpted from oral testimonies, these pieces highlighted the main issues faced by fishing and farming communities in Manchar, notably unemployment, the pollution of lake water and its impact on people’s health, non-payment of compensation for farmers and fisherfolk whose livelihoods have been destroyed, lack of basic services like education, sanitation and water; the migration of a majority of the population to other areas to seek employment opportunities, environmental degradation and the decimation of species of flora and fauna (including commercial species of fish) and the increasing poverty and marginalization of the community.

Article Headlines
1. ‘The fight for their rights’ - Background to poverty in Sanghar

2. “Like a lioness…” – Salma Qureshi

3. “The restrictions of caste and creed” – Zainab

4. “The story of a hawk and weasel” – Chutta Khan

5. The significance of loans

6. The many faces of injustice