Open Letter from Senators to Prime Minister Calls for Government to Match Canadian Donations to India
In an initiative spearheaded by Senator Omidvar, members of the Senate of Canada with close ties to the Indian subcontinent are calling on the federal government to match the donations of Canadians to help India battle a devastating COVID-19 outbreak.
May 7, 2021
Dear Prime Minister Trudeau,
We are a group of Senators with close ties to the Indian sub-continent.
We are writing about the on-going Covid-19 disaster in India. India is engulfed in its most serious crisis since perhaps the partition of India. Nearly 3000 deaths every day, and India reported for the first time this week over 400,000 infections in a single day. Recently, the WHO said India accounted for 46% of global cases and 25% of global deaths in the past week. All these numbers likely are underreported and the crisis is likely much greater. Railway carriages are doubling as hospital beds, parking lots are being converted into crematoriums, oxygen shortages are leading to many deaths which could be preventable.
We appreciate and thank you for the way Canada has responded and supported India through this troubling time. The Government of Canada has already contributed funding of $10 million to the Indian Red Cross and is sending much needed medical supplies to India.
We welcome these moves, but we are hoping that the Government of Canada will take a further step and match the generosity of many Canadians, including members of the vast Indian diaspora in Canada. They have mobilized, set up platforms to ensure that donated funds are directed through trusted reliable charities on the ground.
We have seen, time and again, the Government of Canada has matched the donations of Canadians to help people and countries in need. Just last year, after the devastating blast in Beirut, the Canadian government matched $8 million of donations from Canadians. In 2019, the Government created the Matching Fund to respond to Tropical Cyclone Idai in Malawi, Mozambique and Zimbabwe and match about $2 million in donations.
Research by the Library of Parliament has found that in the last 10 years, spanning two different governments, the government has matched the donations of Canadians 10 times. This is certainly another disaster that needs the same support.
India is in a time of desperate need. Adding extra encouragement for Canadians to donate through matching their funds is meaningful and necessary. We need to stamp out Covid-19 and we need to support India battle this horrific virus.
Sincerely,
The Honourable Ratna Omidvar, Senator on behalf of and with:
The Honourable Salma Ataullahjan, Senator
The Honourable Mobina S.B. Jaffer, Senator
The Honourable Sabi Marwah, Senator
The Honourable Mohamed-Iqbal Ravalia, Senator