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The Nation
'Tsunami of Mercy' swamps villagers

Civil groups in Thailand's six tsunami-ravaged provinces called on the government to adopt more community-oriented policies for assisting victims.

Participants made the demand during the first meeting of tsunami victims and groups representing afflicted areas in Phang Nga town. The meeting was organised by a network of civil groups from and near Bangkok and joined by local activists and academics from Mahidol and Prince of Songkhla universities.

"Assistance is being distributed in too centralised a manner and handled rather inefficiently by government agencies in a top-down approach without asking what people on the ground actually want," Professor Anuchart Puangsamlee from Mahidol University said. "The locals are now getting hit by a second tidal wave which we might call the "Tsunami of Mercy".

Although the outpouring of help is flooding the tsunami-afflicted areas, miles of bureaucratic red tape means that only a fraction of the more than 50,000 badly affected locals are able to enjoy the real benefits of assistance, local participants said. "Donated items are piling up at Provincial Hall while officials are busying themselves filling in forms and whatnot," a delegate from Satun province said, "Goverment officials must urgently revise their approach," said another delegate, from Phuket. "The focus of aid should be villagers, not high-ranking people who are captialising on the situation."

Sombat Boonngarm-anon, a representative of the Chiang Rai-based Krajor Kgao group, which assists in relief activities in Khao Lak, conceded that the surplus of assistance did cause some headaches to his staff. "One day we had 800 earthen stoves piling up in front of our centre almost blocking the entire street," he explained. "We are thankful for all donations, but often supplies do not respond to actual needs.."

Participants recommended that residents in each affected province pull together and work out what kind of help they need, when and how, and petition the government with concrete proposals.

Bangkok Post
How can we best help tsunami victims?

The tsunami disaster has triggered a massive outpouring of public generosity to help the victims. So why is there still so much discontent on the ground?

Is the vexation caused by a lack of coordination in providing help, aggravated by an obsession with red-tape and top-down authority? Or is it because we have forgotten that kindness can be misguided if we impose our good intentions on the recipients without heeding their needs?

As donated items pile up at provincial centres and housing construction sprouts up in tsunami-hit areas, the complaints are getting louder that many victims are not receiving help and the newly-built houses will probably be abandoned because they do not suit the villagers' way of life.

In some places, villagers cannot go to receive donated items at official centres because they must guard what is left of their battered property. In other villages, residents reportedly must travel a long distance each day just to receive a kilogramme of rice because that is the official ration per family per day and no official dares break the rules.

Many small-scale fishermen along the Andaman coast also resent the state's focus on the tourism sector. They want ready help to repair their boats and funds to buy fishing gears so they can return to the sea and get back on their feet. But the government is too busy wooing back the tourist dollars.

Apart from debt, housing is another major anxiety. Some villagers want to move to safer ground. Others want to stay right where they are. Many risk being evicted from their villages because they live on public land and the government does not want them there. And far too many still cannot get government assistance because their legal documents were lost to the killer waves.

At the lowest rung of the victims are the migrant workers from Burma. They dare not eve voice their needs for fear of being arrested and deported. Many are still seeking shelter and hiding in the mountains.

The tsunamis took the physical possessions of villagers and have also made the survivors feel like they have lost control over their lives. Thus the challenge is not only to meet their different needs but to do so in such a way as to help the restore their confidence and dignity. Top down and uniform policies cannot do this.

Fortunately, some non-governmental organisations who have long been working with the villagers have acted quickly to fill the gap. An example is a fund set up to help small-scale fishermen repair or build new boats and buy fishing equipment.

Instead of being passive recipients, fishermen's committees will collectively manage the financial aid to ensure transparency and the fair and flexible distribution of short- and long-term help.

It's good to be kind. But it is better if we kindly listen to the recipients' needs, respect their concerns and give them room to make their own choices.

Sanitsuda Ekachai is Assistant Editor, Bangkok Post.

What happened... Copy of email message received from those at Golden Buddha shortly following the disaster.

About the Appeal Fund - Set up to help rebuild the lives and livelihoods of the local fishing communities.

News - Latest news about Golden Buddha Beach and the appeal fund.

Archived News - Details of previous updates from Golden Buddha Beach.

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