This article documents a current event. Information may change rapidly and initial news reports may be unreliable. The latest updates to this article may not reflect the most current information. |
- For list of humanitarian aid organizations assisting the victims, see Donations for victims of the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake.
The humanitarian response to the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake was prompted by one of the major natural disasters of modern times. On December 26 the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake, struck off the northwest coast of the Indonesian island of Sumatra, spawned tsunamis and wreaked havoc along much of the rim of the Indian Ocean. Particularly hard-hit were the countries of India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Thailand. Many tens of thousands of people were killed, tens of thousands more were injured and over one million were made homeless.
The first tasks of the governments and humanitarian aid agencies were to bury the massive numbers of dead and prevent an epidemic of communicable diseases. The World Health Organization warned that the number of deaths from preventable diseases such as cholera, diphtheria, dysentery and typhoid could rival the death toll from the disaster itself. These diseases are largely spread by the bodily wastes of the living after the loss of normal sanitary facilities, the shared use of inadequate ones in makeshift refuges, and the lack of clean water. Many usual sources of water were spoiled by salt water, broken by the force of the tsunami, or contaminated with bodies of dead people or livestock, requiring water purification equipment or trucking portable water into the affected region. Other high priorities were delivery of medical supplies and personnel to overwhelmed hospitals and clinics, tent shelters and clothing to people who have lost their houses and belongings, and food, especially baby food. Several governments have appealed for body bags to assist in the safe disposal of corpses.
Humanitarian situation
There have, as yet, been no confirmed deaths attributable to disease, starvation, loss of livelihoods and income or other conditions created by the natural disaster. The tsunamis exacted a heavy toll on coastal communities and especially fisherfolk in the region[1]. In India and Thailand, government and Civil Society Organisations have been able to mobilise resources and are responding as quickly as possible. India is also providing assistance to neighboring countries. The people and governments in the nations of Sri Lanka and Indonesia are doing all they can but have been overwhelmed by the enormity of the catastrophe, especially in inaccessible areas.
Information about the impact of the earthquake and tsunamis on individual countries is available for:
Contributing countries and supra-national organisations
Governments, humanitarian organisations, Asian expatriates and individuals around the world have scrambled to offer aid and technical support. Individuals include Li Ka Shing, a Hong Kong tycoon and the richest man in East Asia, who pledged three million US dollars towards aid for victims and rebuilding because he was "saddened by the huge suffering caused by the disaster" ([2]). The World Bank estimates the amount of aid needed at USD 5 billion [3]. Although countries are providing relief funds, the UN has criticized both the US and Europe for allocating inadequate resources. As of 1 January 2005 over USD1.8bn (GBP1bn) had been pledged.
Criticism of donor response
Before the full extent of destruction caused by the tsunamis was known, the United States pledged USD15 million. Aid from the U.S. Military was also being added to the number of dollars the U.S. had pledged. Some U.S. forces were being used to fly in food and medical equipment.
On December 27, UN Undersecretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Jan Egeland reportedly categorized the response of rich countries to the disaster as "stingy" [4], but later claimed to have been "misinterpreted" [5]. Speaking at a press conference later, Mr. Egeland stated, "I've been misinterpreted when I yesterday said that I believed that rich countries in general can be more generous". He also stated "It has nothing to do with any particular country or the response to this emergency. We are in early days and the response has so far been overwhelmingly positive" ([6]). Australia, India, Japan and the United States have announced that they will co-ordinate aid efforts in an attempt to streamline assistance.
The US government, led by President George W. Bush and Secretary of State Colin Powell, reacted with annoyance to the statement and on December 28 added another $20 million to their original aid amount bringing the total up to USD35 million, not including direct aid to be rendered by naval vessels dispatched to the region ([7]). On December 31 the US aid was increased ten fold to USD350 million ([8]), with President Bush saying that that amount will probably increase. President Bush also signed a decree ordering flags to be flown at half-mast during the first week of the new year.
