The yellow gale continued to sweep regions in Northwest China on Sunday after severe sandstorms hit Gansu province and killed three people in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region over the weekend......With wind speed reaching at least 36 meters a second, the gale also hampered rescue and relief work in quake-hit Yushu County of Qinghai Province on Sunday. (http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2010-04/26/content_9772331.htm)

"This is probably the most devastating sandstorm I have ever experienced in my whole life," says Ms. Tang Chuanfang, Amity's rescue worker ," Yellow sand, grabbed by and mingled with the gale pressed on to the ground from the sky. Sandstorm is so strong that it's impossible to keep our eyes open. We could only see at two or three meters distance. We get a whole mouthful of sand when eating and drinking. To cope with that, we kept our masks on all day long. Some tents are blown away, some people got injured, the already broken houses are under greater threaten. The sand smell penetrates the air. We feel like to be blown away by the gale."

Amity's relief work continues on in Qinghai. In Xining, Amity team finished purchasing of the 6th batch of relief resources which will be on put the way to Yushu tomorrow. Included in the materials were 12 tons of cooking oil and 375 boxes of feminine napkins.

On Sunday, April 25, a memorial service was held in Mochou Church, Nanjing in memory of the deceased in Yushu earthquake. During the service, Ms Kou Weiwei from Amity did a presentation on Amity's relief work which has been greatly echoed by the congregation members. At the end of the service, congregation members contributed a total of 102,600 Yuan to support Amity's relief work. Meanwhile, churches in Wuxi and Kunshan in Southern Jiangsu have also made generous donations of RMB 70,000 Yuan in total.

Please continue praying with Amity while the young and devoted staff continues their efforts in Qinghai Tibetan Plateau with the local people.

Sincerely,
She Hongyu

In sub-zero temperatures at close to 4,000m, survival is tough for the earthquake-hit communities in China’s mountainous Qinghai Province - even tougher than it was for the survivors of the Sichuan earthquake in 2008, says ACT Alliance member Amity Foundation.

Last Tuesday’s earthquake killed 1,994 people and injured 12,000, as well as leaving hundreds of others missing in one of the poorest regions in western China. Rescue teams and relief efforts are hampered by thin air, at 60% oxygen density, which is giving rescuers altitude sickness. There are also transport difficulties to the remote region.

Amity Foundation distributing relief
ACT member Amity Foundation, coordinating with the Chinese authorities, is continuing to distribute emergency relief, including quilts, food and water to help people survive in some of the worst-hit areas.

The people of Yushu are being accommodated in one of four designated shelter areas – a stadium, a forested area, a horse-racing track and an open area outside town – or living in the open air beside the remains of their houses. People are building their own emergency shelters using salvaged materials.

Speaking from the small Tibetan village of Hong Wei, He Wen, Assistant General Secretary of Amity, said all the houses in the cluster of villages there were badly damaged. Residents are forced to spend the nights outside, many of them sleeping on the ground. Most families have received a little basic food and water assistance. Damage to water supplies means that the villagers have to walk 3km to fetch water.

Electric supply is cut
Lack of electricity continues to be a problem and Amity is planning to request support for solar-powered systems as part of the crisis phase response, especially for the poorest and most vulnerable households, schools and hospitals.

The Chinese government has mounted a strong relief operation, with a focus on search and rescue, with the army, police and local people. But they, too, are hindered by the distances to deliver aid quickly.

Others bringing assistance include the Chinese Red Cross, local non-governmental organisations and private companies. Their assistance is also important to fill the gaps, explains He Wen.

He Wen said the people of the area were enduring temperatures as low as 17°C, and had little fuel or quilts for warmth. “It’s very, very cold, so people are just wearing heavy coats... we need quilts".

Before the earthquake Amity was well-known in the region, working with communities on bio-gas and solar energy projects for cooking and lighting.

