The Anglican Church of Myanmar (Burma) is attempting to assess damage and provide relief to victims of Cyclone Nargis.
 
The Anglican Church of Southeast Asia has close ties with the Anglican Church in Myanmar and has received an initial damage assessment from Archbishop Stephen Than Myint Oo, who was consecrated Primate of Myanmar about two months ago.
 
“As you know, many people from the delta region, including our church members, dramatically became the victims of the recent storm,” Archbishop Oo wrote. The CPM (Church of the Province of Myanmar) formed a relief committee which divided three groups of people and sent them to the three areas which were badly destroyed by the storm. They were to assess the damage and report to the province. “Then we will carry on next steps,” the archbishop wrote.
 
At press time, it was impossible to verify the number of dead and displaced persons. The military junta that rules Myanmar generally does not grant visas to journalists or publish any information which reflects negatively on its rule. United Nations officials have criticized the government for blocking international efforts to help its citizens. For the most part the government is restricting access to organizations which already have established relief operations in the country.
 
“The infrastructure is gone,” said Canon Nancy Norton, executive director of the Anglican Relief and Development Fund (ARDF).  Since its founding in 2004, ARDF has been active in Myanmar on several occasions. In 2006, it supported an effort to provide health care to tens of thousands of people in the dioceses of Sittwe and Toungoo by training 110 health care workers.
 
Donations to ARDF are being collected and then passed on to the Anglican Church of Southeast Asia for distribution and oversight, Canon Norton said.
 
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