- Aid agency providing food, emergency items to children and families who have
fled to Tblisi
TBLISI, Georgia, Aug. 9 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- As the conflict in
South Ossetia continues, Christian humanitarian agency World Vision began
providing emergency assistance today to displaced civilians -- most of them
women and children -- who managed to flee to Georgia's capital, Tbilisi.
"Our staff have been hearing some truly heartbreaking stories -- children
who got out but their parents didn't, for example," said David Womble, World
Vision's national director in Georgia.
World Vision provided essential food including canned meat with
vegetables, pasta, canned fish, vegetable oil and iodized salt, along with
emergency items such as bars of soap, toilet paper, wet napkins, towels, bed
sheets and large woolen blankets to some 170 people, mainly women and
children, who escaped the violence in Gori and villages in South Ossetia.
The agency's relief team met one 36-year-old mother who escaped the
violence from Gori with her two children: "I have seen war, but what I saw
today was terrible. I haven't seen anything like that in my life. I was
shocked. What are we going to do now?" she told World Vision staff.
Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili has declared a 15-day "state of
war" as clashes continue in South Ossetia and against military targets in
Georgia.
World Vision is working with the United Nation's World Food Program, and
will continue to coordinate closely with the UN and other organizations as
more people flee southward toward the Georgian capital.
"UN agencies and NGOs will meet tomorrow [Sunday] to discuss the
increasing humanitarian crisis and how the humanitarian actors can coordinate
an effective response," explained Womble.
Other World Vision operations in Georgia, as well as its projects in
Abkhazia, have been suspended for the time being, as all efforts are now
focused on the humanitarian relief effort.
More than 2,000 displaced people are currently being served at eight
Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) locations identified by Georgia's Ministry
of Refugees and Accommodation. Three are located in Tbilisi and five in other
districts of the country. The number of displaced people is expected to rise
as the violence continues.
World Vision staff in Georgia are available for interviews. Please contact
Rachel Wolff at 253.394.2214 or rwolff@worldvision.org.
Notes to Editor:
-- World Vision has worked in Georgia since 1994, focusing on community
development and the needs of children in difficult circumstances. Current
programs include microfinance for poor entrepreneurs, support for street
children and children with disabilities, food for work, HIV and AIDS
prevention and assistance for returning migrant workers. World Vision does not
have current programs in South Ossetia but assists more than 15,000 children
in Abkhazia, another breakaway region of Georgia. The agency's 155 staff in
Georgia are accounted for and safe at the present time.
-- World Vision also has worked in the North Caucasus region of the
Russian Federation since 1995, including peacebuilding and economic recovery
projects in North Ossetia.
World Vision is a Christian humanitarian organization dedicated to working
with children, families and their communities worldwide to reach their full
potential by tackling the causes of poverty and injustice. We serve all
people, regardless of religion, race, ethnicity or gender. For more
information, please visit worldvision.org/press.
SOURCE World Vision
Rachel Wolff of World Vision, +1-253-394-2214, rwolff@worldvision.org
