Top | Previous | Next | Text Only      Home | Journal                         Feature Children and the Tsunami Aftermath Articles and Papers Images of Disaster, UNICEF Relief Response Underway, For Tsunami Homeless, Sanitation a Critical Concern, Hundreds of Schools Destroyed by Tsunami, How to Protect Children in the Tsunami Zone Other Click here to donate, Submit an Article and Editorial Board,       Asian Earthquake and Tsunami CRI Journal Issue 2 (2005) Children and the Tsunami Aftermath By Margaret Harrison Printer Friendly Version The exact numbers of women, men and children killed in Indonesia, South Asia and parts of Africa as a result of the tsunamis will probably never be known. However, estimates given suggest that more than 220,000 people are unaccounted for and that approximately 40% of these are children. The financial costs of providing food and medical assistance, and of rebuilding communities and restoring infrastructure in the affected areas, can also only be estimated rather than precisely calculated. In Somalia and Burma information about the effects of the tsunami has been very limited, the latter country being notorious for its reluctance to engage with the outside world or to promote the human rights of its people. The remoteness of some affected areas across Asia, plus the massive destruction of roads and railways, combine to make the recovery efforts even more difficult, and several weeks after the tragedy inaccessible but fairly heavily populated parts of Sumatra had not even been reached, let alone helped. Even in Thailand, eastern India, the Maldives and Sri Lanka it is very difficult to assess what the longer term needs of affected people will be and for how long these needs will require outside help. In Aceh and Tamil-controlled Sri Lanka the situation is being exacerbated by civil war, most particularly the threat of a resumption of hostilities and the possible expulsion of aid agencies. Many people living in these areas have had years of living in fear, surrounded by uncertainty, death and destruction. This latest catastrophe is another threat to their survival, and its impact on prospects for peace cannot yet be gauged.  Another emerging concern is the identification and treatment of adults and children who have physically survived the tsunami, but have experienced psychological trauma as a consequence of the death and destruction to which they have been exposed. Such trauma is often invisible to ‘outsiders’, or becomes apparent at different stages and times, and in different ways. Children may react differently from adults, older children differently from infants and toddlers, those with some remaining close relatives differently from those who have none. One obvious feature is that the desolation, grief and anger being felt by so many young people will present particular difficulties for those seeking to provide assistance, and that often effective treatment will be elusive and will require specialized, long term services. In many cases such services were unavailable in the effected areas prior to the tsunamis, or were extremely scarce. The large proportion of children killed is itself a vivid reminder of the inherent physical vulnerability of young people. Their future is in no small way dependent on their capacity to cope in difficult circumstances, as of course it is for adults. However children’s own dependence on adults increases both their physical and psychological vulnerability, which in turn is magnified by the death, illness or distress of family members. For both parents and children the deaths of close relatives are devastating, but so also is the lack of knowledge about the fate of missing parents and siblings and the remembrance of loved ones, exacerbated by the suddenness of the disaster. Children in need of care cannot receive it from adults who are themselves traumatised by grief or possibly suicidal. Nor are they likely to recover from the psychological wounds inflicted on them if they are removed from their surroundings, no matter how badly battered and dislocated these are. Calls for orphaned children to be adopted by adults in ‘safe’ countries ignore the prime importance to them of familiar people, communities and ways of life, even if the alternative may mean spending periods in makeshift camps. Hasty adoption procedures also provide opportunities for children to be exploited and abused and disconnected permanently from their culture and language. Removing them from their usual environments also ignores the power and importance of the extended family and the greater ability and willingness of extended family members to care for children than might be the case in western communities.  The tsunamis are not, of course, the first time children have had to face up to the consequences of natural disasters. Ironically, 26 December was the first anniversary of the Ban earthquake which killed 30,000 people in a remote area of Iran, many of them young people. Children living in Bosnia, Kosovo, Beslan, Rwanda, Sierra Leone and Darfur have in recent years been killed, maimed and orphaned because of civil wars and acts of terrorism, over which they have no control. The tsunamis have resulted in the involvement of a larger geographical area and in a larger number of countries than has previously been the case, and the impacts are therefore on a larger scale, although undoubtedly similar in nature to those experienced by previous victims in other parts of the world.  