PACIFIC DISASTER MANAGEMENT INFORMATION NETWORK (PDMIN)
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Indian Ocean Earthquake & Tsunami Emergency Update

 

May 25, 2005

 

Note: New content has been inserted in red, italicized, bold font.

 

 

Table of Contents:

 

Overview......................................page 2-4

Indonesia.....................................page 5-10

Sri Lanka.....................................page 11-16

Thailand.......................................page 17-20

Overview

 

·      The overall focus of attention is on long-term recovery and rehabilitation for the December 26 earthquake and tsunami disaster. The death toll from tsunamis triggered by an undersea earthquake measuring 9.0 on the Richter scale off the west coast of Indonesia’s Sumatra Island has recently been revised to some 228,000 people along the coastal areas of 11 countries in the Indian Ocean, largely due to the Indonesian government revising its estimate for the number of people missing from 93,458 to 37,063, an approximate 60 percent cut. The change in the number missing reflects the identification of people who were listed as missing but were actually among those displaced after the disaster destroyed their homes. Over 1.7 million are reported to be homeless.

 

·      Tsunami-related deaths were recorded in Sri Lanka, India, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Myanmar, Maldives, Bangladesh, Somalia, Tanzania and Kenya. The loss of life is particularly severe in Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India and Thailand. Some 166,000 dead and missing are from Indonesia. The dead and missing toll in Sri Lanka climbed to nearly 39,000. In India, at least 10,672 died in Tamil Nadu State and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The death toll on Thailand’s west coast climbed to around 5,400, including some 1,953 foreigners from at least 36 countries. More than 400 combined deaths have been reported in the other countries.

 

·      The world’s largest reinsurer, Munich Re, initially estimated the total cost of the disaster will exceed US$13.6 billion. In February, UN Assistant Secretary General Hafiz Pasha said rebuilding the affected areas would cost some US$10-12 billion dollars over the next three to five years. (Feb-16, AFP) Former US Presidents Bill Clinton and George Bush senior visited some tsunami-affected countries in February and said at the end of their tour, that some US$11.5 billion was needed for reconstruction. In the four worst-affected countries, namely Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India and Thailand, the economic impact is expected to be manageable. The GDP growth for India is expected to be unaffected. The 2005 projected GDP growth rate now stands at 5.4% for Indonesia; 4.2% for Sri Lanka; and 4.3% for Thailand.

 

·      Coordination: The UN announced an agreement with Price Waterhouse Coopers for 8,000 hours of pro bono work to monitor disbursement of the US$977 million tsunami relief fund. (Mar-14, UN)

 

• The UN Emergency Relief Coordinator, Jan Egeland, announced a website to track funds pledged, while also urging that more attention should be given to the world’s neglected humanitarian emergencies. The website will be accessible through www.reliefweb.int and will have information on pledges received and disbursed. (May-24, UNNS)

 

·       Logistics: UNJLC has a detailed list of civilian/commercial transportation assets available on its website www.unjlc.org (Feb-3, UNJLC)

 

·      Food: FAO says overall food availability in the region is adequate to cover needs. WFP says it is providing food to more than 1.9 million people. (Apr-26, Indonesia Relief)

 

·      Health/Medical: WHO estimates 500,000 people were injured. There were scattered reports of diarrhea, malaria, dengue, measles, pneumonia, tetanus and skin infections, but no outbreaks.

 

o      The WHO said it and other humanitarian organizations must change the way they respond to natural disasters.  A future agenda would focus more on health and psychological trauma, cut down on duplication of tasks and promote greater civilian-military coordination.  Reuters reports that a controversial recommendation by the WHO was that the UN would create a rapid assessment of what was required and then requisition military support agreed upon in advance.  Officials said that they set a six-month deadline for reform. 

 

·      Security: Reports of continued violence in Sri Lanka’s east; Sporadic clashes between TNI and GAM in Aceh also reported.

