Letter to OK Congressman John Sullivan

This is a letter I wrote to Oklahoma Congressman John Sullivan in hopes of attaining appropriation funds for World Compassion’s widows and orphans program in Afghanistan.

Congressman John Sullivan (OK-01)
114 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515

Dear Congressman Sullivan:

Letter for Appropriation of Funding for Relief and Protection for Afghanistan Widow Refugees and Displaced Persons:

World Compassion is an international Christian humanitarian assistance and development organization that addresses the physical, psychological, educational and spiritual needs of people in crisis through compassionate programs and services around the world. It was founded in 1992 to provide humanitarian assistance in complex emergency environments.

World Compassion works in the countries of Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq and China, in collaboration with local partners, to assess the needs and to determine actions for humanitarian assistance and sustainable development programs. It is our heartfelt desire to partner with governments, individuals and organizations who likewise labor to transform communities.

Under the Taliban regime, the women of Afghanistan were forbidden to participate in any public function, including work or attending school. This put women, particularly widows, in a very difficult situation after the regime change. Millions of women now lack basic education and the ability to support themselves and their families. Refugees and displaced widows are forced to beg in the streets and earn an average of less than 50 cents per day. The life expectancy of Afghan women is 44 years, compared with 78 years in the western world.

The “Shelter, Support, and Skills Training for Afghan Refugee and Displaced Widows and Orphans” Program is an integrated plan that addresses the special needs of widows and their children, many of whom are refugees and internally displaced persons. The program provides shelter, psychosocial support and skills training to enable widows to gain the personal dignity of self-sufficiency.

Each of the Houses of Compassion will have a kitchen, two bedrooms, and an Asian style bathroom/toilet. A well will also be drilled to provide fresh well water for all of the shelters. The shelters will be built together in one location in Qilai Badr Khan, a small village 2 kilometers outside the city limits of Kabul. The village leaders have agreed to cooperate with World Compassion on this project. World Compassion has also made a commitment to these local village leaders to build a small primary school on land near the Houses of Compassion.

The land given to World Compassion for this project, as of October 27, 2003, is valued by the Afghan government at $600,000. World Compassion has received official approval from the village elders to begin construction of the shelters in the early spring of 2004. World Compassion has signed a contract with an Afghan builder for the construction of the shelters. This builder is a resident of Qilai Badr Khan. He has proven his reliability and skill through his extensive work on the reconstruction of the Noor Clinic.

The intended time period for the widows to live in the shelters is 24 months. During these key influential months, it is our goal to offer skills training which will enable the widows to effectively provide for their families and positively contribute to their communities. After the 24 month period, the shelters would then be free to receive new widows in need of assistance.

World Compassion first explored the possibility of working long-term in Afghanistan in March 2002. Since that time we have formed strong partnerships with several NGOs committed to serving the people of Afghanistan.

These exploratory trips consisted of meetings with the Ministry of Women’s Affairs, the Ministry of Education, and the Ministry of Health. We learned from the ministers of each sector the most effective ways World Compassion and partnering organizations could contribute to Afghan society.

In Afghanistan, the core relief activities that World Compassion has provided for thousands of families are:

• Provision of $100,000 in assistance of food, blankets, cooking equipment and medicines to Afghan refugees in camps situated in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

• Provided four 24-foot and twelve 36-foot truck loads of blankets, food supplies, and children’s clothing for over 4,000 refugee families at the Killi Faizo refugee camp in the Kandahar Province of Afghanistan.

• Provided two mobile medical clinics and coordinated medical care services in Quetta, Pakistan, and Sharowak, Afghanistan. Approximately 100 families, including women and children, were treated at the two clinics.

• Provided 450 heating/cooking units to students of Kabul University and food and blankets to 400 destitute families in the Kabul area.

• Established an English Language School for Afghan refugees in Quetta, Pakistan. Two full-time instructors with several volunteer teachers operate the school which has 170 full-time students. World Compassion provided school uniforms as well as books, educational supplies and tuition scholarships for every student.

• Through an affiliate partner, World Compassion provides primary healthcare services to students, faculty and families at Kabul University. No medical facility or healthcare services were available at the University when the clinics were opened. At the clinic, volunteer medical teams from the United States, Philippines, India, and Singapore treat more than 300 patients.

We have found the plight of refugee widows and their children to be acutely difficult as they lack help and have no access to any form of support. For this project, World Compassion urgently needs the support of the U.S. Government to leverage the resources invested from its private partners. We hereby request a funding support of $985,250 to compliment already committed private funds of $300,000.

Enclosed with this letter is general information of World Compassion and a DVD containing clips of World Compassion’s work in Afghanistan and Iraq.

We thank you for your favorable consideration of our request.

Sincerely,


Kathy Law
Director of Education and Women’s Services, World Compassion Terry Law Ministries