Adults and children in some of the tsunami-effected areas are now receiving trauma counselling and psychiatric assessment. UNICEF and other organizations are giving priority to rebuilding schools in recognition of their importance in providing some normalcy and continuity. Carol Bellamy, the UNICEF Executive Director, has explained that schools and learning hold the keys to children’s short term recovery and long-term well being by keeping them safe, providing a sense of normalcy, focusing them on constructive activities and giving their families some peace of mind. Schools are also frequently centres for immunization and food distribution. Experience has shown that teachers are in the best position to understand young people, to know their family circumstances and predict which are the most vulnerable and what form of assistance is likely to be appropriate. They are being asked to encourage children to talk about their experiences, and to provide opportunities for them to express their feelings through play and art therapy. They are also being alerted to the symptoms children may experience, including survival guilt, post traumatic stress, regressive behaviour, depression and withdrawal. However in the case of the tsunami affected areas both students and teachers will, in many instances, have to face up to the absence of their friends and colleagues and the reality of their permanent disappearance. With shocking events of this kind we often see an out pouring of “crisis generosity”. This should in no way be undervalued, but it is too often the precursor to a lack of follow- up by governments when the crisis slips from the news services. Much is made of the extraordinary generosity of individuals in these situations, but it is unfortunately they who must also do the hard slog over the years to effect a humanitarian outcome because of a lack of true commitment by nation states. Equally the media - who have a crucial role in bringing world attention to these horrible events - lose interest with time as another crisis develops or they perceive their audience as losing interest. The worldwide generosity and concern being expressed for all those whose lives have been damaged by the tsunamis gives hope. However effective work for children can only be done where there are common goals, good inter agency co operation and a commitment to long term and carefully targeted assistance. Margaret Harrison was previously the senior legal advisor to Alastair Nicholson when he was Chief Justice of the Family Court of Australia. She is is currently undertaking research, on a part time basis, into property aspects of family law, on behalf of the Court and in partnership with the University of Melbourne and the Australian Catholic University. She has written extensively about children and the law, children's rights and their need for protection. Up Images of Disaster Rescue workers continue to find bodies in Thailand and elsewhere following the catastrophic sea surges (photo courtesy of AAP). More than 30,000 died in Sri Lanka and many more are homeless. Villagers are still hunting for bodies among the debris (photo courtesy of AAP). The waves that devastated the region killed thousands in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu (photo courtesy of AAP). While the dead await identification, the search is on to aid the sick such as this little girl in Indonesia (photo courtesy of AAP). Up UNICEF Relief Response Underway Printer Friendly Version More than 144,000 people are now known to have died. More than one million have been displaced in Indonesia and Sri Lanka alone. UNICEF has rushed relief assistance to the countries hardest hit, working to meet the urgent needs of hundreds of thousands of people who survived the tsunamis but now need shelter, water, medical supplies and other urgent assistance. With millions affected in India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Thailand, the Maldives, and other countries, UNICEF and other UN agencies have been working with governments to assess priorities and provide immediate assistance. Sri Lanka and Indonesia are likely to have greatest need for humanitarian support. UNICEF is concerned about providing safe water, which is urgent to prevent the spread of disease. UNICEF relief assistance includes: Supply of clean, safe water and provision of basic sanitation; Emergency immunization to prevent fatal childhood diseases; Special feeding for malnourished children and pregnant women; Care for children who have endured traumatic events; Shelter and protection for orphans and separated children; Education kits and temporary classrooms to get children back to school. Additionally, UNICEF has had reports of hundreds of children separated from their families amidst the chaos of the sudden floods. UNICEF is still trying to assess the extent of this problem and will be working with governments and other relief organizations to ensure a system for identifying separated children and relocating their families and communities.   