Pakistan floods - A time for generosity
Up to 1,600 people have already perished in the flooding and the World Health Organisation warns that 300,000 people may contract cholera in the coming months as an outbreak of the disease has already occurred. It should be remembered that in the worst disaster ever to strike this country, the Great Famine, most people died of disease rather than starvation. The diseases did not discriminate between rich and poor. People who had plenty to eat perished in the ensuing epidemics. The world has become a much smaller place since then and we should always be mindful of the danger of an international pandemic.
In the past Irish people responded generously in helping those stricken by such disasters. It is important that our government and our people should not be found wanting on this occasion.