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The UK's House of Commons International Development Committee will
publish a report today urging the British Government to quadruple
aid to Burma, fund cross-border humanitarian assistance to the
internally displaced people (IDPs) and support pro-democracy
initiatives.
In a hard-hitting report, the Committee criticises the
UK’s Department for International Development (DFID) for
failing to provide adequate aid to Burma. “This
crisis-stricken country, which suffers from immense poverty and
pernicious human rights abuses, receives the lowest aid of all
Least Developed Countries,” the Committee argues. “We
believe this level of assistance is unacceptable …. We
believe that UK aid to Burma should be scaled up
substantially.”
The current aid budget for Burma of £8.8 million
“represents significant under-spending compared to countries
with similar poverty levels and human rights records,” the
Committee claims. DFID’s budget for Burma, for example,
amounts to just a quarter of its budget for Zimbabwe. The report
notes that in 2004, Burma received just US$2.40 of aid per head,
“by far the lowest per capita aid level” for the
world’s poorest countries. Neighbouring countries such as
Cambodia and Laos receive 15-20 times the amount Burma receives.
DFID should quadruple aid to Burma by 2013, the Committee
recommends.
The Committee calls for specific funding for cross-border
assistance, arguing that “it is the only way to reach very
vulnerable IDPs”. Cross-border aid “can provide a
cost-efficient and flexible way of delivering emergency
relief”, the Committee argues. “Cross-border assistance
to Burmese IDPs could be extended if more financial resources were
available … We believe that, as a high priority, DFID should
maximise relief to IDPs in eastern Burma,” the Committee
recommends. It calls on DFID to “look at the options for
starting to fund assistance over the Indian border” to the
Chin people, and “scale up” support for aid on the
China border, as well as providing aid to the IDPs across the Thai
border.
The report also suggests that funding for Burmese human rights
and pro-democracy groups working in exile, in particular
women’s organisations and the exiled trade union movement
should be provided by DFID. “Rape is used as a weapon of war
by the Burmese Army … DFID should fund women’s groups
working on and across the border who document rape and other human
rights abuses, and provide women’s health and education
services.”
The report is the result of an inquiry carried out by the
Committee, which included a visit to the Thai-Burmese border.
Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) provided written and oral
evidence to the Committee, and briefed members of the Committee
prior to their visit.
Benedict Rogers, CSW’s Advocacy Officer for Burma, gave
evidence at the committee hearings. He said: “We are
absolutely delighted with the recommendations of the House of
Commons International Development Committee. We have been calling
on the UK to provide cross-border aid to the IDPs and support for
Burmese human rights groups for many years, and we are very pleased
that this Committee has added its voice to these calls. We hope
that the Department for International Development will now
implement the Committee’s recommendations.”
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