From: Yemane Natnael (yemane_natnael@yahoo.com)
Date: Fri Jul 25 2008 - 13:54:55 EDT
Ethiopia: 'Perfect Storm Brewing'
5:53am UK, Friday July 25, 2008
Photojournalist Nick Danziger has travelled to Ethiopia with Oxfam to highlight what is happening in the famine-ravaged country.
Speaking to Sky News he said nothing could have prepared him for the devastation that would greet him.
"Oxfam briefed me on what I might face in terms of malnourished children and the drought which has affected this part of Ethiopia but actually on the ground, it is far worse than I ever could have possibly imagined," he explained.
"To be confronted with grown-ups, adults, women literally starving to death... it was devastating.
"I just find it totally unacceptable that in this world of plenty
there is not enough food and water for people on the brink of
starvation."
He said most of the people were struggling after losing their
livestock and coupled with the dramatic increases in food prices were
reduced to eating animal feed.
"Some have travelled great distances in search of food and water and then find nothing," he said.
"What we are now seeing there is extreme poverty and hunger.
"Governments made pledges in the year 2000 to address the chronic
structural problems - most of those pledges and honours have not been
carried out."
He went on: "Three years ago we had the Make Poverty History campaign - well, it's not history.
"The deep underlying problems that were meant to be addressed by
governments, by donor nations and indeed by the countries that these
problems exist in - that has just not taken place.
"In the areas that I visited, people spend virtually 100% of their
income on food and now they have no income. That's why they are on the
brink of a catastrophe."
However, all is not lost, he insisted: "I'm here in the belief that there is hope.
"If people donate to aid agencies working in the field - like Oxfam,
for example, who are working there through local partners - then
something can be done to redress this catastrophe.
But he warned: "It's the perfect storm that's brewing.
"People are already losing their lives so it's not going to be soon
enough but I would say that over the coming weeks, not only individuals
donating to aid agencies working in the field there but also
governments need to react very, very, quickly."
He said another problem is that the United Nations has a huge shortfall in funding and in stocks that needs to be addressed.
"Some people would say this happened before why should I donate?" he
said, urging: "You wouldn't want it to happen to you so why should it
happen to anyone else?"
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