Government backs fund to aid survivors of tsunami
January 05, 2005 Edition 1
Staff writers
A fund set up by Independent Newspapers SA, owners of the Cape Times, has been endorsed by the government, which is co-ordinating the national effort to assist survivors of the tsunami.
Also, the government has agreed to work with Independent Newspapers SA in its effort to help those whose lives have been devastated in the disaster.
The fund, launched on Monday with an initial donation of R500 000 from the group, will raise funds through the Independent's South African titles.
Yesterday, Minister of Provincial and Local Government Sydney Mufamadi, who is chairing the country's national disaster management committee, in a meeting with Tony Howard, chief executive of Independent Newspapers SA, and Nazeem Howa, Independent's executive director of operations, praised the group's selfless actions.
"You need to be commended for your initiative... We need to pull all of these resources together to maximise the South African effort," Mufamadi said.
He said the government would be following discussions in Indonesia, where an international tsunami aid conference is to be held. The conference is expected to produce an official assessment of the tsunami devastation, a register of needs and guidelines on how the aid, now worth billions of rands, can be distributed.
South Africa will be represented at the conference by Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang and Water Affairs and Forestry Minister Bulelwa Sonjica.
"We have had discussions with Independent Newspapers and agreed, as South African-based organisations, that, mindful of the fact that other organisations such as yourself have established their own funds, we may consider putting all these funds together to ensure that they are channelled and distributed in an integrated manner towards this global effort," Mufamadi said.
Howard said Independent Newspapers SA aimed to ensure that reader's donations would be channelled to those in need by organisations such as the SA Red Cross.
Meanwhile it was confirmed yesterday that the bodies of two more South Africans had been found in Thailand, bringing the total number of those who died in the disaster to nine.
Department of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Nomfanelo Kota said seven were also officially missing and 985 still unaccounted for.
Kota said the bodies were recovered in Phuket, Thailand.
The government on Monday reported that 1 137 South Africans were still missing or unaccounted for in south-east Asia, but 152 have since been traced through their families.
"As government we have decided to contact each family from the list that we have, to check if their families have spoken to them following the disaster," Kota said.
Social Development Department spokesperson Mbulelo Musi said when the disaster - which killed 150 000 - struck, SA embassies in south-east Asian countries compiled a list of South Africans who had travelled to those countries.
"Through this list, we managed to trace how many South Africans were in those countries," he said. - Staff Writers
