International Response To The 2005 Kashmir Earthquake - Americas

Americas

• Canada - Canada has already offered CAD 100,000 (PKR 5 million) to the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement for early needs assessment. An additional CAD 200,000 (PKR 10 million) is being provided to the Canadian High Commission in Pakistan to respond to urgent requirements, i.e. housing, water, food and clothing. The Minister for International Cooperation, Aileen Carroll, has also announced a pledge of CAD 20 million (PKR 1 billion), including 21 tonnes of blankets, dispatched by Canadian Forces aircraft, some of which are being routed to Pakistan from current operations in Afghanistan. The Canadian government also pledged to match all public funds as well as lease two helicopters from the United Nations. A joint team of government officials has also been sent to evaluate further assistance, including the possibility of sending the Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART). Also, due to the fact that many Canadians criticized their government of reacting slowly 10 months ago when the Asian tsunami hit, Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin has challenged Canada by saying that his government will match whatever donations Canadians make over the next two weeks to NGOs operating in the region. On October 26, 2005, CIDA increased its funding to $57 million, including $10 million donated to the South Asia Earthquake Matching Fund and the other half to the UN and the Red Cross movement.

• Cuba – President Fidel Castro has offered, in a letter addressed to the President of Pakistan and made public by officials in Havana, to send 200 doctors to Pakistan in order to help treat the victims of the earthquake. Some 2,260 Cuban health brigadistas, more than 1,400 of them doctors, are in the area of Kashmir. The fully equipped Cuban Field Hospitals will be handed over to the Pakistani government. The Cuban Government has provided 234.5 tons of medicines and disposable materials, and 275.7 tons of most leading-edge equipment. More than 300 students of medicine have taken courses in the Cuban Field Hospitals. The Cuban Government has decided to offer a wide and free medicine scholarships program for 1,000 young Pakistanis from rural communities.
  The first Cuban medical team was in Pakistan on October 14, six days after the earthquake, the fast acceptance of the aid was a surprise due to the close relation of Pakistan and the US; the two countries have not even exchanged Ambassadors at that time. The leading Pakistani newspaper Dawn quoted President Musharraf as saying that "one of the most heart-warming letters of support" following the earthquake was from Fidel Castro. In his letter, Castro said that it was difficult for him to rest when thousands of Pakistanis were spending their days in pain, awaiting surgery.

• United States - The United States announced that it would provide an initial contribution of USD 156 million (PKR 3 billion) for emergency relief in Pakistan, and teams from the United States were the first on the scene to deliver assistance. The U.S. military also provided supplies and assistance. As of November 3, the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) has 933 personnel providing relief and reconstruction assistance in support of the Pakistan earthquake relief effort. Five CH-47 Chinook and three UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters are being moved into Pakistan immediately, and a C-17 Globemaster III military aircraft has already been assigned to bring blankets, tents and other relief supplies to the victims. The 212th Mobile Army Surgical Hospital (MASH), established October 25 in Muzaffarabad, currently has 36 Intensive Care Unit beds, 60 intermediate minimal care beds, and two operating rooms. To date the MASH has performed 46 surgeries, and treated 548 non-surgical patients. Furthermore, a 23-member logistical support group is also being dispatched from McGuire Air Force Base in New Jersey. The United States Agency for International Development has provided more than USD $41.8 million for relief work in Pakistan, including nine completed airlifts of relief supplies. The airlifts delivered a total of 45,000 blankets, 1,570 winterized tents, 6,150 rolls of plastic sheeting for approximately 30,750 families, 15,000 water containers, 17 water bladders, 2 water purification units, 10 WHO emergency health kits, and 20 concrete cutting saws. USAID has also committed funds to the UN, other international organizations and NGOs. On Wednesday, November 9, 2005, business leaders from GE, UPS, Pfizer, Xerox, and Citigroup met with President Bush at the White House to announce the launch of the South Asia Earthquake Relief Fund and website.