KRCS holds fundraising campaign for Syrians – $ 1.5million collected
Kuwait Times - 30 July, 2012 The Kuwait Red Crescent Society (KRCS) is holding its Fundraising Campaign for the Relief of the Syrian People. During this five-day campaign it will be accepting financial donations until Thursday from 10am to 1pm, and from 9pm to 12 midnight.
Through yesterday afternoon the campaign had collected about $ 1.5 million. Officials are now preparing trucks that will carry the donations to the Jordanian-Syrian borders for Syrian refugees living in Jordan.
“We are cooperating with the Jordanian Red Crescent and the Kuwaiti Embassy in Jordan to distribute the donations. These trucks will leave here next week and the volunteers will distribute the food there,” Khaled Al-Zaid, Head of Media Center, told the Kuwait Times yesterday.
“We are preparing other teams with donations to leave for Lebanon, particularly the Lebanese-Syrian borders.
This team will go by plane. Even after the holy month of Ramadan is over, we will still collect donations for the Syrians until this problem has ended. In fact, we aim to enter Syria and deliver the donations to all areas in Syria,” he added.
The KRCS is cooperating with the United Nations Refugee Agency UNHCR and other organizations.
“The Jordanian Red Crescent, for instance, has told us of the needs of the refugees there, so we are only sending food stuff, including sugar, milk, tea, oil, rice, and other commodities which will supply all the families there for a month, as they informed us that these are the most important things they need during Ramadan. There are about 150 thousand Syrian Refugees in Jordan,” explained Al-Zaid.
The donations accepted at KRCS are only financial. “Our society is experienced with the materials and commodities that we have to buy. Also, we have to make sure that the food stuff has certain validity and has not expired, this is why we don’t accept food from the public.
Though we made an exception today, for instance, when a donor came and brought us 100 rice bags each of 20 kg, and we had to accept it, especially that it’s one of the commodities that the refugees need,” he pointed out.
This five-day campaign was also supported by the Ministry of Information and the Kuwait Channel is broadcasting an appeal for donations daily. “I would like to thank the Minister of Information for his support for this campaign, which made it successful, especially during Ramadan. Also, many banks have collected donations and brought them here and helped us to reached this number,” concluded Al-Zaid.
Um Ahmad is one of the donors who came to provide help, saying this is a duty to help our brothers in Syria. “Especially during Ramadan, it is the best time to donate.
We can also pay Zakat of Ramadan to Syria. We have to help them since they need our help, its our religious and human responsibility to support them. We don’t like to call it a donation and, instead, it should be called support to respect their feelings. We call upon citizens to support the Syrian nation through their donations,” she stressed. |