UN says North Korea needs food aid, not politics

Boston Globe ^ | October 21, 2011 | unattributed

[SunkenCiv]

Wealthier countries need to put aside politics to help millions of North Koreans going hungry from food shortages, the U.N.'s top relief official said, renewing an appeal for assistance that has largely gone unmet.

Speaking at the end of a five-day visit to North Korea, Valerie Amos, a U.N. undersecretary-general, said Friday that 6 million North Koreans, particularly children, mothers and pregnant women, need help. The figures, she said, are borne out by UN data and by what she learned from visits to farms, hospitals and orphanages, as well as from officials.

People's diets, she said, consist of rice, corn, cabbage, little else and no protein or nutrient rich foods.

While she acknowledged concerns about whether the authoritarian government diverts food aid or underfunds agriculture, Amos urged donor countries to put the needs of North Koreans ahead of other considerations.

"This is about helping the people who are most in need. It's not about saying that this country has made a choice about spending its resources in one way rather than another. We don't make those judgments in other countries, on humanitarian grounds. There's no reason to begin to do it in" North Korea, Amos told The Associated Press before leaving Pyongyang.

[crazyhorse691]

Food is a weapon that controls more people than any N bomb ever could... if you give food to a militaristic totalitarian government then you are feeding their army.

[Sea Parrot]

Been through this kabuki dance too many times, frigg’em and feed’em fish heads

[Moose Burger]

In that case, NK can get as much food as it wants as long as it leaves its current politics.

[utax]

Sorry but last time i checked we were $14,000,000,000,000 in debt.

[silverleaf]

Valerie must not know that to tyrants like the Chia dynasty, food is politics

I presume she didn’t miss a meal while visiting North Korea

[TYVets]

Rather than their usual whining for more money the UN needs to show North Korea how to make their swords into plows.

[Joe Boucher]

Use food as a weapon against N. Korea, the middle east China,
Venezuela etc.

[sickoflibs]

RE :”While she acknowledged concerns about whether the authoritarian government diverts food aid or underfunds agriculture, Amos urged donor countries to put the needs of North Koreans ahead of other considerations.
“This is about helping the people who are most in need. It's not about saying that this country has made a choice about spending its resources in one way rather than another. We don't make those judgments in other countries, on humanitarian grounds. There's no reason to begin to do it in” North Korea, Amos told The Associated Press before leaving Pyongyang.”

UN idiocy ping!

Ever see that A+E show intervention where the parents give their kids money for crack cocaine and crystal meth and cry about how they hate drugs on camera? That is the UN except they are passing a basket so please give,

China has money, they are buddies. They have a common border, we got Mexico to worry about.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

If all aid to NK was curtailed, the government wouldn’t last 16 months.

[Georgia Girl 2]

What N Korea needs is a new govt. For whatever reason it suits the Chinese purposes to keep this evil regime in power. Kim Jong Il and company would have been toppled long ago if it was not for the Chinese. Let them feed N Korea.

[Marine_Uncle]

"This is about helping the people who are most in need."
Tell that to the growing numbers of all Americans that had jobs and have permanently lost them.

[dfwgator]

Their government is killing them and it’s all your fault. I hope you’re happy

Well we tried to do something about it, back in 1950.