SOUTHERN AFRICA: Archbishops Tutu, Ndungane, Makgoba join campaign in support of Haiti

By Matthew Davies, January 22, 2010 [Episcopal News Service] Southern Africa's Anglican archbishops, past and present, are joining other church, government, business and civil society leaders across Africa in a fundraising campaign that will mobilize support for the people of Haiti following the Jan. 12 earthquake and a series of aftershocks that have caused widespread devastation and suffering to the country and its people.

The "Africa for Haiti Campaign," set up to help in coordinating relief efforts for Haiti, is being supported by Anglican Church of Southern Africa archbishops emeritus Desmond Tutu, Njongonkulu Ndungane, and incumbent archbishop Thabo Makgoba.

Graça Machel, human rights activist and wife of former South African president Nelson Mandela, and African businessmen Trevor Ncube and Reuel Khoza have played a crucial role in the campaign.

In South Africa, the campaign is being sponsored by several charities and relief organizations, including CIVICUS and its partners, African Monitor, Trust Africa, the Southern Africa Trust, Charities Aid Foundation (CAF) Southern Africa and the South African Red Cross Society.

The Nelson Mandela Foundation hosted a press conference Jan. 22 and a subsequent press release noted that the campaign "will identify, in partnership with Haitian civil society organizations, initiatives in which it can assist. It also hopes to provide Africans from all walks of life an opportunity to demonstrate their collective solidarity and support for the people of Haiti thereby uniting Africans in compassion and giving."

During the press conference, Machel noted that the campaign's objective is not to provide immediate relief "but rather to contribute toward the medium- to long-term reconstruction of communities in Haiti. As a result, it is estimated that fundraising for this campaign may continue for six months."

The press release noted that the campaign also aims to mobilize and unite individuals, NGOs and corporations across Africa behind this cause by disseminating information and enlisting support from their extensive networks.

"We were supported wonderfully by the international community when we struggled against the vicious policy of apartheid," said Tutu. "Today the people of Haiti, struck twice by the earthquake, are in a worse predicament than we were. As South Africans, we especially ... want to do our bit to alleviate the immense suffering of our sisters and brothers in Haiti. I welcome the initiative by Graça Machel and others. It deserves our wholehearted and very generous support."

Ndungane, president of African Monitor, said that the people of Africa "identify with and feel for the people of Haiti, particularly because of our own experience of the devastation of poverty. We comprehend that this earthquake has exacerbated an already desperate situation."

"When a brother or sister is in need, it is incumbent upon all of us to pool our resources to assist," he added. "The African Monitor family and I are solidly behind the 'Africa for Haiti' initiative, which seeks to assist the people of Haiti to recover from the destruction and devastation left by the earthquake."
 
Makgoba also offered his support to the initiative. "Across the continent of Africa over the years, so many of us have been the recipients of all manner of aid and support through many differing circumstances of need," he said. "Now it is Africa's turn to stand in solidarity with the country and people of Haiti, and offer whatever assistance lies within our ability, in the aftermath of the devastating earthquakes."

"One of the great riches of Africa is the spirit of ubuntu - the spirit that says 'a person is a person through other persons.' Now is the time to demonstrate our humanity through selfless generosity and tangible action."

-- Matthew Davies is editor and international correspondent of Episcopal News Service.