The Yomiuri Shimbun
Arranging for aid supplies from overseas takes a great deal of time, a senior Foreign Ministry official said recently in explanation of the confusion surrounding such provisions.
"We have to respond to requests from disaster sites and make preparations so aid supplies can be handled smoothly," the official said. "Furthermore, transportation is limited, so it takes a lot of time to make the necessary arrangements," he said.
The official also said there was sometimes no space to store foreign aid supplies, and evacuees tend to prefer Japanese food if they have a choice.
According to the Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Ministry, the central government declined the Thai government's offer to send rice because Japan has more than 3 million tons in stock. There also was not great demand for donated rice at disaster sites, the ministry said.
An official at a Latin American nation's embassy in Tokyo said the country offered food and water immediately after the earthquake, but the Japanese government requested financial aid instead.
The Japanese government said it would take time to make arrangements based on demands from disaster areas, the embassy official said.
Donated food and other items have already arrived at some foreign embassies in Tokyo, which may be at a loss as to what to do with the supplies.
One embassy official spoke for many foreign missions when saying: "If we received more concrete information from the Japanese government regarding what supplies are needed in specific areas, we could support them more efficiently."
(Mar. 29, 2011)
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