List of major donors
The following table is a partial listing of cash commitments from various governments and nongovernmental organizations, taken from the UN, the BBC and other sources ([9] [10]):
| Country | Government | NGOs & Public | Total (in USD) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | AUD 77.45m (USD 60.3) | AUD 83m (USD 64.6m) | 124.96m |
| Belgium | €12m (USD 16.4m) | EUR 6.2m (USD8.5m) | 24.9m |
| Canada | CAD 164.2m (€49m, USD 136m), including CAD 80m (USD 66.14) from federal government [11], plus $17.9 m from provinces,[12] plus debt moratorium worth $30m - $40m annually [13], plus commitment to match all private donations as of Jan 11 2005[14] | CAD 40.3m (USD 33.3), including CAD 36.3m (USD 30m), plus CAD 3.75m (USD 3.1m) from business, plus CAD 250k (USD 206.7k) from unions [15] | 169.5m |
| China, PR (mainland) | CNY 522m (USD 63m) [16] | ? | > 63m |
| Denmark | DKK 420m (USD 76m) [17] | DKK 64m (USD 11.6m) [18] | 87.5m |
| European Union | €33m (USD 44m) | n/a | 44m |
| Finland | €10m (USD 13.4m) | €10.7m (USD 14.3) by Finnish RedCross donations [19] | 27.7m |
| France | €42m (USD 57m) | ? | > 57m |
| Germany | €520m (USD 676m) to be publicly announced on Jan. 5th | €90m (USD 117m) including the results of several TV charity shows, industry, and private donations | 793m |
| Hong Kong | HKD 50m (USD 6.41m) | HKD 400m (USD 51.28m) | 57.5m |
| India | INR 1 billion (USD 23m) | ? | > 23m |
| Ireland | €12m (USD 16m) | Over €7m[20] | > 23m |
| Italy | € 70m (USD 95m) [21] | € 22m (USD 30m) by SMS donors[22] | > 125m |
| Japan | USD 500m [23] | ? | > 500m |
| Netherlands | €27m (USD 36m) | EUR 26m | 62m |
| Norway | NOK 1.1 billion (USD 181m) [24] | NOK 341m (USD 56m) [25] | 237m |
| Portugal | €8m (USD 10.9m) | ? | 10.9m |
| Qatar | USD 10m [26] | ? | > 10m |
| Spain | €51m (USD 69m) | ? | > 69m |
| Saudi Arabia | USD 10m | ? | > 10m |
| Sweden | SEK 500m (USD 75m) [27] | SEK 440m (USD 65m) [28] | 140m |
| Switzerland | CHF 27m (USD 23.5m) | CHF 44.5m (USD 38.4m) | 61.9m |
| Taiwan | USD 50.0m[29] | USD 60m | 110m |
| United Kingdom | GBP 50m (USD 96m) [30] | £60.0m (USD 115m) [31] as of 3 January 2005 | 211m |
| United States | USD 350m [32] | USD 236m corporations, red cross and individuals [33] | 586m |
| World Bank | USD 250m [34] | n/a | 250m |
| Total | > 3,175.6m |
Asia and Oceania
| Australia |
|
| Cambodia | The Royal Cambodian Government has donated USD 40,000 to India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Thailand, USD 10,000 for each country. See Xinthua news report |
| China, PR (mainland) | The PRC government will send RMB 521.63 million (USD 63 million) to South and Southeast Asia. |
| Hong Kong (China) | As of Jan 2 2005, citizens of Hong Kong have donated a total of HKD 400 million (USD 51.28 million) (CRHK, HKET).
Hutchison Whampoa Limited and Li Ka Shing Foundation of Hong Kong announced on Dec 28 2004 that they would donate HKD 24 million (USD 3.08 million) for the relief fund. Performer Karen Joy Morris (aka. Karen Man Wai Mok) pledged to donate HKD 200 thousand (Ming Pao). Performers of EEG also pledged to donate a total sum of HKD 630 thousand. Sir Run Run Shaw has donated HKD 10 m. Hong Kong Jockey Club has donated HKD 10 m, and will donate HKD 1 for each dollar it received from donors (target at a minimum HKD 10 m). MTR donated HKD 0.5 for each passenger trip on January 2, 2005, with a total sum at HKD 1 m. KCR donated all the fares collected in the four-hour extention of train services on January 1, 2005. Hong Kong Red Cross has collected HKD 100 m (global target USD 46 m / HKD 360 m). MSF has stopped collected donations for the tsunami, and requested donors to donate to its other programmes. World Vision Hong Kong has collected HKD 50 m. A variety show TV programme on TVB and RTHK on January 2 2005 has collected HKD 40 m. (HKET) Various NGOs, companies and individuals have set off to the affected countries to offer assistance. The government of Hong Kong has sent 120 personnels to help Hong Kong residents and search for missing people. Police and medical teams are stand-by to offer assistance. |
