the daily snivel
Tsunami
I've commented very little on the disaster in Southeast Asia because it's so hard to know what to say in the face of such a shocking tragedy. There really aren't words. However, my friend Gitanjali has been working on an organization to provide disaster relief in Sri Lanka, and I encourage everyone who can to donate and contribute to the recovery.
December 31, 2004
Urgent Appeal for Medical Aid to Eastern Province
The Impact of the Tsunami in Sri Lanka’s War Zone
Sri Lanka is one of the world’s poorest countries. The people of the north and east of Sri Lanka are among the poorest in this besieged island nation. A twenty year long civil war has resulted in impoverishment and under-development in the fishing and farming villages of the Trincomalee -Batticoloa- Amparai district. Before the tsunami hit, travel by road, train, and sea, was disrupted by bombs, barbed wire, blockades and land mines. Local infrastructure was inadequate to meet basic health and education needs.
Now these communities have been dealt another crushing blow. The Christmas Day tsunami has claimed almost 30,000 lives in Sri Lanka. The death toll in the eastern province alone is 14,000 and rising. Countless coastal villages have been swept into the sea. Families, livelihoods, histories and whole communities have been obliterated. The stories from each small village along the coast are horrific.
In the village of Palahamam, students packed a school bus on Sunday morning for Hindu Studies. Without warning, a 5-metre high wall of water carried all 200 students and their teacher into the ocean. In the coastal town of Ninthavur, an Islamic madrasa (religious school) bore the brunt with nearly 42 children killed by the tsunami waves. In Kalmunai, doctors and nurses working in the hospital were all washed away along with their patients. The largest hospital in the area resembles a morgue packed to capacity with rotting and water-logged corpses. Fifty local healthcare workers have been killed and many medical staff have lost their kin. They now toil round the clock to deliver emergency care without basic supplies. In the coming days lethal epidemics are a certainty, unless drastic action is taken.
The people of this region desperately need your help. The unique political and geographical qualities of the district mean that relief supplies from the large donors are unlikely to arrive in time to stave off impending epidemics of dengue fever, malaria and diarrhea. In a better world this tragedy might provide an opportunity for cooperation bridging ethnic and religious differences. In reality local politics may threaten relief efforts and endanger lives.
Impacted villages in this region are Tamil Hindu, Muslim and Singhalese. Some are located in government controlled areas and some in LTTE controlled areas. Some lie within a no man’s land. Each twist in the line of control is an obstacle to aid. Ubiquitous landmines make search and rescue treacherous. Some of these areas have been placed under curfew and government aid has yet to reach these regions. Associated Press has reported that aid trucks headed to Eastern Province have been diverted to needy areas in the South.
Clearly, we cannot rely on the diffuse national relief efforts to meet the needs of the Trincomalee-Batticoloa-Amparai District. Our goal is to mobilize grass roots networks in Canada to support grass roots workers in Sri Lanka. In this way, we can do the greatest good with minimal resources. We are leveraging our personal connections with civilian physicians and nurses on the ground to identify medical needs and to deliver supplies where they are most needed. Our efforts will reinforce the efforts of local health care workers. This is critical since these workers have been in these communities for years and will be there long after the emergency field hospitals and refugee camps are dismantled.
We appeal to you to support our effort with cash donations.
WHY DONATE TO THIS PROJECT?
WHAT YOU CAN DO
Donation deadline for Phase I January 20th 2005
For information on the developing situation in the Eastern Province and the work of the Committee go to our website: www.canrelief.org. To contact the Committee email us at info@canrelief.org
We thank you sincerely for supporting the people of Eastern Province and welcome any comments or suggestions.
Committee members: Raywat Deonandan, Anjula Gogia, Randy Hryhorczuk Iniyal Inparajah, Miriam Inparajah, Gitanjali Lena, Suvendrini Lena.
December 31, 2004
Urgent Appeal for Medical Aid to Eastern Province
The Impact of the Tsunami in Sri Lanka’s War Zone
Sri Lanka is one of the world’s poorest countries. The people of the north and east of Sri Lanka are among the poorest in this besieged island nation. A twenty year long civil war has resulted in impoverishment and under-development in the fishing and farming villages of the Trincomalee -Batticoloa- Amparai district. Before the tsunami hit, travel by road, train, and sea, was disrupted by bombs, barbed wire, blockades and land mines. Local infrastructure was inadequate to meet basic health and education needs.
