----- Original Message ----- From: Stormie <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Wednesday, April 05, 2000 7:21 PM Subject: [STOPNATO] Fw: unum -> Europe's message to starving Africans: DIE! STOP NATO: NO PASARAN! - HTTP://WWW.STOPNATO.HOME-PAGE.ORG -----Original Message----- From: Blazing Star <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Cc: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Date: Thursday, April 06, 2000 1:41 PM Subject: unum -> Europe's message to starving Africans: DIE! > > 6 April, 2000 > >EU rice left to rot as Africa starves > >FROM TIM KING IN BRUSSELS > >EUROPE is hoarding 500,000 tons of rice in warehouses while Ethiopia faces >starvation. > >While only delivering half the amount of food aid it promised to Ethiopia >last year, the EU's rice mountain - said to be worth 100 million - has been >left to rot. > >The EU is spending an estimated 1million a month on storing the rice in >warehouses in Italy, Spain, Greece and Portugal, the Italian Rice Industry >Association revealed yesterday. > >"If the European Union does not use these stocks for food aid as quickly as >possible they will deteriorate and have to be destroyed," said director >Roberto Carriere. > >"While the appeals of the United Nations to rich countries multiply in order >to save millions of seriously malnourished people, the EU risks having to >destroy thousands of tons of rice for which it has paid. Excessive rice in >the EU could be used to reach the needy." > >Up to 16 million people in the Horn of Africa are facing starvation after >rains failed to arrive and crops failed. The situation is not helped by the >current war between Ethiopia and Eritrea, which has displaced tens of >thousands of people. Close to eight million people are threatened in >Ethiopia alone, but Somalia, parts of Kenya and Eritrea have also been hit. > >The British Government stands accused of failing to heed aid agencies' early >warnings of a looming humanitarian catastrophe, with Unicef revealing >yesterday that it had not received a penny despite launching an emergency >appeal in January. > >"The Government's announcement that it is giving 2.4million to the >international relief effort is seen by Unicef as an important, positive >step. Up to this point, and despite the worrying signs coming from the >region, no financial contributions have been received," complained Anita >Tiessen, deputy director of Unicef UK. > >"With a mounting drought disaster in south-eastern Ethiopia of proportions >not seen since the 1980s and an increasingly unstable situation in the >north, Unicef has remained largely unable to provide assistance." > >She added: "The proportions of this drought crisis are looking increasingly >similar to those of the 1984-85 famine. Donor contributions are long overdue >and urgently needed if we are going to avoid a major famine in the region." > >News that the European community has been stockpiling rice while failing to >help Ethiopia have added to the anger. Under the terms of the Common >Agricultural Policy the EU is obliged to support farmers by buying rice when >the market price drops below a certain level. > >The rice association estimated that the European Commission had handed out >112million for the rice and was spending just over 1million a month to >store it. > >Gregor Kreuzhuber, spokesman for the commission's agriculture department, >disputed these estimates as "hugely exaggerated." He said that the cost of >buying the rice was about 31million. The storage costs were about >2.5million, he claimed. > >But he admitted: "We have huge stocks. Of course it would be better to have >them in Ethiopia than in our intervention stocks." Intervention - buying in >food at guaranteed prices - is the underlying support mechanism of EU >agricultural policy. > >The commission's development department yesterday rejected suggestions that >it had responded too slowly to the Ethiopian famine. A spokesman said that >225,000 tons of food aid had been allocated since the beginning of the year. > >The real difficulty was in getting the food through the ports quickly >enough, he said. He added that cereals would be purchased locally as much as >possible and that the aim of EU policy was to encourage local production. > >A Brussels diplomat said: "Twenty years ago food aid was used as a way of >getting rid of our mountains, but then it became clear that could be >extremely damaging to local producers." > >Ethiopia has accused wealthy countries of waiting until they saw "skeletons >on screens" before answering appeals to avert a new famine in the Horn of >Africa. Yesterday, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan urged that lives could >still be saved if only the world acted now. > >"I think we may be a bit late but it is not too late to save lives if we >respond at this point," he said. > >"I urge those with the capacity to give, to give and to give generously so >that we can save lives." > >To donate to the Unicef Ethiopia Appeal, you can call the charity's 24-hour >credit card hotline on 0345 312 312. > > Express Newspapers, 2000 > > > > > ************************** > >Subscribers expressing prior interest in Blazing Star news, information and >announcements received >the above post for charitable research and >educational purposes pursuant to: > >Title 17 USC 107 ><http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml> > > HELP FIND MISSING CHILDREN: ><http://www.apbnews.com/newscenter/missing/2000/02/kwilliams.html?s=syn.emi l_kwilliams> > >BLAZING STAR ><[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >Fax: (240) 209-8302 > --------------------------------- >______________________________________________________ >Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com > > >------------------------------------------------------------------------ >Get paid for the stuff you know! >Get answers for the stuff you dont. And get $10 to spend on the site! >http://click.egroups.com/1/2200/5/_/16903/_/955042868/ >------------------------------------------------------------------------ > >Stop Racism! > >http://www.egroups.com/list/stop-racism/ HOMELESS PETITION TO THE PRESIDENT (USA) > >http://www.petitiononline.com/sananda/petition.html > ______________________________________________________________________ To unsubscribe, write to [EMAIL PROTECTED] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Advertisement: Workstation with Monitor under $800! So, you just heard that you need to add how many new workstations by the end of next week? Check out the bundle below. It includes everything you need to get everyone up and running quickly. http://www.listbot.com/links/cdw5
