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| October 16, 2005 | Sunday | Ramzan 11, 1426 |
Muslim charities mobilize efforts to raise funds
NEW YORK, Oct 15: Scores of Muslim charities and Pakistani-American groups have mobilized efforts to raise funds and goods for the victims of the devastating earthquake in Pakistan and according to initial estimates they have raised over $10 million in cash and kind.
The Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA), one of the largest Muslim charities of North America, has raised over $1.2 million until Saturday with a target figure of $10 million by Eid. Many other organizations have reported more or less similar results in raising funds.
Farukh Raza, a spokesman for the ICNA, told Dawn that Muslim were opening their hearts and wallets for the relief of Pakistani victims. He was optimistic that by the end of October or by Eid they could reach the target of $10 million.
Mr Raza said that ICNA Relief was providing all logistic support to help the victims of earthquake in Pakistan. He said teams of doctors and relief goods coordinators have left for Pakistan to help in the search and relief efforts and identify the areas which need most help.
Similarly the Association of Pakistani Physicians in North America (AAPNA) has sent teams of doctors and experts to the area.
The Washington-based Kashmir Action Committee has also launched massive efforts to raise funds for the earthquake victims.
Many factors beyond religious solidarity are helping to propel the donations from the Muslim community, officials of the charities say. For one, the earthquake struck during the holy month of Ramadan, one of the two biggest giving periods on the Muslim calendar and a traditional time for thinking of the poor.
The harrowing devastation of the disaster in Pakistan, too, has overcome the fears of Muslim donors that their contributions might be considered financing for terrorist organizations by the American government.
“I think the sheer scale of the suffering we’re seeing is prompting people to put aside whatever caution they might have had since 9/11 and dig deep to do whatever they can,” said Ibrahim Hooper, a spokesman for the Council on American-Islamic Relations.
Since Sept 2001 terror attacks on the United States, the Muslim charities have been under intense scrutiny by the US law-enforcement authorities. Many were shut down by the US Justice department in the aftermath.
The FBI cracked down on several Muslim charities in the United States, contending that they served as financial conduits for terrorist operations. The Justice Department froze the assets of several Muslim organizations, and at least two prominent Muslim donors who contributed to those organizations were arrested.
Such actions caused great bitterness and wariness about giving among Muslims, whose leaders often note that the government has not publicly provided evidence for its suspicions.
A spokeswoman for the US Treasury Department, which has listed 41 charities abroad that it says are fund-raising fronts for terrorist organizations, told the New York Times it had issued nothing new in anticipation of charitable giving for the earthquake.
The government has made no official statement on the potential for charity aimed at Pakistani earthquake victims falling into the wrong hands.
According to one news report, Mohammed Alomari, deputy director of programmes at Life for Relief and Development, a Michigan-based non-profit organization founded by Iraqi Americans after the 1991 Persian Gulf war, said donations from individuals and other non-Islamic organizations have been “pretty good, considering all the other emergencies we’ve had this year.”
Most of the donations Life for Relief and Development had received for Pakistan so far have come in the form of goods like tents, blankets and medical supplies, which is one way for donors to ensure their contributions do not end up underwriting bombs or buying guns.
“Donors may have those kinds of concern in other instances, but I don’t think that’s the case in this instance,” Mr Alomari said. “Given how many people have been asked to give for other disasters this year — the tsunami, the famine in Mali and Niger, Hurricane Katrina and Rita — it may just be easier right now to donate items.”
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