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- Path: sparky!uunet!dtix!darwin.sura.net!wupost!mont!pencil.cs.missouri.edu!rich
- From: christic@igc.apc.org (Christic Institute)
- Newsgroups: misc.activism.progressive
- Subject: Somalia: Worst Human Tragedy in the World
- Message-ID: <1992Jul21.190921.1696@mont.cs.missouri.edu>
- Date: 21 Jul 92 19:09:21 GMT
- Sender: news@mont.cs.missouri.edu
- Followup-To: alt.activism.d
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- Lines: 76
- Approved: map@pencil.cs.missouri.edu
- Originator: rich@pencil.cs.missouri.edu
- Nntp-Posting-Host: pencil.cs.missouri.edu
-
- /* Written 9:05 am Jul 21, 1992 by peacenet in cdp:pn.alerts */
- /* ---------- "Worst Human Tragedy in the World" ---------- */
- From: <peacenet>
- Subject: Worst Human Tragedy in the World
-
- >From hrcoord Tue Jul 21 07:17:18 1992
- /* Written 6:11 pm Jul 20, 1992 by dmorse in cdp:reg.africa */
- Urgent Press Release from the International Committee of the Red
- Crosee
-
- July 9---Citing hundreds of deaths a day from starvation, the
- International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) today announced a
- new relief plan and appealed for an additional $66 million to
- bring urgently needed food and medical supplies to Somalia. The
- greatest number of victims are children.
-
- "While much of recent attention has been given to former
- Yugoslavia, 4.5 million people in Somalia face horrible death by
- starvation unless something is done soon,: said Ann Stingle,
- American Red Cross staff person recently returned from Somalia.
- "Many of the children I saw are dead now and more are dying at
- this very moment. It is beyond anything I have ever witnessed."
-
- The malnutrition rate in Somalia is currently 78 percent at the
- severe, life-threatening level. Overall malnutrition is 95%.
- According to exper3ts, these figures top that of Ethiopia during
- the 1984-1985 drought.
-
- The IC of the Red Cross has established 371 kitchens throughout
- the country providing one meal a day in an attempt to stave off
- famine. Under the new appeal, the number will increase to 500
- kitchens, feeding 650,000 people.
-
- Since interclan fighting broke out in November, the Red Cross has
- been able to bri bring in only 64,000 metric tons of food because
- of security and logistics. At least 30,000 tons are needed each
- month to avert wholesale starvation.
-
- ..."Despite the enormity of the emergency, we have seen very few
- offers to help," said Stingle. The tragedy unfolding in Somlia
- continues to go largely unnoticed by the media, the public and the
- international community. Hundreds of thousands of lives depend on
- our capacity to care."
-
- ...Peersons wishing to contribute to relief efforts in Somalia
- should send a check to the American Red Cross earmarked to "Somali
- Relief," Post Office Box 37243, Washington, D.C. 20013.
- ____________________________
-
- Personal note from dmorse: the media should be REPORTING THIS.
- They aren't Could interested, sympathetic persons please call
- National Public Radio's Listener Comment Line (202-775-8686), tell
- them you read this Red Cross press release and ask for more and
- ongoing news from Somalia? Another number to call and ask for
- reporting is MacNeil/Lehrer(703-998-2844).
-
- The Washington Post wrote a brief editorial about this in May.
- They called i it "the worst human tragedy in the world."
-
- A Boston Globe Reporter filed a horror story on Somali refugees in
- Yemen. He called the catastrophe "one of the world's worst and
- most ignored disasters."
-
- Andrew Natsios, Assistant Administrator for Food and Humanitarian
- Assistance in USAID, called Somalia "the worst humanitrarina
- disaster in the world today."
-
- And we're hearing almost nothing about it!
-
- For more information from the Red Cross, Ann Stingle's number is
- (202)639-3395. The contact person on the press release isBrian
- Ruberry (202)639-3395.
-
- Pardon my long posts and any mistakes in typing or network
- etiquette. I'm new here, but signed up in part to get this urgent
- message out.
-