Source : UNICEF, Up For Tsunami Homeless, Sanitation a Critical Concern Printer Friendly Version Flooding and over-stretched facilities create hazardous conditions. NEW YORK, 25 January 2005 – Hundreds of thousands of tsunami survivors living in temporary camps face a growing risk of water-borne disease due to flooding of toilets and inadequate numbers of toilets and bathing facilities, UNICEF said today. The sanitation situation is particularly worrying in Indonesia, where in some areas of Aceh Province only one in 1,000 people has access to a toilet. The shortage of toilets has been exacerbated by heavy rains, which have flooded many toilets in low-lying camps, prompting the government to announce the relocation of 21 camps for displaced people to higher ground. “Rain and overcrowding is making a bad situation worse,” UNICEF Executive Director Carol Bellamy said Friday. “Emergency facilities are being over-stretched and construction of new toilets is not keeping up with the demand. Conditions are becoming miserable for families, leaving them little defense against disease.” Children, who make up at least one-third of the overall population in the worst-affected countries, are particularly vulnerable to water-borne diseases like cholera and diarrhoea. Heavy rains have worsened the situation in Sri Lanka as well, where some camps are flooded and many toilets are full and in need of emptying. While those residing in Sri Lanka’s 450 temporary camps have access to safe water, only 35 per cent of people in the camps have access to safe sanitation, UNICEF said. And in the Maldives, 85,000 people on 69 islands have had their freshwater supply destroyed. The water supply is being restored, but hygiene and sanitation are serious problems. UNICEF is working with governments to coordinate aid agency relief efforts across the tsunami-affected countries to restore access to safe water and sanitation. The agency’s relief activities include: Building emergency toilets for camps and tent schools. Supplying sanitation kits (containing shovels and plastic sheeting) and water kits (containing water containers, purification tablets and soap). Cleaning and rehabilitating wells and installing desalination plants. Supporting hygiene education in schools and camps. Conducting sanitation and clean-up drives in affected areas. Supplying water tanks and safe drinking water. UNICEF’s emergency water and sanitation projects will be supported by the Tsunami Water and Sanitation Fund, created by the Clinton Foundation and UNICEF. The fund will also help the affected governments with longer-term management of water supply and sanitation systems, including such things as well digging and permanent toilet construction, especially in schools and health centers. In addition, the fund will support hygiene education and promotion in schools and community groups. Many of the children affected by the tsunami lacked access to safe water and sanitation before the waves hit. Across South Asia, only 35 percent of people have access to a basic toilet and 84 percent to safe drinking water. Children living without these essentials are likely to become weak and malnourished by repeated bouts of diarrhoea and other water and sanitation-related illnesses. In addition, many children in the region – particularly girls – are denied their right to education because they are busy fetching water or are deterred by the lack of separate and decent sanitation facilities in schools. “Water is not just an immediate need, but a long-term development challenge,” Bellamy said. “Safe water and proper sanitation are essential to keep people alive today and give them a chance at having a better life tomorrow.” Source : UNICEF, Up Hundreds of Schools Destroyed by Tsunami Printer Friendly Version UNICEF Says Getting Children Back in Classrooms Is Key To Larger Recovery Effort NEW YORK, 14 January 2005 – Children in some of the areas affected by the Indian Ocean tsunami began returning to school this week even though the disaster destroyed or damaged over one thousand schools and killed thousands of teachers. In hardest-hit Indonesia, preliminary government estimates of the number of severely damaged or destroyed schools ranged from 765 to 1151. In Sri Lanka, 51 schools were completely destroyed and an additional 100 were partially damaged. In the Maldives, 44 schools were destroyed or damaged – a huge percentage of the total. The tsunami’s impact on education was more minimal in Thailand, where fewer than 30 schools were damaged and very few destroyed. Getting children back in class is essential for their recovery, UNICEF said, even if it takes place in tents and other makeshift arrangements. “There is no better way of helping children regain some normalcy than to return to school,” said UNICEF Executive Director Carol Bellamy. “A learning environment allows children to be children again, it gives them a friendly space to escape from the nightmare they have endured. When a school opens in a disaster zone, everyone feels a sense of hope, including parents.” Getting and keeping children in school is essential not only in emergencies, but to ensure a better quality of life for all children, Bellamy noted. This disaster represents a setback to countries that were making good progress with providing quality basic education for all children. Getting children back to school rapidly will minimise this setback, she said. While schools officially opened following the seasonal break in India and Thailand this week, the governments of Sri Lanka, the Maldives and Indonesia are aiming to reopen schools in the affected areas by January 20, 25 and 26, respectively. (Some schools in Sri Lanka have already opened. Near Banda Aceh, two schools supported by UNICEF opened Monday with 408 students. UNICEF staff on the ground said it was the parents themselves who asked that a school be rapidly established. “The opening of these schools is a powerful sign for people that life can begin again,” Bellamy observed. Across Aceh, UNICEF is shipping in tons of educational materials, including 2,000 school tents, 2,000 school-in-a-box kits (each containing learning supplies for 50 students) and 2,000 recreation kits (each with sports and games for 50 children). These supplies will support the more than 100,000 school children and 4,000 teachers in the affected areas of Aceh. UNICEF is also assisting the Indonesian government with the recruitment and training of 2,000 new teachers and the emotional recovery of teachers who survived the tsunami. According to authorities in Aceh, 1,592 teachers are dead or missing. In Sri Lanka, where a few schools reopened on Monday, the destruction of classrooms has affected 71,928 children and 2,673 teachers. In addition, some 240 schools are still being used as temporary shelters for displaced families. UNICEF is providing Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Education with school supplies, text books and teaching aids in support of the goal of getting all children in the affected areas back in a learning environment by January 20. UNICEF has already distributed 500 school-in-a-box kits that will be used by 40,000 children. An additional 3,200 kits are expected in Colombo today or tomorrow and will be dispatched immediately. UNICEF has also enlisted hundreds of community volunteers to clear affected schools of debris and has provided funding for public announcements informing families that children will be allowed to attend school without uniforms and birth certificates. Bellamy noted that the resumption of schooling does not mean all children will immediately return to school. In India, where schools have opened in all but one of the affected districts, attendance is running as low as 30 percent. In the few schools that have opened in Sri Lanka, attendance is about 50 percent. “This low attendance is because of the many children who died or were injured during the tsunami and because some parents, having lost so much, are not quite ready to send their children out of their immediate care,” Bellamy said. “These parents need assurance that their children not only will be safe in school, but will have the assistance they need to grow stronger. Our work is focused on trying to create the most positive environment to get kids back in school.” In India, where national and local authorities have led a strong and swift relief effort, UNICEF is playing a supporting role, including the delivery of school supplies and sports equipment, the rebuilding of libraries, organizing play activities for children and training teachers to recognize the signs of distress and provide basic emotional counselling. In Thailand, where most schools reopened on January 4, UNICEF is supplying children from the affected coastal provinces with cooking utensils, school materials, textbooks, uniforms, playground and sports equipment, and is also supporting the construction of temporary schools. In the Maldives, UNICEF is assisting the government in the construction of 73 temporary classrooms to ensure students will be able to go back to school on January 25. UNICEF is assisting the Maldives government with cleaning school premises and ensuring adequate sanitation facilities. UNICEF has also supplied more than 150 school-in-a-box and recreation kits and distributed hundreds of boxes of crayons, clay, drawing paper, building blocks, puzzles, dolls, toy cars and balls. In all the tsunami-affected countries, UNICEF is working to ensure that schools help parents as well as children, Bellamy said. “The more that schools can provide for children’s needs – for food, uniforms, text books and psychological support – the more we can relieve the burden on families and allow them to focus on rebuilding their lives,” she said. “Schools are often the heart of a community, so this effort to get them up and running has real impact on the long-term recovery effort. For many people who are hurting, a busy schoolyard is the best medicine.” Source : UNICEF, Up How to Protect Children in the Tsunami Zone Printer Friendly Version Keeping Children Safe from Exploitation Requires Action Now, UNICEF Says LONDON, 8 January 2005 – Measures to protect children in the Tsunami zone from exploitation, abuse, and criminal trafficking are needed immediately to prevent them from