| India | The federal government has pledged INR 1 billion (USD $23 million) to Sri Lanka and Maldives in addition to warships and aircraft to distribute relief supplies. A federal budgetary allocation of INR 7 billion (USD 160 million) has been earmarked for immediate distribution to affected Indian provinces. |
| Japan | Japan will provide USD 500m in aid to affected countries, and will send three navy vessels to waters off Thailand to help search for missing people. |
| South Korea | The South Korean Government has pledged an aditional $1.4 million on December 28 in addition to an earlier offer of support of $600,000. A 20-person emergency aid team consisting of 5 medical specialists, nurses and administrative staff has been dispatched to Sri Lanka by The Korean Ministry of Health and Welfare and a medical aid group. On December 29, a shipment with medicine and medical supplies worth 200 million Won ($192,000) will follow the team. |
| Malaysia | Malaysia has also sent rescue teams abroad to as local damage were minimal and this freed the Special Malaysian Rescue Team (SMART) to fly to Indonesia. The team 73-member combination unit from SMART, Malaysian Red Crescent Society and the Fire and Rescue Department were sent to medan with food supply, medicine and clothing for about 2,000 victims. An additional military doctors team in a CN 235 aircraft and a Nuri helicopter were also sent to Acheh. Further aid are being sent using C-130 Hercules transport aircraft. MERCY (Malaysian Medical Relief Society) Malaysia, a volunteer body for humanitarian relief consisting of doctors and nurses have also flown to Sri Lanka. Currently, it has two teams based in Kesdam Military Hospital, one of the 2 surviving hospitals in Banda Acheh. Malaysia also has opened its airspace and two airports, Subang Airport and Langkawi International Airport to relief operations and acts as a staging base to forward relief supplies to Aceh. |
| New Zealand |
|
| Pakistan | The government of Pakistan has announced a PKR 10 million (USD 0.2 million) relief package for the earthquake victims of Sri Lanka. This consists of goods such as tents, medicines, drinking water and food items. Additional aid has been promised. |
| Singapore | The Singaporean government has pledged SGD 500,000 (USD 0.3 million) to the Singapore Red Cross Society to help them start an appeal for public donations. A Singapore Armed Forces medical team is on standby to fly to Indonesia to help. Singapore is also dispatching an emergency consular team to Phuket and sending SGD 6 million (USD 3.6 million)of aid to the countries affected. The government has also offered the use of its air and naval facilities to the United Nations, the United States, Australia, France, Japan, and other countries and relief agencies involved in the relief efforts in the region. AS of Jan 4, the Singapore Red Cross Society raised S$15 million. |
| Taiwan | The Taiwanese government has pledged USD 50.0 million in aid to affected countries. If private philanthropic donations are calculated, relief aid from Taiwan would be expected to reach USD 60 million. Other forms of humanitarian aid include over 30,000 tons in emergency supplies and 50 medical teams to be dispatched to affected areas.[36] |
Europe
| Austria | The government has sent €1m (USD 1.3m). |
| Belgium | Belgian government has sent €12m (USD16.4m). Various organisations such as Artsen zonder Grenzen are sending medical teams. The Belgian public has also donated more than €6.2m. |
| Bulgaria | The Bulgarian Military Academy of Medicine has allocated 200,000 BGN (€100,000) worth of aid to Indonesia and Sri Lanka in the form of medicines and emergency equipment. The Bulgarian Red Cross and the national emergency agency have sent emergency equipment, drugs, and shelters. |
| Croatia | The Croatian government has decided to allocate 4m HRK (€520,000) for aid to the stricken region. The amount shall be split equally between India, Sri Lanka, Indonesia and Thailand. |
| Czech Republic | The Czech government will give aid worth €328,000 (USD0.5m), in various forms. |
| Denmark | The Danish government will give aid worth DKr 300 million (€40.38m.)
