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Listening to: 'Insomnia' by Faithless [Reverence]
So I finally got around to removing the 'Api Wenuwen Api' link on the blog...not that it's any less relevant now than it was before, but...I dunno, time for a change I guess. Problem is, I don't know what to replace it with. Ideally I want to link to a charity organisation that I trust and can easily donate to from the UK. The charities I trust tend to be the ones set up by Sri Lankans; their overheads tend to be less than average, and they tend to be pragmatic and sincerely empathetic, compared to the post-Imperial sympathy of 'rich' multinational charities. That's not an opinion I can back up with evidence by the way, it's just a gut feeling.
I had a brief look at a few local charities that are working in the IDP camps. All state that they're by Sri Lankans, for Sri Lankans etc. etc. Unfortunately, they seem to work on the notion that the only Sri Lankans who want to donate are either in Sri Lanka or USA. If you're in the UK, it's assumed that you're rich enough to pay the wire transfer fee every time you want to donate. Am I going to pay ~£20 extra every time I want to make a £5 donation? Don't think so. The only viable option at the moment seems to be using PayPal to donate to the US branch of Sarvodaya. Why can't they just set up a charity bank account in the UK?! I might as well coerce my father into going to the bank and donating money on my behalf every month.
Sigh. I'm guessing there are practical and financial reasons for not making it easier for people in the UK to donate, and the PayPal option is probably not such a bad idea (although I wonder how much of my donation will be swallowed up by a 'currency conversion charge' somewhere along the line)...it is a bit annoying, though. And when I'm already stressed and in a bad mood, it just compounds the "I don't belong" feeling. Gah.
If you know of a Sri Lankan charity that doesn't make it difficult for people in the UK to donate, please let me know.
So I finally got around to removing the 'Api Wenuwen Api' link on the blog...not that it's any less relevant now than it was before, but...I dunno, time for a change I guess. Problem is, I don't know what to replace it with. Ideally I want to link to a charity organisation that I trust and can easily donate to from the UK. The charities I trust tend to be the ones set up by Sri Lankans; their overheads tend to be less than average, and they tend to be pragmatic and sincerely empathetic, compared to the post-Imperial sympathy of 'rich' multinational charities. That's not an opinion I can back up with evidence by the way, it's just a gut feeling.
I had a brief look at a few local charities that are working in the IDP camps. All state that they're by Sri Lankans, for Sri Lankans etc. etc. Unfortunately, they seem to work on the notion that the only Sri Lankans who want to donate are either in Sri Lanka or USA. If you're in the UK, it's assumed that you're rich enough to pay the wire transfer fee every time you want to donate. Am I going to pay ~£20 extra every time I want to make a £5 donation? Don't think so. The only viable option at the moment seems to be using PayPal to donate to the US branch of Sarvodaya. Why can't they just set up a charity bank account in the UK?! I might as well coerce my father into going to the bank and donating money on my behalf every month.
Sigh. I'm guessing there are practical and financial reasons for not making it easier for people in the UK to donate, and the PayPal option is probably not such a bad idea (although I wonder how much of my donation will be swallowed up by a 'currency conversion charge' somewhere along the line)...it is a bit annoying, though. And when I'm already stressed and in a bad mood, it just compounds the "I don't belong" feeling. Gah.
If you know of a Sri Lankan charity that doesn't make it difficult for people in the UK to donate, please let me know.
Maybe most foreign branches of Lankan organizations are setup by members of the Lankan diaspora living in those countries?
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