RM57m pledge a mere drop of water
Published: May 25, 2006 3:18 AM | Updated: Jan 29, 2008 10:21 AM
The RM57.6 million pledge from Malaysia may seem substantial but it is actually a mere 'drop of water on a hot stone' for Palestinians on the brink of social, economic and political disarray, said a non-governmental organisation today.
The RM57.6 million pledge from Malaysia may seem substantial but it is actually a mere 'drop of water on a hot stone' for Palestinians on the brink of social, economic and political disarray, said a non-governmental organisation today.
A bigger gift to cash-strapped Palestine would be for Malaysia as the chair of the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC) to mobilise the group into providing financial assistance, the Malaysian Social Research Institute (MSRI) said in a statement.
Malaysia should also "take an active role in supporting all efforts to find and implement a just solution to this problem," said the statement signed by MSRI executive director Lia Syed.
No salaries
MSRI commended the pledge made by Premier Abdullah Ahmad Badawi on Saturday to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas as well as efforts by other organisations such as Islamic opposition party PAS and the Islamic group Abim to collect funds.
However, the financial sanctions on Palestine imposed by the US, Canada, and European Union since the election of Hamas into government have led to non-payment of salaries to 152,000 Palestinian civil servants, mostly in the health and education sectors.
"Around one million people depend on these salaries - or 25 percent of the Palestinian population in Gaza and the West Bank," said MSRI.
The resulting social and economic disorder has already turned into political instability whereby Gaza Strip and the West Bank "could disintegrate completely," said MSRI.
"All the above shows clearly that Malaysia's financial help, however substantial it may appear to us, is but a drop of water on a hot stone," it added.
A bigger gift to cash-strapped Palestine would be for Malaysia as the chair of the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC) to mobilise the group into providing financial assistance, the Malaysian Social Research Institute (MSRI) said in a statement.
Malaysia should also "take an active role in supporting all efforts to find and implement a just solution to this problem," said the statement signed by MSRI executive director Lia Syed.
No salaries
MSRI commended the pledge made by Premier Abdullah Ahmad Badawi on Saturday to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas as well as efforts by other organisations such as Islamic opposition party PAS and the Islamic group Abim to collect funds. However, the financial sanctions on Palestine imposed by the US, Canada, and European Union since the election of Hamas into government have led to non-payment of salaries to 152,000 Palestinian civil servants, mostly in the health and education sectors.
"Around one million people depend on these salaries - or 25 percent of the Palestinian population in Gaza and the West Bank," said MSRI.
The resulting social and economic disorder has already turned into political instability whereby Gaza Strip and the West Bank "could disintegrate completely," said MSRI.
"All the above shows clearly that Malaysia's financial help, however substantial it may appear to us, is but a drop of water on a hot stone," it added.
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