Kevin Rudd (Griffith, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the honourable member for his question. This cyclone hit Burma with devastating force on 2 and 3 May. Burma’s state media has put the death toll at 23,000, with 37,000 unaccounted for. The United Nations by contrast estimates up to 100,000 deaths and 1.5 million people left homeless. The cyclone has caused massive damage to property, infrastructure and communications. The concern now is that a population that is already weak and vulnerable will face a very real risk of the spread of disease and of starvation.

It is hard to get a clear picture of precisely the impact on the ground in Burma because of the attitude and posture adopted by the regime. It has been appallingly difficult to get assistance into Burma and, once in, to have any guarantee of its proper distribution. The response of the regime in Burma to this crisis has been absolutely callous. Those paying the price for this callousness have been the long-suffering Burmese people.

I am pleased to inform the House that we are making some very modest progress. Some relief supplies from international donors have been getting through, although it is estimated to be only about one-tenth of what is needed. I am pleased to say that this morning a Royal Australian Air Force C17 Globemaster arrived in Rangoon and unloaded much needed supplies. At our request the Burmese government agreed to let our military aircraft land to deliver its supplies. On board the C17 are around 31 tonnes of supplies from Defence and AusAID. It includes water containers, water purification tablets, bedding, blankets, tarpaulins and medical supplies.

Thus far we have announced that we are providing $25 million in assistance to Burma, the largest contribution of any country to date.

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