Sakina Mallah, 57, lives with her family in Achar Mallah village, in Pakistan’s Sindh province. The family lost everything when devastating floods swept Sindh in 2010.
“Before the floods, life was easy,” said Sakina. “But then our house, land and everything was destroyed. We spent four months living a tough life in the camps of the Badin district.
“When we came back to the village there were lots of problems in earning a living and the things we needed to survive. Islamic Relief Pakistan came to help us and they are still helping us. We have a very hard life.”
Struggling to earn enough to eat
Sakina’s elderly mother and mother-in-law live with the family. Her husband, Juma, struggles to earn enough money to provide for the family-of-eight.
“My husband is a daily fisherman, and whenever he finds work we eat two meals a day. But sometimes it is difficult to fulfil our daily food requirements from his income. Due to the shortage of food and income, most nights my family and I sleep without anything to eat.
“Some of the time my neighbours and relatives help us, but it is not enough to buy nutritious food. A few days before Eid, when I was going to collect firewood, my husband’s friend told me, ‘We couldn’t find work today, so your husband is coming back without money.’ The tears fell from my eyes and I worried about feeding my children.”
Making Eid auspicious
Sakina and her family can rarely afford to eat meat – or even fish – so the Qurbani meat that they received from Islamic Relief last year made a big difference. The five-kilogram package was one of more than 17,200 which we distributed to families affected by the flooding in Sindh. Over 113,200 poor people in Pakistan alone benefitted from our Qurbani meat programme last year.
“From the Qurbani meat, I made three to four different dishes. It made our Eid very auspicious. I want to convey my prayers to the donors, who are supporting us without getting anything in return but our best wishes.”
Eid is often the only time poor families like Sakina’s will taste meat. Give blessings. Give joy. Give Qurbani with Islamic Relief.
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