Obama seeks another $200 million for Pakistan

[OhioChick]

Source: Times of India

4 Jun 2009, 0816 hrs IST, PTI

WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama has asked the Congress to approve another $200 million to address the emanating "serious humanitarian crisis" in Pakistan, due to exodus of more than 2.5 million people from restive NWFP, escaping military operations against Taliban.

In a letter to the US House of Representative Speaker, Nancy Pelosi, hours before he left on his overseas trip, Obama said these funds would provide urgent relief to the refugees of Pakistan. The request was part of the new supplemental request sent to the Congress for the H1N1 virus.

"To date there are over 2.5 million displaced people in Pakistan, many of whom have fled their homes because of Pakistani Government's counterinsurgency campaign," Obama said, adding that the money would be used to address the serious humanitarian crisis developing in Pakistan.

"These funds will provide displaces people in Pakistan with urgent relief and resettlement assistance," he said.


Read more: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Obama-seeks-another-...

[Tim01]

1. Sure. We have plenty of money.

[LeFleur1]

2. Urgency in All The Wrong Places

How about a little urgent action and money for those people here who are out of a job, have no health care, are having their education classes closed due to lack of funds, can't afford gas...hmmmmm?

[emilyg]

5. Amen.

[ronnie624]

6. Too bad Investing money in a better society

will not yield profits for corporations and strategic advantages for Western elites. If it did, health care and education would be top priorities.

[msongs]

3. he ought be in the USA publicly promoting his public option health care as if he really cares nt

[OhioChick]

4. That was my initial thought, as well.

Not to mention the high unemployment rate, etc.

[tomm2thumbs]

7. they'd probably make that in same-sex wedding money if they'd only let that happen

seems to me there is a national interest in getting the law changed...

[cosmicone]

8. Why don't we get their nukes as collateral?

That way, if they can't repay, we can repossess!!

[karynnj]

9. To those who say we can't affort it, can we really afford not to?

Here is SFRC Chairman Kerry's statement from yesterday asking for the US to respond. It speaks of the national security risk of not doing so.

WASHINGTON, DC – Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John Kerry (D-MA) released the following statement today in response to the deteriorating humanitarian situation among Pakistanis displaced by fighting in the Swat Valley:



“The humanitarian crisis in Swat gets worse every day, which is why it’s so critical that the government of Pakistan and the Obama Administration undertake immediate joint relief operations modeled on our successful efforts following the 2005 Kashmir earthquake. The United States must commit military assets, such as Chinook heavy-lift helicopters, combat engineers and uniformed medical personnel, that the Pakistani government needs to facilitate these efforts without further delay. When terrorist groups such as Jamaat-ud Dawa are reportedly already operating relief camps in Swat, there is no basis for turning back the far more capable assistance of the United States military.



“The statistics underscore the emergency: between two and three million civilians have been displaced and have little or no access to adequate shelter, food or medical care. In a few weeks, the summer monsoons will turn ramshackle camps into fetid swamps, incubators for a host of preventable epidemics. History has already taught us that poorly-resourced refugee communities are prime breeding grounds for extremist movements; the Taliban itself had its genesis in the Afghan refugee community driven into Pakistan during the 1980s and 1990s. We don’t need to repeat that disaster when instead we can show America’s true commitment to the Pakistani people.”

http://kerry.senate.gov/cfm/record.cfm?id=313918