Sri Lanka WEEK 4
- news from Kumara
One month after tsunami,  the government has announced its own plan which prescibes out how to rebuild the houses and livelihoods of the people who are eager to get back to their communities and to start their former inome earning activities. 

According to their reconstruction plan, government has decided to move the people about a mile inland into housing that is different from what the people were used to and has made a restriction in construction of building within a 100 meter zone from the coastal line in the south and 200 meters in the north and east. The government officials emphasised that they do not want to replace shanties with shanties and want to use this opportunity to build sixty two modern townships each with apartments, stadiums and commercial spaces using approximately 1.5 billion US$ in reconstruction funds that has been promised by international donors. 

The affected families argued that the government's reconstruction plan, if introduced, will affect their livelihoods and social networks even more profoundly than the ocean did on 26 the December.
Therefore, during the last few days it was common to see in many parts of the country that  local communities, businessmen, and civil society organizations organized protests against the government's new plans and regulations.

But, from what we see the government does not want to listen the people's voice. According to the Daily News (3/2/2005), the government news paper, the demarcation of areas for the proposed coastal Buffer Zone has commenced from Hambantota, Ampara and Galle. The Survey Department has been requested to mark the buffer zone covering a 105 km in Trincomalle, 32 km in the Kalutara district and 51 km in the Matara district which they hope to conclude by the end of this month. According to Mr. B.J.P.Mendis, Surveyor General, the project is to be implemented in three stages includes temporary demarcation by his department after outlining the area and permanent marking subsequently by the Coast Conservation Department or the Urban Development Authority.

Within the buffer zone, measured from high tide boundary to 200 meters inland in the North and East and 100 meters in other areas, new constructions or recoconstructions will be strictly barred. Mr. Tilak Ranaviraja, head of Task Force on Relief said the idea of the buffer zone was not to take over the lands but to preserve the ecological aspects of the coastal belt.

with thanks,

Kumara

Note from ACHR _- in the 1990's governments used new "environemntal protection laws" to displace fisher-folk from coastal areas in Thailand and other countries - subsequently deals were made with developers to construct the tourist resorts you see today. LAND was the Hidden issue in week 1 - its now not so hidden, but stillcamforflaged with governments "good intention"

Sri Lanka - On this page

Week 4 (opposite)
Despite the refusal of government to listen to the people, ACHR friends in Sri Lanka are working to create space for the people to meet with government agencies to put their views. Associations of professuional architects and planners are also helping the people devise realistic alternative plans that will keep their communities and livelihoods in tact. See Plans for Future and One Victory in Week 3 below.

In Asia's new "democracy" .. the nexus between politicians and contractors is so strong - and now they have millions in international aid (of 1.5 billion US$ in reconstruction funds that has been promised by international donors) to play with - so we also need international pressure to help the people's voice.
ACHR

WEEK 3
Situation at prepsent
Plans for the future
One victory
"Victims face agonizing wait for land" Bkk Post

Week 2
Earlier News from ACHR Friends

WEEK 3

Jan 26
Friends working in Sri Lanka gathered in Phuket (Jan 20) to meet with ACHR friends in the other afected countires.
Below is a summary of the situation in Sri Lanka and plans for future activity

It is estimated that 50,000 people died in Sri Lanka, and about 900,000 were affected. About 80% of the coastline received damage, especially on the east side and the south east, while the west coast away from the source of the waves was not as bad. Initially there were about 800 camps established but that number is reduced to about 400 now. (particularly because schools have returned to their former function)
The extent of government interference in independent and international relief efforts is not yet clear. There is talk of building high rise flats and townhouses to re-house people, even fishermen. There is a focus on beauty and aesthetics as ends in themselves, rather than putting practical needs first. Most of the people want to go back to where they were. The government is talking about a 100 meter setback from the sea, where mangroves might provide a degree or protection in future.

