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UN: 1 million in Myanmar aren't getting basic aid
More than 1 million people still don't have adequate food, water or shelter a month after a devastating cyclone swept through Myanmar, and the military junta's policies are hindering relief efforts and driving up the cost of aid operations, the United Nations said Tuesday.
Compounding these problems, the junta's refusal to allow the use of military helicopters from neighboring countries is driving up relief costs, an official from the World Food Program said. Aid groups are unable to provide 1.1 million survivors with sufficient food and clean water, while trying to prevent a second wave of deaths from malnutrition and disease, the U.N. said in its latest assessment report. Of the 1.3 million people who are getting help, most have been "reached with inconsistent levels of assistance," the U.N. said. "There remains a serious lack of sufficient and sustained humanitarian assistance for the affected populations," the report said. It also said the world body lacked "a clear understanding of the support being provided by the Government of Myanmar to its people." It's shocking that cyclone victims still need basic relief after four weeks, said Sarah Ireland, regional director of the British aid organization Oxfam, which is trying to get permission to work in Myanmar. "If we were in a normal response by week four, those affected should be working toward recovery," she said Monday. "They would be in a position perhaps to think about what they need to restart their lives. But we know people on the ground don't have food to eat." Posted by: Fred 2008-06-04 |
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