Tsunami relief campaign under way

Immediate aftermath: In the photo above, a survivor of the tsunami in Sri Lanka looks at the destruction on the main highway, looking toward the cities of Colombo and Galle. Photo by William Recktenwald.

Student leaders and Chancellor Walter V. Wendler have launched a campus-wide fund-raising campaign for the ongoing tsunami relief/reconstruction efforts in south Asia.

Spearheading the effort are the International Student Council and the Undergraduate Student Government.

The chancellor’s office, on behalf of the student groups, is accepting checks payable to the United Nations Children’s Fund, or UNICEF. The fund-raising effort will continue until Feb. 10, when the Public Policy Institute will announce the results as part of a forum on the disaster, scheduled for 4 p.m. in Student Center Ballroom B. Speakers at the forum will include international students and William Recktenwald, an SIUC journalism faculty member who survived the tsunami.

Wan Kamal Wan Napi, president of the International Student Council, emphasized the importance of students contributing to the fund-raising effort.

“Let us, as SIUC students, not fail the needy and less fortunate of the world community,” Wan Napi said. “Major disasters cannot be predicted, and when they occur, we must be ready to contribute resources to the relief work. Do not delay. You cannot tell how badly donations are needed. Remember, it is better to give a little than nothing at all.”

Approximately 430 SIUC students are from nine affected nations - Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Malaysia, the Maldives, Sri Lanka, Tanzania and Thailand. In addition, the University has nine formal linkages with universities and governmental agencies in Bangladesh, India, Indonesia and Thailand.