Danish PM Anders Fogh Rasmussen said that Denmar will increase this ammount if it is deemed necessary by the UN or emergency relief organisations. |
| Finland | The Finnish government has already delivered €4.5m to help the victims of the tsunamis, 5.5m are to be given to helping aid organizations when requested. In addition, €75,000 and a field hospital from the Finnish Red Cross and €25,000 from Save the Children Finland will be sent. |
| France | The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has announced on December 29th a first aid of €22.16m. €15m have been allocated to the UN's agencies and Red Cross, while €1.56m should be used for the immediat assistancy. Another €5.6m part of this sum is the fisrt french participation to the european aid. EUR 20 million have been pledged on December 30th, mostly for clean water installations. €100,000 have been given by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on December 27th, and a plane with 100 rescue personnel and 800kg of medical supplies was sent. |
| Germany | The German government has initially allocated €20m (USD 26m) for immediate aid. Fast-response teams of the governmental technical relief organisation (THW) were sent to Thailand and Sri Lanka for rescue purposes on December 28th, together with drinking water purification equipment to be installed in Galle (Sri Lanka). During the last weeks, several medical and supporting units of the german armed forces have been sent to the region, including a supporting frigate and medevac airlifts. Australian and german forces have joined to build a large-scale field hospital at the scene. The German chancellor has proposed to release the most affected countries from their debts and to create a scheme under which every EU nation "adopts" (where one has to note that the german word for adoption or godparenthood has a less demeaning undertone than the english one) one of the most severly affected countries and ensures long-lasting aid. Apart from the official responses, the german population has raised a large sum of donations for which no official numbers are available yet (as of 1/1/05) and numerous help organisations (including the german red cross and many smaller NGOs) have deployed teams in the area. |
| Greece | Greece will allocate €0.3m (USD 0.4m) to the Maldives and Sri Lanka, and two planes will carry to those countries over 6 tons of humanitarian materials. |
| Hungary | Hungary sent a medical and rescue team of 10 as well as two containers and ten pallets of emergency goods to Thailand and Srí Lanka. |
| Iceland | The Icelandic government has pledged 5m ISK (USD 70.000) to the Icelandic Red Cross [37] which will "make sure the money gets into the right hands". An aeroplane from Loftleiðir Icelandic (a subsidiary of Flugleiðir) Phuket island departed from Iceland on December 28, 2004 to pick up Swedish survivors; along for the ride are a little under 10 tons of Iceland Spring Water manufactured by Ölgerðin Egill Skallagrímsson [38] |
| Ireland, Republic of | The Irish government pledged €10m (USD 13.5m) in response to the earthquake-caused disaster in South Asia [39]. On January 7th a Work a Day for Free initive will take place, where workers throughout the country will donate a days wages to disaster relief. An estimated €1m has been raised by Pubs and Hotels in collections over the past week. The Civil Defence has raised over €120,000 in collections in Dublin over the first few days of January. A family walk in Dublin raised €70,000. All together the amount raised by the public is predicted to top the €10m already donated by the government. (Source: Irish Independent 4 January 2005.) |
| Italy | The CEI (Italian Conference of Bishops) has already sent 100,000 euros (part of a donation of USD1.7m from Caritas Internationalis) and is collecting national donations [40]. Private moneyraising efforts coordinated by newspapers and telephony companies have collected more than €12.6m ([41]). The government has pledged €3m (USD 3.9 million). As of December 31, 5 Italian flights have arrived Sri Lanka carrying an advanced team of 8 experts of the Italian Civil Protection Department with 50 tons of equipment and goods (2 field hospitals, 20 doctors and medical staff, medical kits, field kitchens, water pumps, water storages, etc.) |
| Luxembourg | Luxembourg has announced it will donate at least €5m (USD 6.5 million) as humanitarian aid. |
| Netherlands | The Dutch government has reserved €27m (USD 36m) for aid to the affected area. The Dutch Red Cross has dedicated EUR 100,000 (USD 0.1 million) for emergency aid. Several private initiatives have started, which vary from calls to give money to Samenwerkende Hulporganisaties (Giro 555) to collecting food and other supplies for the affected areas. These initiatives have raised €26m. |
| Norway | The Norwegian government has allocated NOK 1.1 billion (USD 180m) to be distributed to the UN, the Red Cross and other aid organisations. The prime minister has also pledged to provide more funds as needed in aid relief coordinated by the United Nations. The Royal Norwegian Air Force and Scandinavian Airlines have established airlift shuttles in order to provide emergency transport services between Thailand and Scandinavia for as long as is necessary. |
| Poland | The Polish government will donate PLN 1m (USD 0.3 million) to Polish aid non-governmental organizations. |
