Tsunami aid

[Brian Ellis]

Yesterday, there was a private collect to help the tsunami survivors held throughout Switzerland. This was totally independent of the official aid of CHF 25,000,000 announced last year plus a considerable amount of emergency supplies flown out.

This collect was supported by the radio and television and raised over CHF 100,000,000 (>US$ 80,000,000). This is about $10 per man, woman and child living in the country.

If a similar response were to come from other rich countries, there would be billions available to help these poor people, nearly 3 billion, just from the USA, or 0.8 billion from Germany.

All I can say is that the Swiss have shown the way.

[Fat Tone]

That is good news indeed. The public in the UK have been very generous so far too, also outstripping offical pledges. Unfortunately it seems to becoming a political pawn.

Kofi Annan was on the radio this morning asking for rapid conversion of offers to cash, and saying that sadly, experience shows that rarely do more than 40-50% of Government pledges actually make it to the area concerned. Lets hope things are better this time.

Edit: fixed grammar.

[Brian Ellis]

CHF 114 million announced now, creeping up gently to $100 million and $12/person. This is an all-time record for a Swiss collection.

Other recent collections, for comparison:

Haiti CHF 4 million
Darfur CHF 2 million
Bam CHF 10 million
Child war victims CHF 7¼ million

http://www.swiss-solidarity.org/luck.php

Swiss Solidarity Annual Report 2003: 153 projects in 34 countries

Swiss Solidarity financed 153 projects in 34 different countries in 2003, for a total amount of CHF 78 millions. Apart from financing relief programmes following natural disasters, Swiss Solidarity participated in various projects benefitting to tens of thousands of children around the world. The organisation also granted support to 1'537 households in Switzerland in difficult financial situation.

Swiss Solidarity raised 15,47 million francs in four appeals. There is nothing extraordinary about the fact that more money went out than in : it simply shows that after the urgency phase, there comes the time of reconstruction and rehabilitation, when significant long term financing is required.

Apart form the earthquakes in Algeria and Iran, the year 2003 has been earmarked by crisis and war situations. Swiss Solidarity's action in favour of children victims of war launched in November 2003 brought twice as much money as had been promised : more than 7 million francs in total.

An SRG SSR idée suisse foundation, Swiss Solidarity cooperates with other medias in Switzerland as well as with approx. thirty operational partner organisations. It attributes 100% of donations without any deduction. Administrative costs are being financed by interest on invested funds and some sponsors' contributions.

Beside numbers and figures, the 2003 Annual Report also includes some reading : the story of a first hour friend of Swiss Solidarity, an interview of our independent expert Heiner Gloor, coodinator of international relief operations in Bam, and more to discover.

Available in French, German and Italian, to order the Annual Report please send a message to info@bonheur.ch.

[jms]

Thats excellent!

Last I heard we had raised 56 million $ not counting the governmental aid. This is roughly 12.5$ per person. Lets hope the numbers will soar.

[The PIT]

The UK public has raised £100 million so far with the Government trailing but offering to match the final amount.

[az]

I just read that after Germany announced to give 500 million EUR over the course of three to five years (and with massive financial problems of its own already!), Blair announced that he estimates that several hundred pounds will be given by the UK, and Australia has announced to give 1 billion AU$, 580 million EUR. Private donations in Germany were at 150 million EUR yesterday; Michael Schumacher donates 10 million EUR, which is mighty fine of him IMO - it's not as if this were pocket money even for him, and it's nice to see a super-rich be so generous.

Still, while this disaster was really shocking and big, lots of people die every day in other parts of the world that need help also. In Germany, when you donate to an organisation and specify a cause, the money has to be spent for that exact cause, and organisations like Doctors Without Borders are saying they have more than enough already for Tsunami relief (=more than they can spend to get medical personnell and medicine down there), they still need money for lots of other regions, and they ask people to make general donations to them if they want to donate, rather than specify that the money has got to be spent for tsunami relief.

AZ

[Jessterw]

Hopefully this aid can get to the less publicly covered areas that were also hit. A vast majority of the island and coastal areas are going to need aid in dealing with salt water contamination in wells and other water sources, as well as crops that are dying from said contamination.

