Air strikes by Myanmar’s junta have cast doubt on the viability of extending the ceasefire until the end of May to allow relief to reach tens of thousands of people displaced by the 7.7 magnitude earthquake on March 28, as the UN warned a tiny fraction of the needed emergency relief funds have been received.
Official reports indicate the disaster has killed 3,700 people, with an additional 500 still missing. But the true toll is likely higher, with hundreds – possibly thousands more – feared buried beneath buildings that toppled in seconds under the ferocity of the seismic shock.
Despite the scale of the crisis, international attention has shifted away from Myanmar, a country where millions relied on food aid even before the earthquake.
The UN has received only US$34 million of the US$275 million needed for immediate relief for tens of thousands of people, with the US, the world’s richest nation, contributing just US$9 million as it reduces its global humanitarian role.
UN said agencies have provided water, sanitation, and hygiene services to around 600,000 people, while nearly 500,000 have received food assistance and over 100,000 have been offered emergency shelter.
But as monsoon rains lash the region, more misery lies ahead for its luckless people. The UN warns rice and vegetable supplies could be disrupted in the coming weeks, while diseases remain an ever-present risk for those living in tents.