 

·       Shelter: On March 8 Aceh Governor Azwar Abubakar said that the GoI will stop building shelters in Aceh and instead focus on making sure existing ones have proper sanitation and clean water.

 

·       Political-Military: Malaysia began crackdown on illegal workers in the country on March 1. UNHCR expressed concern that some asylum seekers and refugees from Aceh may be affected.

 

·      International Assistance: At least US$9 billion has been raised for affected countries thus far. (May-20, Reuters).

 

·    UN agencies, at a meeting organized by the UN Development Program (UNDP), said Monday (May 25) that countries hit by the disaster will take at least 5 to 10 years to recover with the help of international aid. Experts said that efforts are needed to tackle problems with conflict, poverty, and land disputes that existed before the disaster. (May-23, AFP)

 

·    The US Business Roundtable, an association of some 160 CEOs, says that it has contributed some US$200 million in funding, services and materials to tsunami relief, part of over US$450 million donated for reconstruction. (May 14, Indonesia-Relief.org)

 

·       Former US President Bill Clinton, the UN special envoy to head UN operations for recovery and reconstruction, will make his second visit to Asia to ensure that the world’s attention is focused on tsunami recovery efforts. Clinton will visit India, Sri Lanka, the Maldives and Indonesia. (May-24, AP)

 

·    Jan Egeland, the UN Under-Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, said on April 6 that the UN was raising its initial appeal of US$970 million to US$1.08 billion. (Apr-6, Reuters)

 

o   The UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said that estimates from India, Indonesia, Maldives, Myanmar, Somalia, Sri Lanka, and Thailand put the combined costs of the fisheries sector alone at some US$520 million. FAO reports that it continues to provide direct assistance to farmers and fishermen. (May-19, FAO)

 

o      The head of UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission says that an interim tsunami warning system for the Indian Ocean should be in place by October, mainly through the upgrading of the existing network of tide gauges. (May-19, Reuters) The US and Japan will begin providing tsunami warning to countries around the Indian Ocean as a stopgap measure. Under the plan, both the Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center and Japan’s Meteorological Agency will give out alerts after analysis of quakes in the region. A second step will see tidal movement gauges upgraded, while gauges will be fitted near Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia. In the last phase, to be completed by the end of 2006, a regional warning center will be built, with links to a network of gauges and sensors across the region. (Mar-9, BBC)

 

·       A study by Reuters AlertNet says that aid allocation figures show just 58 percent of the US$5.3 billion promised by the top 10 donor governments and multilateral organizations has been disbursed, committed or budgeted. That figure leaves some US$2.2 billion in pledges not earmarked and which donors will struggle to include in planning as reconstruction begins, the study says. (May-18, Reuters)

 

·    According to Visa International, travel and tourism spending is experiencing a new slump despite an initial recovery in March. The study shows that spending by cardholders fell in April and May in Phuket, Thailand, Sri Lanka and the Maldives compared to last year. Travel experts at a recent World Tourism Organization (WTO) conference in Bali also concluded that the recent spending slump corresponded with a drop in media coverage and interest in tsunami-affected areas. “We found that US$3 billion is likely to be lost from the tourism industry in the region—but that is turning out to be a conservative estimate,” James Murray, Visa’s executive vice-president for Southeast Asia told the conference. (May-25, CNN)

 

·       Interpol head Ronald Noble said that waning government support and resources could delay the identification of thousands of victims indefinitely. Diminishing funds and a shortage of Disaster Victim Identification experts were contributing to the delay. (May-21, Reuters)

 

·       International Development & Relief Organizations:

o      The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) on May 9 launched a US$1.2 billion million 5-year plan to help 10 countries to rebuild. (May-24, Reuters)

 

 

Indonesia

 

Organization

 

Overview …………………………………………………………page 6

 

Sectors……………………………………………………………page 8

Overview: According to the National Disaster Relief Coordinating Board, the confirmed death toll rose by 213 to 128,790. (May-3, AP) The number of missing remains at 37,063. (Apr-18, AFP) The Indonesian government (GoI) earlier in April revised its estimate for the number of people missing from 93,458 to 37,063, an approximate 60 percent cut, because of better data collection. The change in the missing reflects the identification of people who were listed as missing but were actually among those displaced after the disaster destroyed their homes.