I haven't seen the figures for aid donated by the American public; however, most everyone (say 98%) I know here has donated at the very least $10 - most have given above the $50 mark. I've personally dontated to a few different organizations, given each will likely be focusing on different locations and types of aid.

It's good to see everyone around the globe donating money towards something that could help save a great many lives here and now, even if some of the donations have a hint of bragging rights attached (re government donations).

Edit:
Az makes a good point. We should be donating to so many other causes as well; ones that don't get as much lasting public media coverage. There are also problems in our own countries that we could do better to pitch-in and help out with.

[The PIT]

It's a shame some of these countries are still infighting.

Sri Lanka is in some cases refusing aid to Tamal areas and Indonsiea have been warned by America not to use the loan helicopters in miltary operations.

[ALBPM]

Binny Boy gets free advertising....

Checkout the Tee Shirt on the man watching the stretcher go by...

http://editorial.gettyimages.com/source/search/details_pop.aspx?iid=51896117&cdi=0

Do you even think OBL is sending any of his Millions to help his Islamic Brothers out.

[Jessterw]

Just as a side note to what happens after the media finds something else to focus on...

New York Times: For Honduras and Iran, World's Aid Evaporated (no registration required)

[Dr Mordrid]

Last I heard the (incomplete) list of US contributions were;

Direct US aid: $350 million (with Congress promising more)

Military aid: the USS Abraham Lincoln Aircraft Carrier Battle Group; USS Bonhomme Richard Expeditionary Strike Group; 8,000+ troops; 21+ Seahawk helicopters; teams of Navy SEALs, U.S. Army Special Forces, military doctors; four C-17 Globemaster III cargo jets, six+ C-130 Hercules transports, six CH-53s, six CH-46s, various ships & supplies from Diego Garcia & Guam and P-3 Orion surveillance aircraft

....amounting to at least $6-$8 million/DAY

Public donations: $350 million so far....and there are a LOT of church, civic organizations etc. holding benefits all over the US. Haven't seen anything like this since 9/11.

Corporate donations:

35,000,000 Pfizer Inc. (cash and drugs)
12,000,000+ Amazon.com (website donations to Red Cross)
10,000,000 Coca-Cola Co. (cash)
5,000,000 Exxon Mobil Corp. (cash)
5,000,000 Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. (cash & drugs)
3,000,000 Citigroup Inc. (cash)
3,000,000 Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (cash)
3,000,000 Merck & Co. Inc. (cash)
2,000,000 Johnson & Johnson (cash)
2,000,000 Abbott Laboratories Inc. (cash)
2,000,000 Wal-Mart Inc. (cash)
1,000,000+ PepsiCo. (bottled water)
1,000,000+ AOL members (cash)
1,000,000+ Catholic Relief Services (cash donations)
1,000,000+ Mercy Corps
1,000,000 Nike Inc. (cash)
1,000,000 American Express Co. (cash)
1,000,000 General Electric Co. (cash)
1,000,000 First Data Corp. (cash)
1,000,000 The Pew Charitable Trusts of Philadelphia (cash)
200,000+ Islamic Relief USA (cash)
200,000 Computer Associates International Inc. (cash)
100,000 Starbucks (cash)

and rapidly counting.....

Dr. Mordrid

[Helevitia]

I know my company donated 2.5M, not including employee donation (and my company matches dollar for dollar).

[Dr Mordrid]

An AP poll says that 30% of Americans have contributed so far, and climbing. Our 6 year old Erik emptied his piggy bank and insisted on putting its contents (about $20 of his remaining Christmas monies) in the local firehouses donation box. We added a nice fat check.

Dr. Mordrid

[Helevitia]

I actually haven't donated yet. My wife set up a donation box at her work. Once she feels satisfied with the amount, she will give it to me and I'll fill out the proper forms for my company to match, along with our donation.

Dave

[Paddy]

I looked into going over, but it seems that you have to be already registered with 'aid' groups... although i guess if i jumped on a plane over there i'd only get in the way