Letter: We can help the people of Iraq

Will Day
Monday 07 April 1997 18:02 EDT
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Sir: Felicity Arbuthnot (letter, 1 April) paints a bleak picture of life and death in Iraq, where UN sanctions remain firmly in place. She details the awful price being paid by innocent people and we share her frustration and anger.

The situation is bleak, but there are people trying to do something about it. Last week Care International was able to deliver water pumps to Najaf and Kufa. These two cities, both in southern Iraq, will now have their shattered water supplies rebuilt and will receive clean water for the first time in over six years.

Public health has deteriorated markedly and Care has been obliged to supply emergency food to hospital patients and expectant mothers alike, in an attempt to provide a nourishing diet to the most vulnerable. Both programmes were funded by the British government's Overseas Development Administration.

We would obviously prefer to be working with the people of Iraq to build a secure long-term future, but as long as sanctions are being used as such a crude weapon against an innocent population, the least we can do is help them survive.

WILL DAY

Chief Executive

Care International UK

London WC2

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