From FEDERATION NEWS 01/00
In response to floods which have devastated
Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia, the International Federation is appealing for
7.47 million Swiss francs to assist the National Societies in these countries.
In Cambodia more than half a million people living along the Mekong and
Tonle Sap Rivers have been affected according to the government authorities.
Emergency household kits will be distributed to 10,000 families and personal
hygiene items will be given to 100,000 families who have lost their homes
and possessions. Since the floods began in July, the Cambodian Red Cross
has mounted a mayor relief campaign in cooperation with the National Committee
on Disaster Management. The National Society is assisting people in 11
provinces and Phnom Penh with food and basic relief goods, such as clothing,
shelter material, medical supplies and mosquito netting. In the south of
Laos, floods have devastated rice crops, forcing farmers to switch to alternative
means of making a living. Villages have been inundated with rising water
from the Mekong river, with floodwaters reported to be past the 13.5 metre
warning mark. After losing their harvest, farmers now have to wait at least
six months before their next rice crop. Some will be unable to plant until
next June, which has serious implications for future food supplies. "I
have no idea what to do," laments Jang, 67, who lives in Horpakhel,a
village in the southern province of Champasak. "I sit at home all
day unable to tend to my land and thinking how to feed my family. I have
to try fishing now and see how it helps." The Federation appeal aims
to assist 7,000 of the worst-affected families with food and relief items
over three months.
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