Chris Herlinger/ACT, Port-au-Prince February 5, 2010 - Marie Sylsalve cradled her 10-day-old son, McAnley, and reflected on three weeks that have taken an almost incomprehensible toll. She last saw her husband in the moments immediately following the 12 January earthquake. The family’s home was destroyed and Sylsalve saw a wall fall on Andre. She presumes he is dead – it has been three weeks now. And twelve days later she gave birth in the ruins.

The birth of McAnley cheered her some, but Sylsalve, who worked as a vendor and now lives at a displacement site in the Belair neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, is faced with supporting her infant son and three other children. She has no immediate prospects for work. She retains some hope for her infant son, saying that “everything that comes his way will be good.” But life right now is hard, she said tersely and dispassionately, continuing to cradle McAnley.

Sylsalve's dispiriting experiences and lament are all too common in Haiti today, and the assistance being provided by the ACT Alliance in Belair – including tents, water, hygiene and baby kits – while needed and appreciated, is only a first step toward recovery. Another is in providing psychosocial support – the process by which those who have been traumatized begin to resume normal life.

Martial art as therapy

Sylsalve’s displacement site has a long association with the Brazilian organization Viva Rio, which is supported by ACT members working in Port-au-Prince. One of the psychosocial programs for children involves the practice of capoeira, an Afro-Brazilian martial art taught by Viva Rio staff that is used as therapy for young people recovering from trauma. Drawing is another form of trauma therapy.

On a recent afternoon, several children involved in the program gathered and talked about their experiences. Capoeira was generally more popular than drawing – seven-year-old Ricardo Jacques and 10-year-old Mario Pierre said the dancing and exercise of capoeira made them feel good – “ready for the future,” Pierre said. But Jean Ritson Mertilus, 9, said he preferred drawing because it was more peaceful than capoeria.

Are you hungry, you get angry

The need for survivors to find some semblance of normality and peace under-girds the ACT members’ plans for adult psychosocial programs. Bjorg Roedland, a Norwegian nurse and a consultant with ACT/Norwegian Church Aid, acknowledges that psychosocial work is not what survivors like Sylsalve need immediately. “If the people don’t have food, how can they do other things?” Roedland said. “They have lost a lot of weight. They get angry if they don’t eat. You have to start with the basics. “ But dealing with trauma must eventually be addressed, especially in areas where Port-au-Prince residents, particularly women and children, were vulnerable before the earthquake.

Stealing children

Fear of sex trafficking is one concern, as are rape and sexual abuse. Compounding the need for protection of Haitians is the fear that children may be trafficked out of Haiti as orphans, as evidenced by the recent arrest of a group of US citizens for attempting to take Haitian children into the neighboring Dominican Republic.

A U.S. government report on trafficking notes that as many as 300,000 Haitians, ages six to 14, were trafficked in 2008. Many were forced to work as domestic servants both here and overseas. The report noted a “sharp increase” in the number of Haitian children trafficked for the sex trade.

Roedland said ACT Alliance staff in Haiti are working with local partners and community leaders, as well as with the Haitian government, to ensure that children most vulnerable to trafficking are identified and protected.

The scars you can’t see

Trafficking is just one worry. There is also the ever-present possibility of another earthquake in Haiti. Tremors are felt daily even now, three weeks later. “Their fear is increasing. It’s in their stomach all the time. When the aftershocks come, it’s right there,” Roedland said. “They are starting their lives over again. But some people can’t handle this, and our most important job now is to identify those people who can’t resume their lives.”

Adults bear the most psychological scars; children seem more resilient, though that also depends on a number of factors. “If the mother and father are there, they can cope,” Roedland said. “But if the parents are missing, it’s much more difficult for the children.”

The children involved in the ACT-supported programs spoke about their lives with a poignant mixture of sadness and optimism. Though none lost immediate family, all realize the enormity of what has happened in Haiti. “Too many people died in our country,” said Mario Pierre. Asked what he wanted to do when he grew up, 10-year-old Nacilien Josue replied, “Become a ship captain.” Why? “To bring in medical supplies.”