 

Indonesian officials and Free Aceh Movement (GAM) rebels are scheduled to begin a fourth round of peace talks in the Finnish capital of Helsinki tomorrow (Thursday, May 26).  Following the Indonesian government’s refusal to allow rebels to contest elections as a local party, chances of any success at the peace talks, aimed at resolving the decades-old separatist conflict in Indonesia’s resource-rich Aceh province on the northern tip of Sumatra Island, are very slim.  Indonesia has also rejected another rebel demand to withdraw 30,000-40,000 troops from the restive province.   Indonesian legislators and the government have reportedly agreed not to hold any further rounds of peace talks with the rebels should the next round fail to strike a peace deal.  Following a devastating tsunami in December 2004 that left more than 240,000 people either dead or missing in Aceh, the Helsinki-based Crisis Management Initiative (CMI), headed by the former Finnish President Martti Ahtisaari, is mediating peace talks between rebels and the government, which were initially aimed at facilitating cooperation and coordination for relief operations.  After some quick agreements on tsunami relief, the focus of peace talks has largely shifted towards finding a permanent solution to end the conflict.  The three earlier rounds of peace talks mainly focused on economic matters.  Besides a significant concession by the rebels to drop their demand for independence in exchange for “self-government," little progress on key political and security issues were made during the earlier rounds.  A weeklong round of talks scheduled to run from May 26 to 31 is expected to be the toughest of all as it attempts to make headway on political and security issues.  However, if negotiators for the Indonesian government maintain their rigid posture and do not give the GAM a face-saving way to take part in Aceh’s political process, any breakthrough would be highly unlikely. 

 

Indonesia officially lifted the year-old state of civil emergency in Aceh.  The province reverted to normal at midnight on Wednesday (May 18).  Chief security minister Widodo Adi Sucipto said that Jakarta planned to maintain military operations in the province against the GAM rebels.  Last week, the GAM said that Jakarta’s lifting of the emergency rule in the province was a “cruel joke” and further warned that their fighting force still remained strong.  The government had launched a major military operation in the province and imposed martial law on May 19, 2003 after peace talks with the GAM fell through.  In May 2004, the government lifted martial law and replaced it with a state of civil emergency. 

 

The Indonesian government on May 11 said that foreign aid workers can extend their visas for another month. Kuntoro Mangkusubroto, head of the government’s rebuilding agency for Aceh says that the extension would allow his agency to assess the work of the aid organizations. (May-11, AP) The government has required foreign aid groups to give detailed reports of their activities so the government could decide whether the visas will be extended.  Some observers say some nationalist politicians and the military are suspicious of foreign groups and may fear the presence of aid groups might increase international sympathy for the GAM rebels in Aceh.  The Indonesian government also said on May 2 that foreign aid groups that want to continue working in Aceh province will have to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that they will not “interfere in the country’s domestic affairs” or support the separatist movement. 

 

Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has appointed members to an agency which will oversee the reconstruction of Aceh province, called the Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Agency (BRR-Badan Rehabilitasi dan Rekonstruksi) for Aceh and Nias.  The agency will be headed by former mines and energy minister Kuntoro Mangkusubroto, who will manage the some US$4.84 billion fund for reconstructing Aceh and Nias.  National Development Planning Minister Sri Mulyani says the agency should work according to a reconstruction blueprint adopted on April 15 as the master plan for reconstruction. Mangkusubroto says that the new agency will be completely transparent to prevent corruption.  (May-9, Reuters, BBC)

 

