Introduction
In this chapter I am concerned with the impact of the post-tsunami rehabilitation
initiatives of Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs), and of the organisations of the United Nations (UN) system, on the social processes of Sinhapura.
At the time of the tsunami in contrast with the state, with which Sinhapura had an established relationship, NGOs -- both international and local -- were not prominent in Sinhapura and the villages surrounding it. Bornstein (2003) describes a situation in Zimbabwe where religion and economic development, intertwined within an over-arching political framework, were the basis for the actions of NGOs. This was not a feature of the south-western coast of Sri Lanka. Furthermore, there were few village level associations supported by local NGOs. There were, however, a number of microfinance organisations operating village level savings societies.161
As described in the last chapter, the programmes instituted by the state in response to this disaster were criticised on two counts. The first was that the nature of the policy criteria of the programmes designed by the government, left some categories of people with little compensation for their losses while others received in excess of that which had been lost. The second criticism was that the programmes were not implemented equitably. Some of these criticisms were articulated in a statement made by civil society organisations on the occasion of the Donor Forum held from 16-17 May 2005,
‘Rebuilding Sri Lanka: Post-Tsunami Action Plan’. At the Forum these organisations put forward the demand that TAFREN, the taskforce dominated by ‘big business’, be disbanded and replaced with a people’s planning commission composed of
representatives of affected communities and their organisations. These organisations were of the view, moreover, that the government should abandon all attempts to restrict people’s rights of access to land in terms of buffer zones, tourism zones and high security zones.162
With the programmes initiated by the NGOs the issues were somewhat different. Local communities did not feel entitled to compensation from these organisations, in the way
161 In Sinhapura there were 7 microfinance societies.
162 Source: www.omiusajpic.org/docs/disaster/sri_lanka_sign-on.htm Accessed 2 May 2008.
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that they felt entitled to compensation from the state. The same imperatives which operated on the state did not operate upon them: “While welfare states speak of entitlements, NGO discourse, in contrast, has moved toward a charity model.”
(Bornstein:2003:116). Thus, the discourse of NGOs in the south-western region was a humanitarian one, dominated by ideas about community participation, and underpinned sometimes by a religious ideology as in the case of the organisation, World Vision (Bornstein, 2003).
As far as the NGOs were concerned, while there was competition with the state which was functioning on a very broad canvas, there was also complementarity in terms of filling the gaps of the state programmes and, thereby, putting resources to their best use.
Furthermore, the procedures followed by the state, in the aftermath of the tsunami, had an impact on the programmes initiated by the NGOs. There was, for instance, the requirement of government certification for the disbursement of NGO relief.
In the wake of the disaster the first concern was with immediate relief: food, clothing and temporary shelter. Long-term needs such as housing, livelihoods, education, health, nutrition, as well as the repair of damaged roads, canals and bridges, and the
resuscitation of the fisheries industry became the focus thereafter.
The approaches followed by NGOs were characterised by several assumptions. One of these was that affected populations were homogeneous when it came to loss and, therefore, to needs. Thus, the perception of needs and priorities was not the result of a needs assessment, made on the spot, quick though that would have had to be. It was an a priori assessment on the basis of pre-conceived notions relating to disaster relief. While this, in itself, is perhaps inevitable, what was missing is that these notions were not adapted to the prevailing conditions at the local level.163 Devastation was defined, narrowly, so that needs could be seen to be met speedily and visibly. This was in order to conform to a particular construct of success and legitimacy (Hilhorst, 2003). As with the state programmes, differences between disaster-affected populations were rarely recognised in the design of programmes intended for uniform application. One or more programmes were duplicated in many villages and regions. This contrasts with the point
163 The evidential base for this comment is both my experience of Sinhapura and the trends that I
observed in the other communities along the southern and western coast. The interaction and, sometimes, the conflict between relief organisations, and tsunami-affected coastal populations is discussed much further in Chapter 5.
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made by Frerks (2010) which is that those seeking to intervene, must know the community response in order to do the best for them.
It was a discourse dominated by ideas about rationality and progress, ideas about accumulation and consumption, and ideas about the right way to live (Bornstein, 2003).