There is a need for regional and international pressure to keep things on a practical and workable basis and to facilitate input from the survivors themselves as to what their needs and aspirations are, and responding to them on a cooperative basis, rather than imposing outside "solutions". The people themselves should indicate the direction and get assistance to achieve it.

Since the coastline of Sri Lanka was a heavily populated area where much of the industry and commerce takes place, the economy of the whole country has been seriously affected. The Women's Develpment Bank delegate made some helpful observations as to how to get input from small groups to identify specific needs in specific places, and then link up aid to them on a very specific basis tailored to specific needs, rather than trying to deal with the problem en masse.  
At this point the NGOs and community based saving groups networks are striving to get the people back to where they were living previously.  
The support groups feel that regional and international pressure will be required to convince the government to move away from inappropriate resettlement policies to more pro people policies.  

Plans from Support groups
At this point the NGOs and community based saving groups networks are striving to get the people back to where they were living previously.  They are c continuing with Relief work for some more time. Food, community tent/center, other relevant goods and services - and reaching out beyond their members.
Information surveys of people affected and their needs will continue.
The WDB also will have dialogue with the three district officials and communities on rehabilitation plans . They will linking ongoing housing projects of the federation with the rehabilitation of affected members to create a district level strategy .(update - Jan 23- this meeting was a wonderful success - see e-mails received to the right ---> One Victory

From SEVANATHA: The government has designated 60 towns to be "improved"   - some are large -   the 2 government agencies involved are very keen to observe the 100 m boundary from the high tide mark. Our role ( as an NGO) is to build a link between these 2 government organisations and civil society. - to bring the people's voice into a space we hope to create. And indicate what kinds of complications they will have if they implement these regulations strictly.   In this case we are also trying to work with Associations of Architects and Town Planners and Civil Engineers - to open them to the people's voice and use their strong influence on government agencies and politicians, - because the government agencies are extremely strong now. In the same way we are trying to influence UN agencies such UNDP and UN Habitat.

We have to find ways to work with the government planning process which is very strong now as they think they will get the money.

The professional association should become familiar with the "traditional rights" of the fishermen - those living on the coastal belt   - and the implications for them with the 100 m easement.

There are traditional livelihood means within these areas that we have to protect. - from relocation which will create large problems.

We have to put people's priorities - some say they need boats before permanent housing. - and from what we see of the planned housing   - they will not accommodate any of the life-style requirements.

And also bring people into the planning process at the District level

One Victory - an e-mail from the Women's Development Bank

The Community offered their proposal to the Government. Around 800  affected pepole paricipated the meeting from 7 settlemetnts today
( 23rd Jan )  majority people are poor, and they are stayng in the refugees Camp.
The Minister of Urban Development and Water supply participated with number of Government Officers and Deputy Mayor also was there.
The Community offered their proposals.
" Our families are living veraious camp in Moratuwa. So we need to resettle in our settlement, Then we can plan for our Housing Project. Hon, Minister we request our first propsal giving permisson for The building temporary houses in our settlement, If so we can build our temporary house with our women's development banks federation" 
 
" Our second proposal is about our pernment houses , We need to settle in our settlement, because we wont to see our Sea frequently."
 
Minister has given permisson to build temporary houses in their settlement and support Elericity, Drinking Water from government and Toilet facilites from Municipal Council.
JanaRukula/ Women's Development banks Federation suport rowmeterial for houses and built by community.
 
Minister said that  we try to give the land for the pernment houses  in your settlement as posible How ever we would like to inform our openiion after  two or three weeks. Finally We want to say the women's Development banks federation is grat organition and we could understand their activity such as Survey, communiy organotion , methdology of housing proses.
 
Dear friend,
 
we need to build model of housing project of Tsunami in Moratuwa. Now we have opertunity to start housing proces, Firstly we will start 400 temporary hoses in this , we need to  US $ 75 for one house.
 
Please send us your openion.
Thanks
Upali.      