BRR head Kuntoro says that after meeting with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, around US$1.2 billion in foreign aid is ready to be spent on reconstruction projects in Aceh. Yudhoyono’s spokesperson, Andi Mallarangeng, says that the GoI has yet to disburse its own aid for rebuilding because it was awaiting approval from parliament. Reuters reported that the GoI has set aside some US$635 million for rebuilding. Kuntoro says that he does not expect those funds to be made available until September. Kuntoro says that one problem in getting foreign reconstruction funds going was the time it took to get the BRR set up, because donors were unsure from whom to get approval for their projects. (May-19, Reuters) However, Indonesia’s planning minister, Sri Mulyani Indrawati, says that the parliament should approve the allocation of the 2005 budget money for reconstruction by the end of June. She says that the GoI expects to spend some 3-4 trillion rupiah (US$317 million-US$423 million) from the 2005 proposed revised budget, which will rise to 9 trillion rupiah (US$949 million) in 2006. (May-23, Reuters)

 

GOI put the December tsunami/earthquake losses at US$4.5 billion. The Consultative Group on Indonesia, made up of 30 international lenders, pledged US$1.7 billion in tsunami aid for 2005, consisting of US$1.2 billion in grants and US$500 million in soft loans. The aid is in addition to US$3.4 billion donors pledged that will mostly go towards reducing the national deficit. During the international ministerial tsunami meeting in Geneva on January 11, several countries pledged US$900 million for a six-month period to Indonesia. Asian Development Bank (ADB) allocates US$800 million, in addition to tsunami relief. World Bank will provide US$300 million in initial support for Indonesia. (Jan-14, AlertNet) American accounting firm of Ernst &Young will audit the aid. State Minister for Development Planning, Sri Mulyani Indrawati, said March 14 that the GoI will accept the offer of a debt moratorium from the Paris Club. The total debt on which repayment will be delayed is US$2.6 billion. (Mar-14, Tempo Interactive) Indonesia has some US$48 billion in foreign debt to donor countries under the Paris Club. (Mar-14, Xinhua)

 

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) on April 20 said that it plans to lend some US$519 million to Indonesia in 2005. The ADB said it already approved US$64.7 million in loans and US$16.5 million in grants this year to help some 1,500 communities in rural Indonesia that were affected by the disaster. Five more projects amounting to US$454 million are proposed for the rest of the year. The ADB approved a US$300 million emergency assistance grant to Indonesia, reportedly its largest ever. (Apr-20, ADB)

 

The World Bank reported May 10 that at the inaugural meeting of the Steering Committee of the Multi-Donor Trust Fund for Aceh and North Sumatra, some US$250 million in grant financing was approved for Aceh and Nias. The Multi-Donor Trust Fund is a pool of some US$500 million in grant resources provided by donor countries to support reconstruction. The fund is managed by the WB and guided by a committee consisting of the GoI, donors, and civil society representatives. (May-10, World Bank)

 

Indonesia hopes to have an early warning system able to issue tsunami alerts within 5 minutes on Sumatra by the end of 2006, and an integrated network covering the country by 2010, says Wendy Aritenang, a deputy minister at the Research and Technology department that is overseeing development of the system. (May-20, The Star)

 

Banda Aceh vicinity: City returning to some semblance of normalcy. UNJLC reports that there are somewhere between 150-200 NGOs in Banda Aceh. (Feb-23, UNJLC)

 

West Coast of Aceh Province/Western Islands: The Indonesian government reported April 8 that the country would need some US$326.4 million (Rp 3.1 trillion) to rebuild areas damaged by the March 28 8.7-magnitude earthquake.  The money is needed to rebuild damaged roads, bridges, and buildings that are mainly on the island of Nias. A January UN, GOI and US military report says the tsunami destroyed virtually every village, town and roads and bridges along a 170-kilometer (105-mile) stretch of coast that was not more than 10 meters (33 feet) above sea level. (Mar-10, Jakarta Post) The west coast of Aceh had a population of about one million in its six regencies, with about 500,000 in the heavily damaged northern three and 500,000 in the southern three.