This is in contrast to the imperatives of the state programmes where the emphasis on entitlement implied restoration of what had been lost, and no more. With the NGOs, however, there was the implicit objective of going beyond what had been lost. This was the recurring concern with connecting relief to long-term development.164
Reconstruction after a disaster was seen as an opportunity to initiate development programmes, which decrease the susceptibility levels of local people and mitigate the potential impact of hazards, while at the same time fostering progress. The disaster policy of NGOs was also shaped by the conditions regarding the disbursement of aid enunciated by donors who were, in turn, concerned with their constituencies.
Many organisations had clear ideologies on the basis of which their policy was founded.
Aeberhard (2008), for example, points to the humanitarian model developed by Medecins du Monde on the basis of which they conducted their programmes. This model involved a focus on the emergency and the long-term medical care of vulnerable populations, untrammelled by rules and regulations, and the advocacy on behalf of these populations.
The sheer volume of aid, generated in the wake of the tsunami, involved a large number of stakeholders, with varying degrees of accountability and pressure to perform, as well as to be seen to perform, in a context where the political imperatives of speed were many (Hilhorst, 2003). Explanations of this avalanche of aid range from the huge media coverage of the event, to the fact that many of the countries affected by the tsunami were favourite tourist destinations; the fact that this disaster happened just after
Christmas; and the fact that it was ‘natural’ rather than ‘man made’. Jeevan Thiagaraja, Executive Director of the Consortium of Humanitarian Agencies in Sri Lanka, stated that in response to the tsunami, at least US $ 13.5 billion was pledged or donated for emergency relief and reconstruction: 44% from governments, 41% from private sources
164 For an account of the issues surrounding development in Sri Lanka see Woost (1997).
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and the remainder from International Financial Institutions (these figures based on countries studied in the TEC Funding Response study).
The media representation of this disaster was dominated by the premise that the Third World, particularly its governments, needed help in a disaster situation because it was incompetent: “For the western news media the Third World is a place of natural and political disasters and not much else” (Fiske:1987:285). This construct was under-pinned by the notion that assistance to tsunami-affected populations was best provided by NGOs who had the expertise and the capacity to do so.
Therefore, the media, both international and local, played a role in shaping relief interventions by framing the disaster in terms of a series of narratives: “Internationally, decisions with far reaching consequences for the intended recipients were based on political or public opinion considerations resulting from anecdotal coverage by the mass media. Coordinating agencies were often reluctant to encourage donors and actors to discontinue visible but unnecessary or counterproductive activities.” (Tsunami Evaluation Coalition: Thematic Evaluation Report).165 The representation was that it was the poor, a homogeneous category, that had suffered and that it was the
responsibility of both the state and the non-governmental sector to rehabilitate the poor.
Thus, through a particular representation of this disaster event, the media created a standard against which the performance of both the NGOs and the state was assessed.
There was tremendous pressure on NGOs and the government to respond in particular ways, where the categories of ‘devastation’, ‘reconstruction’ and ‘need’ had been defined in a specific manner.166 Out of several potential representations, one representation came to be constituted as the legitimate discourse of recovery. This related, particularly, to the re-settlement of tsunami victims in permanent housing. Thus, the partial representation of certain realities, to the exclusion of others, by the media, assisted NGOs in pursuing a discourse oriented towards the notion of success.
165 Thematic Evaluation Report -- “The Role of Needs Assessment in the Tsunami Response” Tsunami Evaluation Coalition. www.tsunami-evaluation.org/THE+TEC+Thematic+Evaluations/needs. Accessed on 07/10/2006
166 Source: www.asiamedia.ucla.edu; www.bbc.co.uk; www.cnn.com; www.skynews.co.uk;
www.island.lk; www.dailynews.lk; www.sundaytimes.lk; www.sundayleader.lk Accessed 01/11/2006.
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The communities along the south-western coast responded to the initiatives of these organisations in a diversity of ways. There was controversy over the principles of disbursement, as well as over the uniform applicability of these initiatives.
