=====
Zomi says:
The life of one general is more precious than the life of the victims,
now
numbering one million at least, including the 22000 dead. The life and
limb
of the people is of no importance to the generals.
The generals enjoy killing people. They want to kill people. Now they are
angry, because 22000 people have been killed by the cyclone, not by the
generals. The generals want to shoot and kill those people.
Highlights:
Myanmar's junta knows it needs outside help in the face of an
"unprecedented
emergency" after Cyclone Nargis, but it must act now to remove red tape
delaying a massive international aid operation, a U.N. official said on
Wednesday.
While the world body had permission to fly in emergency supplies, disaster
and aid experts from the U.N. and other international aid agencies were
still waiting for visas to enter the military-ruled former Burma.
"Visa applications have been in for 24-48 hours," Horsey, spokesman for
the
United Nations Office of the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
(UNOCHA),
said.
"Now is the time that movement is expected on that and we do look to the
authorities to issue the necessary clearances."
International patience is already wearing thin, with France suggesting
invoking a U.N. "responsibility to protect" clause and delivering aid
directly to Myanmar without waiting for approval from the military.
"We are seeing at the United Nations if we can't implement the
responsibility to protect, given that food, boats and relief teams are
there, and obtain a United Nations' resolution which authorises the
delivery
and imposes this on the Burmese government," Foreign Minister Bernard
Kouchner said in Paris.
=====
INTERVIEW-Myanmar must act now to clear aid red tape
Wed May 7, 2008 9:21am EDT
By Darren Schuettler
BANGKOK, May 7 (Reuters) - Myanmar's junta knows it needs outside help in
the face of an "unprecedented emergency" after Cyclone Nargis, but it must
act now to remove red tape delaying a massive international aid operation,
a
U.N. official said on Wednesday.
With large swathes of the Irrawaddy delta under water and up to one
million
people in need of shelter, water, medicine and food, the disaster presents
a
"major logistical challenge", Richard Horsey of the U.N. disaster response
office said.
"The government recognizes this is an unprecedented emergency for Myanmar
and it will require a huge relief effort with a big international
component," he told Reuters in an interview in the Thai capital.
While the world body had permission to fly in emergency supplies, disaster
and aid experts from the U.N. and other international aid agencies were
still waiting for visas to enter the military-ruled former Burma.
"Visa applications have been in for 24-48 hours," Horsey, spokesman for
the
United Nations Office of the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
(UNOCHA),
said.
"Now is the time that movement is expected on that and we do look to the
authorities to issue the necessary clearances."
There were also problems getting customs permits and tax waivers on goods
entering the country, although he hoped a deputy foreign minister
appointed
to liase with relief agencies would cut through the remaining red tape.
International patience is already wearing thin, with France suggesting
invoking a U.N. "responsibility to protect" clause and delivering aid
directly to Myanmar without waiting for approval from the military.
"We are seeing at the United Nations if we can't implement the
responsibility to protect, given that food, boats and relief teams are
there, and obtain a United Nations' resolution which authorises the
delivery
and imposes this on the Burmese government," Foreign Minister Bernard
Kouchner said in Paris.
Foreign aid is trickling into Myanmar five days after the cyclone tore
across five states, killing nearly 22,500 people and leaving 41,000
missing.
But getting it to the people in need was a huge challenge, Horsey said.
"There are large swathes of the lower Irrawaddy delta completely under
water. We are talking 5,000 sq km under water. It's a vast area," he said.
"With all those dead mostly floating in the water at this point you can
get
some idea of the conditions facing the teams on the ground. It's a major
logistical challenge," he said.
Myanmar sent military helicopters with food and water into stricken areas
on
Wednesday, but with up to one million people in need of aid, a much bigger
effort is needed.
"This is a fairly isolated country. It hasn't had to deal with a disaster
of
this scale before. Clearly there is a lack of experience that any country
of
this kind would face," he said.
Getting large quantities of aid -- water purification tablets, plastic
sheeting, medical kits, mosquito nets, water and food -- required a
"coordinated, scaled-up response", but the final call was with the
government.
"The determination on personnel and assets coming into the country, like
planes or boats or other things, this is for the Myanmar authorities to
make. They are a sovereign state and they are leading the effort," he
said.
(Editing by Ed Cropley and Sanjeev Miglani)
http://www.reuters.com/article/asiaCrisis/idUSBKK328448
=====
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