Every life matters

Aug 15, 2011 Letters

Dear Editor,
I had cause only a few days ago to draw attention to the grave situation in Somalia where millions of people are dying, or on the verge of dying, due to starvation and preventable illness. Since then, the situation has deteriorated with very little attempt made by the international community to come to the rescue of these famine-stricken people, the majority of whom are children and young people who may never live to see the next day just because they happen to live in the wrong country at the wrong time.
According to the latest statistics, a child is dying from starvation every six minutes in drought-hit Somalia, which means that roughly 250 children die every day! One is left to wonder what the response would have been were a similar situation taking place in Europe or North America. It is doubtful that there would have been as much indifference by the international community as is apparently the case with Somalia.
The UN agencies alone cannot mobilize the tons of food, water and medicine needed to save the millions of lives at stake. The entire international community needs to be mobilized to send emergency supplies. Time is of the essence. Additionally, there is need for a disaster preparedness mechanism to address situations such as these at the level of the UN which should be adequately resourced financially and logistically.
Funding could come from cuts in military expenditures, especially from the bigger powers which can then be redirected to mitigation efforts and for human development.
Research has shown that a modest cut in global military spending can send every child to school and provide enough food and health care including immunization against deadly diseases. Such funding, I respectfully submit, cannot be left solely to national governments and philanthropic individuals or groups such as the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, noble as these gestures are. It should be the collective responsibility of all governments, the majority of whom have committed themselves over a decade ago to reduce poverty by the year 2015, which incidentally is just around the corner.
Every life matters, regardless of race, religion, class, creed or geography. In an era characterized by high levels of science and technology, including food technology, no child should go to bed hungry. It is a shame and indictment on the entire international community, in particular the rich countries that so many lives are lost in Somalia and elsewhere when much better could have been done if only the political will to do so was more manifest.
Hydar Ally

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