In this chapter, therefore, I am concerned with the way in which the resources which flowed into Sinhapura, through non-governmental means, had implications for social position as well as for the relationship between the landside and the seaside. I am also concerned with the way in which these resources were viewed by the community in terms of ideas about the gift, accountability, justice and legitimacy.
In the rest of the chapter I describe the programmes of NGOs in the south-western region, in Sinhapura in particular, and the responses at the local level. Then I go on to draw out the implications of these programmes for Sinhapura.
This situation can be contrasted with the north and the east of Sri Lanka, where the tsunami affected a population in the midst of a civil war. Here, in addition to the state and the NGOs there was another actor on the stage: the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). The issues that emanated from the interaction of these three actors have been comprehensively discussed by, for instance, de Alwis & Hedman (2009).
The NGO Programmes on the South-western Coast Overview of the Region
This section is an overview of the relief programmes of NGOs, in the south-western region, in order to contextualise the specific programmes in Sinhapura.167
The programmes of NGOs had a greater variety than those of the state. However, they were not uniformly implemented in the manner of the state programmes -- i.e., not every organisation worked in every tsunami-affected district. Moreover, the focus on
167This information regarding the programmes of organisations in Sri Lanka was gleaned from interviews with officials of the relevant NGOs, in Colombo and Galle, as well as observation of the programmes in operation, between Panadura and Hambanthota, both during my period as Co-ordinator of the Trust in 2005 and 2006 as well as during my spell of fieldwork in 2007-2008. They were: members of local societies of NGOs; informant group sessions with members both from the same society and across societies in Sinhapura; the managers of the regional offices of these organizations and officials in the Colombo office; the Urban Development Authority (UDA); the Sri Lanka Tourist Board (SLTB); the National Housing Development Authority (NHDA); the Reconstruction and Development Agency (RADA) ; NGOs and UN Organizations based in Colombo with a broad based activity landscape (IFAD, Oxfam, MercyCorps, FAO, GTZ, IUCN, ADB, World Vision, Red Cross, the Asia Foundation, Caritas, CARE International).
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some issues, such as women’s particular medical and hygiene needs, was marginal (de Silva, 2006).168
In the immediate aftermath, emergency relief -- food, clothing and shelter -- was the main focus on the south-western coast with a concomitant concern for health and nutrition, in terms of safe drinking water and access to good sanitary services. Among the principal organisations involved in this relief effort were OXFAM, specialising in immediate disaster relief, World Vision, with a focus on temporary shelter, and MercyCorps encompassing both these elements of relief. The conduit between NGOs and affected communities were local level organisations, local government politicians and tourist guides (Solomon, 2007; Mitlin & Satterthwaite, 2007).
Once the phase of emergency relief was over and the affected populations had been housed either in tents or in temporary structures, it was household goods which were found to be in short supply. Many NGOs provided packages containing mattresses, blankets, linen, clothing, bottled water, non-perishable food items, mosquito nets, and kitchen utensils. Some were culturally appropriate while others, such as blankets, were not (Mulligan & Shaw, 2011).
The concern with livelihoods was the focus thereafter. MercyCorps and World Vision conducted cash-for-work programmes as a component of their livelihoods programme.
OXFAM supported the coir industry in the southern district of Matara and assisted agriculture in the Hambanthota District by helping, for instance, to desalinate fields of cultivation which had been flooded by tsunami waters. The Post Tsunami Livelihood Support and Partnership Programme (PTLSPP) of the International Fund for
Agricultural Development (IFAD) facilitated the regeneration of the artisanal fisheries industry; promoted mechanized craft; and, in liaison with the Ceylon Fisheries Harbours Corporation (CFHC), assisted the construction of anchorages and landing sites in
Suduwella, in the Matara District. The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) liaised between donors and the Ministry of Fisheries in the regeneration of the fisheries
168de Silva (2006) states that if not for local organization like the Tsunami Women’s Fund, which was established to cater to women’s particular needs, women would have been, more or less, ignored by government authorities and NGOs.
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industry, specifically in the distribution of craft. In the midst of these efforts to
resuscitate livelihoods, however, there was little support for the commercial sector, by NGOs, on the basis that banks and insurance companies were there for this purpose.