 

Sri Lanka

 

 

Overview…………………………………………………..page 12

 

Sectors…………………………………………………….page 13

 

Overview: Sri Lanka reportedly now has combined the figures for its dead and missing into one figure for dead and presumed dead and missing. The combined total stands at 38,916. (Apr-8, Reuters) Of the total, approximately 5,000 have been declared missing. (May-3, DPA)

 

The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) says that some 518,698 people remain displaced with most living with relatives and friends, some in “collective accommodation centers” or in camps. UNICEF says that according to the GoSL, 800,000 people were initially displaced. The GoSL said on April 28 that around 50,000 people in Sri Lanka made homeless by the tsunami are still in tents and relief centers. The GoSL and aid groups have built temporary housing for some 77,000.

 

After the closing day (May 16) of a two-day international donors meeting held in Kandy, officials say that donations and debt relief have reached some US$3 billion over a period of three to five years, nearly twice as much as what the government has estimated it will cost to rebuild.  Tittawella, the chair of TAFREN, says that donors agreed that money pledged at the donor conference could be spent on non-tsunami projects, if more aid money pours in. The extra funds would help Sri Lanka tackle poverty and rehabilitate war-ravaged parts of the country. (May-20, Reuters)

 

World Bank Vice President Praful Patel said that money given to Sri Lanka is getting held up. “There is impatience on the part of everybody, including the government and the donors, about the pace at which things are moving. The frustrations come form the fact that the pledges that were made and the money that was made available are not moving fast enough on the ground,” said Patel, who was in the country last week for the donors meeting. (May-24, Reuters)

 

The government has estimated that it will cost up to US$1.6 billion to rebuild infrastructure destroyed or damaged by the December 26 tsunami.  The so-called Paris Club of rich creditor nations in March offered to freeze Sri Lanka’s $300 million in debt payments until the end of 2005.  The government has said it wishes to see that extended for three years.  Sri Lankan Central Bank Governor Sunil Mendis said that the aid, along with the Paris Club debt freeze, could help offset the disaster’s impact on the growth forecast for 2005.  “With the pledged aid coming in, the projected growth rate of 5.3 percent, it can improve to anything between 5.3 percent and 6.0 percent this year,” Mendis said.  (May-11, AFP) The Central Bank says that the influx of aid will lift the country’s balance of payments into the black this year. The country’s overall balance of payments showed a surplus of US$179 million in the first quarter to March 31. It says that the balance of payments would swing to surplus for 2005 from a deficit of US$205 million in 2004 because of the international aid. (May-20, AFP) The Paris Club has agreed to allow the deferred payments to be repaid over five years, with a one-year grace period.  Sri Lanka owes the Paris Club some US$4.6 billion.

 

Donors at the meeting also pushed the government to continue pursuing the peace process with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) as well as the so-called “joint mechanism” deal on the distribution of tsunami aid with the rebels.  President Chandrika Kumaratunga told the donor conference that she was willing to risk her government and her own safety to push for the joint mechanism deal.  Kumaratunga faces opposition from some parties within her shaky coalition government, particularly the Marxist People’s Liberation Front (JVP), which has threatened to pull out of the coalition.

 

The World Bank doubled its commitment from US$75 million to US$150 million in emergency credits and grants. Asian Development Bank (ADB) announced that it would reallocate US$7 million from Rural Financial Sector Development Program to an emergency micro-credit program. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) Executive Board approved some US$157.5 million. (Mar-9, IMF)

 

