UN Seeks $187 Million in Aid for the Victims of Cyclone in Burma

UN Seeks $187 Million in Aid for the Victims of Cyclone in Burma
Appeal is to help meet the needs of more than 1.5 million people over the next six months. Transcript of radio broadcast:
09 May 2008
This is IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English.

The United Nations is appealing to its members for one hundred eighty-seven million dollars in aid for victims of Cyclone Nargis in Burma. The powerful storm hit the country also called Myanmar a week ago.

Friday's emergency appeal said the aid would help meet the needs of more than one and a half million people over the next six months.

After the storm hit, Burmese leaders made a rare appeal for foreign help. But aid officials have largely faced delays and refusals of visas in their efforts to bring supplies and workers into the country. The Red Cross, though, has had greater success.

United Nations officials say deaths are likely to rise sharply unless food, clean drinking water, shelter and medicine arrive quickly.

On Friday the military government seized two planeloads of food and equipment flown in by the United Nations World Food Program. The government has said it wants to distribute foreign aid itself. The seizure led the World Food Program to suspend its flights. But agency officials later decided to send in two flights as planned on Saturday.

Also, American officials said Burma agreed to let the United States send a single planeload of supplies to the country on Monday.

Burmese officials say the cyclone left more than one million people homeless. About twenty-four million people live in the five areas struck by Cyclone Nargis. Complete villages were destroyed, and many roads are blocked. The Irrawaddy Delta River area was hit the worst.

Burmese reports say more than twenty thousand people are dead and forty thousand missing after the cyclone. American and other officials have warned that the number of dead could reach one hundred thousand because of disease. The Indian Ocean tsunami in two thousand four killed more than two hundred thousand people in South Asia and Southeast Asia.

Weather experts in India say they warned Burma of the cyclone in enough time to save lives.

Burma is one of the world’s most closed societies. The military has controlled the country since nineteen sixty-two. On Saturday the ruling generals plan to carry out a vote for a new constitution. The vote will be delayed in disaster areas until May twenty-fourth.

State media carried messages Friday reminding citizens that it was their patriotic duty to approve the new constitution. The leaders of Burma say the constitution is part of what they call a "road map to democracy" that will lead to general elections in two years. The opposition National League for Democracy says the constitution will only strengthen military control.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has urged the government to postpone the vote nationwide. He says all available resources should go into efforts to recover from Cyclone Nargis.

And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English, written by Brianna Blake. For more news about Burma, go to voaspecialenglish.com. I’m Steve Ember.


----------------------------Google Translate
联合国旨在1.87亿美元的援助，为受害者气旋在缅甸
上诉是为了帮助满足他们的需要150多万人在未来6个月。全文电台广播：
2008年5月9日
这是在新闻中在美国之音特别英语。

联合国呼吁其成员为1.87亿美元的援助受害者的气旋nargis在缅甸。强大的风暴袭击该国还呼吁缅甸一个多星期前。

周五的紧急呼吁说，援助将有助于应付更多有需要的超过一个半万人，在未来6个月。

之后，风暴袭击，缅甸领导人作出了难得的吸引了众多外国的帮助。但援助的官员，主要是面临的延误和拒绝签证，在他们的努力，使用品和工人进入该国。红十字会，虽然已经取得更大的成功。

联合国官员说，死亡人数可能急剧上升，除非食物，清洁的饮水，住房和医药抵达很快。

上周五军政府，检获两只planeloads的食物和设备的飞行在由联合国世界粮食计划署。政府已经表示要分发的对外援助本身。检获为首的世界粮食计划署暂停其航班。但机构的官员后来决定将在两个航班计划于周六。

此外，美国官员说，缅甸同意让美国派遣一个单一planeload用品，以该国对周一。

缅甸官员说，左气旋有100多万人无家可归。约2400.0万人生活在五个方面深刻的气旋nargis 。完成村庄被摧毁，许多道路被封锁。该伊洛瓦底三角洲河地区被击中最差之列。

缅甸报道说，以上的2.0万人死亡， 40000人失踪后气旋。美国和其他官员曾警告说，死亡人数可能达到十万，因为疾病。印度洋海啸在2000四人丧生以上二十万人在南亚和东南亚地区。

气象专家在印度说，他们警告，缅甸的气旋有足够的时间和挽救生命。

缅甸是世界上其中一个最封闭的社会。军方已控制该国自1962年。上周六执政党将领计划进行表决，为一部新宪法。表决将推迟在受灾地区，直到5月20 -第四。

国营媒体进行信息星期五提醒市民，这是他们的爱国责任，批准新宪法。领导人缅甸说，宪法是的一部分，他们所谓的“民主路线图” ，这将导致一般选举在两年内完成。反对党全国民主联盟说，宪法只会加强军事控制。

联合国秘书长潘基文促请政府推迟全国范围内投票。他说，所有可用的资源，应该进入的努力，以收回由气旋nargis 。

这是在新闻中在美国之音特别英语，写的brianna布雷克。更多的消息，缅甸，去voaspecialenglish.com 。我史蒂夫ember 。