| Portugal | The Portuguese government has approved €8m (USD 10,9m) in aid to victims of the tragedy. The country has already sent a plane with relief supplies to Sri Lanka, and the Government has announced that a second plane with humanitarian aid would be sent in next days, this time to Indonesia. |
| Romania | The Romanian government has approved €32,000 worth of medical aid, tents and beds to Sri Lanka. |
| Russia | Two transport planes of the Russian Ministry for Emergency Situations landed on Sri Lanka December 27, carrying humanitarian aid. The planes were carrying 110 tents and 2200 blankets with a total weight of 25 tons, Russia also sent a rescue helicopter Bo-105, on board of which rescuers will fly over the area of the calamity and will search for and evacuate people. One more plane sent December 30 with tents, drinking water, water cleaning stations and other humanitarian aid.[42] |
| Slovenia | The Slovenian government has approved 20m SIT (€84,500) for immediate delivery. |
| Spain | The Spanish government has approved an aid package totaling €51m (USD 69,3m): €1m (USD 1,3m), for inmediate delivery, have been allocated to the relief shipments conducted by the Spanish Agency of International Cooperation (AECI) and the NGOs. €50m line of credit, with favorable terms that include long periods of repayment and low interest, will support the reconstruction efforts in all countries affected by the quake. Two cargo planes with humanitarian aid took off on December 28 to Sri Lanka and another three, of the AECI and the Red Cross, were dispatched on December 31 to Sumatra in Indonesia and Thailand. The Governments of several Autonomous communities have approved their particular aid packages for urgent delivery: Galicia (€500,000), Madrid (300,000), Basque Country, (150,000), Andalucia (150,000), Valencian Community (150,000), Balearic Islands (150,000), Castilla-La Mancha (140,000), Catalonia (130.000) and La Rioja (66,000). |
| Sweden | SEK500m (USD 75m) will be distributed through SIDA, the Swedish International Development Agency. An extensive relief effort on behalf of the government has been engaged including military personnel, forensic teams, search and rescue teams as Sweden is probably the nation not directly affected by the earthquake/waves to be hardest hit. The Swedish public is also supplying Ngos with money in a never before seen extent (about SEK 330, or USD 50m), as well as materials such as clothes and other equipment. Swedish media has still criticized the government for not doing enough for their nationals and for others. |
| Switzerland | The Swiss government has allocated CHF 27m (USD 23.8m). Four teams of the Swiss Humanitarian Aid Unit (SHA) have been deployed in India, Sri Lanka and Thailand. Another team of SHA and WHO doctors and logisticians is on the Maldives. Various relief organizations contributed CHF 1 million. The ongoing appeal for donations organized by the Glückskette has resulted in CHF 44.5m being collected and is still going on. January 5th will be a national donation day. |
| United Kingdom |
|
| Vatican City | The Pope has authorized the immediate release of USD 6m, which are to be delivered to the International Red Cross, for use in the humanitarian relief effort. |
Middle East and Africa
| Iran | Iran has sent 221 tons of relief supplies consisting of medications, tents, blankets, clothes and foodstuff to Indonesia as well as donating USD 675,000 through the Red Crescent. |
| Israel | The Israeli government has sent supplies worth some USD 100,000 to each affected country. In addition, an Israeli medical team was dispatched to Sri Lanka, and 150 IDF doctors and rescue and relief teams were mobilized for the region with 82-tons of aid including 9 tons of medicine, nearly 4,000 liters of mineral water, 12 tons of food, over 17 tons of baby food, 10,000 blankets, tents, sheeting, as well as power generators. An additional offer of assistance to India in the form of search and rescue teams from their Home Front Command as well as food and medicine has also been extended, and the Israeli Ministry of Health has been dispatched to Thailand on medical mission. [44], [45] |
| Kuwait | The Kuwaiti government has donated KWD 500,000 (USD 1.7 million) as humanitarian aid. |
| Morocco | The Moroccan Foreign Ministry has said that aid, consisting of medical supply, vaccines and blankets, will be dispatched to Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, Thailand, Malaysia, and the Maldives. |
| Mozambique | The Mozambique government has given a "symbolic" [46] USD 100,000 to an aid appeal, and is encouraging businesses and individuals to donate to accounts set up by the local Red Cross. |
| Saudi Arabia | Saudi Arabia has pledged a USD 10 million aid package consisting of USD 5 million worth of food, tents and medicine, to be transported and distributed via the Saudi Red Crescent and another USD 5 million in funds which will be given to several international aid groups such as the Red Cross and the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees. |
| Turkey | Hit in August and November 1999 by a series of earthquakes that killed over 20,000, Turkey announced that it will donate TRY 1.7 millions (USD 1.25 million), which will be used in reconstruction projects and be allocated to Sri Lanka, India, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia and Maldives. Türk Kızılayı is also collecting funds. |
