Burma Cyclone: UK Donates Extra £12m

[efq]

The British Government has announced an extra £12m in humanitarian aid for Burma's cyclone victims, bringing the total to £17m so far.

People are desperate for aid

International Development Secretary Douglas Alexander said: "The lives of many hundreds of thousands of people are at stake.
"We know that people are lacking the basics such as clean drinking water, food and healthcare. This additional £12m will allow humanitarian teams on the ground to continue to deliver emergency assistance."
He again called for the Burmese authorities to grant "full and unfettered access" for international assistance after the devastating cyclone that killed up to 128,000 people.
The UK has already provided shelter for 43,000 people which has arrived in Rangoon and is being distributed by the UN, said Mr Alexander.
Meanwhile, Burma's military rulers say 99% of voters turned out to vote in a referendum in their favour.
State radio said 92.4% of the 22 million eligible voters approved the constitution, dismissed by critics as a sham designed to strengthen the oppressive junta's grasp on power.
It gave voter turnout last Saturday as more than 99%.
Burma's ruling junta say more than 43,000 have been killed and nearly 29,000 were missing following Cyclone Nargis.

But the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies estimated the death toll was between 68,833 and 127,990.
The United Nations is to organise an emergency summit on the disaster, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said.
UN officials have said more than 100,000 may have died in the May 2-3 cyclone.
With up to 2.5 million people in urgent need of food, water and shelter, aid agencies were preparing or moving in a wide-range of relief supplies, including materials for temporary shelters, rice, drinking water, kitchen utensils and medicines, including 2,000 snake bite kits.
In the delta town of Bogalay, where around 10,000 people are thought to have died, people complain of forced labour and low supplies of food at the state-run centres.
"They have to break stones at the construction sites. They are paid 50p per day but are not provided any food," said Ko Hla Min, who lost nine members of his family in the storm.
The United Nations has said over half a million people may now be sheltering in temporary settlements.
In Burma's main city, Rangoon, foreign aid experts prevented from accessing the delta play pool in the evenings and watch, in frustration, television footage of the miserable conditions.
"People all over the world want to help Myanmar but the government is blocking medical teams," said one relief worker.

http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/...316126,00.html

Nice to see UK giving what they can after silly Burma can accept it.
Why try look good killing others?

[lScottl2]

If I was PM I wouldn't help Burma.

[Jordy]

I see how you both feel, why give money to a country with a pathetic military-driven government which isn't a democracy, has appalling human rights and seems reluctant to accept the aid anyway but this is all we can do. If country's don't help, nothing at all will happen, at least a little bit is being done now, better than nothing?

As we all know, it's not a democracy and they have no influence at all in who runs their country so it's not their fault if they have a ridiculous government, we should help them as it's not their fault and nothing will be done otherwise.

[lScottl2]

Considering if I was PM and I had sent a little bit and the Burmese Government rejected it then it would be on it's way back and I wouldn't send any more.

[DJ-Vimto]

I find it funny that whenever other countries suffer from a natural disaster, the UK and other richer countries spring to their help...but I think it's safe to bet that noone would give a crap if something like that happened to us

[lScottl2]

The US might help a little.

[Jordy]

The US might help a little.

Doubt it, they're reluctant to help themselves never mind so-called 'Allies'

The EU would consider helping us, we had natural disaster's of floods last summer and it takes the EU around 18 months on a decision to give aid? The EU haven't even made up their mind to give us aid from last year and the Greeks from their fires. Completely awful system.

[efq]

US do help. As we help them they help us.

Katrina, we helped. They send aids over, but you have to remember US is many hours from the UK.