OKINAWA, Japan - Leaders, experts in the fields of medicine, government, industry, military strategy and tactics, emergency response professionals and members of the scientific community gathered in Okinawa 22 January 2002 for the second U.S./Japan Humanitarian Assistance/Disaster Relief Conference.

The event opened with comments from its host, Rear Admiral Paul S. Schultz, Commander, Amphibious Force US SEVENTH Fleet.

"The purpose of this conference is to bring together and educate everybody who is involved with or has the capability to conduct humanitarian assistance and/or disaster relief operations," said Schultz.

HA/DR is not a politically controlled or dominated issue, and members of the civilian and military community alike traveled from as far away as Hawaii and Washington, D.C., to attend the three day multi-language, multi-cultural gathering.

The talks were a continuation of the first conference hosted by Schultz, who said he hopes they continue bi-annually long into the future.

This is about saving human beings, their environment and livelihood, said Capt. Tokuhiro Ikeda, the senior Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force representative and plans and programs officer for the JMSDF Maritime Staff Office. It is about helping others, he said.

Japanese ships left their own waters last September for the first time since WWII to aid in the fight against terrorism. According to Capt. Ikeda, the JMSDF will become more active and if called on, will go wherever aid is needed.

Too often, in Japan and the United States, and in the civilian and military sectors, we look for technical solutions to management problems, said Leo V. Bosner, emergency management specialist representing the US Federal Emergency Management Agency.

"Getting everyone the newest wireless telephone is not going to change anything if the problem is that people don't want to work together," Bosner said. "You all are to be applauded for attending this conference. This is an excellent way to get the ball rolling."

"We are all here to make sure that there is an exchange of information at the operational level, on how and what we can bring to any disaster or humanitarian assistance operation," said Schultz.

And the key to effective emergency management is a rapid, well-planned response, according to Bosner.

Stuart Cook, Deputy Fire Chief, Marine Corps Bases Japan, testified on the need to be prepared when a disaster strikes. He was on duty as fire captain on Treasure Island, a small island in the San Francisco Bay during the 1989 earthquake.

When the earthquake hit, the island was left without water, electricity or telephone service, and was cut off from the mainland by the collapsed bay bridge.

"We had trained and done drills, but when it hit we were no where near ready," said Cook.

However, with the help of the U.S. Navy, Army and Marine Corps, who provided water pumps, transportation, supplies, volunteers, and counseling, the Treasure Island Fire Department persevered, and countless lives were saved.

"In the event of some type of disaster, the Navy can bring ships and Marines, and with them bring water, bring power, and bring doctors," said Schultz. "We also have the capability to reach deep into an area that has no other means of access."

"The overriding theme to any disaster is that patient survival is time sensitive," said Lt. Cmdr. Stacy A. Brethauer M.D., general surgeon, Fleet Surgical Team Seven.

In a disaster situation local medical facilities are over-whelmed and the city infrastructure is often damaged, he said. Initial care is trauma related and the Essex Amphibious Ready Group can help give that much-needed care.

Lieutenant Colonel Patricia Hastings, MC, deputy director of the Center of Excellence, presented information on the medical needs of persons affected by disaster, the underlying economic concerns, working with non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and on avoiding the unintentional consequences of any NGO or military intervention.

Working with NGOs has many advantages according to Cmdr. Asa Morten, M.D., from the Naval Medical Center San Diego. They have infrastructures already in place in many nations. They are known and respected by the local communities, they have affiliations with host nation medical facilities and can provide continuity of care after we leave, he said.

"We need to identify what NGOs work in what areas, and what services they provide," said Schultz. "We could then involve them in strategic planning and exercises before a disaster occurs."

"We all feel a little like fish out of water right now," said Hastings. "Hopefully, after meetings like this we'll all feel a little more comfortable in future civil-military interactions."

Capt. Ikeda summed up the feeling of the conference participants, saying, "It is hard to accomplish these goals alone."

Parliamantarians Support Integrated Response

By Susan Kreifels

HONOLULU - Recognizing that most of the world's natural disasters occur in the Asia-Pacific, more than 100 parliamentarians from 25 nations in the region recently endorsed the idea of sharing information and technology to establish a disaster-management network among them.

Delegates at the 10th Annual Asia Pacific Parliamentary Forum, held in Honolulu January 7-9 and organized by the East-West Center, passed a resolution introduced by Mexico and the Philippines on disaster management and preparedness.

The resolution noted that it is "only when governments, organizations and individuals work together that levels of preparedness are likely to be attained, enabling people to respond appropriately when disaster is imminent."

The resolution included:

• Establishing an international network among authorities in member countries that deal with disasters to share real-time information on the environment and natural phenomena likely to present hazards

• Preparing maps of areas posing tremendous hazards such as active volcanoes and earthquake faults to be used for cooperative action

• Calling on industrialized member countries to provide the necessary technical assistance to help developing nations among the members better understand disaster risks and vulnerability to natural hazards

• Urging member countries to stimulate more efforts in disaster policymaking, review national legislation on natural disasters and civil defense, and provide institutional structures responsible for managing and mitigating disasters

• Creating a fund for managing disasters in the region, using an integrated approach to preparedness, education, rescue and reconstruction

The resolution brought a strong endorsement from Japanese delegates, who noted that their country received help from APPF member nations after the Kobe earthquake. That disaster, which caused thousands of deaths in 1995, triggered Japan to establish an Asia Disaster Management Center in Kobe. The Center includes 23 countries in Asia that have formed a network to jointly study and share information regarding disaster management. The Japanese delegation said their country was willing to contribute to disaster management in the region.

Parliamentarians passed a total 13 resolutions on topics that ranged from the Middle East peace process and global warming to gender equality. But cooperation on terrorism was the main focus of the meeting.

The APPF was founded by former Japan Prime Minister Yasuhiro Nakasone, who is the president of the organization. Members meet annually to discuss regional issues of common concern. Resolutions are not binding but member parliamentarians can use resolutions to help guide legislation in their own countries. The meetings also provide a good forum for networking among the nations in the region.

This was the first time the meeting was held in the United States. Rep. Amo Houghton of New York and Sen. Daniel Akaka of Hawaii hosted the event. The East-West Center in Honolulu served as secretariat for the event. The East-West Center is an internationally recognized education and research organization established by the U.S. Congress in 1960 to strengthen understanding and relations between the United States and other countries of the Asia-Pacific region.

For more information on the APPF and the 10th annual meeting in Honolulu, check http://www.appf.org.pe

For more information on the East-West Center, see http://EastWestCenter.org.

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