| UAE | USD 2 million and 30 tons of food and medicine in the care of the Red Crescent, which is to deliver them to India, Indonesia and Sri Lanka [47]. |
Americas
| Brazil | The Brazilian government is awaiting a UN decision on joint humanitarian aid. In the meantime, initial emergency aid of 10 tons of food and 8 tons of medicine will be delivered to Thailand and India by the Brazilian Air Force. In the country, private citizens and small businesses have organized a national effort to collect food, medicine and clothes for the populations affected. In Rio de Janeiro, 70 tons, donated in the city alone by locals, were delivered on January 2 to the Consul of Sri Lanka. Many more tons are to be handed to the local embassies and consulates of the countries affected. |
| Canada | Federal Government: The Canadian government has pledged, as of 02 January 2005, CAD 80 million (USD 67 million), an increase to the original figure of CAD 4 million offered by the federal government, which had previously been revised to 40 million, as an immediate contribution toward the aid effort and will also be providing blankets, water purification devices, and generators through the Canadian International Development Agency. The Canadian federal government has also announced a debt moratorium for the countries most severely impacted by the tsunamis.[48]. Also, Canada has announced it will send its DART (Disaster Assistance Response Team) to Ampara in Sri Lanka.[49]
Provincial Governments: In addition to the federal funds, the provincial government of British Columbia has given CAD 8 million (USD 6.6 million) to the Canadian Red Cross, the provincial governments of Ontario and Alberta have each pledged CAD 5 million (USD 4.1 million), the provincial governments of Quebec, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Nova Scotia have each given CAD 100,000 (USD 82,000), and the provincial governments of the Northwest Territories and Prince Edward Island have pledged CAD 25,000 and 20,000 respectively. As of 03 January 2005, Canadian governments have pledged CAD 98.5 million in aid; this translates to CAD 3.05 per capita. Voluntary Sector: Measuring the extent of individual and corporate philanthropy is more difficult, although the government estimated on 02 January 2005 that donations to tsunami victims had reached CAD 36 million, or a little more than one CAD per capita. The federal government created incentives for private donations: it announced that it would match donations dollar-for-dollar and decided to bend the rules by allowing tsunami-related donations made before 11 January 2005 to be claimed on 2004 income-tax returns. [50] |
| Chile | The Chilean government has set up a group of four physicians, one engineer and one architect that will fly to Indonesia on January 1, 2005 and will remain there for twenty days. In addition, it has opened a special bank account for public donations. |
| Mexico | The Mexican federal government has pledged a small aid package of an initial USD 100,000 (MXN 1,150,000), announced by Interior Secretary Santiago Creel, while search teams have been dispached by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (SRE). These teams are experienced following the 1985 Mexico City earthquakes that killed thousands and could be helpful in the rescue of trapped and buried victims. The Mexican Red Cross has also invited Mexican citizens to give aid which will be distributed amongst local agencies. |
| United States | The United States government has allocated US$400,000 (£200,000, 300,000€) to India, Indonesia, the Maldives, and Sri Lanka. Officials are currently working on a $4 million (£2 million) aid package to help the Red Cross. Also, the United States has dispatched disaster teams to aid the nations affected. The United States is also preparing an initial $15 million (£8 million) aid package for affected nations. An additional $20 million (£11 million) has been offered as an emergency line of credit. On New Year's Eve, the aid was raised to $350 million (£190 million, €260 million).
The United States has dispatched numerous C-5 Galaxy and C-17 Globemaster III strategic airlifters and ten C-130 Hercules tactical airlifters containing disaster supplies, nine P-3C Orion maritime patrol aircraft for search and rescue support, and several teams from the Departments of State and Defense to coordinate additional assistance. They are using Utapao Naval Air Base in Thailand as their regional hub. Additionally, the United States has offered assistance from its troops stationed in Japan. USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier battle group, which was in port in Hong Kong, was dispatched to the coast of Sumatra to provide support to the Indonesian province of Aceh. In addition, a amphibious battlegroup led by USS Bonhomme Richard, scheduled for a port call in Guam, were dispatched to render assistance. A total of 48 Navy and Marine Corps helicopters are involved. Each ship can produce around 90,000 gallons of fresh water per day. Total Department of Defense personnel involved in the relief effort numbers over 12,600.[51] |
Contributing non-governmental organizations (NGOs)
| ADRA | Silver Spring, Maryland--The Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) is continuing its response in India, Thailand, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and the Andaman Islands to assist those affected by last Sunday's quake and tsunami.