The government repaired the railways and the major roads and bridges. There were, however, minor ones which were important to local communities, which were of low priority for the state. Some UN organisations, such as IFAD and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), in liaison with local government institutions, effected these necessary repairs on the south-western coast. They were also involved in the replacement of equipment and furniture as well as the repair of buildings. IFAD, for instance, assisted the Department of Fisheries to repair its damaged buildings in Galle.
The UNDP replaced the fuel facility in the Galle harbour, managed by the Galle District Fisheries Co-operative, which was completely destroyed.
Housing soon became the dominant discourse of NGOs, often at the expense of livelihoods. In Chapter 4, I have discussed the state perspective on housing and the partnership with NGOs in the construction of housing.169 The houses were built by church organisations; a variety of NGOs, both international and local; commercial organisations; and, ad hoc organisations such as the Sri Lanka Minnesota Friendship Society. One of the issues that NGOs faced, especially in the construction of ‘home owner driven housing schemes’, was the problem of collusion between the field workers of NGOs and the contractors, the former certifying the poor quality work of the other.
One organisation told me that they had to terminate the employment of several employees of their housing division, because of malpractices of this nature.
Education was the other issue upon which the greatest efforts of NGOs was placed. The Caritas Sed Galle ‘back to school’ project, for instance, provided children with
temporary classrooms, furniture, uniforms and stationary. The construction of pre-schools was the most common of the education-related initiatives.
Then there were more long-term programmes such as those concerned with disaster management and gender development. The Red Cross organised trainings in disaster management. The Post Tsunami Coastal Rehabilitation and Resource Management
169 The only construction of permanent housing by an NGO in Sinhapura was the 4 houses which were constructed by Red Cross on the seaside, as described in Chapter 4.
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Programme (PTCRRMP) of IFAD, in collaboration with the Ministry of Fisheries, the National Aquatic Resources Agency (NARA) and the Coast Conservation Department (CCD), was concerned with community-based coastal resource management. Other long term programmes such as the support by the FAO of landing sites were designed to encourage the better handling of fish for export.
These were some of the main programmes implemented in the south-western region by NGOs, both local and international. Not all of these programmes were implemented in Sinhapura. The significance of this description is that it contextualises the relief interventions which were implemented in Sinhapura.
Overview of Sinhapura
NGOs were not involved in the initial problem that Sinhapura faced, which was a scarcity of food.170 Temporary shelter in Sinhapura has already been mentioned in the previous chapter. The tents where people were initially housed were provided by organisations such as World Vision, before the construction of transitional housing in the village.
Within a week of the tsunami, a procession of vehicles, belonging to NGOs and to commercial organisations, passed through Sinhapura distributing packages with a variety of household goods.171 They came from Colombo and were headed towards Galle, Matara and Hambanthota. These packages were distributed with little
discrimination. My research assistant’s brother, who was studying for his O’ Level examination, received five school bags suitable for a child attending pre-school.
Although tsunami debris had not contaminated the sources of drinking water in
Sinhapura, many relief agencies distributed bottles and barrels of mineral water. Fifteen
170 It is the surrounding communities, the temple and the Trust which played a critical role in food relief.
171The following gave aid to Sinhapura: the Coastal Fisheries and Industries Trust (COFIT); the Arthacharya Trust; the Siyath Foundation; the Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Galle District; the Southern Fisheries Organisation; World Vision; Caritas Sed Galle; St. Aloysius Church, Kaluwella; the Dutch Church, Galle; the Salvation Army, Hikkaduwa; Holy Trinity Church, Patuwatha;
the German Technical Corporation (GTZ); the Asia Foundation; individuals both foreign and local; local government politicians; UNICEF; Red Cross; Neil Marine Company; Bank of Ceylon; Rupavahini Corporation.
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bicycles, given by a church in the interior, were distributed to the friends and supporters of a member of the congregation, resident in Sinhapura.
Amongst those that stood on the roadside, there was intense competition to collect as many packages as possible. Some of these people were from the landside of Sinhapura
Amongst those that stood on the roadside, there was intense competition to collect as many packages as possible. Some of these people were from the landside of Sinhapura