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Tzu Chi Foundation staff now waiting to take aid to Iraq

The Buddhist Compassion Relief Tzu Chi Foundation said yesterday that with the US-led military campaign in Iraq drawing near to an end, it is waiting to enter Iraq for a first-hand assessment of the needs of the Iraqi people.

Foundation officials said their staff would be put in danger if they entered Iraq now, adding that the organization will wait for the situation to become calmer before entering the country to learn about the people's needs.

The officials noted that more than 40 charity groups have arrived along the Iraqi-Jordanian border but that none of them dare enter the country at present due to safety considerations. All have expressed the hope that they will be able to be escorted by the military to conduct the assistance operations.

The foundation delivered its first batch of relief goods for Iraqi refugees by sea at the end of last month, with the goods expected to arrive in Jordan in the next few days.

Foundation officials said that Iraqi refugees are scattered along the border with Jordan but that they only number a little more than 200 in total.

Tzu Chi is now working on its second batch of relief goods, the officials said, adding that the group's founder, Master Cheng Yen (証嚴), has expressed the hope that the foodstuffs will suit the tastes of the refugees. With this in mind, Tzu Chi is now preparing foodstuffs that will cater to Middle Eastern tastes.

The officials also said that the foundation has insisted that all relief materials be given directly into the hands of the refugees in order to avoid the goods being misused or resold.

Yesterday, international aid agencies already in Iraq said they needed more protection from US forces as they tried to overcome patchy security to deliver medical supplies, water and food.

Aid convoys were rolling food and other supplies from Turkey through Kurdish-controlled areas into northern Iraq, but deliveries in other parts of the country were still held up by security fears.
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