Tsunami aid often unhelpful, say critics

NATURAL DISASTER / THREE YEARS AFTER, RECONSTRUCTION CONTINUES

Tsunami aid often unhelpful, say critics

Projects have created conflicts among locals

APINYA WIPATAYOTIN

Phangnga _ The influx of aid agencies and recovery projects in tsunami-struck communities in the six Andaman coastal provinces has helped villagers get back on their feet, but has also had some negative impacts, according to researchers. After the catastrophe that killed almost 5,400 people in Thailand three years ago, many volunteers and aid groups, both local and international, arrived to help affected people, especially in Phangnga's Takua Pa district, the hardest-hit area.

At first, their work focused on search-and-rescue operations and establishing temporary shelters.

Their mission then shifted to house rebuilding and occupational rehabilitation, and now most of them work to improve the locals' livelihoods and develop projects for children.

At first glance, these rehabilitation projects have been useful to the villagers, but many of them have changed the locals' traditional way of life and created conflict within communities, said Narumon Arunotai, a researcher from Chulalongkorn University's Social Research Institute.

Some aid agencies, she said, copied projects that had been implemented in other countries and introduced them directly into communities without adjusting them to the unique characteristics of each area, she said.

Some projects were kicked off without thorough discussion with the villagers.

She gave as an example the house reconstruction project at a Moken village in Ko Surin, where the houses were built very close to each other, leaving no space for the villagers to evacuate in case of an emergency.

The house design was also very different from the sea gypsys' traditional homes.

In addition, each aid group had different purposes and patterns of assistance. Some focused on handing out money, while others centred on sustainable development.

When people living in the same community receive different kinds of aid, it usually leads to a conflict inside their community, said Ms Narumon.

Hong Klatalay, leader of the Moken village of Thung Wa in Takua Pa district, said he had received a number of complaints from villagers about unequal aid being distributed by outsiders.

''They keep asking me why they don't get this and that while others do. There are many conflicts in my community,'' said the Moken leader. ''When an outsider comes to visit me, the villagers will ask 'What are they going to give us?' ''

He said many NGOs offer assistance without having a true understanding of the traditional practices of the local people. Some groups provided occupational training that was useless for the Moken.

Meanwhile, a volunteer from a children's mental care organisation accepted that unorganised assistance had caused many problems in the tsunami-hit communities.

This was because the organisations wanted to help the villagers get on with their lives as soon as possible.

''We, volunteers, just try our best to help and support people so that they can move forward after the tsunami,'' she said.

The volunteer, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said it was true that aid agencies did not consult the locals before launching the projects and this had not only caused problems for the aid recipients, but also for the agencies themselves.

Many projects, she said, were not successful because they did not respond to the locals' needs. Many of the projects also overlapped with those implemented by other groups.

However, after three years, many NGOs have learned to talk more with the villagers and come up with projects that suit the needs of communities.

Ms Narumon, who has been monitoring rehabilitation projects in tsunami-hit communities, said both aid agencies and local people had to learn from the mistakes of such unorganised rehabilitation projects.

''A disaster can bring both good and bad changes to the affected communities. It can strengthen or weaken them. It depends on how the community members respond to it,'' she said.