Donations pour in to help victims of violent attacks

The Development Bank of Southern Africa (DPSA) and the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) on Tuesday, 27 May 2008, announced that they have set up a R20 million fund to support relief efforts.

The Red Cross will receive R2 million from the fund, and the rest will be channelled through institutions such as the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC).

The combined funding of R20 million, based on equal contributions from the DBSA and IDC, will be made available primarily through the DBSA interaction with municipalities, the organisations said in a joint statement.

The organisations said assistance will also be provided in coordination and communication efforts, including the release of project management staff to support the coordination work of the SAHRC and the Commission on Gender Equality.

The DBSA and IDC will continue to monitor the situation closely. The allocation of their financial support will be informed by the scale of events and the needs that arise, the organisations said, adding that a team had been appointed to co-ordinate the joint effort.

South African Airways (SAA) is to donate a further R750,000 to the Red Cross for food, blankets, clothes and media aid for the refugees while another R250,000 will be given to the Central Methodist Church in Johannesburg.

"This donation will provide emergency funding to restore much needed water supplies at the church," said SAA Chief Executive Officer, Khaya Ngqula.

Other organisations who are helping out include Standard Bank which donated R3 million to the Red Cross and Absa Bank which has embarked on a drive to donate food, blankets and clothing.

The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) is also helping the hardest-hit cities of Johannesburg, Ekurhuleni and Pretoria by providing emergency relief supplies to vulnerable women and children.

UNICEF has supplied adult hygiene kits, food, clothing and blankets for victims of the violence, most of whom fled their homes with few or no possessions.

The aim is to ensure that babies, young children and mothers are adequately clothed, safely and appropriately fed and that basic hygiene is maintained, UNICEF said.

Meanwhile, some of the victims have expressed unhappines about their temporary living conditions.

At the Primrose police station in Germiston, where some of them have taken shelter, they are appealing for proper accommodation instead of the tents which provide no protection from the cold.

As the winter season kicks in these victims remain confined to tents erected in an open space with either nothing to sleep on or only cupboards and a blanket for some warmth.

The Gift of the Givers Foundation, a non-governmental organisation (NGO) providing humanitarian aid was also heavily involved in assisting the victims of the attacks.

Founder of the NGO, Dr Imtiaz Sooliman, said they have been addressing the basic needs of the displaced foreign nationals.

Meanwhile, 40 children from Germiston City Hall, dressed in donated clothes and shoes, were able to return to school on Tuesday, more than three weeks after the attacks broke out.

The nationals living in the city hall have started their own school so that their children can continue to be taught despite being displaced from their homes and schools.

Article published courtesy of BuaNews