Manga Anantmula, a former contender for the Virginia congressional seat and a veteran of the Army, challenged Masood Khan, Pakistan’s ambassador to the United States, regarding the assaults of women from minority groups under the name of flood aid.
In the midst of Pakistan’s disastrous floods, a young Hindu girl was recently enticed by free rations and gang-raped in Sindh province.
Masood Khan provided an update on the historic flooding in Pakistan while speaking at a press conference on Friday at the National Press Club in Washington, DC.
During the press conference on Friday, Manga confronted the Pakistani ambassador and demanded that Masood Khan address the concerns of forced conversions, rape, and other crimes committed against minority women in Pakistan.
During the press conference, Manga Anantmula also held up a poster in an effort to make a strong statement against the mistreatment of women and to ask the Pakistani envoy to take up the issue of forced conversions.
A report claims that throughout Pakistan in the month of June, 157 women were abducted, 112 were physically abused, and 91 were sexually assaulted.
At the press conference on Friday, Pakistan’s attempts to portray itself as the victim were criticised, and it was questioned why Pakistan has been investing in its military and nuclear capabilities rather than sustainable infrastructure development.
Ambassador Khan was clearly upset and unable to provide thoughtful responses to the activist’s important issues.
Meanwhile, the United States announced that it will contribute an additional USD 20 million in humanitarian aid to help those who have been impacted by the ongoing landslides, glacial lake outbursts, and severe flooding that have occurred in Pakistan as a result of the heavy monsoon rains since June.
According to calculations by the Centre and supported by the provinces, the anticipated economic loss caused by the historic floods in Pakistan has increased to nearly USD 18 billion, up from an earlier estimate of USD 12.5 billion.
After floods, the growth of the agricultural sector was far more negatively impacted. As per media sources, the devastating floods have devastated crops on 8.25 million acres as opposed to the previous estimate of 4.2 million acres, which has increased the economic losses.
The per capita income is expected to decline as a result of rising economic losses and slower GDP growth. For the current fiscal year, the government expected GDP to expand at a rate of 5%.
Additionally, from 21.9 to over 36 percent, poverty and unemployment will increase significantly. According to estimates from the Pakistani government, after floods in 118 districts, 37% of the population was affected by poverty.
A prominent committee that included representatives from the ministries of finance, planning, the state bank of Pakistan, the FBR, PIDE, and other organisations determined that unemployment and poverty have increased significantly, going from 21.9% to more than 36%.
Antonio Guterres, the UN Secretary-General, arrived in Pakistan on Friday on a two-day visit to assess the situation regarding the floods and to show support for those affected by the country’s heavy monsoon rain.
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