Now these communities have been dealt another crushing blow. The Christmas Day tsunami has claimed almost 30,000 lives in Sri Lanka. The death toll in the eastern province alone is 14,000 and rising. Countless coastal villages have been swept into the sea. Families, livelihoods, histories and whole communities have been obliterated. The stories from each small village along the coast are horrific.
In the village of Palahamam, students packed a school bus on Sunday morning for Hindu Studies. Without warning, a 5-metre high wall of water carried all 200 students and their teacher into the ocean. In the coastal town of Ninthavur, an Islamic madrasa (religious school) bore the brunt with nearly 42 children killed by the tsunami waves. In Kalmunai, doctors and nurses working in the hospital were all washed away along with their patients. The largest hospital in the area resembles a morgue packed to capacity with rotting and water-logged corpses. Fifty local healthcare workers have been killed and many medical staff have lost their kin. They now toil round the clock to deliver emergency care without basic supplies. In the coming days lethal epidemics are a certainty, unless drastic action is taken.
The people of this region desperately need your help. The unique political and geographical qualities of the district mean that relief supplies from the large donors are unlikely to arrive in time to stave off impending epidemics of dengue fever, malaria and diarrhea. In a better world this tragedy might provide an opportunity for cooperation bridging ethnic and religious differences. In reality local politics may threaten relief efforts and endanger lives.
Impacted villages in this region are Tamil Hindu, Muslim and Singhalese. Some are located in government controlled areas and some in LTTE controlled areas. Some lie within a no man’s land. Each twist in the line of control is an obstacle to aid. Ubiquitous landmines make search and rescue treacherous. Some of these areas have been placed under curfew and government aid has yet to reach these regions. Associated Press has reported that aid trucks headed to Eastern Province have been diverted to needy areas in the South.
Clearly, we cannot rely on the diffuse national relief efforts to meet the needs of the Trincomalee-Batticoloa-Amparai District. Our goal is to mobilize grass roots networks in Canada to support grass roots workers in Sri Lanka. In this way, we can do the greatest good with minimal resources. We are leveraging our personal connections with civilian physicians and nurses on the ground to identify medical needs and to deliver supplies where they are most needed. Our efforts will reinforce the efforts of local health care workers. This is critical since these workers have been in these communities for years and will be there long after the emergency field hospitals and refugee camps are dismantled.
We appeal to you to support our effort with cash donations.
WHY DONATE TO THIS PROJECT?
- Your donation will go directly to those who are most vulnerable and least likely to receive adequate government or international aid. All donations will be used to purchase medical supplies only - none of the funds will go towards administration or transport costs of Canadian volunteers.
- All members of our committee are volunteers, thus no funding is diverted to staff salaries or expenses.
- All supplies will be distributed directly to local physicians serving the most needy and remote areas; delivery will be directly supervised by members of the committee.
- We will provide detailed reports of activities to donors who provide email addresses.
- We are completely non-partisan working with all organizations to alleviate the suffering of people in affected areas, regardless or religion, ethnicity or political affiliation.
WHAT YOU CAN DO
- Send cheques or money orders. Donations will be handled by The Toronto Women’s Bookstore, a registered non-profit organization.
- Please make cheques or money orders payable to The Toronto Women’s Bookstore.
- Write Disaster relief fund on your cheque.
- Send to: Canadian Committee for Relief to Eastern Province c/o TWB 73 Harbord St. Toronto Ontario, M5S 1G4.
- PLEASE PROVIDE AN EMAIL AND MAILING ADDRESS. WE WILL CONFIRM RECEIPT OF YOUR CONTRIBUTION AND SEND YOU A NON-TAX DEDUCTABLE RECEIPT. For more information about registered non-profit The Toronto Women’s Bookstore see www.womensbookstore.com
Donation deadline for Phase I January 20th 2005
For information on the developing situation in the Eastern Province and the work of the Committee go to our website: www.canrelief.org. To contact the Committee email us at info@canrelief.org
We thank you sincerely for supporting the people of Eastern Province and welcome any comments or suggestions.
Committee members: Raywat Deonandan, Anjula Gogia, Randy Hryhorczuk Iniyal Inparajah, Miriam Inparajah, Gitanjali Lena, Suvendrini Lena.
