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Saturday, September 18, 2010
US lawmakers call for sustained support to flood-hit Pakistan* US House of Representatives adopts resolution expressing solidarity with Pakistan
WASHINGTON: Voicing its solidarity with Pakistan in the face of an unprecedented disaster, the US House of Representatives has called for continued US and international support for Pakistan towards achieving a successful and lasting recovery.
US lawmakers approved a resolution on Thursday expressing solidarity with the country following the deadly floods, which have devastated Pakistan.
Introduced by House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Howard Berman and co-sponsored by a host of legislators, the measure ‘supports the use of funds authorised by the Enhanced Partnership with Pakistan Act of 2009 (Kerry-Lugar-Berman measure) for the purposes of providing long-term recovery and rehabilitation for flood-affected areas and the affectees’. The resolution said the House “expresses its deepest condolences and sympathy to the families of the victims of the floods, and its solidarity with the millions of affected Pakistanis”.
It also “recognises that Pakistan is and remains a “close ally” and friend of the US” and “reaffirms the commitment of the people of the US to partner with the people of Pakistan to respond to the immediate crisis and build the foundations for a successful and lasting recovery”. The measure was passed by a vote of 396 to 2.
The resolution supports the use of funds by Washington to help relief efforts and “urges the US administration and the international community, including private citizens and foreign governments, to continue providing assistance” to Pakistan. According to the White House last week, the US government had provided $260 million so far in emergency humanitarian aid, including halal meals, pre-fabricated steel bridges and other infrastructure for Pakistan.
Pakistan’s government has given a provisional toll of at least 1,760 dead in the floods, which have also displaced an estimated 10 million people.
Mourning the “significant loss of life (over 1,700 lives lost), as well as the physical damage, caused by the flooding,” the resolution “expresses its deepest condolences and sympathy to the families of the victims of the floods, and its solidarity with the millions of affectees (more than 20 million).” The resolution commends relief and recovery actions, still underway, by the US military, the Department, of State, and USAID to assist the people of Pakistan during this critical period. The measure also recognises the contributions of the Pakistani-American community and US businesses to relief efforts in Pakistan. agencies
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk