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

 

August 25, 2005

 

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

 

 

Table of Contents:

 

Overview......................................page 2

Indonesia.....................................page 4-9

Sri Lanka.....................................page 10-13

Thailand.......................................page 14-17

Overview

 

·      The overall focus of attention is on long-term recovery and rehabilitation for the December 26, 2004 earthquake and tsunami disaster. The dead and missing toll from tsunamis triggered by the undersea earthquake measuring 9.0 on the Richter scale off the west coast of Indonesia’s Sumatra Island was 232,010 (Jun-22, Reuters) people along the coastal areas of 11 countries in the Indian Ocean. 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 was particularly severe in Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India and Thailand. Nearly 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 in Thailand is around 5,400, including about 1,953 foreigners from at least 36 countries. More than 400 combined deaths have been reported in the other countries.

 

·      Coordination:

 

·    Indian Ocean Earthquake-Tsunami Flash Appeal Expenditure Tracking: http://ocha.unog.ch/ets/Default.aspx

 

·      International Assistance:

 

·    UN raised its initial appeal of US$977 million to US$1.086 billion. (Apr-6, Reuters) Reuters reports that government and multilateral agencies have pledged around US$9 billion in aid for nations affected by the disaster, while global private donations amounted to almost US$5 billion. (Aug-11, Reuters)

 

·    Delegates from the UN, World Bank, governments and humanitarian groups began talks today (Thursday, August 25) in Singapore at the start of a two-day conference on how lessons learned from the tsunami disaster can help the Asia region better prepare for threats ranging from terrorism to diseases. The conference is being hosted by the Singapore International Foundation. Representatives will exchange ideas on information sharing and logistics, as well as early warning systems and preparations already in place for the next potential tsunami disaster. (Aug-25, AP)

 

·    Wetlands experts say that governments are failing to properly restore coastal mangrove forests damaged in the tsunami, which saved lives and houses by absorbing some of the force of the waves. Expert Faizal Parish, Director of the Malaysia-based Global Environment Centre told a conference meeting in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, that the mangroves are important ecological areas that have not been properly revitalized. The mangroves also helped reduce the deadly swirl of debris and provided anchors for people to cling to, according to Faizal. He says more efforts need to be done in the next 3 to 6 months to focus on getting the strategy right. He says that about 30 to 40 million dollars was needed to rehabilitate 890 miles (1,300 kilometers) of damaged coastline. (Aug-25, AFP)

 

·    According to a six-month progress report issued by the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) less than half the funds committed for women’s reproductive health, safety and equality in parts of South Asia affected by the disaster have been used. Thus far, only some US$11.7 million of the US$26.9 million has been spent. UNFPA says that considerable progress in certain areas has been achieved, however, a “narrow pipeline effect” has impeded faster progress. (Aug-22, UNNC)

 

·    Delegates of 27 Indian Ocean countries decided to set up a network of seabed sensors and buoys as part of a tsunami warning system. The system may be in place by summer 2006, but some buoys may be in place by December. The three-day forum in Perth Australia, which ended Friday, August 5, decided that seven warning centers instead of one would be created. The centers will be based in Australia, India, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand, Iran and Pakistan. (Aug-11, BBC) At the meeting, it was also decided that India would be the warning system’s first head, a position that will rotate every two years. Indonesia and Mauritius were elected vice-chairs. (Aug-3,4 Reuters, AFP)

 

·      Food: WFP expects to feed about 800,000 people in Indonesia for at least another year; in Sri Lanka, about 915,000 people being fed—distributions will discontinue in August and will give way to targeted and recovery-oriented approaches; in Thailand, food assistance provided to some 26,000.

 

·      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.

 

·      Security: Reports of a killing of former GAM member in Aceh province being investigated.

Indonesia

 

Organization

 

Overview …………………………………………………………page 5

 

Sectors……………………………………………………………page 6

Overview:

 

Indonesia’s Information Minister, Sofyan Djalil, said Wednesday (August 24) that Indonesia’s military (TNI) would not be held responsible for alleged war crimes committed during a nearly three-decades long separatist war in Aceh province.  “The spirit of the accord was to forgive,” Djalil said.  A historic peace agreement signed between the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) and the Indonesian government on August 15, allows for the creation of a truth and reconciliation commission as well as a human rights court.  However, only alleged crimes after the August 15 signing date would be investigated.  Djalil says that neither the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) nor the Indonesian government would bring up alleged rights abuse cases.  However, the Associated Press reports that rebel leaders say they are confident that a truth and reconciliation commission would hear past crimes. 

