Aid Distributions
Immediately after the disaster, a £4 million appeal was launched by Islamic Relief and the public response was overwhelming. One small charity shop which normally receives donations of around £400 a day is currently receiving £60,000 a day. In the UK alone the charity has received over £1 million in donations and has allocated a further million from its own emergency fund. The appeal has now been increased to £10 million.
But
the figure is not nearly enough. Essential needs are still not being met
and with the threat of water borne diseases still dangerously close, the
crisis is far from being over. When one remembers that in some makeshift
refugee camps 500 people are reported to be sharing one toilet between
them it is clear that the need is great. "The generosity of ordinary people
from all walks of life, whatever their beliefs and backgrounds has truly
touched our hearts," says UK fundraiser for Islamic Relief, Muhammad Imran,
"but it is vital that people keep giving. We are working amongst affected
communities in Sri Lanka and Indonesia and must ensure that nobody is
neglected through lack of funds."
And the aid is getting through. It may seem like it has been a slow process, but it is gaining momentum. Essential needs are beginning to be met and over the coming days and weeks more will be arriving and delivered to the most vulnerable members of the community by Islamic Relief staff and local volunteers.
Long-term Aid
The worry is that when the world moves on to the next newsworthy story, donations will stop.In the coming months there will be a huge need for the relief efforts to be stepped up in this neglected area. For now the people are in shock and are surviving on the generosity and goodwill of their neighbours. But this goodwill is as exhaustible as the supplies which are needed for the refugees to live. Eventually people will have to begin looking after their own families and homes will have to be rebuilt. The worry for many people is that when the world inevitably moves on to the next newsworthy story the donations too will stop.
Desperate relatives still travel from as far away as Colombo to hear news of their loved ones. They sift through the wreckage and ask everybody they meet if they know anything. They then make their way to the schools and municipal buildings which serve as refugee camps to many of the nearly 200,000 homeless people of Ampara.
Invariably their desperate pilgrimage ends at the graves of the thousands buried in shallow graves near the local mosque. There, all that is left for grieving families is to weep and remember loved ones whose unmarked graves will haunt these communities for generations to come.