STYLETHREAD -- LET'S TALK SHOP!

SheilsBabe · BCBG

RE: RE: Does anyone else feel a little disgusted...

Irene · Dooney & Bourke

Well, for those who think we aren't doing enough...

India rejects foreign aid for deadly tsunami relief work

NEW DELHI (AFP) - India has turned down foreign aid as it has "adequate resources" to provide relief to victims of a deadly tsunami that killed tens of thousands of Asians, a government official said.

India has been flooded with "generous offers of aid" from countries like Russia, the United States, Israel and Japan, said the official who did not want to be named.

"In fact, all friendly nations have offered help but we feel we do have the resources to handle the situation. If at a later stage we feel we need assistance we will not hesitate to ask," said the source on Wednesday.

"Right now we not only have adequate resources but have gone out and mounted a huge relief effort for Sri Lanka and Maldives. We could not have done this if we were facing a problem in Indian relief operations."

The Indian government says it has sent warships, helicopters and aircraft to distribute food, medicines and blankets to neighbouring Sri Lanka and the Maldives and has promised over 23 million dollars in monetary aid.

The official noted that India had not taken up the offers of help as Sunday's disaster was not of "the magnitude" of a brutal earthquake that struck the western Indian state of Gujarat in January 2001 killing 20,000 people.

"This disaster is just not of the same scale or magnitude of the Gujarat earthquake. In comparison to the Gujarat earthquake we have the resources to handle the situation at this juncture," he said.

The death toll in India from giant tidal waves that crashed into the coasts of Asia crossed 9,000 Wednesday with many thousands of people still missing, particularly on remote islands which remain incommunicado.

The government has taken a cautious stance and Indian Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee said Tuesday night the death toll as officially confirmed to the federal government in New Delhi was 4,857.

India's government and UN and local aid agencies have begun distributing survival packs to at least 160,000 people left homeless along the mainland coast with demand expected to grow for food, water and shelter.

In addition to the five billion rupees (114 million dollars) provided for relief work Monday by the Indian government, another two billion rupees (46 million dollars) has been earmarked to rebuild rural housing.

-- Edited by Irene at 16:05, 2004-12-29

lsubatgirl · Gucci

That was the point I was trying to make a few posts ago. Thanks for pointing out an article Irene.

DC Shopper · Dooney & Bourke

I wish our "initial offering" had been a little higher as well, $35 million doesn't sound like that much to me. But apart from that, it seems the real problem from various articles I've been seeing is that aid is not getting to the victims in a timely manner due to the enormous scale of the disaster and total disorganization and lack of coordination between various governments and organizations. this is so worrisome...

Mia · Kate Spade

It's so depressing to see this already degenerating into a sniping match over who's being "stingy" and who isn't etc. International relations is just like a bunch of toddlers in a sandbox right now (was it ever anything else, I wonder?). That UN official should have kept his damn mouth shut and Bush should have got his ass OFF that ranch and made some kind of public statement MUCH sooner than he did (I haven't read the news today and am assuming he made a statement today???). But really, neither of those things matters much. What matters is getting people and resources on the ground in the countries that were hit.

It's too early to be making any definitive judgements on who is and isn't giving/doing enough. Bush lost a pretty good PR opportunity to come out looking like the hero, but I am used to his administration misunderstanding how their actions are going to come off in the wider world.

ALL of the amounts mentioned so far (by most of the western countries) look pretty damn stingy. We have to wait and see if there is any real will to take on this task, which is currently disorganized and chaotic and apparently pretty ineffectual in terms of what's actually happening on the ground. I'm not blaming anyone for this, yet, because the disaster itself is so huge it's hard to know where to start, but there does need to be some stepping up. I think there have been a few calls for the UN to establish some kind of body to oversee/organize the relief effort. I hope it happens.

That article Irene posted is crazy - I notice the official is un-named, I wonder what kind of reaction that's going to get? Clearly it is not true that India can handle this themselves. Not because India is a weak country, but because it's too huge a disaster for anyone to handle on their own. If it really is the official position of the Indian gov't that they do not need help (and are rejecting foreign help) then...that seems really, really crazy. This is what I am talking about - toddlers! Still thinking about their 'image' while bodies rot in the streets.

I gave $50 last night online and my sister and I have gathered a bunch of clothes, we just aren't quite sure where to send them yet. Has anyone donated any actual goods yet? And how/where?

-- Edited by Mia at 18:51, 2004-12-29

cc · Marc Jacobs

-- Edited by cc at 14:53, 2006-02-02

Ally S · Kate Spade

I don't find the dollar amount we are contributing to the relief effort disturbing, granted it's low but we will send more and man power time factored in will greatly add to this.

What I find repugnant is that it took Bush so damned long to make an official public statement. Guess there is nothing in that part of the world we need.

On an aside note, Arthur C. Clarke the noted Sci-Fi writer lives in Sri Lanka and he and his family escaped harm.

I still cannot fathom the numbers as the death toll rises, and just wait till the various diseases set in. These numbers will soar.

halleybird · Hermes

OK, while the U.S. does give about 40 percent of total aid worldwide, it's important to remember that the U.S. is also one of the wealthiest and largest countries in the world. We actually give less money per person than all 22 of the world's wealthiest countries (source is here: http://www.umich.edu/~urecord/0102/Oct21_02/12.shtml). Our budget for foreign aid is less than 1% of the total.

To be totally honest, I'd rather send the money to Asia's relief effort than for Rumsfeld's war, but that's just me.

I totally respect the fact that our country is helping, but I hope no one's giving them any blue ribbons.