Update 13th May

So far, our call has gone out through our personal networks – friends and colleagues in the arts and activism. We need to intensify the spreading of this information, especially information on how foreign funds can directly benefit and reach the victims of the Nargis disaster.

Many people have been generously donating to the various Nargis Refilef Funds. In Malaysia where I am now writing from, The Star newspaper received nearly RM 200,000 (approx. USD70,000) on 9th May alone, half of that from cheques made out by individuals, and today the prime minister launched a fund set up by Radio TV Malaysia and the foreign ministry.

I am encouraging people’s warm and necessary response to the grave need for aid in Burma, but I would like to caution donors to be wise on how they give. Having lived and worked inside Burma, we know of the restrictions on the operations of international NGOs who had to sign Memorandums of Understanding with the military government. They try their best and do what they can under these restrictions.

However, working “in official cooperation” with the Burmese regime (which these well known international NGOs and government organisations of foreign ministeries will have no choice but to operate under) have been shown to have great limitations – in this time of disaster and need for speedy emergency aid to reach the victims on the ground – I can say that the “official” way is not the best way. The media has reported the junta’s confiscations and hoarding of aid food and material sent in by foreign aid organisations and governments. Some of the donated food is now up for sale in shops in the city of Yangon. A portion of the aid money given to the big international NGOs must necessarily and understandably go to the cost of the operation – charter of planes, foreign personnel, etc. – however, the end result of this are cargos of goods stranded at the Yangon airport along with frustrated foreign specialist relief personnels.

This is NOT a ‘normal’ nor anywhere near ‘decent’ government we are dealing with. Not only are they not caring for their people, but are actively preventing others from doing it. Our contacts tell us that the police and military personnels are actively preventing monks and monasteries from feeding and sheltering the victims of Nargis; prices of food and petrol have sky-rocketed and the military and their relatives have been making profit out of the sufferings of the people, hoarding zink roofing for repairing the mostly destroyed roofs of homes and buildings and selling them at greatly inflated prices.

So an important word of advice –  give what you can, but give rather to Burmese grassroots organisations in your own country, or Burmese individuals whom you trust – who already have their regular channels of money transfer back to Burma. They are the ones who would know how to evade and work around the “official” channels, and they would be able to send the money to Burma to reach the channels that are directly giving aid to the people. If you have contact with trusted individuals inside Burma, you can also send money to them through a simple way – all Burmese immigrant communities have established their own ‘trusted’ way of sending money back home. As a precaution however, do not send large amounts at one time, make sure the recipient have received the money before sending the next installment.

The money that we are collecting through NICA is going entirely through the local networks, and we do NOT have any operation costs, as we have done away with all permenant and physical structures, and are working with individuals and networks whom we trust inside Burma, on ad hoc basis according to current needs and situations.

Let’s give wisely.