A massive international disaster-relief programme for cyclone-devastated Myanmar was being hindered Thursday, five days after the catastrophe, by red tape for UN aid workers’ visas, officials said.
‘A few visas are coming through, but the general picture is that a significant number of the key staff have not got their visas approved,’ said Richard Horsey, spokesman for the UN disaster response office in Bangkok.
‘Clearly, this is a concern because it is very important that those staff with disaster response experience and coordinating can deploy as quickly as possible,’ Horsey said. ‘What you basically need to get is a logistical pipeline that is big enough and running smoothly enough to channel humanitarian relief from outside the country to the people who need it.’
Myanmar’s military regime has appealed for international aid to cope with the massive destruction wrought by Cyclone Nargis, which smashed into central Myanmar on the night between Friday and Saturday last week.
According to the government, nearly 23,000 people were killed and as many as 42,000 were missing with most of the victims in the Irrawaddy delta. But Shari Villarosa, the US charge d’affaires in Yangon, and dissident groups on the Thai border said the death toll could reach 100,000.
Although aid has poured in from around the globe, the relief programme has been hampered by the government’s refusal to waive visa requirements for aid workers and tardiness in granting visas to even the most critical UN experts.
