When the tsunami struck Indonesia, Presbyterian World Service and Development was all over it seeking donations. When the earthquake struck Haiti, PWS&D was all over it seeking donations. When the monsoon floods hit Pakistan, PWS&D was all over it seeking donations. New Zealand has been hit with two devastating earthquakes recently and PWS&D is nowhere, apparently. Why? Are our brothers and sisters in New Zealand no more deserving of our support than our brothers and sisters in Indonesia, Haiti and Pakistan? PWS&D needs to step up to the plate and give us some answers as to why they didn’t immediately call for donations for New Zealand, as they did for the other three named places.
Ken Kim, director of PWS&D, responds:
Thank you for your question. When there is a request for help or an international appeal for an emergency, PWS&D does all that it can to respond. PWS&D is a mechanism of the church to respond to emergencies, conflict and poverty. Churches, presbyteries and the PWS&D committee can also initiate an appeal for an emergency response. However, in the case of the New Zealand earthquake, the country did not seek international support in the aftermath of the disaster. PWS&D also did not receive any funds to respond to this disaster from the constituency.
All disasters are tragic, from local disasters in Canada to those experienced by countries like Haiti, Pakistan and New Zealand. The fact that New Zealand is a highly developed country with good governance and resources to respond was evident. Countries such as Indonesia, Haiti and Pakistan are characterized by high levels of poverty, and national governments were unable to deal with the disasters adequately. Our local partners in those countries requested international support following those emergencies, and we responded.
PWS&D can send financial support in response to an emergency situation almost anywhere in the world through the ACT Alliance (Action by Churches Together), including to New Zealand should designated donations be received. We do our very best with a small staff team based in Toronto to respond to many needs in this world with limited resources and funds, working with local partners who communicate their needs and priorities to us.