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) announced on April 14 that it has approved a US$197 million assistance package for two projects that will rebuild areas in Sri Lanka. The package includes a US$150 million grant and a US$7 million loan for the Tsunami-affected Areas Rebuilding Project (TAARP). A US$14 million grant and a US$26 million loan will be for the North East Community Restoration and Development Project II (NECORD II) to continue the government’s rehabilitation program in conflict-affected areas in the north and east of the country. (Apr-14, AFP) The ADB reported that the disaster led to significant job losses in Sri Lanka’s fishing communities and small-scale traders, increasing the number of poor by 287,000 people and the national poverty level by 1.4 percentage points to 26.6 percent. The bank says the biggest risk for the economy was the lack of progress in the peace process with the LTTE. Additionally, the ADB reports that the tsunami cost an estimated 400,000 jobs for 200,000 families. (Apr-6, AFP, Mar-18, ADB)

 

Tourism earning reportedly declined in January and February, but bounced back in March, resulting in a first quarter figure of US$91 million versus US$94 million for the same period in 2004. (May-20, BBC)

 

Information on many NGO activities can be obtained from the following link: http://www.humanitarian-srilanka.org/ (under Tsunami 2004 Information Center)

 

Sector Status
Affected Population	Over 516,000 people remain displaced, with some figures saying up to 1 million (may-20, Reuters); over 100,000 still in camps or shelters, over 400,000 now living with relatives or friends. (Mar-24, Reuters) Nearly 72,000 children and 2,700 teachers affected. More than 1,000 children were orphaned and at least 3,600 lost one parent. (Mar-9, DPA)   According to statistics published by the Tamil daily Virakesari, out of the total killed, some 12,562 were Muslims. Amparai district in the southeast accounted for 7,258 (58 percent) of the total number of Muslims who were killed in the disaster. Out of the overall figure of missing, some 1,980 (34 percent) were Muslims. 7,285 of the injured (48.5 percent) were Muslims. (May 16, Hindustan Times)
Coordination	On February 4th the Centre for National Operations (CNO) handed over responsibilities of continuing its main functions of collating and analyzing data, coordinating and facilitating relief measures connected to healthcare, education, foreign donor assistance and food relief. The Task Force for Relief (TAFOR) will directly assume these responsibilities. TAFOR will be based and managed from the Ministry of Defense. Another task force, Task Force for the Reconstruction of the Nation (TAFREN), has been given responsibility of spearheading reconstruction, assessing the damages, and coming up with a master plan to rebuild infrastructure. Food relief will be channeled through the Ministry for Relief, Rehabilitation, and Reconciliation (RRR) together with Commissioner General of Essential Services (CGES). Responsibilities connected to IDPs, Transit Camps, and liaison with the District Secretaries will be the task of the CGES. (Feb-9, UNJLC)   For further information, check the TAFREN website at http://www.tafren.gov.lk/ or the CNO website at http://www.cnosrilanka.org/ The Ministry of Relief, Rehabilitation, and Reconciliation’s website, www.mrrr.lk contains additional information.
Logistics	According to the UNJLC, on April 26, relief consignments of UN agencies at the Colombo port and airport will no longer be exempt from taxes and duties when new clearance procedures are to be introduced. NGOs can only acquire tax and duty concessions by handling the consignments through the Department of Social Services for distribution or having the department supervise the distribution. (Apr-19, OCHA)   UNJLC report, “Comprehensive Road Network Assessment of the Tsunami Struck Areas in Sri Lanka” completed and available at www.unjlc.org. (Feb-23, UNJLC)   There is a UN On-Site Operations Coordination Centre (OSOCC) and UN Joint Logistics Center (UNJLC) presence in Colombo. The UNJLC also runs the Logistics Operations Center (LOC) which has been tasked to coordinate logistics operations of UN agencies and assists humanitarian relief agencies and NGOs in acquiring transport for the movement of humanitarian relief cargo out of Colombo.
Food	WFP says it is feeding some 910,000 people and will continue to do so until the end of June. WFP initially began feeding some 750,000 people and had expected to be targeting only the most vulnerable by April. Some 40 trucks with some 400 tons of food leave Colombo every day. WFP has delivered some 50,000 tons of food thus far. (May 18, Reuters)   FAO’s Senior Advisor for Fisheries, with the Ministry of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, says that the total number of traditional craft (canoes) destroyed by the tsunamis is 9,975. Some 741 boats have been provided to recipients thus far, and a total of 11,217 are to be constructed. The east coast was the hardest hit, with total losses of some 4,340 canoes. (Apr-19, OCHA)   WFP says it will start a school feeding program in April for some 120,000 children, in addition to the 165,000 children who were already enrolled. (Mar-9, Dailynews)
