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To:	president@whitehouse.gov
Subject:	Earthquake in South Asia
Message:	Dear Mr. President, Thank you for the pledge of 40 helicopters and up to $50 million in assistance for relief efforts following the devastating earthquake that struck South Asia on October 8 2005. This was an important first step by the U.S. government, but only the beginning of what should be a series of efforts to demonstrate the care and compassion of the American government to the Muslim world, specifically the people of Pakistan, Kashmir and India. I write to urge you to commit an additional 70 helicopters, thousands of winterized tents, and medical supplies and personnel to the region to aid the victims of this tragedy. This crisis has now been called [the most difficult humanitarian crisis ever] by a senior United Nations emergency official and others on the ground in Islamabad, Pakistan. The earthquake struck a region the size of Maryland, leaving 49,700 deaths and 74,000 injured in its wake - and the numbers keep rising. According to numerous news reports, an estimated 3 million survivors are now in desperate need of shelter, food, and medical assistance. The U.N. Secretary General has said:- [In terms of logistics, the difficult terrain makes this one of the most challenging relief operations ever undertaken. Winter is approaching fast, and temperatures are dropping. . . . That means a second, massive wave of death will happen if we do not step up our efforts now.] UNICEF estimates that 10,000 children could die of hunger, hypothermia and disease within the next few weeks. UNICEF's Executive Director states, [there are still too few helicopters to reach more than 1,000 remote villages with life-saving supplies that children urgently need.] I therefore join with many other concerned Americans and request that the U.S. government immediately 1. Dispatch an additional 70 helicopters to the relief effort in northern Pakistan and Pakistan-controlled Kashmir. While there are an estimated 60 helicopters operational and another 20 in the pipeline, aid agencies estimate that at least another 70 helicopters are required to save lives before it is too late. 2. Provide tens of thousands of winterized tents - With as many as 3 million people now homeless in the Himalayan mountains and snow and cold temperatures already setting in, approximately 500,000 to 600,000 winterized tents are desperately needed. The UN has reported that relief agencies have exhausted their supplies of tents. The United States government can and should provide thousands of winterized tents - from military stockpiles or procured from private sources. 3. Commit medical supplies and personnel, including field hospitals. Children have had limbs amputated because doctors do not have adequate medicines or equipment. Open wounds have become infected with gangrene because the injured have not received medical treatment for days. The United States, however, with the most extensive, resourceful medical and pharmaceutical community in the world, can easily provide needed medical supplies, medicines and personnel. Mr. President, you have often spoken of the need to persuade the people of the Muslim world that the United States is a compassionate and benevolent nation. This is an opportunity for you to do just that, and at the same time, contribute significantly to one of the worst humanitarian crises our modern world has ever seen. It is a moral imperative for our nation to act now.