From: antbh@strix.udac.uu.se (Bernhard Helander)
Subject: More On The Worst Human Tragedy
Organization: UDAC, Uppsala, Sweden
Date: Wed, 29 Jul 1992 19:40:05 GMT

THis is a cross-posting of an article that appeared on
alt.activism.progressive:

Christic Institute <christic@igc.apc.org> writes:

>/* Written  9:07 pm  Jul 28, 1992 by peacenet in cdp:pn.alerts */
>/* ---------- "More On The Worst Human Tragedy" ---------- */
>From: <peacenet>
>Subject: Re: More On The Worst Human Tragedy

>From dmorse Tue Jul 28 17:23:25 1992
>From: Dorothy Morse <dmorse>

>I called that State Department number.  It is a general line for public
>opinion.  A live woman seemed to listen and even to take notes.  She said
>the calls are summarized and passed onto Secretary of State James Baker.
>Please call if you can.
>The number again is 1-202-647-4000.

>Here is some background information from the New York Times, July 19:
>"Red Cross officials say they believe that about 1/3 of Somalia's people,
>estimated to number anywhere from 4.5 million to 6 million, are likely to die
>within the next 6 months unless more food is pumped into the country."

>(That's about 2 million people in 6 months, folks.  Please call the State
>Department, call your congressperson, write your newspapers, call in to
>radio talk shows.)

>More from the Times:  the Somalians have had a traditional method of
>coping with cyclical droughts and clan warfare, because the warfare was
>simply carried on in rural areas with spears.  But now they have drought
>and war together, and the clan war is carried on with modern military equipment
>bestowed on them by the US in the 1980's and the Soviet Union in the 1970's,
>decades when Somalia was of strategic interest to the superpowers. It is no
>longer.  But their ancient ways of coping are gone; 25 percent of their
>cattle are dead, and "untold numbers" of their camels.  Heavily armed gangs
>steal grain and cattle, burn down fields so that sorghum cannot be planted.

>"The Director of the United Nation's Children's Fund, Dr. Siad Mure Aden, pointed to
>to countless children he said would die in the next few days, despite the one
>feeding a day provided by UNICEF.
>"Dr. Aden gestured toward one child, a shriveled 5-year-old named Manour, whose
>father tried to warm him with the embers of a kerchief sized fire on the
>grounds of the center.  "He will die," Dr. Aden said.  "There is no hope."

>The Red Cross seeks to arrange safe passage for people who come to their
>feeding kitchens, after their livestock and supplies are taken by the
>armed gangs.

>Although violence and technology have created the famine, the violence
>escalates now because of lack of food.  An educated Somalian said, "You have
>three choices: leave, work for a humanitarian organization, or grab a gun and
>loot."  For this reason, some people want a UN Peacekeeping force in there.
>Doctors Without Borders wants to saturate the area with food, stopping what
>violence is caused by frantic people fighting over food. It's not
>a question of either/or--everything possible should be done.

>Finally, a top Red Cross official said:
>"I thought I would never see Ethiopia again, and I DIDN'T THINK WE WOULD
>ALLOW IT TO HAPPEN AGAIN."

>Why was it allowed to happen again?  The Red Cross predicted this disaster
>6 months ago.  

>For comparison purposes:  the UN is supposed to have 50 unarmed monitors on
>the scene--the peacekeeping force sent to Yugoslavia is, I believe, 14,400

Xref: sparky alt.activism.d:2522 alt.rush-limbaugh:3110 talk.politics.misc:36034