Fifty-four non-governmental organisations will send a delegation to the Afghanistan-Pakistan border to gather information about war refugees there before deciding on the humanitarian actions to be taken next.

Project coordinator Ahmad Saparudin Yusup said the three-member delegation, perhaps the first of its kind from Malaysia, will leave next Monday and spend about a week there to find out more about the number of refugees and their conditions.

"They will also build up contacts with local groups there so that the donations we have collected could be dispensed effectively soon," he said.

Various NGOs such as International Movement for a Just World, Society for Christian Reflection and Buddhist Youth Movement are involved in the fund-raising. Called the Global Peace Mission Fund, it is initiated by the Malaysian Muslim Youth Movement or Abim.

Since its launch on Sept 26, the fund has RM280,000 to date, about one-third of its target of RM1 million.

If possible, Saparudin said, the delegation may even cross the border and enter several war zones within Afghanistan - such as capital Kabul - which have been targets of the American and British air strikes since Oct 8.

"We therefore hope that Malaysians will pray for the delegation so that it could accomplish its tasks there as soon as possible," he said.

Cash, not kind

Saparudin urged Malaysians, regardless of their race and religion, to contribute within their means to the relief fund set up for the Afghan refugees.

However, he said it is advisable for people to donate money and not food supplies and clothing. Once the needs of the refugees are better understood, the money could then be used to buy basic amenities with the help of locals, he added.

"We have received clothing and other food supplies such as milk. But it will be difficult for us to transport these things to the border," he explained.

Members of the delegation are Khairil Anuar Khalid from Malaysian Relief International, Mohd Ahmad Kamal Mohd Ali from Consumers Association of Penang, and Denni Fahmi Adam from Abim.

According to Saparudin, Khairil and Kamal have experience in helping war refugees in Kosovo and several other Middle East countries.

Food drops

The United Nations reported that there are nearly 3.5 million Afghan refugees - about two million in Pakistan and up to 1.5 million in Iran. The number in Pakistan alone is about 10 percent of the Afghan population.

Humanitarian groups estimate more than six million Afghans could be stranded inside the country without access to adequate food or shelter. At least 275,000 tons of food are needed for the next five months, especially during the winter which will start in a few weeks' time.

So far, only a relative trickle of food supply has been moving across the borders, closed by Iran and Pakistan to block a further influx of refugees.

The US has dropped 35,000 daily ration packets each day since the air strikes began. The effort has been ridiculed by some groups as 'military propaganda' and potentially dangerous in a nation littered with land mines after more than two decades of conflict.

Others criticise that mixing food drops with bombardment blurs the lines between the military and aid groups, which could mean aid groups will be treated with suspicion.