Will Tsunami Giving Affect Other Crises?

Jan. 9, 2005 — -- As images were broadcast around the world of the devastating South Asian tsunami -- more than 150,000 people killed, children orphaned, families searching for loved ones -- governments and private citizens opened their wallets, pledging unprecedented billions for disaster relief.

"When they got images of the people in those camps, when they got images of the devastation, they were moved to do something because people are compassionate," said Lurma Rackley, a spokeswoman for the aid group CARE, which fights poverty in 70 countries.

But in parts of the world not hit by the tsunami -- places like the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Darfur region of Sudan, Uganda, Ethiopia and Haiti -- there are death tolls that can reach into the millions, along with reports of torture, rape, starvation and forced homelessness. People in those places need help too.

International aid organizations hope the giving spirit unleashed by the tsunami disaster will mean more attention -- and dollars -- for the other parts of the world where war, disease and natural disasters have ravaged populations.

The contrast between past fund-raising efforts and the record-setting donations rolling in for the tsunami has been sharp, aid groups say. An official with the U.S. Fund for UNICEF said the group raised about $3.5 million for relief in the nine months following the Dec. 26, 2003, earthquake in Bam, Iran, that killed more than 26,000 people. But in just a matter of days, it raised more than $30 million for victims of the tsunami that occurred exactly a year later.

"The generosity of the American public has been absolutely terrific," said Carolyn Miles, chief operating officer for Save the Children. "We are absolutely ecstatic about that … but we are increasingly concerned that this will impact a lot of the other emergencies around the world."

So far, officials with several aid groups said, the tsunami giving frenzy actually seems to be boosting donations for the world's other humanitarian trouble spots.

But Miles worries about months from now, when she fears tsunami donors might feel a financial pinch or suffer from giver's fatigue.

At the same time, though, aid groups such as Save the Children and CARE see potential for future success, because the tsunami crisis has brought in many first-time donors.

"Once they get engaged with this kind of giving, they tend to stay engaged," said Rackley, of CARE.

After the initial rush to focus on their emergency tsunami efforts, some groups now appear to be emphasizing a larger picture of humanitarian need around the world.

"It does provide an opportunity for us all to talk about all of the other work we're doing, and I think we're starting to do that," Save the Children's Miles said.

One group, Doctors Without Borders, may be going even further. It is telling prospective donors it has raised enough tsunami relief money -- roughly $50 million -- for its extensive South Asian relief efforts. Rather than seeking more such donations, the group is asking on its Web site for more open-ended contributions that can be used for future tsunami-like emergencies, or for ongoing operations in more than 70 countries where the organization works.

"This allows us to respond to emergencies on a needs basis, independently, not relying on an outpouring of support for a specific country," said Catrin Schulte-Hillen, program director for Doctors Without Borders. "It was really a matter of being transparent for the donors. … The fact that we have a lot of unrestricted funds makes us feel very comfortable doing this, because we still can use unrestricted funds" for excess tsunami costs.