Here we have posted news from ACHR's Sri Lankan friends

SEVANATHA,
Women's Development Bamk,
and the Sri Lankan Women's Bank

20th January

From Nandasiri with the Women's Bank Sri Lanka
Year 2004 ended with the tsunami disaster causing severe damages to Asia and East Cost of African Continent. The lost lives can be amounted to 200000 or more and the material damage could be calculated in Trillions. In Sri Lanka the lost lives could be approximately to 60000 and the damage to the property is also would be Billions worth. The death toll in Mullathive itself could be more than 25000 human lives.

There is a vast damage in fishing trade. There are 7500 fishing people died and 5000 have been reported lost. 18000 boats have been destryed.

Thousands of people concentrated to refugee camps (850 reduced to 550). Gradually the number of camps are reducing.

We understood that there was no proper disaster management system in national level. Non Governmental Organizations and voluntary organizations began relief work before the Government relief services become alive. Quick actions of people could be seen due to the inherited Sri Lankan hospitality of the people and also foreign donations. As you know the Foreign donations has resulted the improvement the value of the Rupee.

Tsunami Refugee Camps.
Situation of Camps in temples and churches are generally good. They are organized.
Camps in schools and other places are not fair.

Situations to be corrected in refugee Camps:
Refugees who are trying to go back to the normal life should be encouraged. They should not be feared or disappointed of government donations and compensations by GSs or any other voluntary heads.

There should be female representation in camps to listen to the needs of the women.

Measures should be taken to protect the children and women from,

•  All sorts of Abuses •  Begging•  Prostitution

Decisions of Women's Bank

Watch carefully on Government Land policy after the tsunami situation. Work to safeguard the tenure right of the victimized people.

Actions to push the political authority for quick remedies to bring the people to normal life.

  Actions should be taken to facilitate and encourage the people who were engaged in income generation activities.

Members and associate members of Women's Bank affected by tsunami are about 200 families. Women's Bank has to take every necessary steps to bring them to normal life.

Women's Bank Decision for Normalizing the lives of its Members and Associate members.

•  Provide loans to members as soon as possible to go back to their income generation activities.

•  Provide loans to members as soon as possible to go back to their Housing.

•  To grant membership to Associate members disregarding their probation period (8 months).

•  Provide loans reducing the rate of interest to 1%.

•  Grant them 3 -4 months grace period including interest free facility.

•  The money allocated to loan facility to tsunami victims has to be revolved among them for total development of them.

•  Loans issued to members before tsunami will be added to new loans under 1% interest and grace period will be continued until three months after issuance of next loan to each member.

Personal donations of members and Branches.

New cloths , medicine, dried foods, school books.

Free labour to clean houses, to make houses, electricity supply, color wash etc;  

Women's Bank continues its relief activities with Green Movement in Sri Lanka

From
Nandasiri Gamage, Women's Bank, 145 /80, E-zone, Seevali Pura, Borella, Colombo - 08. Sri Lanka.
16 th January , 2005

Jan 10

Today Government has decided two things.
- not to allow any construction with the 200 meter reservation on the coast from the line of high tide.
- Build apartment housing for fisheries families.

The result of this decision would be that people become more vulnerable not only to disasters but also to other social and cultural shocks and become poorer because apartments do not provide any flexible space and support for livelihood improvement. People living along coast are more rural in character than urban. Only few communities who have worked with NHDA, Sevanatha, WB/WDB and ACHR, can understand the negative impact of the government apartment housing schemes. Apartment to rural people is very new to Sri Lanka.
- Jaya

5 January
We - at SEVANATHA are now engaged in rehabilitating the water and sanitation facilities in Kalutara District. We will expand this work to a sustainable livelihood program through a rapid community based rehabilitation process in partnership with relevant government sector institutions. - From Jaya

1 January 2005

From Hosaka in Japan who is in touch with the Women's Bank Sri Lanka

The SL Women's Bank -     AID GRANTS or LOANS -

Several years ago, Nandasiri and several woman leaders of the SL Women's Bank joined a group to resettle from Colombo slums to a new site just along the sea coast. I was deeply concerned as I thought they must have been engulfed by Tsunami this time. They lost almost all belongings but house structures, yet they survived. And they already are fully involved in relief works for other Women's Bank members more seriously affected in the south, bringing foods from Colombo.

