Angelina Jolie Calls For More International Help After Seeing Flood-Stricken Pakistan
Humanitarian and Hollywood A-list actress Angelina Jolie is currently in Pakistan to witness how the flood disaster has ravished the country. She asserted that what occurred and continues to happen in Pakistan should serve as a wake-up call for the rest of the globe to take a closer look at climate change.
She sought additional international aid for the victims of the floods. Pakistan has been battered by unmatched monsoon rains that have caused almost a third of the country to become flooded. The areas affected are virtually the same size as the United Kingdom. As a result, more than 1,600 people have died, with the death toll rising daily.
Aside from the fatalities, more than seven million people were displaced, resulting in many living in makeshift tents without any protection from insects and mosquitos. Clean drinking water and access to washing facilities have also become limited.
Angelina mentioned that the scene before her eyes was new to her and she has never seen anything like it. Recall that she visited Pakistan in 2010 when floods ravaged the country and then in 2005 when an earthquake hit the country.
The recent flooding prompted the Tomb Raider actress to speak up during her meeting with the military and civil officials in Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan. “I am absolutely with you in pushing the international community to do more… This is a real wake-up call to the world about where we are. Climate change is not only real, and it’s not only coming, but it’s also very much here.”
Angelina, a United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) representative, took the time to visit the southern Sindh province, one of the areas badly affected by the floods. There she met with some of the displaced families that were temporarily staying in the camps.
Even as the floods rage, leaving the country with much to do, a warning from the United Nations of a second disaster is forthcoming. With all the water in the area, the danger of diseases like cholera, dengue fever, malaria, diarrhea, and other health struggles from malnutrition are imminent.
As Angelina spoke to the people of Pakistan, she was struck by their sad and bleak reality—a fact they are also very aware of. The actor mentioned in her statement that if help didn’t come around soon enough, the people would perish in a couple of weeks.
Scientists have associated the record-breaking monsoon that happened in Pakistan with climate change. Last February 2022, the UN made public one of their severest reports on climate change, stating that the window of opportunity to save the planet is rapidly closing.
The UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report stated that the continuous temperature rise impacts everything. Additionally, it claimed that if global warming isn’t minimized even for just a couple of tenths of a degree, our planet may expect to regularly deal with fires, floods, heat waves, and drought, with some potentially irreversible consequences.
This sparked fear and the reality of climate change is now more apparent than ever. It is a threat to our planet’s health and the well-being of everyone.
