The Pakistan Quake: Why 10,000 Schools Collapsed

By David Montero Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor

BALAKOT, PAKISTAN - Ten-year-old Kaleem's classroom is now a tent, his schoolyard a patch of ground near a stream. His real school in Bampora was flattened in the earthquake, trapping him under rubble for six hours before rescuers found him. Kaleem, smiling shyly, says he is happy to be back in class.

Kaleem's makeshift tent school, which the Army opened just days ago in Balakot, signals that the first wave of healing has begun after at least 17,000 children died in school collapses. But it comes amidst growing demands from citizens groups for an investigation into why so many schools - some 10,000 - came down, and confrontations over safety between concerned parents and school administrators.

More: http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/1108/p01s03-wosc.html