Fw: H-WA - Urgent Call for Action in Mozambique (x2)

--------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Ghislaine Lydon <lydon@mail.h-net.msu.edu>
To: H-WEST-AFRICA@H-NET.MSU.EDU
Date: Wed, 1 Mar 2000 10:51:25 -0500
Subject: H-WA - Urgent Call for Action in Mozambique (x2)
Message-ID: <AAA6M4RDUA3VTL8A@mx2.boston.juno.com>

From: Ghislaine Lydon, lydon@mail.h-net.msu.edu  & Liz Macgonagle,
macgonag@msu.edu
Date: 29 February, 2000

Subject:  Call for Action in Mozambique and How You Can Help

Dear Friends and Scholars of Africa:

The following letter was sent to President Clinton.  In order to get the
US
government's attention it is imperative that the Whitehouse get bombarded
with messages calling for action.  Please speak up and send a quick note
to
the following addresses requesting that the government intervene
immediately
in southeastern Africa and Mozambique in particular.  Several countries,
including the US, have now pledged money to Mozambique. The British
government has cancelled Mozambique's debts to British banks.  While
money
is fine, it is inadequate at this critical moment.  Mozambicans need
immediate and physical international assistance: fuel, helicopters and
boats, basic supplies (food, water and medicine) as well as temporary
shelter and so much more.  Below is a description of the situation and
various organizations you can contribute to to help Mozambicans in this
crisis.

     President@whitehouse.gov
     Vice.President@whitehouse.gov
     First.Lady@whitehouse.gov
     Mrs.Gore@whitehouse.gov

LETTER:
Ghislaine Lydon, Liz MacGonagle & Tim Carmichael
(Ph. D Candidates in African History Program)
Michigan State University
Department of History, 301 Morrill Hall
East Lansing, MI 48824

28 February 2000

William J. Clinton, President of the United States of America
The Whitehouse, Washington D.C.

 Dear Mr. President,

This is to express our profound concern for the human disaster which is
currently underway in southeastern Africa, and to ask that our government
take immediate action to provide assistance.

For more than three weeks, torrential rains creating unprecedented floods
have struck several southeast African countries.   Since a cyclone blazed
through Mozambique last week, the situation has rapidly deteriorated. 
The
overflowing or formation of rivers has destroyed entire villages.  Over a
million people have been displaced, and the death toll is rising fast.

This crisis has finally received the attention of the international
media.
But aside from the supply of helicopter service by the South African
government, very little international assistance has been mobilized to
either save flood victims or provide disaster relief.

We believe our country should join in an international effort to
intervene
immediately to save lives in the area by:

1. Providing and facilitating the mobilization of helicopter service;
2. Delivering food, medical supplies and assistance to flood victims
while
 stopping the spread disease;
 3. Committing to a short-term emergency plan after the flooding recedes.

We should not fail to assist Mozambique, Botswana, Zimbabwe and South
Africa in dealing with this humanitarian disaster.  Moreover, we must
prepare for
the long-term  repercussions of this environmental catastrophe in the
areas
of human suffering, the spread of disease, and the rise of social and
political unrest due to resource scarcity.

Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,

Ghislaine Lydon, Liz MacGonagle and Tim Carmichael

cc. Madeleine Albright, US Secretary of State
Carolyn Kilpatrick, African Affairs Bureau
American Committee on Africa, acoa@igc.apc.org
Africa Policy Information Center, apic@igc.apc.org
Washington Office on Africa, woa@igc.apc.org
Association of Concerned Africa Scholars, wgmartin@binghamton.edu

THE SITUATION IN MOZAMBIQUE:

Floods since the beginning of February and damage from the recent Cyclone
Eline have claimed at least 200 lives in Mozambique and forced huge
numbers
of people to flee their homes for higher ground.   The threat of
starvation
and drowning for those who have not yet been reached follows in the wake
of
the flooding.  The floods are considered to be the worst in at least 40
years.  Damaged water mains and power lines have meant that many people
are
without clean water or electricity, and cases of cholera and malaria are
expected to rise dramatically.  The government of Mozambique has stated
that
it needs 65 million dollars to help it begin to cope with and recover
from
the disaster.

Government ministers are heading work brigades in all the affected
provinces.  In the cities and towns, the local councils are in charge of
relief work, housing and feeding the homeless and marking out new
residential areas for those living in unsafe places. The health and
public
works sectors in particular, and brigades from the water and electricity
companies, have been working day and night.  Many national NGOs, such as
the
Mozambique Red Cross, also went into emergency action.  A national
movement
of solidarity was launched, and contributions in cash and kind have been
pouring in from institutions, public and private companies and
individuals
through their workplaces.  Most contributions are being channeled to the
Red
Cross.  The rains are expected to continue into March, with untold
consequences for Mozambique's people.


HOW TO HELP:
People who would like to make monetary donations are encouraged to
contact
an appropriate organization working in the region.  Below you will find
different options (international and local/Mozambican) for joining a
coordinated and effective public response.

1)
Contact information for Non-Profit Organizations Providing Disaster
Relief
for Flooding in Southern Africa:
http://www.info.usaid.gov/about/safrica/ngopvo.html

This is a list of private voluntary organizations that are registered
with
USAID and/or listed by InterAction, a coalition of voluntary humanitarian
and development organizations that work overseas.  It includes well known
groups such as American Friends Service Committee, Concern Worldwide US,
United States Fund for UNICEF and CARE USA.


2)
The Mozambican government’s website includes an appeal for assistance and
provides Mozambican bank account numbers for donations to support the
Mozambican Red Cross.  However, for those outside of Mozambique
transferring
 money to these accounts may be difficult.  Instead, it may be easier to
contact the International Federation of the Red Cross/Red Crescent at:
http://www.ifrc.org/home.html


For a direct link to a Red Cross/Red Crescent report and pictures on the
crisis in Mozambique, visit :
http://www.ifrc.org/news/dftf/stories/00/00021401/
(To make a donation, scroll to bottom of the page for the “how you can
help”
link)

You can access the official Mozambican page with the bank account numbers
at:
http://www.mozambique.mz/cheias/index.htm


3)
To assist with immediate relief efforts through one Mozambican NGO,
Reconstruindo a Esperanca (Rebuilding Hope), contact their non-profit
fiscal
agent in the US:

Artists for a New South
9000 West Washington Boulevard, 2nd floor
Culver City, CA 90232
Tel: (310) 815-0457
(make checks out to Reconstruindo a Esperanca)

For the past six years Reconstruindo a Esperanca (Rebuilding Hope) has
been
working in one area -- Josina Machel Island --that has been devastated by
the floods.  Josina Machel, in northern Maputo province, is a remote and
poor area that was the target of both FRELIMO and RENAMO raids during the
war and has a high concentration of former child soldiers. Reconstruindo
a
Esperanca (RE) has worked with over 600 male and female child soldiers,
their families and communities.  Their goal has been these children's
psycho-social reintegration and they have worked closely with local
traditional healers and religious leaders.  They started several
self-help
initiatives and gained international recognition for their work.

Like many organizations, RE quite suddenly lost its international funding
when their German supporters diverted their priorities to Kosovo.  RE
remains on Josina Machel in spite of the fact that their staff has been
receiving reduced or no wages since June.  They are the first (and
perhaps
only) organization to recognize and address the needs of female child
soldiers--the thousands of girls used as sexual slaves on military bases.
RE's Director, Boia Efraime, was selected this year as one of Human
Rights
Watch's four worldwide Human Rights Monitors.  At the moment, they are
the
main source of relief to Josina Machel.