Aid Mission of the Hungarian Maltese Charity Service in the emergency situations caused by natural disasters in Myanmar (and China)
The Hungarian Maltese Charity Service – as a member organization of
Malteser International – enjoys territorial advantage in the delivery of relief supplies on the areas of natural disasters. The Maltese teams were right on the spot before the disaster since 2001, continuously working on various aiding programs. Their duty, among other tasks was to improve on the general healthcare conditions, to provide clear drinking water for people, and to fight against tuberculosis, malaria, and AIDS.
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Maltese professionals in the time of the disaster immediately ceased all the above mentioned activities, and established a healthcare centre on the site of the natural disaster. The current duty of this establishment is the provision of the basic medical attendance, and the fight against epidemic and infections. The team currently consists of two doctors, two nurses, a hygienic professional, a logistics professional, and two vehicle drivers. The medical group of the Hungarian Maltese Charity Service is ready for the replacement of the team, but in the same time those performing their duties from earlier on will stay in the country right until the replacement can get into the area. The Hungarian Maltese Charity Service wishes to send a medical crew of eight people on the site, but the group will be ready and waiting in Hungary until the conditions of entrance into the country have been ensured.
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International aid provision nevertheless has very strict regulations. One of its core principles is that aid provision can only get to a site, where and when the local management of the area of natural disaster gives permission for it, or requests aid for it. Beyond this, a number of professional aspects are needed to be carefully considered, profoundly analyzed, and negotiated in advance, in order to ensure the effectiveness of aid provision. Among other things such is the question of what type of aid provision is required: immediate life saving, searching for survivors, the provision of various types of medical attendance for the injured, donations in kind, financial aid, or any other types of aid. It is also important to keep in mind that we do not use such capacities unnecessarily that the local aiding authorities are also in possession of.
The Disaster Prevention Team of the Hungarian Maltese Charity Service performed its duties at the following sites over the past years:
- - flood in Poland, 1997
- - flooding of the river Tisza and its tributaries in Hungary and in the Sub-Carpathian regions, 2000
- - tidal wave in the South-Eastern region of Asia, 2005
- - flood in the Csángó Land (in Romania), 2005
- - flood in the Székely Land, (territories inhabited by the Székely, a Hungarian minority living in the centre of Romania), 2005
- - earthquake in Pakistan, medical crew and aid program, 2005
- - earthquake on the island of Java, medical crew and aid program, 2006
- - humanitarian crisis in Lebanon, aid program, 2006
- - aid program in Palestine, 2007
The Hungarian Maltese Charity Service, always in collaboration with the Foreign Ministry of the Republic of Hungary strives to rush for the aid of the victims of the areas of natural disasters. In the current situation we wish to transfer a supply of medicines to ensure the conditions of our medical mission in Myanmar. We are continuously examining the possibilities of any further aid provisions, just as much as the situation in China. As far as we are concerned, no concrete request for aid has been received by us from neither one of the countries to this day, nevertheless our professionals are ready for taking action upon the possibility of such a request.
Financial donations for the Hungarian Maltese Charity Service’s mission can be sent to the following bank account:
„Távol-keleti katasztrófák” (Disasters in the Far East) MKB 10300002-20102898-72413285.
IBAN: HU91 1030 0002 2010 2898 7241 3285