· May, 2008

Stories about Disaster from May, 2008

Myanmar: Inadequate aid

  30 May 2008

Penguin Blog uploads an article by American journalist Emma Larkin who has a first-hand account of the cyclone disaster in Myanmar. Larkin notes the small aid reaching the Burmese: ” It is like throwing sesame seeds into the mouth of an elephant.”

China: After the quake, hoping for aid

  30 May 2008

From inside and outside China, concerned citizens are helping, and putting their hands out to help the victims of the devastating 7.9 in the Richter scale earthquake that leveled out industrial cities, transforming them into refugee camps where people are living under plastic bags, trying to find out their relatives and remake their lives. Four different videos bring us perspectives on how people are dealing with their losses all around the world, and how reaching out to help others could help help ease the pain.

China: Chinese Red Cross on corruption watch

  28 May 2008

Bloggers continue to monitor earthquake corruption, as they wait for the truth to come out as to why so many school buildings collapsed so easily in this month's massive earthquake. The parents of children who died, though, aren't waiting. On Sunday a group from Mianzhu city took photos of their...

China: Children Protection

  28 May 2008

Wang Xiaofeng criticized mainstream media practice in interviewing the children earthquake victims as such interviews may have negative impacts on children's psychology [zh].

China: Quake Lake

  28 May 2008

Michael from the Opposite End of China points out that the Sichuan earthquake has added a new lexicon “Quake lake” to the English speaking world.

China: No Corruption in Building Schools

  28 May 2008

The education ministry has denied corruption in the construction of school buildings in the Sichuan earthquake zone. The comments in Zhaomu's blog showed that no one believed in the official statement [zh].

China: Relief tents embezzled, while stoppers got arrested

  27 May 2008

Diaster-relief tents were found in up-scale community and college campus in Chengdu city rather than any refugee site where they should be. Activists took action to check out the fact, while at the night of 21st, a conflict strangely burst out between police and embezzlement stoppers.

China: Earthquake Relief Posters

  27 May 2008

Red Cross (China) together with other media companies launched a campaign, Together we are, and called for submission of earthquake relief posters for expressing solidarity with the earthquake victims. A list of posters can be found here.

Fire at Myanmar embassy in Thailand

  27 May 2008

A fire broke out at Myanmar’s embassy in Thailand. Because of the fire, aid workers were not able to secure visas. Absolutely Bangkok comments: “What a coincidence that the fire ravaged that part of the embassy where those visas should have been issued?”

China: Foreign Rescue Teams

  26 May 2008

There are criticisms that the Chinese Government should have allowed foreign rescue teams to help the relief works earlier, black and white cat pointed out that foreign rescue teams might not be very useful in earthquake relief work.

Myanmar: Open and close borders

  26 May 2008

The Siam Sentinel sums up the inconsistency of Myanmar's attitude in accepting aid: “Burma opens its borders. Burma closes its borders. Burma agrees to allow foreign aid workers to enter its borders. Burma closes those borders again.”