NEWS: Probe into 'Paltry' Tsunami Aid

After a delay of almost 4 months, villagers on the Tsunami ravaged Andaman and Nicobar islands have finally received their long awaited compensation. Many lost everything, including their families and their livelyhoods, but have held out hope that their government would use International aid to help them rebuild. Today they learned the price of their anguish... just 5 US cents.



Incredibly, the billions of dollars in aid given by almost every country to help these people, has translated into relief payments of as little as two rupees - less than the value of the stamp to mail them. It's a slap in the face for them and a slap in the face for those who gave so much to help them.


[edit on 5/2/2005 by mythatsabigprobe]

Helping people never pays...



Somewhere the thieves are sitting on a beach laughing it up, blowing the money on 1,000 a night hookers. I mean people actually trust those type of organizations? I mean remember the whole 9/11 scam crap. Ehhh I'm sure they'll get away scot-free... as always.

Ever since 9/11 I'll never give a goddamn dime to the Red Cross. I actually SAW Red Cross employees with pockets stuffed with cash, cigar boxes overflowing with greenbacks stacked up under their little tent, a pair of RC employees standing with their back to the crowd, laughing, counting money. Accountability, what's that?

Bastards.

I was saying this back when the tsunami hit; if you want to help, identify some people and send them the money yourself, in the form of a money order or cashiers check. Middlemen incur costs, they slice the top cheese and deliver the rind. Even the best intentioned charities are crippled with inefficiency brought on by logisitics and incurred costs.

There may be good charity organizations, but I wouldn't know the difference, because they all offer up the same spiel.

If you've got dollars burning a hole in your pocket, give 'em to the people who actually need it! Don't give money to the charities and trust it will find its way to the victims. Hell, some people gave thousands of dollars, they could have flown down there and handed the money out to people. Obviously this is extreme, but what are the options?

I've heard good things about the Salvation Army, but I can't confirm that. In any case, I feel really sorry for those villagers. They see the international outpouring of sympathy and money, and then they get a check for 5 cents? Shameful.

It's one thing to give nothing at all, that's your perogative. But if you give money, you should be guaranteed that money will go where you wanted it to go. I'll say it again, shameful.

How much of that money went to the government of the nations that got hit? What did they do with it? Buy a new car? Goddamnit...

thats a bunch of blahblahblah wyrdone...I know several people I trust working with the red cross and other organizations over there and they are doing a great job all things considered. The problem is all these governments including ours pledge billions when the camera eye is on them and when it looks the other way, they renig. AND the Bush assholes are the masters of that kind of shell game...remember the billions to fight AIDS in Africa that, that overblown weed (the bastard doesn't even measure up to a shrub much less a bush) made such a big deal of a couple of the state of screwing the union speeches ago, he and his cronies attached so many strings that it gaurenteed nobody, no organization, no nothing got exactly that from them and not much of nothing either. Lying sons of a bitches.

Originally posted by mythatsabigprobe
Incredibly, the billions of dollars in aid given by almost every country to help these people, has translated into relief payments of as little as two rupees - less than the value of the stamp to mail them. It's a slap in the face for them and a slap in the face for those who gave so much to help them.

I think you guys have this wrong.
This is happening in India and if I recall correctly, India refused International aid.

I think the International aid went to countries like Indonesia, Thailand and Sri Lanka.

[edit on 2-5-2005 by AceOfBase]

I agree, Wyrde One, about the Red Cross, though I have distrusted them for far longer. I remeber back when I was a teenager, during the great quake of 89 in the Bay Area, how many millions of dollars in donations and relief aid went missing that people all over America had donated to the Red Cross to help relief efforts. To this date, I believe they still are yet to recover alot of that missing money.

As far as the Salvation Army goes, I can honestly say I do trust them. I have looked into them, have actually volunteered with them, and have actually seen first hand their money being used directly on the people who need it. The SA is perhaps the only charitable relief organization I know of that I have any faith or trust in, or any respect. But I do not trust the red cross.

India did indeed refuse international aid, which was arogant and foolish of them, as we are now learning. Disasters like this are not a time for govornments to be prideful and arrogant, with India's still developing economy, they should have welcomed international aid.

news.bbc.co.uk...

grover
Call it what you will, but the Red Cross needs more oversight.

AceofBase
You got it. I missed it. A quote:

India's central government promised millions of dollars worth of aid to the Andamans after the tsunami.

So my diatribe was misplaced. I apologize. Now for a new diatribe.

Why did India reject international aid, when it obviously could have been utilized? What were their motivations? Pride? Did they overestimate their ability to deliver aid? What repurcussions will their decison have? Riots?

I understand they don't need helicopters and ships, and I know part of the motivation may have been to preserve indigenous cultures, however, it appears some monetary aid might have been useful?