Greece contributes $60 million to tsunami victims

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The people and government of Greece have together raised around 46 million euros (US$60 million) in cash and goods for tsunami victims in Indonesia and other affected countries, the Greece Ambassador to Indonesia said in Jakarta.

"After the Dec. 26 tsunami disaster, the government of Greece, immediately decided to express its support to Indonesia and other countries by allocating 9.5 million euros as humanitarian aid and 11 million euros as reconstruction aid," Ambassador Alexios G. Christopoulos told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.

Christopoulos added that most of this aid will go to Indonesia, the country worst affected.

Greek companies also opened their wallets and donated generously to tsunami victims.

"The private sector has already raised funds of over 20 million euros. Non-governmental organizations and private citizens also collected 5.5 million euros worth of aid in the form of food, water, tents, clothes and medicines," the Ambassador said.

Greece will channel its aid through the United Nations, the European Union and directly to the affected countries.

"As part of our bilateral aid to Indonesia, we have today handed over a plane (Hercules C-130) load of humanitarian aid, including a giant water purification machine, to Indonesian authorities in Banda Aceh," Christopoulos told the Post.

Athens has deployed several medical teams and relief workers, mostly from Greek non-governmental organizations, in tsunami- affected areas of Aceh and other places in the region.

Christopoulos also said that a Greek government cargo vessel carrying 1,000 tons of humanitarian aid including medicine, clothes, food and pre-fabricated houses is on its way to Indonesia. It is scheduled to reach Banda Aceh in the first week of February.