[sunniefaith]

And we had the saga in Spore with NKF (National Kidney Foundation) when the CEO was obviously paid way too much and he and his cronies flew business class for work. One of his cronies was actually caught in HK and sent back to Spore.

[Claire ex-ax]

Originally Posted by ontheroad

Yes but short of parachuting there yourself with your bag of rice, what else can you do? Giving money for Burma and crossing our fingers that it's going to end up in the hands of those who need it seems more acceptable to me than doing nothing.

But by doing something, you are also supporting a military dictatorship and helping it to further surpress, torture and kill its people. Damned if you do and damned if you don't...

[Crocodile]

The best thing you can do for Burma is help overthrow the military dictorship. I would have thought that the US would be flying in food drops from bombers, with fighter escorts, based on humanitarian grounds. Unfortunately, what they really need is fresh water and shelter - just the basics - and they are not getting that.

With the earthquake, I was a little surprised at the amount that Hong Kong is donating. It is a substantial amount. I suppose I shouldn't have been that surprised. US$38million for the China earthquake, US$1million (?) for Burma. Proves that blood is thicker than water.

[ontheroad]

Originally Posted by Claire ex-ax

But by doing something, you are also supporting a military dictatorship and helping it to further surpress, torture and kill its people. Damned if you do and damned if you don't...

MDM Medecins du Monde received the assurance of the Junta that they could keep the contents of the cargo plane full of aid that they were sending over, as well a distribute the help themselves, so if you want to be 100% sure the help goes to the people that needs it (if there is ever such a thing) you can give to them...

Médecins du Monde UK - Home

[ontheroad]

Originally Posted by hullexile

Charities need managing and the bigger they are the more management needed and those workers need paying. I think too much is made of the amount charities use for their own requirements. Having said that I just help individuals directly, keeping an orphan, supporting someone through college, paying kids school fees whose parents can't afford it, that sort of thing. No money goes to anyone but those in need that way. I don't get involved in the big campaigns, enough people already do that.

There's a fantastic little charity that does this in South East Asia: Enfants d'Asie Aspeca. Their priority is education for children, and I can say without a doubt all of the money goes to the kids, and they do miracles.

Association de parrainage d'enfants - Enfants d'Asie

[hdinh]

Originally Posted by ontheroad

Excellent editorial in the Canberra Times on why we should give for Burma even though part of the money will be "misused or mismanaged" by the Junta:

Fear, paranoia rule supreme in Burma - Opinion - Editorial - General - The Canberra Times

Some charities with which you can't go wrong:
UNICEF
RED CROSS
OXFAM
MEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES
ASPECA
HANDICAP INTERNATIONAL

Thanks ontheroad for providing that list. I had heard that unicef, oxfam and red cross and world vision were the worse ones! Would anyone please be able to confirm that World Vision will only help those who firstly convert to Christianity and pass Bible quotation tests????

I used to work for a promotions company in Australia. A friend of mine worked for the Oxfam Campaign and he told me that how Oxfam works. When Oxfam get people to sign onto the monthly payment plans, Oxfam actually keep the first four (4) months for themselves to run the business and then every month after that will be used as aid/dontations. Unfortunately, people usually cancel their plans by the fourth month meaning that Oxfam get to keep everything and the people who need it get nothing. Food for thought.

Is there anyone else who can suggest reputable charities? I have that MEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES and HABITAT FOR HUMANITY are pretty good ones also.

[ontheroad]

Why would you say that Unicef is one of the worse charities? It's saved millions and millions of children around the world with vaccines, food, etc.
If you would like more information on what they do, please have a look at their website: UNICEF - What we do

Don't slander these charities just for the hell of it. If you have proof of what you are saying, please share.

[sunniefaith]

Originally Posted by hdinh

Is there anyone else who can suggest reputable charities? I have that MEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES and HABITAT FOR HUMANITY are pretty good ones also.

I understand that big charities may have large overheads and etc. Not forgetting that people who work for these organizations have to be paid as well. And there's always a constant worry that our charity money may not get to them. If that's your worry, go direct to the source. That's what I did. I went directly to the children's home that I would like to support, spend time with the administrators and kids and understand their operations and that made it easier for me to decide if they are the ones that I want to support.

[hullexile]

Originally Posted by hdinh

Thanks ontheroad for providing that list. I had heard that unicef, oxfam and red cross and world vision were the worse ones! Would anyone please be able to confirm that World Vision will only help those who firstly convert to Christianity and pass Bible quotation tests????

I used to work for a promotions company in Australia. A friend of mine worked for the Oxfam Campaign and he told me that how Oxfam works. When Oxfam get people to sign onto the monthly payment plans, Oxfam actually keep the first four (4) months for themselves to run the business and then every month after that will be used as aid/dontations. Unfortunately, people usually cancel their plans by the fourth month meaning that Oxfam get to keep everything and the people who need it get nothing. Food for thought.

Is there anyone else who can suggest reputable charities? I have that MEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES and HABITAT FOR HUMANITY are pretty good ones also.

Any organisation costs a lot to run and the bigger they are the more as I have said before. Without that expenditure they are not going to be efficient and the aid money could be wasted. It does not mean any of the above are not reputable, just they are large charities with large costs. If it really bothers you then give directly as Sunniefaith and I do, or choose very small charities. However, these charities will not be able to do much in Burma.

[Football16]

If you have concerns about admin expenses for any charity Google it. The one I donated to in Canada has this FAQ and I am sure each of the major charities listed might have something similar.

It is no longer good enough to say we are big and cost money to run. Donors want to know how and where their money goes and how much goes to admin.

This is a typical FAQ and reply about admin costs:

Q. I'm not going to contribute because too much money is spent on overhead like campaign expenses, and not enough money actually goes to United Way agencies.

A. United Way of the Lower Mainland has one of the lowest fundraising costs in the country. In fact, 89 cents of every dollar raised goes directly to over 400 United Way supported programs and services! ....The Endowment Fund helps offset already low fundraising costs and ensures 89 cents of every donated dollar is used to support programs in our community.