"The people here are survivors and have taken the initiative to clean up on their own. A few food stores have begun to open but I hear shelves are beginning to empty. There are few materials to repair the damage and what is around has doubled and tripled in price. "
if there was one phrase to describe the situation in burma today, it might be "xenophobia challenged". as the oppressed asian country sits with estimates between 50-100,000 dead and over 1 1/2 million "severly affected" by the disaster, somehow the government is still taking it's time to decide if foreign aid is necessary from all willing countries. the cyclone hit and devastated parts of this country on saturday and still a week later the problem hasn't been seen by foreign eyes. yes, pictures and videos can be found on google, youtube, and bbc news--but article after article lists the same common problems. aid workers aren't being granted visas. and meanwhile, people continue to die in burma.
"100 year old trees came crashing down." "our journalists are hiding in rice paddies, trying to cover this story. the myanmar government won't allow us to be here."
the facts tell us the following information:
*121 mile per hour winds roared through the city and irrawady delta
*thousands of people are dead, but not from this wind power. the deaths accumulated through a tidal surge that drove inland from the sea.
*the junta government has done very little to assist in clean-up and allocating of resources. most of the work being done to clear the debris is by monks and burmese people.
*relief planes are being flown and i refused entry to the country, having to turn around and go back to their home.
*there is widespread flooding, allowing no access to remote areas where the damage and death is the highest. roads are too impassable.
the internet reports that the aid of certain asian countries has been warmly received. china and india have gotten aid in. banglades sent 35 metric tons of high energy biscuits (= to 1/2 million biscuits), 7 tons of clothes, 3 tons of noodles, 1 ton of dry potatoes, 1 ton of water purifying tablets. laos apparently sent $20,000 US dollars ( i found that funny! ). Thailand, SIngapore, the list goes on and on.
and as laura bush and condoleeza rice slam the burmese government for failing to open it's doors to US aid, the junta stands on the other side of those doors, closing them more and more. as an american citizen i find the international relation tactics of our leaders to resemble a 2nd grader fighting with a classmate rather than a strategic, mature plan of action. our country, with the most aid and assistance to give, is making the distribution of that aid impossible.
meanwhile, volunteers like my friend ME (name not disclosed to protect her identity) are going 90 miles a minute to repair homes, factories, and structures destroyed by the cyclone. ME happened to be the manufacturer of very handy water purification pots made from the reddened clay of burmese soil. her other endeavors include scabies and lice soap, also useful after a flood. although her factory was destroyed in the city of yangon, she has her mind set on rebuilding in within the next few months and distributing these pots to families and villages, hoping to save a few lives. she also hopes to establish other factories in remote areas of myanmar so that this message of love and help comes to those the furthest away from the source.
(TO SEND SUPPORT DIRECTLY TO ME, CONTACT (800)999-3113, OR EMAIL WORLDHUNGER@IMB.ORG AND ASK HOW YOU CAN DONATE TO HER WORK. ALL YOU GOTTA SAY IS SHE WORKS IN MYANMAR AND SHE'S WITH THE IMB. THEY'LL BE HAPPY TO FIGURE IT ALL OUT FOR YOU).
another cool idea is giving to world vision. as of thursday, they were granted permission by the myanmar government to enter the country w. extra humaintarian help.
so...what will you do now? will you go back to your life, home, kids, work, and allow this information to blow in one eye and out the other, or will you act. cause here's the p.s. on my letter: the India Meterological Department (IMD) is recognized by the World Meterological Organization (WMO) as the regional specialized meterological centre. they are required to send out specific advisiories to all south east asian countries about storms such as this. and one of these was sent to myanmar, describing the location, severity, and movement of the storm.
the government did nothing with the information. AKA--the myanmar people had NO IDEA that cyclone nargis even existed, much less that it was heading for their doorsteps.
how would you feel if this happened to you??? what would you do???
to be honest, i'd be angry, hurt, sad, afraid, cold, wet, hungry, confused. but those things wouldn't really matter cause no one has time to care about how i feel. all we'd have time for is action. soooo, that's what i'm calling you to:
ACTION!!!!!
so, go and take action! hold hands with myanmar. believe you can make a difference. as peter said, "finally, ALL OF YOU, live in harmony with one another; be sympathetic, love as brothers, be compassionate and humble."
thanks for reading. i send this out of love for you and for god and for myanmar. excuse my drama! it's how my mind works :)
ashley!!!
i got all my info from the following websites:
New York Times: "A Challenge Getting Relief to Myanmar's Remote Areas."
*BBC: "Will Burma's leaders let aid in?"
*India's Economic Times: Indian meteorological department advised junta 48 hours in advance
*BBC: "Disaster tests Burma's junta."
*Times Online: "Aid workers fear Burma cyclone deaths will top 50,000."
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