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British Bangladeshis urge donations to Bangladesh cyclone appeal

London based Bangladeshis made a plea for more donations as grim tales emerge of the loss of life of many thousands of people following cyclone Sidr, at a press conference organised by Disasters Emergency Committee.

The British community, which numbers around half a million people, with one fifth of them living in the in the Greater London area, are struggling to come to terms with the disaster. Many have lost relatives and friends in the disaster.

The General Secretary of Bangladesh Welfare Association, Nurul Islam, said, 'this is a tragedy that has affected every Bangladeshi directly and indirectly. We welcome the initiative of the Disasters Emergency Committee and stand ready to work in partnership to help the victims".

One such case is that of Mrs Nasrin Akther (27), who lives in East London. Thirty six people she knows in her village, including her aunt, were killed by the cyclone. She also described how her Grandmother’s leg was broken by a falling tree. “No outside aid has yet arrived in our village” she said “I feel so helpless being so far away from home. I appeal to the British people to send money needed for food medicine and water & rdquo;.

Nasrin isn’t alone in her suffering. Beauty Akter (30) a waitress at a Brick Lane restaurant is also in deep anguish. “I wasn’t able to speak to my family until nearly a week after the cyclone hit. All of my family’s houses have been destroyed in my home village of Shingry, Bagerhat District”, she said.

Nasrin described how she was grateful to her work-mates and employer at the restaurant where she works who have given her money to send back to help her family. Mel Beardon an aid worker for CAFOD who just returned from Bangladesh spoke about the desperate need for clean water and sanitation in the communities she visited where debris had contaminated drinking water.

“There’s an urgent need for donations to help the millions of people affected by this disaster” she said. “Just £18 could pay to build a proper latrine to keep families safe from diseases like cholera.”

The thirteen member agencies of the DEC are working in the worst affected districts to provide immediate assistance to those affected by the cyclone. The Chairman of Brick Lane Business Association, Mahmoud Rauf said, "It is all our duty to pull together and maximise our efforts in support of the victims of the disaster."

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The phone line for donations is 0870 6060 900. And the website is www.dec.org.uk. Donations can also be made through any post office quoting freepay 1490 at DEC Bangladesh cyclone appeal