 

Indonesia’s military chief, General Endriartono Sutarto and defence minister Juwono Sudarsono cautioned Wednesday (August 25) about the challenges facing the implementation of the peace pact in Aceh.  These warnings come as news of fresh violence was reported in the province.  Police in the provincial capital, Banda Aceh, said that over the weekend, a former rebel was killed by an unidentified gunman.  Agence France Presse reported that the Initial Monitoring Presence (IMP), which is tasked with preparing for the arrival of more than 200 peace monitors from the European Union (EU) and nations from the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), known as the Aceh Monitoring Mission (AMM) are investigating the incident.  “That this (disarmament) will not take place in a perfect manner is a certainty…we understand that there are factions within GAM and there are those who oppose the agreement which has been signed,” Sutarto said.  He urged the GAM to clamp down on any rebellious factions, saying that the TNI had shown good faith by withdrawing some of its forces already.  Sudarsono also said that he anticipated potential problems to arise, such as land disputes between rebels and tsunami survivors.  However, he said that the government’s lack of “speed and accuracy” in preparing a mechanism to compensate rebels was more of a problem.  “There is still no explanation about whether the funds are sufficient or the government has prepared a clear mechanism to distribute them,” Sudarsono warned. 

 

The Initial Monitoring Presence (IMP) team has already started working to monitor security conditions ahead of the implementation of the peace deal.  The IMP will monitor security conditions from August 15 to September 14.  The Aceh Monitoring Mission (AMM) comprising a special peace observer force of around 220 unarmed personnel from the European Union (EU), the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Norway, and Switzerland, is expected to be operational by September 15 when GAM rebels are to begin to disarm .  The AMM is expected to continue its monitoring activities through December 2005.  The AMM personnel will not wear uniforms or carry weapons. In an interview with the Jakarta Post, AMM chief, Pieter Feith, said that the mission is already assuming tasks ahead of schedule.  He said that potential problems are a question of whether or not safety and security is ensured in the field, particularly after arms have been laid down.  He says that AMM would count on well-coordinated arrangements with security troops and was encouraged by the recent handling by security troops of individual GAM members who came to turn in their weapons the other day.  Feith added that he has also met with GAM leaders in the field and said that they are also very much looking forward to implementation of the peace agreement. 

 

Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported that at least 60 Free Aceh Movement (GAM) rebels left their strongholds in the mountains in Manggamat, South Aceh district on Tuesday (August 23), following the withdrawal of some 1,300 Indonesian military (TNI) soldiers from the army’s Kostrad strategic reserve on Monday (August 22).  An Aceh military spokesperson, Major Priyo Purwoko, said that the rebels would be placed under military protection.  The state Antara news agency says that the rebels had been leaving their hideouts in groups since the peace pact was signed on August 15.  Under the agreement, GAM rebels have to surrender their weapons at specific locations to the AMM. According to reports in the International Herald Tribune (IHT), about 30,000 non-local police and military forces are scheduled to leave Aceh by December 2005.  The departing troops will be replaced by a 21,000-strong local security force, comprised of around 14,000 military and 7,000 police.  The agreement calls for the disarming and demobilization of GAM’s 3,000 members, the destruction of their weapons by international monitors, and the removal of non-local Indonesian military and police by the end of the year. 

 

Indonesian Minister of Justice and Human Rights, Hamid Awaluddin, announced on Monday (August 22) that more than 90 percent of the almost 1,500 Free Aceh Movement (GAM) prisoners would be eligible for the amnesty.  Another group of nearly 500 GAM prisoners who were recently released after receiving remission, a pardon given to prisoners for good behavior to mark Indonesian Independence Day, will also reportedly be able to benefit from the amnesty.  He said however, that convicted criminals would not be eligible for the amnesty.  According to the peace deal, Jakarta is required to grant amnesty to “all persons who have participated in GAM activities” no later than 15 days after the signing of the pact.  Hamid said that he and State Secretary Yusril Ihza Mahendra are scheduled to meet with the House of Representatives to discuss the amnesty policy.  Some lawmakers have been critical of the peace process and it is unclear whether their views will affect the government’s planned amnesty program, the Jakarta Post reports.

 

 

Sri Lanka

 

 

Overview…………………………………………………..page 11

 

Sectors…………………………………………………….page 11

 

Overview:

 

After last week’s agreement to hold a review of ceasefire implementation talks, the Sri Lankan government and the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebels have yet to agree on a location for these talks. The LTTE proposed that the talks be held in Oslo, Norway, home to the LTTE's chief mediators of the talks. However on Thursday (August 24), Sri Lankan government spokesperson and Minister of Health, Nimal Siripala De Silva said, “Since the talks are going to be held on ceasefire violations and strengthening the truce, the talks must be held in Sri Lanka.” Because of this impasse on the location, neither party was able to indicate when the proposed talks would take place. Last week, following the August 12 assassination of Sri Lankan Foreign Minister, Lakshman Kadirgamar, the Sri Lankan government and the LTTE agreed to hold high-level talks to discuss the implementation of the 2002 ceasefire agreement. The agreement to hold a review came in the midst of the fallout following Kadirgamar’s assassination, during which the Sri Lankan government blamed LTTE rebels for the assassination and the LTTE rebels denied involvement. After Kadirgamar’s assassination, Sri Lankan President Chandrika Kumaratunga declared a state of emergency and called for a review of the implementation of the ceasefire agreement. Kumaratunga also asked Norway, the chief peace mediator with the rebel group, for a direct meeting with the rebels to review the implementation of the ceasefire to prevent further killings and other violations. Politically the Sri Lankan government seems to be in agreement in moving forward with the talks. The main opposition party, the United National Party (UNP), has supported Kumaratunga's efforts toward talks for the implementation of the ceasefire. Once the date and venue is set, the talks will represent the first high-level talks between the government and the rebels in nearly 30 months.

