Expats help starving infants

BOGOR (JP): The We Care Fund handed over five tons of rice and dozens of boxes of infant milk to needy residents of Mulyaharja village here on Saturday.

Each of 509 families received 10 kilograms of rice, with 156 infants also getting three or four 300-gram boxes of powered milk each.

"We were moved upon reading a report on starvation in the village and we wanted to help out," said Renny Gooley, a representative of fund which was established by the expatriate community.

As reported by The Jakarta Post last month, many infants from low-income families are suffering from undernourishment caused by a diet deficient in calories and proteins.

At least four babies aged between four months and three years died of marasmus between August and January, while scores of other infants in the area face possible death.

At the donation handover at the local public health center, Renny was accompanied by representatives Claudia Soegono, Clara Alexandra and Maria Chin.

The donation was transported by truck with an escort of 20 members of the Harley Davidson Association and nine activists of the Indonesian Muslim Action Front.

Aisjah Wan Granie, head of Bogor's health agency, said she hoped other donors would follow We Care Fund's initiative to help starving people. (24/ylt)