Burma Cyclone - NEWS UPDATES

BURMA - UPDATE  -  June 6th 2008 

26 NARGIS ORPHANS FOUND.

On Tuesday May 27th we received an e-mail from our co-ordinator in Burma (Myanmar) advising us that he had found 26 Nargis orphans sheltering in Kawhmu, south west of Rangoon (Yangon).   The authorities wanted to place them in a state orphanage, which our co-ordinator described as ‘being the next worst thing to death.’    He managed to persuade the authorities to hand then over to him on the understanding that he would work to find homes for them.   It is our intention to move the children to the monastic home that we support south of Rangoon and where we know the abbot is a wonderful man, who will nourish and support the children in whatever way is necessary.  Obviously many of the children are very distressed and Love A Child intends to take whatever steps are necessary regardless of expense to help these poor children.
As always the problem is money!   The children were obviously not included in our budget for 2008 and now we have to find the funds to firstly give them a thorough health check, clothe them, feed them and generally look after their welfare while we try to find homes for them. This does not come cheap even in Burma.   Therefore we are starting a separate appeal for these orphans, which will be called The 26 Orphans Appeal.
Anyone wishing to donate to help us try to give these children a new start in life should click on the sponsor/donate button on this website.   You can donate as little as 10 Euros.   When making payment, please note ‘The 26 Orphans Appeal’ in the PayPal notes and we will make sure 100% of your donation goes to these desperate children.    Alternatively you can send cheques or banker’s orders in any convertible currency to our Spanish address shown under ‘Contact us’ on this website.
Thank you so much from all of us at Love A Child.

Our reports on the ground in Burma show that there have been some improvements in the most devastated areas, but nowhere near enough and some 20% of the cyclone victims have not received any aid at all.    The frustration for charities and aid workers is that money and aid are available, it is that the government have flatly refused to allow enough specialist aid workers into the country to organise and distribute that aid.
Burma and particularly the devastated areas will need help for many years to come and it is frustrating that had help arrived immediately some of the cost of rebuilding and support, which will be necessary, could have been saved.

BURMA (MYANMAR) Update Friday May 23rd 2008.

We have just received the news that the junta after discussions with UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon have agreed to allow all foreign aid workers into the country to help with the relief operations.   This is great news if only it wasn’t three weeks late and in many cases too late for the more vulnerable people to have survived.   Things are steadily deteriorating in the delta area and we can only pray that this deterioration will now be halted and that the Burmese people from that area can slowly start to rebuild their lives.  It will take many years and resources to reconstruct schools, health centres and hospitals that were destroyed in the cyclone and we will continue with our work to support the children of Burma.     
We would like to thank all those, who have donated so generously to the cyclone relief – However may we remind all of you that this is just the beginning of the reconstruction task and also the work of feeding the population as the delta was the rice bowl of Burma and without that production many are going to struggle to find enough food for themselves as rice prices throughout the region increase dramatically.
We sincerely hope that the generals keep to their word and allow the free movement of aid and relief workers.

For more up to date information and pictures we recommend you visit the BBC News Website news.bbc.co.uk In other news relevant to this foundation, the Dalai Lama is currently visiting England and addressing British MP’s on the current Tibetan situation.   There is much information on the BBC website about Tibet and the Dalai Lamas views on the way forward with the Chinese government.

Wednesday 14th May

It is now estimated by the aid agencies that there are at least 100,000 people dead or missing.

Although the aid agencies were ready to moved once the news finally filtered out of the country, the response of the Burmese government has been unhelpful at best and downright disgraceful in many ways.  Most aid agencies including the UN have had to negotiate with the government to allow their aid in and key personnel with vast experience of this type of disaster have been forced to sit for days in Bangkok waiting for visas, which in many cases still ten days later have not been granted.    Some aid has been confiscated and the authorities are insisting that the Burmese army, who have no experience of disaster relief, should distribute the aid with the result that much is not being targeted where it is most needed.

In the latest reports, malaria, cholera and dengue fever are starting to spread and Oxfam have stated that a further l million people are at risk.   It is estimated that aid has only reached 40% of the victims so far after ten days. Thousands of tons of food and medicine are required urgently to be distributed by professional aid agencies if a secondary tragedy is to be averted

The Love A Child Foundation has been unable to contact one of its homes, which although it is not in the delta region was in the direct path of the cyclone.  Our co-ordinator in Burma tried to reach this home at the weekend but had to turn back due to flooding.  Today we had good news from our other home in the region that apart from some flooding and external damage all is well, but food is now in short supply.   Our co-ordinator will try again this weekend to make contact with the second home.   Luckily we had money in the country for two dormitory refurbishment projects and the balance of this money has been released to our people for aid relief to use as best they think fit under the circumstances.  We urgently need further funds to so that we can contribute to the relief effort.  One of the biggest problems with fund raising for this disaster is that people are worried that their money may end up in the hands of the Burmese government.  I can assure donors that once we are satisfied that our children are safe and cared for any surplus money that we have available will be channelled through the British Embassy, who we work closely with, to local non government organisations, who will know exactly where the funds can be best targeted and achieve the greatest relief.

We have within the last half hour received a report from Burma that the government are now trying to stop local business people from delivering food and help to people in the delta region.   We as a foundation are horrified by the callous disregard of the Burmese government for its citizens and call on the world to unite in an effort to force the government to accept a massive airlift of aid and aid agency personnel to relieve the suffering of the Burmese people.  The lives of thousand of people are in the balance at this very moment.  We must not allow them to die.

 
Friday 9th May

It is criminal the way the government of Myanmar is behaving towards its people.     With estimates now rising to 100,000 dead and still very little aid or relief workers being allowed to enter the country, what are these poor and desperate people expected to do? Is the World and the West in general that timid that it dare not sideline the Junta and relieve the appalling distress of these poor people?

The Love A Child foundation, which luckily deposited project funds in the country in March has instructed its co-ordinators to use the money they have in whatever way they feel appropriate at the present time. We have also been lucky enough to have been offered a direct route to send more money as aid to the country (normally difficult due to financial sanctions). We desperately need your help for the poor people of Burma (Myanmar).     

Please go to the HOW TO SPONSOR page on this website and then click SPONSOR/DONATE and follow the paypal credit card instructions  (you can donate from as little as 10 Euros in units of 10 Euros to whatever sum you wish to donate) or pay through other options on this web page.

We know these wonderful and resilient people will never forget your generosity.