Water and Sanitation	South Korea is funding a Greater Galle water supply project expected to cost some US$48.2 million and will benefit some 160,000 people. (May 12, Daily News)   Americares launched a US$1,000,000 water purification program to improve water quality and provide sources of clean water for 46,000 survivors. (Apr-18, Americares)
Public Health and Medical	Sri Lanka Ministry of Health has signed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Sri Lankan Red Cross Society (SLRCS) and the IFRC to rebuild and rehabilitate 34 health facilities. (Mar-18, IFRC)   WHO is the lead agency in facilitating health sector coordination issues through the Ministry of Health and Nutrition (MOH)
Shelter	GoSl announced the ceremonial launch of the North East Housing Reconstruction Program (NEHRP) held at the Mahaweli Centre. NEHRP is designed to facilitate the reconstruction of over 31,200 houses in the North and East over a period of four years (2005-2009).   Mano Tittawella, chair of TAFREN says the GoSL finished demarcating land for up to 34,000 permanent houses outside of the buffer zone. He says that the bulk of the project will start in May and June and 80 to 90 percent of the housing units are expected to be completed by the last quarter of the year. The Daily News reports that some 194 donors have made pledges to construct around 97,000 permanent houses. GoSL has also decided to continue the family allowance of some Rp5,000 (US$50) up to June 30. (Apr-29, Daily News)   GoSL says it will give US$2,500 to families whose houses have been destroyed while owners of partially damaged houses would receive US$1,000. (Apr-5, GoSL)   Temporary shelters under the Transitional Accommodation Projects (TAP) being built by the CGES) is working to complete the construction of 30,000 temporary houses. Each unit will reportedly be built to last some 12 to 18 months. (Mar-23, Dailynews) The focus will be on the south of Sri Lanka which will face the early monsoon rains first. (Apr-13, Oxfam) The TAP says that so far some 15,468 temporary houses in 8 districts have been built since April 15. Work on some 7,856 units are in progress and expected to be completed soon. Breakdown by district is: Colombo (798), Kalutara (628), Galle (1968), Matara (1076), Hambantota (1229), Ampara (54442), Batticaloa (2892), and Trincomalee (1436).   Officials say the construction of temporary houses for tsunami-affected people in Galle has been mostly completed. Out of the total 5,403 houses, 2,737 houses have been constructed by April 30 and 1,818 houses are under construction. (May 12, GoSL)   IOM has completed some 529 transitional accommodations for 529 tsunami-affected families. 685 transitional accommodations are under construction. (May 15, IOM)   Immediate needs were being met by 315 camps, schools, places of worship, and other public buildings.
Infrastructure	On May 19, GoSl announced details of a US$700 million plan to upgrade ports, build a new southern harbor at Hambantota and add a second runway at its international airport. The government will provide US$100 million of the funds, with the rest provided by donors. (May 20, BBC)   SP Thamilselvan, chief of the political wing of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), said that more than US$1 billion was needed to rebuild Tamil areas ruined in the disaster   The GoSL plan involves building some 62 townships, 75 miles (120 km) of electric railway, improving 55 miles (89 km) of highway and granting assistance to affected families to rebuild housing. Chair of TAFREN, Mano Tittawella, estimates that it will take 6-9 months to build houses, 1-3 years to build roads and a modern water supply system, and another 1-3 years to build new railway lines. (Mar-23, Reuters)   A total of 77,561 houses have been damaged or destroyed by the tsunami, including 41,393 houses that were completely washed away, according to the latest figures by the Census and Statistics Department. (Apr-29, Daily News) Some 260 schools were destroyed and 170 others damaged or being used for IDP camps. (Mar-7, DPA)   UNOCHA reports that an FAO salinity expert says that some 10,400 acres of farm land have been destroyed by the tsunami, which includes some 8,000 acres of paddy land. Additionally, a total of 27,000 home gardens were destroyed. The Minister of Agriculture says that direct damage to the farmers of the tsunami was some US$3.5 million. An FAO Agriculture Advisor says that around 148,000 chickens, 7,600 cattle, 4,900 buffalo, 14,200 goats and 118 pigs were killed in the tsunami. Forty percent of the damaged land should be ready for cultivation this Yala season and 70 percent for the Maha season.
Security	Sporadic violence continues between rival Tamil Tiger factions, mostly in the east.   Human Rights Watch (HRW) said Monday (May 23) that ongoing abductions and killings of Tamils in Sri Lanka has “created a climate of fear” and has called for the creation of an independent commission of inquiry into the violence.  (May-23, HRW)   UNICEF says LTTE have recruited some 137 children since the disaster. (May-20, UNICEF)