ADRA has set up a crisis command center in Bangkok, Thailand to coordinate its network-wide response. ADRA International is urgently soliciting emergency donations for this response. To rapidly respond to this disaster only monetary donations are being accepted at this time. Donations can be made to the Asia Tsunami Crisis Fund online www.adra.org/Donation.htmlor by calling 800-424-ADRA (2372). See more information at www.adra.org. |
| African Union | The African Union Commission Chairman Alpha Oumar Konaré has announced that the organisation will putforward USD 100,000 towards disaster relief. [52] |
| American Friends Service Committee | Building on AFSC programs and contacts in Asia, AFSC is providing relief and planning longer-term recovery, particularly to those who might be overlooked by other agencies or relief programs. See the website at www.afsc.org. |
| American Jewish Committee | AJC Establishes Tsunami Relief Fund, Allocates First $60,000. [53] |
| American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee | The American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC) is reporting today that it has collected more than $1 million in individual contributions to the organization's non-sectarian South Asia Tsunami Relief mailbox. [54] |
| American Jewish World Service | We are particularly focusing our efforts on providing direct material relief to the poorest families in affected areas, including providing food, water storage containers, cooking supplies, blankets and temporary shelters and partnering with Direct Relief International to provide immediate shipments of basic medical supplies, water purification materials and oral rehydration therapies to the heavily affected communities in India and Sri Lanka. [55] |
| European Union | The EU is providing immediate emergency aid of EUR 3 million (USD 4.1 million) for victims to meet "initial vital needs", with more substantial aid (30 million EUR) to be provided later. |
| F.I.R.S.T. | The Fast Israeli Rescue and Search Team is heading a search and rescue mission to Tamil Nadu, India. [56] |
| IFRCS | In Geneva, the IFRCS appealed for CHF 7.5 million (about USD 6.6 million) for "immediate support" to an estimated 500,000 survivors. |
| IRW | Islamic Relief Worldwide has increased its emergency appeal to USD 5 million. This includes an initial USD 270,650 for relief and rehabilitation intervention in the region, and USD 27,000 to meet the immediate needs of victims in Sri Lanka. [57] |
| Latet | The non-governmental Israeli Humanitarian Aid organization, Latet ("to give"), has dispatched a jumbo plane to Sri Lanka with 18 tons of equipment and is sending an aid delegation to Thailand. [58] |
| Magen David Adom | The Israeli "Red Cross" dispatched over 4000 much-needed vials of Albumin by air at midnight, Wednesday, December 29, in order to relieve the casualties of a devastated Sri Lanka. [59] |
| Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) | Dispatching 32 tons of relief supplies to Sumatra; medical and assessment teams have been sent to many of the affected areas. [60] [61] |
| UNHCR | The UNHCR in Sri Lanka is opening up its local relief stockpiles to deliver immediate emergency assistance. [62] |
| UNICEF | Clothing and more than 30,000 blankets and sleeping mats to Sri Lanka 1,600 water tanks, 30,000 blankets, medical supplies and hundreds of thousands of water purification pills to India Similar supplies to Indonesia and the Maldives[63]. |
| United Nations Development Program | USD 100,000 each to Sri Lanka, India, Indonesia, the Maldives and Thailand to help them assess and coordinate emergency needs[64]. |
| United Nations Population Fund | Up to USD 1 million and extra staff to help ensure that the special health needs of pregnant and nursing women were met [65]. |
| Medical Institute of Tamils | Providing urgent medical assistance [66]. |
| The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints | Providing various forms of assistance [67]. |
| Lions Clubs International | USD 200,000 from the Lions Clubs International Foundation has been distributed through Lions clubs in the affected areas. Other pledges of support have been received including 120,000 from the Lions of Sweden and 200,000 from the Lions of Korea. |
| Buddhist Tzu-Chi Foundation of Toronto | The Buddhist Compassion Relief Tzu-Chi Foundation of Toronto, has number of ongoing fundraising events throughout the city. Volunteers are focusing on the Asian communities in the Greater Toronto Area. All money raised will be 100% donate to the affect area without administration fee. [68] |
| United Jewish Communities, Toronto | Just 24 hours after UJA Federation of Greater Toronto opened its Tsunami Relief Fund, the fund has already raised more than $150,000 from over 500 donors. [69] |
| Ve'ahavta | The Canadian Jewish Humanitarian and Relief Commission, Ve'ahavta ("You Shall Love"), is collecting donations which will be used to send more search and rescue personnel and logisticians, facilitate emergency feeding stations, and assist in the financing of other necessary relief items. [70] |
| World Jewish Aid | The aim of the aid given by World Jewish Aid is to help people survive. As the situation deteriorates water contamination and disease threaten the lives of the survivors. According to AWJ, their partners on the ground in India, Indonesia and other affected areas are slowly being able to tell them where their aid should be directed so they can target their response. [71] |
Contributing corporations
A much more complete list of American corporate donations may be found at [72].