They are also visiting remote East coast, most severely hit this time, taking medical supply with them (it was fortunate that Women's Bank had recently started people-initiated medical programme and insurance scheme). In fact, the only positive aspect possibly in this tragedy could be that we may hope a new relationship and national structure might emerge from the united efforts for relief and reconstruction, ending 20-year long armed conflict. The Women's Bank, having Sinhala, Tamil and Muslim members work together, can be the best vehicle for relief, reconstruction and peace building.

I have been in contact with them for last few days and discussed how their own existing housing loan scheme might be expanded for post-disaster shelter reconstruction or whether a new grant programme for housing would be more effective. As far as their views are concerned, they wanted a grace period and easier terms of LOANS, rather than grants. Perhaps for the north and east where the concept of Women's Bank itself is to be introduced, and where most of the residents are refugees and internally displaced persons due to the war, a quite massive grant programme may be required at least at the initial stage.

But in the areas where Women's Bank has already a strong organizational structure, they seem to be confident with a lower-interest housing loan. Even if women members and their families who have lost not only housing but also fishing equipments and everything else, would be enabled to recover sustainable livelihood, when favourable loans are channeled through their own well-established framework.

31 December
Reported by KA Jayarathne from SEVANATHA  

At a meeting with the Urban Development Ministry this afternoon. We were told.
There are now 611,423 displaced persons sheltered in 761 welfare centres (camps) located in 12 out of 15 districts affected by the Tsunami tidal waves.

Data was not available about the situation in three districts controlled by LTTE.

49,163 houses have been completely destroyed in these districts.
Amparai 16,100
Batticallo 13,566
Matara 10,000.

30 December
From KA Jayarathne at SEVANATHA (NGO)

Many poor communities along the coastal belt in Sri Lanka are affected by the Tsunami tidal waves on 26th December. Total number of dead now has increased more than 20,000 officially. But it would be much more than that. According to official figures, about one million families are affected. It is one fifth of the total population of the country. We visited several communities that are poor and were living within and around coast in Colombo, Dehiwala and Moratuwa municipalities. We found that there is nothing left and all people are displaced. They have lost everything. People will have to stay in temporary camps for a very long period because   it is not possible to go and stay in the same place for many people and settlements have to be rebuilt - not only houses but other basic amenities such as water supply, roads, drains, electricity, community centers, schools etc. Most serious thing is that people have completely lost their livelihoods. Similar situation we can see through out the coastal belt. Majority of affected are very poor. Situation in south, east and northern parts of the country is worst. Poverty is more acute in those areas than in Colombo.

Sevanatha can not mobilize groups to count affected poor families in the whole area. We have to depend on the data that is released by the government for the time being.

We met municipal commissioners in several areas. There is no shortage of items that people need immediately to stay in camps. We have donated some essential items such as mats, food and cloths. Local authorities need some assistance later for rebuilding the livelihoods and resettlement of poor families in the same areas or new locations. The government has already sent officials to affected areas to search new land for people. Currently Sevanatha will work with National Water Board to clean up wells that are used by people for drinking and washing purposes. We are going to start it today in Kalutara district.

 

Expanded News from
ACHR Friends in

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India

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"Victims face agonizing wait for land"
From Bangkok Post, February 2, 2005

Vakarai, Sri Lanka - Vijayasiri Chelvanaygam has food, clothes and a tent to live in , but confusion over Sri Lanka's land laws means he doesn't know when and where he will rebuild his home, washed away by the Asian tsunami.