 

Thailand

 

 

 

Overview. ………………………………………………. page 18

 

Sectors……………………………………………………page 18

 

Overview: Latest death toll issued by the Thai Ministry of Interior Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation remains at 5,395 but as bodies are identified, the number of Thai deceased (1,975) has risen by 14 since mid-April and foreign nationals by 292 (now 2,245) and 1,175 people of unknown nationality. (May 13, UN) Number of missing is at 2,822. Of those, 1.924 are Thais. (May 19, The Nation, AP) A senior Thai official said on April 7 that it may take up to five years to identify the some 2,547 unidentified victims in Thailand, at least half of which are thought to be foreign tourists. An international forensic team had identified 1,176 bodies since it began work on Jan. 13. (Apr-7, Reuters)

 

The Thai Cabinet yesterday (May 24) approved in principle a Justice Ministry proposal to declare dead some 1,924 people of Thai nationality missing in the tsunami disaster so their families could claim inheritance and other benefits. Normally there would be a two-year waiting period to qualify for missing person status. (May-24, Bangkok Post, The Nation) The Disaster Victim Identification Centre (DVI) is seeking a total budget of some 260 million baht (US$6.5 million) in order to set up an automatic fingerprint and DNA checking system and database in line with international standards in an effort to identify some 2,000 unidentified bodies. (May-24, Bangkok Post) The government has decided to send some 2,000 DNA samples of unidentified foreigners who died in the tsunami disaster to the International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP) in Sarajevo, Bosnia. Royal Thai Police (under Interior Ministry), and Australian Federal Police are heading the DVI in Phuket. 460 international forensic experts from more than 20 countries are assisting in body identification. Three centers for identifying victims are left: Bang Maruan morgue, Mai Khao morgue and the Phuket Disaster Victim Identification Center. (Mar-14, Xinhua)

 

Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra on May 19 ordered a probe into a land dispute in the Hat laem Pom community in Phangnga province between villagers and a private firm, which claimed to be the owner of the plot. (May 19, Bangkok Post)

 

Tourism Council of Thailand President Vichit Na Ranong says that Phuket lost at least 20 billion baht (US$502 million) between January and March (the high season). (May 18, Phuket Gazette)

 

The tsunami reportedly destroyed 40 percent of the hotel rooms in 6 provinces. (May-6, Reuters) Disaster expected to cost tourist industry some US$780 million (30 billion baht) in 2005. (Mar-24, Reuters) Phuket, Phang Nga and Krabi contribute about half of Thailand’s tourism revenues.

 

Smith Dharmasarojana, who is in charge of the country’s tsunami early warning system, said a hotline for information on disasters and warnings would open soon. (May 20, Bangkok Post)