SOS Children Charity: Autumn Newsletter
23/08/2006
Lebanon
Already hundreds have died and even more injured while well over half a million have been displaced. SOS Children Lebanon is providing emergency relief to displace people by providing shelter and basic needs.
“I left my home Baalbeck five days ago, we managed to reach Tripoli only yesterday,” said little Bilal. His parents and five siblings have found shelter in a relative’s house in one of the poorest areas in Tripoli in Lebanon. 15 children and five adults are sharing one room of no more than 16 square meters. “Yesterday we, the children, had to sleep on the floor, while the adults managed to sleep on the available sofas… anything is better than that fear I used to feel before.” His eyes, however, expressed his sadness at losing his very small home in Baalbeck, City of Sun. “Only adults know the reasons behind this war”, said Bilal on his way towards his new shelter.
These relief efforts are part of our emergency relief programme in Northern Lebanon, based on a needs assessment undertaken by the SOS Family Strengthening Programme in Lebanon.
Fear and uncertainty prevail for the coming period.
In the South, in the town of Jezzine, SOS Children’s Villages Lebanon is still providing baby milk, food and nappies to families with children less than five years old.
Indonesia
Interview with National Director following earthquake on 27 May 2006 Gregor Nitihardjo talks about SOS Children's Villages’ emergency relief programme following the strong earthquake that devastated the area around Yogayakarta in southern Java.
Many children who have lost their parents are still spending their nights outside in the rain. Food distribution is still difficult, particularly in the remote areas, and many people have not been able to bury their dead. In some villages, bodies are being stacked in churches or community houses and the smell is becoming intolerable.
SOS Children is providing more food to the quake-hit areas, and we have begun to organize activities for children to help them overcome their trauma. We have supplied books, pens and paper for them to draw with and our staff is organising games. These activities are important to help children recover.
We would like to provide help across the whole of the affected area but we are limited by the number of staff we have available. Trying to help even more people is our biggest challenge. Much of the area is extremely difficult to reach. The main roads are generally fine, but roads to remote parts, which were poor even before the earthquake struck, are now even worse.