Irish public donates €1m for aid

DONATIONS FROM the Irish public to aid agencies involved in relief work in Pakistan have surpassed €1 million.

Donations to Concern Worldwide reached €637,000 yesterday while Trócaire says it has received around €400,000 to date.

In addition, the Irish Government has pledged a further €550,000 for humanitarian aid on top of the €200,000 which has already been allocated.

Some €300,000 will go towards Concern’s distribution of food and essential humanitarian supplies and a further €100,000 will go to Trócaire for the distribution of supplies.

Concern Worldwide overseas director Paul O’Brien defended the use of press and radio advertisements asking for a specific amount which is €40.

Mr O’Brien said the figure did not exclude those who want to give a lesser amount and he was “extremely grateful” for the support they had received from the Irish public.

“At this early stage in our appeal we are delighted with this response; the Irish public are once again displaying their generous nature and their solidarity, even at this time of financial difficulty and need at home, with those less fortunate than themselves.”

Trócaire spokeswoman Catherine Ginty described the response as “phenomenal” given that aid agencies conducted a similar appeal in January after the Haiti earthquake disaster.

Oxfam Ireland has launched its campaign to raise €4.5 million worldwide to deal with the disaster. Oxfam has relief workers in four Pakistan provinces.

Oxfam Ireland chief executive Jim Clarken said: “We have all been shocked by the ferocity and magnitude of this disaster. Everyone – donors, the UN aid agencies – all of us need to shift gear on this crisis. This is the biggest disaster in the world right now.”

Children’s charity Plan Ireland has distributed cooked food to about 12,000 people; children’s nutritional food packs to 500 families; health and hygiene kits to 420 families; and repaired 65 camp latrines along with distributing community-sized tents.

St Ann’s Church in Dawson Street, Dublin which traditionally hosts a Christmas sit-out, will host another one on Friday and Saturday. Curate Rev Victor Fitzpatrick will take part. “We’ve all been very moved by the awful pictures on our TV screens and the terrible devastation and loss of life so we thought we’d do something to help,” he said.