2008-05-08
The News World Harvest is receiving coming in from cyclone(hurricane)-ravaged Burma grows worse by the hour, with some reports claiming the death toll is approaching 100,000 dead and thousands more missing, with thousands homes destroyed and livelihoods ruined.
However, the disaster seems to have brought one faint glimmer of hope: that the closed doors to this otherwise politically isolated and authoritarian country will open to hundreds of international aid workers are allowed to bring urgently needed relief.
“The army has been mobilized to move trees 
and clear away debris so aid can get to people,” says Ramesh Shrestha, a Canadian who has been UNICEF’s representative for Myanmar (the junta’s name for Burma) for the last two years. Mr. Ramesh further states that “a need for co-operation makes it ‘unlikely’ that the military would try to seize the aid, or divert it from the destitute population.”
Thankfully there are already signs that the ruling junta, accustomed to a control of power, is overwhelmed by the magnitude of the disaster and unsure of how to react to the unusual pressure to open its doors. So far, most of the aid obtained has arrived from depots inside Burma, operated by large agencies and international organizations. But they will soon be running on empty, in need of new supplies and skilled personnel.
As are common sentiments amongst R&D’s (Relief & Development Organizations), “The biggest challenges are getting the permissions and logistics in place,” says Dave Toycen, president of World Vision Canada.”The government has given every indication they’re open to help, and that’s a step in the right direction. But in the past they haven’t been open to outsiders, and they’re not accustomed to dealing with something like this.”
“The government is inviting help in, but it is taking longer than we need,” says Toycen. “Clean water and purification material is the most critical thing now. Children under 5 are the most vulnerable because they get dehydrated and sick quickly.”
World Harvest’s AERDO (Association of Evangelical Relief & Development Organizations) affiliates like World Vision, with long-term projects in Burma, have had a head start at relief efforts, with “pre-positioned aid” and the help of staff and volunteers on the ground. World Harvest is in the process of mobilizing medical teams consisting of: doctors, nurses, and surgeons, along with a number of ground troops to join in aid toward relief efforts in Burma.
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