ACT's Paul Jeffrey contributed to this report. See his photos from Belair at: http://www.act-intl.org/haitiphotos/25Jan2010/index.html

by Tomm Kristiansen    Updated: February 4, 2010

GENEVA — Concerts on national TV, online donations, spectacular auctions, fundraising dinners and extra church collections are among the methods ACT Alliance has used to raise funds for Haiti.  And they have produced results.

Perhaps the most pragmatic and humbling effort have come from the staff of Lutheran World Service in India.  They have offered one day’s salary for the people of Haiti. “The decision was unanimously taken in a discussion about how to show solidarity with Haiti,” said Dr Vijayakumar James, executive director of LWS. 

Now the ACT members ask for more. US member Church World Service has appealed to the Wall Street finance executives to donate ten percent of their bonuses to Haiti.

"Now is the perfect moment for executives in the financial sector to make an equally powerful statement about corporate social responsibility, by tithing their bonuses towards the longer and arduous challenge of redeveloping Haiti," says the CWS Director, Rev. John L. McCullough. The campaign is called Bonus4Haiti. “It might seed money to jump-start the reconstruction," he says.

Gospel and hip-hop

In Denmark, top gospel singers joined forces to create a music hit for Haiti. The song was recorded over one weekend and made available on YouTube. "The inspiration for the song came when I saw a news report from Haiti, where a man was jammed in a wall. When he was asked how he felt, he replied quite calmly that he had prayed to God and trusted that his prayer was heard," says promoter Julie Lindell."We pray that many will just buy the song by downloading it for three US dollars. DanChurchAid urgently needs money to get safe water, sanitation, shelter and food to earthquake victims." (The song is now available for free at YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9JMxOsl0ny0)

Danish international prize winning hip-hop group Outlandish donated scarves and caps to DanChurchAid for auction. We immediately thought we would give support and we therefore contacted DanChurchAid to hear if we could donate some effects from our greatest video to date - Aicha - and include them in an auction," said singer Waqas Qadri.

All over the world

In Australia, the Lutheran Church of Australia campaigned with posters, phone and online donations and established photo galleries of Haiti. All supporters were mailed. New information about the Haiti situation is spread every day.  The church emailed all pastors and schools within the Lutheran Church of Australia within 36 hours

The Canadian Lutheran World Relief had fundraising dinners, concerts, bazaars and volunteers are taking phone donations.

In the UK, Christian Aid is using its popular website to raise funds for Haiti.  It also advertised in the UK press and worked closely with other humanitarian organisations.

In the US, the overwhelming outpouring continues to set new standards, especially in New Orleans. Churches there have decided to have a special Haiti offering the first Sunday of each month in 2010. It is more than four years since Hurricane Katrina, and the churches continue to rebuild from devastation, destruction and pain. Now they are deeply affected by what has happened in Haiti.

Church of Sweden has raised funds among members and parishes by taking collections, and using SMS campaigns, direct mail and media. The church has also received huge donations from the government. 

Finn Church Aid organised a fundraising concert in the Cathedral of Helsinki, which was broadcast on a national television channel at prime time last Sunday. Finnish President Tarja Halonen was among the churchgoers.

Waive the Haiti debt

Members of ACT Alliance have appealed to their national governments to waive Haiti’s debt. They say they find it immoral to expect Haiti to pay back its loans while the international society is spending millions on relief to the same country.

by Chris Herlinger/CWS

Port-au-Prince, Haiti – As she waited in a food distribution  line late last week, Marie Therese, newly widowed and bereaved,  patient but tired, tersely summed up Haiti’s current plight.

Though thankful for the assistance from CWS and the ACT Alliance reaching her and others in the village of Gressier, Therese, 51, said: “It’s like we’re in a desert.”

In the nearly three weeks since the catastrophic Jan. 12 earthquake, Haiti has indeed felt like it is a land bereft of much that makes for a dignified life.

