Latest News
Disaster-hit Communities From Thailand, Across Asia and New Orleans Call for Greater Voice in Recovery Process
Phuket, Thailand, 2 November: Representatives of communities hit by natural disasters from across Asia and from New Orleans met in Phuket this week to discuss how to better protect their interests and show that people, together with governments and aid agencies, can take better charge of recovery efforts.
Almost two years after the tsunami of December 2004 attention continues to be focused on the role of governments and relief organisations in the recovery process, but little has been heard from the people themselves – the millions of families who lost everything and had to start their lives from scratch. The meeting attempted to redress that balance, and give those communities – as well as survivors of other disasters – a voice.
“The world we live in has changed. The conventional approach, in which development agencies perceive people as passive recipients of aid, is not working,” said Somsook Boonyabancha, Director of the Community Organizations Development Institute. “Poor communities can stand up and lead the rehabilitation process. They are the ones who are truly responsible for rebuilding their lives and communities.”
More than 200 community representatives attended the meeting – “People’s Leadership in Disaster Recovery: Rights, Resilience and Empowerment” – held in Phuket from 30 October to 1 November. Participants came from tsunami countries including Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, Maldives, and Thailand; from disaster-affected communities in Pakistan, Phillipines and Nepal; and from Hurricane Katrina-hit communities in New Orleans, USA. The workshop was opened by Thailand’s Minister of Social Development and Human Security, Paibool Watanasiritham.
The meeting focused on issues such as conflicts over land, inequitable access to relief and rehabilitation support, insufficient community consultation, heavy-handed recovery programmes, violations of human rights, and disregard for the special needs of marginalized groups and cultural minorities.
Three main messages emerged from the meeting:
1.) The key to success in disaster rehabilitation is to ensure that the people affected are involved in the planning and implementing of recovery programmes from day one, based on an open dialogue and a strong partnership between the communities and government and aid agencies. Without this, resources will be wasted, aid will be inequitably distributed, and communities risk being torn apart by conflicts and tensions.
2.) Communities must prepare for future disasters by building on their strengths and solidarity and developing their own capacities. Many communities that participated in the workshop shared inspiring stories of how they were able to get organized when the disaster hit, how they helped each other, and how they set up revolving funds, cooperatives, and other mechanisms to pool funding to rebuild their lives.
3.) Equity and respect for human rights are central to the recovery process, especially for the more marginalized and poorest communities such as ethnic minorities, migrants, the elderly, and children. Many communities shared concern about the disregard for the rights of the more vulnerable groups that were not getting the support they needed from governments and aid agencies.
“The aftermath of the tsunami has given us an opportunity to apply what we have learned to ensure that in the future, the communities affected take a leading role in the recovery process,” said Joana Merlin-Scholtes, UNDP Resident Representative in Thailand. “UNDP is proud to be able to help facilitate this meeting and the ongoing conversation between affected communities.”
The workshop is jointly organized by The Community Organisations
Development Institute (CODI), the Chumchonthai Foundation (CCF), the
Asian Coalition for Housing Rights (AHCR) and Thailand’s Tsunami
Affected Communities Network, UN-HABITAT; and sponsored by the
United Nations Development Programme
(UNDP).
__________________________________
For more information please contact:
Nick Keyes,
Communications Officer, UNDP Thailand, Ph: 02-288-1814, Mob:
085-115-7236, nick.keyes@undp.org
Punnipa Ruangtorsak,
Programme Associate, UNDP Thailand, Ph: 02-288-2130, Mob:
01-398-6064, punnipa.ruangtorsak@undp.org
Natvipa
Chalitanon, Community Organisations Development Institute, Mob:
081-256-7203, Ph: 02-319-1621
Maurice Leonheard, Asian
Coaltion for Housing Rights, Mob: 081-875-2121, Ph: 02-538-0919
