NEW YORK—After almost a month since Cyclone Nargis slammed into southern Burma, the UN says that less than 25 percent of the survivors have had access to relief aid. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon announced during his brief visit to Burma last week, that Burmese Senior General Than Shwe had told him he would allow all humanitarian aid workers, regardless of nationality, into the country.
Despite this promise, the junta refused to allow a French government ship to dock and unload its 1,000 ton cargo of aid to victims in the Irrawaddy delta. While a small number of workers from UNICEF and MSF have been given access to populations in the affected region, police and immigration officers continue to stage roadblocks, interrogate foreigners, and impound cars from civilians delivering street-side aid. The regime declared that the emergency phase was over, and has requested $11 billion for reconstruction. Skeptical donors, who met at an international conference hosted by the UN and ASEAN over the weekend, so far pledged $100 million.
A resident in Rangoon recently described the scene in the country:
The situation inside is very grim. There is more to it than the West will ever know. Many places, they have buried the dead in mass graves of 3,400 persons. The government is deathly afraid of this info getting out to the west. They are trying to cover it up and hide it. They are not getting aid to the villages.
The death toll is much higher than what they have announced. Some say over 600,000 and others will say even more! There are many in need of food, water, temporary and permanent shelter, clothing, bedding and medicines. There will be a need to feed many of these people for 6-18 months. They will not have a harvest to look forward to so when harvest comes they will still need to be fed until next year's harvest! So, it is going to be a long time in giving help.
The WHO cautions that populations in the affected areas are at high-risk for diarrhea, malaria, and dengue. The WFP reports that "most people haven’t received any food yet," while Save the Children warns that if the junta continues its aid blockade then thousands of children in Burma could die of starvation within two or three weeks.
For detailed situation updates on the relief effort please visit the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA).
For reports and briefers on post-Nargis Burma please visit ALTSEAN.
For news coverage from inside Burma please visit Burmanet.
If you would like to make personal donations, we recommend supporting the following organizations:
U.S. Campaign for Burma
Avaaz
World Vision
Save the Children
MSF Holland
Mae Tao Clinic