Port-au-Prince’s downtown area, hit hardest by the quake, still looks and feels as if the disaster happened just days ago. Homes and apartments are crushed; the smell of rotting flesh wafts through the air; and the sides of some buildings jut out and look as if they are ready to fall into the street at any moment.

It is startling to see a building cut in half, with furniture and desks, filing cabinets and sinks suddenly exposed to the harsh midday sunlight – just as it is to see thousands of people, suddenly displaced, living in the makeshift displacement camps within and outside the capital city.

Yet the capacity of Haitians to embrace elements of normalcy is encouraging beyond words. That means dressing in your Sunday best to attend worship, offering a hand to neighbors or visitors, or as barber Charilien Charles, 25, has done, reestablish his business, complete with quake-cracked mirrors, within one of Port-au-Prince’s sprawling displacement camps.

Is business good? “Unpredictable,” Charles said, shrugging his shoulders, saying he has to be patient.

Unpredictability and patience are also watch words as the international community continues its role in providing humanitarian assistance to Haiti – an effort that by all accounts was slow in starting and is still not seamless, given the many daunting challenges that faced Haiti before and immediately following the quake.

 “The devastation is beyond comprehension,” said Martin Coria, Latin  America/Caribbean regional coordinator for Church World Service and ACT, reiterating a point that is probably all too well known by now but which must be stressed given the logistical difficulties in getting aid to disaster survivors.

Something else that needs repeating is that aid workers themselves continue to live in the streets because of the wide-spread devastation, according to Sylvia Raulo, country representative in Haiti for ACT/Lutheran World Federation. “Everyone here is dealing with this loss of life,” Raulo said.

Raulo knows that, three weeks into the response, donors are rightly concerned about whether aid is getting to those who need it, a concern she says is both legitimate and welcome.

 “We are accountable, first and foremost, to the survivors living in Haiti, and then to those abroad giving and pledging money,” she said. While Raulo said exact numbers of those receiving assistance are still being compiled, between 40,000 and 50,000 persons have been in assisted by CWS-supported ACT programs in the last three weeks in efforts that have included providing water, food, shelter and psycho-social assistance.

Future efforts will focus on reconstruction of homes and schools, and on long-term food security – part of the ACT Alliance’s commitment and mandate “to look beyond immediate emergencies,” she said.

Raulo does not downplay challenges, either in Haiti or with the response. Aid efforts will have to deal with problems like government corruption and the unpredictability of events.

The Saturday (Jan. 31) distribution in Gressier, located some 20 kilometers west of Port-au-Prince, by LWF aid workers was proof that situations are not predictable, especially when people in rural areas find themselves in desperate situations.

A group of young men who were not on a list of recipients earlier compiled by LWF workers tried to disrupt the distribution that included food from Haiti and non-food items from CWS and ACT members in Finland.

 Local police also demanded tents that were being distributed and did little to control the crowd; the young LWF workers stood their ground and continued to direct aid to those who had been identified as particularly vulnerable, including families with pregnant women and young children.

Eventually, the crowd got unruly and a policewoman fired two shots in the air. The distribution was disrupted and LWF staff left the village, frustrated that their efforts had not gone as planned. “Yes, it’s complicated,” said distribution coordinator Sheyla Durandisse.  “There is a lot of pressure on the team.”

Fellow aid worker Emmanuela Blain, who had been at another LWF distribution a day earlier, admitted she and other aid workers were frustrated. “Yesterday we had a distribution that was perfect. Perfect.”

Raulo, who praised LWF workers for their patience in a difficult situation, said the problems in Gressier have to be seen in context –  in a situation that can seem like it is bereft of hope. “People are traumatized,” she said, “and we know how people can react in these types of situations.”

Still, she said, one unassailable fact has emerged in the last three weeks, particularly given a history of weak state structures. “Haitians are an extremely resilient people.”