Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Sydney (Fides Service) - Caritas Australia has collected more than 4 million dollars in a special collection for victims of the December 26 disaster in south east Asia. “We never expected to collect so much”, said Fides Jack De Groot, head of Caritas Australia, as collections continue in Catholic parishes all over the country. “We thank all our benefactors who make it possible for us to alleviate the suffering of families affected by the disaster”.
Caritas Australia teams are in Meulaboh, in Aceh province working in close collaboration with the Jesuit Refugees Service to provide relief assistance to victims and also identify needs and best means of intervention in the affected province. “At least 10,000 people in Meulaboh died and thousands more are missing. The roads in the region are impracticable and many zones are isolated: it is in these areas that Caritas Australia intends to concentrate its aid. But we also plan long term aid programmes” Jack De Groot told Fides
Caritas Australia has already assigned 150,000 dollars for aid programmes in Indonesia, 500,000 for Sri Lanka and 350,000 for India. De Groot confirmed that people in Australia and all over Oceania are showing generous support and solidarity collecting already 4 million dollars. “Our work is humanitarian assistance not conversion”, the representative of the Catholic organisation Caritas said, commenting the news that an Australian Catholic priest in Aceh to help orphaned children had received threats from Islamic fundamentalists.
Being involved previously for some time in aid programmes in partnership with local organisation in Sri Lanka, Indonesia and Bangladesh, when the tsunami hit Caritas Australia was able to provide immediate relief assistance.
(PA) (Agenzia Fides 11/1/2005 righe 31 parole 329)