| Pfizer | $35m ($10m cash; $25m drugs) [73] |
| Coca-Cola | $10m |
| Bristol-Myers Squibb | $5m ($1m cash; $4m drugs) [74] |
| Exxon Mobil | $5m [75] |
| BP | $3m [76] |
| Abbott Laboratories | $4m ($2m cash; $2m drugs) [77] |
| Microsoft | $3.5m [78] |
| Citigroup | $3m [79] |
| J.P. Morgan Chase | $3m [80] |
| Royal Dutch/Shell Group | $3m [81] |
| UBS AG | $3m [82] |
| Cisco Systems | $2.5m [83] |
| Wal-Mart Stores | $2m [84] |
| Johnson & Johnson | $2m + drugs [85] |
| Vodafone | £1m ($1.95m) |
| Tetra Laval Group | $1.5m (including provision of liquid foods) [86] |
| Deutsche Telekom | €1m (~$1.4m) [87] |
| Siemens AG | €1m [88] |
| Allianz Group | €1m [89] |
| BASF | €1m [90] |
| Infosys | INR 50m (~$1.1m) [91] |
| Altana | €750,000 (~$1.05) [92] |
| Boeing | $1m [93] |
| Nike | $1m |
| Pepsi | $1m + soft drinks + water [94] |
| Merrill Lynch | $1m [95] |
| American Express | $1m |
| The Walt Disney Company | $1m [96] |
| General Electric | $1m [97] |
| First Data Corp. | $1m [98] |
| General Motors | $1m [99] |
| HSBC | $1m [100] |
| ING | $1m [101] |
| Qantas | AUD $1m + flights [102] page detailing the response by Qantas. |
| Cable & Wireless | $1m [103] page detailing the response by Cable & Wireless. |
| Dhiraagu (The Maldives' national telecommunications company) | $1m [104] (also noted on page detailing the response by Cable & Wireless.) |
| Bayer | €500,000 (~$700,000) [105] |
| Nestlé | CHF640,000 ($560,000) [106] |
| The Home Depot | $500,000 [107] |
| Texas Instruments | $500,000 [108] |
| Carrefour | €300,000 ($~420,000) [109] |
| Hitachi | Yen 20m (~$200,000) [110] |
| Altria | $150,000 [111] |
| Independent News & Media | €100,000 [112] |
| MTR Corporation Limited | HKD $0.5 per passenger trip on January 2 2005 [113] Projected goal: HKD 1 million (roughly USD $128,000) [114]. |
| KCR Corporation | All fares collected during the 4-hour extention service on January 1, 2005 morning. |
| Fonterra | Milk powder and infant formula throughout the region |
| Wing On Travel | Tour guides set off to affected areas to offer assistance and translation services. |
Merck & Co., Roche Group and GlaxoSmithKline also intend to donate. [115]
Contributing individuals and philanthropists
| Li Ka-shing, a Hong Kong tycoon and the richest man in East Asia, has pledged USD 3m (through Hutchison Whampoa Limited and Li Ka Shing Foundation of Hong Kong) towards aid for victims and rebuilding because he was "saddened by the huge suffering caused by the disaster". |
| The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has also donated USD 3m. |
| Amazon.com posted a page on their website accepting donations for the American Red Cross, and within 72 hours had collected USD 10m. One week after the quake, they had had collected USD 12.3m. These donations come from Amazon website visitors. The Amazon corporation has not actually made a donation, other than the bandwidth and code to host the donation box. |
| In Ireland, the non-denominational charity Concern received an anonymous donation of EUR 500,000. |
| Sulekha.com has partnered with Association for India's Development (AID) to raise money for the relief efforts in India following the devastating earthquake/tsunami that has claimed thousands of lives. AID is a reputed social service organization run by volunteers all across the world; being a voluntary organization, and with strong grass roots presence in South India as well, AID is geared to maximize the impact of your relief contributions. See website at [116]] |
| The Los Angeles based rock group Linkin Park has started an organization called Music for Relief ([117]) with an initial donation of USD 100,000 ([118]). It will directly support American Red Cross ([119]) programs. Over the summer, Linkin Park played sold-out stadium shows in Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia, which all suffered tsunami fatalities. |
| Sir Cliff Richard, Boy George have announced that they will be releasing a single written by DJ Mike Read in order to raise funds. They have approached other artists, but it is uncertain whether they are able to assist at this early stage. [120] |
| Actress Sandra Bullock Donates $1 Million to Red Cross International Response Fund. [121] |
External links
- Al Jazeera – How the tsunami aid stacks up
- UN financial tracking
- BBC News: World helps - but will it forget?
- Tsunami Leaves Asia All Shook Up Photos of relief work in Penang Island, Malaysia & other photographs, articles, etc.
- Are you a survivor? Got a story to tell? Join us at the tsunami forum.
- BCZ.com Indian Ocean Earthquake Memorial Sign here to support the cause.