Wednesday, August 11, 2010

**JP** No one is really helping - we need to stand firm and do all ourselves!!!!

In spite of the fact that Pakistan has been facing the worst disaster the world has seen in recent times, with an extent more than Tsunami and Pakistan-Earthquake put together, We were told that mr.zardari will be "raising funds" on his trip... the results are ...only pennies have been coming through and no one seems to be really cared in the world...with US giving $7million, a shame on its own, to a friend, whom they have nothing else to say but "do more"!!!!.... these are supposed to be our friends...we are better off without them...

The message is, we need to stand together and do all we can, and help our brothers ourselves. No one will come to help, neither the international community, nor our politicians (who if give donations from their own stolen money, will be more than 2-3 billion dollars in minutes)...it is time to do all we can for our brothers in need...in anyway one can...

Pakistan flood toll rises but international aid fails to flow

Donations far lower than past crises, warns Oxfam, with India offering no relief at all to historical enemy

Pakistan aid graphicView larger picture
Pakistan flood aid: who donated what? Click image for full graphic. Illustration: Jenny Ridley for the Guardian

The international response to Pakistan's flood emergency has been sluggish and ungenerous compared with relief efforts after previous disasters, a leading aid agency said today as the UN warned that its emergency workers were in danger of being overwhelmed by the scale of the crisis.

Oxfam said the UN's financial tracking system showed that as of August 9, governments had committed less than $45m, with an additional $91m pledged – considerably less money than was collected for previous disaster relief efforts over a similar period. India, Pakistan's much larger and wealthier neighbour, has not offered any aid or assistance at all.

"Within the first 10 days of the 2005 Pakistan earthquake, which left 3.5 million people homeless, the international community had committed $247m and pledged £45m... In the first 10 days of Cyclone Nargis, which affected 2.4 million people when it struck Myanmar [Burma], almost $110m was committed and $109m pledged," Oxfam said. Likewise, $742m was committed to Haiti and $920m pledged after the earthquake there in January.

About 14 million people have now been affected by the flooding, and about 1,600 people killed. Both figures are expected to rise in the coming days. Pakistan's federal flood commission estimated that 300,000 homes have been destroyed or seriously damaged so far and 2.6m acres (105,000 sq km) of croplands submerged.

"Six million [of the 14 million affected] are children and 3 million women of child-bearing age. This is a higher figure than in the 2005 south Asia tsunami," the UN's humanitarian affairs co-ordination office said.

Neva Khan, Oxfam country director in Pakistan, said: "The rains are continuing and [with] each hour that passes the flooding is multiplying misery across the entire country. This is a mega disaster and it needs a mega response."

To date, only five countries – Britain, the US, Australia, Italy and Kuwait – have committed or pledged more than $5m in new funding.


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