Photo: Kay Chernush for the U.S. State Department
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INCREASE GLOBAL FOOD AID
Severe food shortages have led to alarming rates of acute malnutrition in children in many countries, from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Chad and Somalia, to Bangladesh, Afghanistan and East Timor. According to UNICEF, 10.9 million children under five die in developing countries each year, malnutrition and hunger related diseases cause 60% of the deaths (Hunger Stats, World Food Programme, www.wfp.org). It is clear that adequate food and healthcare is not being provided in the affected countries, and Government's need to increase their commitment to food aid and global healthcare in response to these very saddening statistics. Please send the sample letter by post or email (please add the date and your name before sending) to the Australian Foreign Minister urging him to increase Australia's funding to emergency food aid distributed by organisations such as the World Food Programme.
Note: You can send the Sample Letter to government officials of all donor countries to the World Food Programme (this includes the United States, and many more, just change the details of the person to who the letter is addressed).
SAMPLE LETTER
The Hon Bob Carr MP, Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs
Post: PO Box 6100, Senate, Parliament House, Canberra ACT 2600
Phone: 02 6277 7500
Fax: 02 6273 4112
Email: senator.b.carr@aph.gov.au
The Hon Julia Gillard MP, Prime Minister of Australia
Post: Attention: The Hon Julia Gillard MP, Prime Minister, Parliament House, Canberra ACT 2600
Send an email to the Prime Minister
President Barak Obama, President of the United States
Post: The White House, 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20500
Phone: 202 456 1414
Fax: 202 456 2461
Send a brief message to the United States President
U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Affairs
Post: 2170 Rayburn House Office Building, Washington, DC, 20515
Phone: 202 225 5021
Website: http://foreignaffairs.house.gov/contact.asp
Radhika Coomaraswamy, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict
Post: Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, One UN Plaza DC1 - 627 F, New York, NY 10017
Phone: 1 212 963 3178
Fax: 1 212 963 0807
Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA)
Post: Rue de Varembe 1, 2nd Floor, 1202 Geneva, Switzerland (Head Office) or,
Room 12-01, 12th Floor, Times Square Building, 246 Sukhumvit Road, Between Soi 12-14, Klongtoey, 10110 Bangkok, Thailand (Regional Office)
Phone: 66 0 2 653 2940 1
Fax: 66 0 2 653 2942
Email: info@forum-asia.org
Sending a signed letter by post is a more effective means of communication.
BRIEF VERSION OF SAMPLE LETTER
Dear Minister,
Many developing countries are experiencing severe food shortages and the World Food Programme has made it clear that they are dealing with serious funding shortfalls, as a result millions of lives are at risk of severe malnutrition, hunger-related diseases and death.
Developing nations such as the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Chad, East Timor, Bangladesh and Afghanistan all have populations with a high number of malnourished children. This distressing situation could lead to millions of deaths if the food aid provided continues to be inadequate or stops completely.
As a donor to the World Food Programme your contribution allows them to carry out their humanitarian operations and saves many lives. However with news that the World Food Programme is experiencing a shortfall of funds for a number of country programmes that provide emergency food aid vital for the survival of the millions people, we urge you to consider making a further contribution to the World Food Programme.
Statistics on child malnutrition are very saddening - 10.9 million children under five die in developing countries each year. Malnutrition and hunger-related diseases cause 60 percent of the deaths. (The State of the World's Children, UNICEF, 2007) An additional donation to reputable organisations such as the World Food Programme will make a huge difference and can potentially save the lives of millions of children that make up much of the world's poor.
Thank you.
Dear Minister,
Many developing countries are experiencing severe food shortages and the World Food Programme has made it clear that they are dealing with serious funding shortfalls, as a result millions of lives are at risk of severe malnutrition, hunger-related diseases and death.
Developing nations such as the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Chad, East Timor, Bangladesh and Afghanistan all have populations with a high number of malnourished children. This distressing situation could lead to millions of deaths if the food aid provided continues to be inadequate or stops completely.
As a donor to the World Food Programme your contribution allows them to carry out their humanitarian operations and saves many lives. However with news that the World Food Programme is experiencing a shortfall of funds for a number of country programmes that provide emergency food aid vital for the survival of the millions people, we urge you to consider making a further contribution to the World Food Programme.
Statistics on child malnutrition are very saddening - 10.9 million children under five die in developing countries each year. Malnutrition and hunger-related diseases cause 60 percent of the deaths. (The State of the World's Children, UNICEF, 2007) An additional donation to reputable organisations such as the World Food Programme will make a huge difference and can potentially save the lives of millions of children that make up much of the world's poor.
Thank you.
Tell others You can get others to take action using social networking. Consider following Little Survivors on Facebook and Twitter, and retweeting our updates. You can get others to take action online or you could write an article about the issue and send it to newspaper editor.
