Opinion | Editorials
Biting the hand that tries to feed them
Raising funds for charitable purposes these days is hard enough as it is, but when the recipients are not prepared to co-operate and allow equitable distribution, then generous intention evaporates.
- Gulf News
- Published: 23:56 May 9, 2008
The UN has called for aid for the refugees in Myanmar, estimated to now exceed 1.5 million. While countries have come forward with kind, others are contributing cash for the purchase of emergency relief aid. But the question is whether the aid will get to those most in need. The military junta in Myanmar is at the moment insistent that no foreigners will be allowed into the country to distribute aid, demonstrating its usual xenophobia and fear of disclosure behind the dictatorship. Instead the junta wants to distribute the relief itself, which is more than ominous as it has, over successive years, amply demonstrated its ability to distribute the nation's wealth, such as it is, but only among its cronies.
Raising funds for charitable purposes these days is hard enough as it is, but when the recipients are not prepared to co-operate and allow equitable distribution, then generous intention evaporates.
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