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2009-02-17 issue:

MCC provides supplies to Gaza and more

by Mennonite Central Committee

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AKRON, Pa.—Mennonite Central Committee is providing relief to three areas around the world suffering from war and natural disasters:

Gaza: Mennonite Central Committee is preparing to ship blankets and other relief supplies to the Gaza Strip despite Israeli restrictions on humanitarian aid to the war-torn region. Israel is preventing most humanitarian aid from entering Gaza in the aftermath of a 23-day war against Palestinian militants, according to Daryl Byler, an MCC regional representative for Jordan, Iran, Iraq and Palestine. Byler is optimistic that MCC’s shipment of 3,910 blankets and 1,260 relief kits will be allowed into Gaza when it arrives this month.

Honduras: MCC provided blankets, food and kits in Honduras through a partner agency following devastating floods in October and November 2008. More than 313,000 people were affected by the destruction. Proyecto Aldea Global, an MCC partner, quickly responded by providing 4,000 comforters, 7,900 cans of meat, 1,085 health kits and 707 school kits from MCC.

Colombia: Mennonite Brethren churches in the Choco region of Colombia provide alternative agricultural projects for families in the “Food not Coca” program. The program, funded by MCC, supports the efforts of more than 100 families.  Coca cultivation has changed the economy by inflating local prices. Traditional crop prices do not sustain farmer’s families. Coca, when processed illegally, produces cocaine, which is a sure income.

“There is definitely a temptation to grow coca, especially in rural communities,” says Manuel Mosquera, pastor of the Istmina Mennonite Brethren Church and coordinator of “Food not Coca.”

Additionally, people were forced to abandon their land in the early months of 2008 because of fighting between illegal paramilitary groups in the Choco province of Colombia. A large number of the displaced families were members of Mennonite Brethren churches from the towns of Basuro and Baudó. MCC sent $7,500 to the Mennonite Brethren Church in Istmina to help them respond with emergency food provision.