http://www.pr-inside.com/myanmar-no-to-foreign-rescue-team-r580388.htm
Myanmar is "not ready" for foreign search and rescue teams
Myanmar no to foreign rescue team
2008-05-09 07:16:55 - No Air drop of food aids on Nargis victims.
US has offered to drop food packages from aeroplanes or helicopters to
which Myanmar junta has not permitted their aircraft to fly on their
aerial zone.US official says they have dropped the idea to undertake
such an effort.
Myanmar is getting assurance of aid on Nargis victim as the cyclone
has completely devasted leaving people in mayhem and great
suffering,Countries which came forward are India Japan. South Korea,
Malaysia, Thailand, Australia, New
Zealand,German,Norweign,Israel,China,US,UK,Czech.
Myanmar is "not ready" for foreign search and rescue teams after the
deadly cyclone, the foreign ministry said on Friday in a state
newspaper, announcing that
some aid workers had been de****ted.
A search and rescue team and media who arrived on Wednesday on a
flight from Qatar were de****ted the same day because Myanmar
authorities believed the plane was only carrying supplies, not
workers, the statement said.
"The relevant parties from the Myanmar side did not have prior
information on the presence of such teams. The Myanmar side understood
that only handing over of donated emergency provisions would take
place," it said.
"Currently Myanmar has prioritised receiving emergency relief
provisions and is making strenuous efforts to trans****t those
provisions without delay by its own labours to the affected areas," it
said.
"As such, Myanmar is not ready to receive search and rescue teams as
well as media teams from foreign countries."
Myanmar will only accept donations of cash or emergency aid, the
statement added, saying the country needed medical supplies, food,
clothing, generators and shelters.
"The donors and the international community can be assured that
Myanmar is doing its best ... to relieve the suffering of victims of
Cyclone Nargis."
So far 11 charter flights carrying international aid have arrived in
Yangon "with prior consent" from Myanmar authorities, the statement
said.
"Myanmar authorities on their part have been making their best efforts
to forward and distribute the donated provisions to the victims in a
timely manner," it said.Officially, Myanmar says that nearly 23,000
people have died while more than 42,000 are missing.
The United States has estimated the true toll at near 100,000.
US prepared to work with India to provide relief in Myanmar
The US has said that it was prepared to work with countries like India
and China to provide humanitarian assistance in cyclone-ravaged
Myanmar if Yangon did not allow a direct entry to its military for
relief operations.
Responding to a question on whether the US could work with the United
Nations and countries like India and China until the airdrops by its
military were okayed by the military junta, the Defence Secretary
Robert Gates sounded positive.
"Well, this is really more the State Department's and the White
House's arena, but my belief would be that if we cannot get in
directly, that we would be prepared to work creatively with others in
any way we could to help. And if that involves using an intermediary,
perhaps we would do that," he said speaking at the Pentagon.
"I think our interest here is totally non-political. It's to try and
help the people of Myanmar. And I think if we can't do it directly,
then we'd be prepared to consider other means of doing it," he
stressed.
Meanwhile, the State Department said that there were no plans to get
the United Nations Security Council involved in the humanitarian
issue.
"The UNSC has been used on Myanmar for political issues and there are
no plans by Wa****ngton to approach that body in the current
humanitarian crisis," State Department Spokesman Sean McCormack said.
"Our focus, really, is -- as well as others -- trying to get the
diplomacy to work, to try to get this regime to allow in international
assistance. That really is the focus of our efforts," he added.
A week after the Cyclone Nargis hit Irrawady delta 22 villages the
southernwest coast of Burma rendering a lakh homeless and many
thousand killed victime still to get relief.
Myanmar junta has been slow in offering timely help to the
victim.Budhist monks with their open hearts are making efforts to
bring the people to their monastries with help of all
sorts,food,medicalaid, shelters and peoples are offering their
assitance to these monastries as per the internet re****ts.
|