The government said after the tsunami destroyed thousands of homes, on December 26, 2004, that it will enforce an old [1982] law banning construction within 100 meters of the shore, which was flouted in the past. But a shortage of government land for victims to rebuild homes away from the beaches and paperwork stuck in a bureaucratic maze mean Mr. Chelvanaygam will have to live in a camp a while longer.

"I have no job, no money for cigarettes, no house. Living in a tent is no life," he said at a camp run by the International Organization for Migratation (IOM). Mr. Chelvanaygam is one of the tens of thousands of homeless living in tent cities along the island's eastern and southern coasts five weeks after the tsunami hit.

The government says that it will not allow any construction within 100 meters of the shore on the more densely-populated west and south coasts dotted with hotels. On the east coast, the government wants to stipulate a bigger, 200 meter safety zone. Studies have shown that about 250,000 homes will have to be relocated inland due to the restrictions, adding to the existing shortfall of 400,000 houses. But it takes time to identify property, do the paperwork and transfer it. In some heavily populated areas the government will have to buy land from private owners, officials say.

"The buffer zone is a good idea, and I don't thknk people are in a rush to return to their coastal homes," IOM's director-general Brunson McKinley said yesterday.

Christopher Wijeyweera, of the Centre for National Operations, a government body responsible for for all tsunami-related reconstruction, said the construction restriction was just a guideline. But in some places along the southern coast, local government have already begun to mark and clear land close to the shore, where thousands once lived. (Reuters)

From Upali - women's Development Bank Sri Lanka: 20 Jan
Dear Friends,
 We have planed to hold a meeting in affecatected areas in Moratuwa on 23rd Jan at 10 am. Jockin Amputhan (India) will participate to help our federation. Many people will participate this meeting to discuss their housing problem and propose their ideas for the Government. In this meeting , the cheif Guest will be Hon Dinash Gunawardana, Minister of Urban Development & Water Supply.
 
Thanks
Upali.

 

 

 

31 December
From Upali - at the
Womens Development Bank

According to statistics 23,015 deaths were reported from the Social service Ministry and more than 745,818 people have been displaced.
We can explain number of deaths in each districts.

Ampara - 8308
Hambantota- 4500
Galle - 3455
Jaffna - 2076
Batticaloa -1439
Mulathiv-1000
Trincomalie - 814
Matara - 867
Kilinochchi - 147
Vavuniya - 140
Kaluthra -99
Colombo - 34
Gampaha-07
Puttalam - 04

Upali.

 

 

Sri Lanka English News

The Lanka Academic     

Voice of Lanka  

29 December 2004
From the Women's Development Bank

In the Women's Development Bank Federation (WDPF), 552 federation member households in about 6 poor settlements have been affected, in the following five Municipal councils

1.   Colombo
2.   Muratua
3.   Kalupora
4.   Chilau
5.   Nigambo

These 552 families have lost family members (who are either dead or still missing) in the wave.   Most have lost their houses and all their belongings.
The federation leaders are now collecting food, supplies and money from other federation members to distribute tomorrow to those affected families.

On 27 December, Upali and a group of leaders went around to the affected areas to survey the affected families.   The federation's management Committee will meet again tomorrow (December 30) to decide what to do, especially how to help people rebuild their houses.

WDB will continue to give updates.

Jan 2005

Thoughts from Nandasiri
Women's Bank Sri Lanka

Oh Ocean !   Oh Ocean !
Disguised you as a devil

Could it be?

Numerous Lovers
muttered about you
lying by you
Seeking safeguard from you
built their innocent world for centuriesdidn't you hear them?

Among billions of children
Are there any left
drew your artistic nature - Sea Shore'
colorfully on this earth
didn't you see them?
ever...ever!

Numerous children
watered their feet
bothering their parents
with joyful faces and filled hearts
for centuries
didn't you see them?

Oh Ocean ! oh Ocean!
disguised as a devil
Did you think this as a skill of you?
No Never it is a gull of you!

Gamage Nandasiri
December 2004

(a gull = to trick or deceive somebody)