Oxfam out by 4000%

The Herald reported:

Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully has described Oxfam claims that New Zealand has contributed only $120,000 towards the Syria crisis as “wildly irresponsible and an insult to all New Zealanders”.

Oxfam UK made the claims in a study arguing what countries should have donated based on their national income and overall wealth.

New Zealand came out bottom of the list of featured nations, with Oxfam saying it had committed just 1 per cent of what it should have – $120,000.

The study has been reported extensively in the UK, by outlets including the BBC and New Statesman.

Mr McCully said New Zealand had actually contributed $5.5 million over the past 16 months, supporting Syrian refugees in Turkey, Jordan and Lebanon, as well as those displaced in their homeland.

“For Oxfam to make claims that are so fundamentally incorrect challenges their credibility. Their claims are an insult to every New Zealander on whose behalf the Government has made $5.5 million in humanitarian contributions.

I don’t donate to Oxfam. I donate to charities such as Red Cross, Save the Children and Fred Hollows (and many more) where most to all of the money goes on actually helping those in desperate need.

While Oxfam undeniably does some very good work, a lot of their resources and activity goes on political campaigns. For example they have campaigned in the UK for the unworkable Financial Transactions Tax.