slipping between the cracks, UNICEF said today, outlining the key steps essential to protecting orphans and other vulnerable children. “The good news is that most of the needed efforts are already underway,” said UNICEF Executive Director Carol Bellamy. “But we have to move fast,” she added. “Those who would prey upon children in this chaotic environment are already at work.” UNICEF said the most vulnerable of the Tsunami generation are those who have lost their parents or have been separated from their families. While no reliable figures yet exist, estimates based on the numbers of dead and displaced suggest there may be thousands of children across the region who fall into these categories. Surveys now underway will help identify the scope of the issue in the next week or so. UNICEF said there are five key steps essential to keeping vulnerable children safe from exploitation in the immediate term. Register all displaced children: UNICEF said that knowing which children are alone or possibly orphaned, and knowing exactly where they are, is the first critical step to protecting them. In India, Sri Lanka, and Indonesia – the hardest-hit of all the tsunami countries – registration is underway. In Aceh, ground zero of the human catastrophe, five child-friendly registration centers in the camps are now open, and 15 more are planned for next week.   Provide immediate safe care: Children identified as unaccompanied or lost must be placed in the temporary care of adults accountable for their welfare. In displacement camps, separate child-friendly care centers for unaccompanied children may be established. Alternately, children may be placed in community-based children’s homes until their families can be located. Such options have already been identified in each of the countries affected, though more may be needed.   Locate relatives: Registering children by name, address, community and birth date allows local and national authorities – working with NGOs – to trace and reunite family members pulled apart in the disaster but who survived. It also enables authorities to find members of extended family – aunts and uncles, grandparents, or older siblings.   Alert police and other authorities: UNICEF said it is essential to alert police, border patrols, teachers, health workers and others to the threat of child exploitation, and to enlist their support in protecting children. This process of public and institutional awareness is beginning to take place in the affected countries. In Sri Lanka, government and key partners, including UNICEF, have raised the issue in the media so that all Sri Lankans are aware of the need to look out for unaccompanied children. In Indonesia, police and port authorities have been put on special alert.   Special national measures: Concerned about the prospect of child trafficking from the tsunami zone, Indonesia put a temporary moratorium on children under 16 from Aceh traveling outside the country without a parent. The government also put a temporary moratorium on the adoption of children from Aceh until all children can be properly identified and a process of family tracing completed. The international standard in a crisis is to keep children as close to their family members and community as possible, UNICEF noted. Staying with relatives in extended family units is generally a better solution than uprooting the child completely. “Family and community provide vigilance and protection for children,” Bellamy said. “With so many families torn apart, and so many communities completely destroyed, we have to pull together other kinds of protections for these youngsters. All people of good will have a role to play in looking out for the best interests of this tsunami generation.” UNICEF emphasized that child trafficking, sexual exploitation, and extreme child labour are nothing new. But it warned that the breakdown of institutions in wake of the December 26 tsunamis left an opening for unscrupulous and criminal exploitation of the most vulnerable. She noted that the illicit trafficking of human beings is big business, not unlike trafficking in drugs or arms, with real money at stake and powerful interests involved. “We have to want to protect children as much as others want to exploit them,” Bellamy said. “Based on the quick response of governments to this threat, it’s clear they want to provide that protection. But we have to do it together.” Source : UNICEF, Up Links David Beckham Launches Tsunami Emergency Appeal, Clinton Foundation and UNICEF Launch Tsunami Water and Sanitation Fund, UNICEF Launches $144.5 million Appeal, UNICEF Speeches: Bellamy Remarks on Tsunami Crisis at UN Briefing, Tsunami Children: CNN Picture Gallery See also PROJECT: Rehabilitation Measures for the Tsunami Victims in 26 Fishermen Communities in Coastal Villages of Ongole District, Andhrapadesh State, India (PDF Document) Disclaimer The views expressed in the CRI Journal are those of the author's and are included to enhance discussion, they do not necessarily reflect the opinion of Children's Rights International. Up This website would not have been possible without the generous support of the Harbinger Foundation.   Disclaimer | Privacy Statement