Sector Status
Affected Population	Sri Lanka has combined the figures for its dead and missing into one figure for dead and presumed dead and missing. The combined total stands at 38,940. (Jun-22, 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.
Coordination	An August report, “Listening to those Who Lost”, published by the Sri Lankan Institute for Policy Studies and the World Bank, highlights the challenges and limitations in coordination and cooperation in relation to housing, homelessness, and rebuilding. (Aug-16, Reliefweb;IPS)   The Task Force for Rebuilding the Nation (TAFREN) has established a Helpline to provide information for queries of tsunami-affected in the country. (July-7, UNOCHA)   Joint mechanism deal, officially known as the Post-Tsunami Operations Management Structure (P-TOMS) to allow committees from the LTTE, the government and Muslims to discuss and monitor tsunami aid projects. Sri Lankan Supreme Court temporarily blocked the deal and is expected to decide on a ruling in September.   The Task Force for Relief (TAFOR) will collate and analyze data, coordinate and facilitate relief measures connected to healthcare, education, foreign donor assistance and food relief. 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.   Information on many NGO activities can be obtained from the following link: http://www.humanitarian-srilanka.org/ (under Tsunami 2004 Information Center)
Logistics	For logistical information see: http://www.unjlc.org.
Food	WFP says it is feeding some 915,000 people. Food distributions will discontinue in August and will give way to targeted and recovery-oriented approaches. (Jun-27, WFP) WFP says targeted feeding currently reaches 260,000 mothers and children through Maternal Child Health projects and 144,000 children through school feeding programs. (Jun-27, WFP)
Water and Sanitation	Xinhua reports that The Daily News said that a large-scale Red Cross assisted program on construction, rehabilitation and improvement of water supply and sanitation facilities in affected areas would be launched soon. The project will be implemented in Hambantota, Galle, Matara, Ampara and Jaffna districts at a cost of some US$100 million. The Sri Lanka Red Cross Society, supported by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies will coordinate implementation in cooperation with the GoSL. (Aug-24, Xinhua)   IFRC says it is producing and distributing over 3 million liters of water a week, which benefits up to 50,000 people.
Public Health and Medical
Shelter	IOM says it has constructed over 3,000 transitional houses, which are designed to last between two to four years. In the first two weeks of August, IOM finished 403 transitional houses and an additional 512 are currently under construction. So far, land has been allocated for IOM to build a total of 3,910 transitional homes in 7 districts. (Aug-19, UNOCHA)   IFRC says it has pledged to build up to 15,000 houses. IFRC currently has sites confirmed for over 2,800 houses. (Aug-11, IFRC)   World Bank in Sri Lanka found about 90,000 homes fully or partially destroyed. The Bank has allocated initial US$40 million for permanent housing cash grants. (June-2, World Bank)   TAFREN chair Mano Tittawela said that 7,000 permanent houses have been completed and said that 80 percent of the required permanent housing for the displaced will be completed before the end of this year. (July-7, GoSL)
Infrastructure	The Ministry of Housing and Construction Industry, Eastern Province Education and Irrigation Development, has launched a program to reconstruct school buildings in the Eastern Province. UNOCHA says that almost 50 percent of the school buildings were destroyed or partially damaged due to the tsunami. (Aug-19, UNOCHA)   The Ministry of Tourism and the Sri Lanka Tourist Board have reportedly developed short- to long-term recovery plans for 15 coastal towns in Galle district. The resort towns will reportedly be master-planned. UNOCHA reports the return of local and foreign tourists in Galle town and nearby popular local beaches. (Aug-11, UNOCHA)   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   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 Census and Statistics Department. (Apr-29, Daily News)   The Minister of Agriculture says that direct damage to the farmers of the tsunami was some US$3.5 million.
Security
International Financial Assistance	Officials say that international 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.  (May-20, Reuters)   The government has estimated that it will cost up to US$1.6 billion to rebuild infrastructure destroyed or damaged.  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.  (May-11, 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.

Thailand

 

 

 

Overview. ………………………………………………. page 15

 

Sectors……………………………………………………page 15

 

Overview:

 

The head of the victim identification centre in Thailand says that by the end of 2006, investigators should finish identifying all the bodies of the people killed in Thailand by the tsunami. Police General Noppadol Somboonsub said that the Thai Tsunami Victim Identification (TTVI) Information Management Centre has identified around 2,200 bodies out of about 3,777. “As of now there are some 1,500 bodies (awaiting identification), of which 200 bodies are foreigners and the rest are Thai. We expect to finish identifying the foreigners by the end of this year and the rest by the end of next year,” he said. He says that the process could drag on for another two to three years because many victims were illegal immigrants whose families are afraid to come forward. He says undocumented Myanmar and Cambodian workers would take longer to investigate because of delays in obtaining information from relatives. Noppadol said that Thai officials would close down the Phuket identification centre by the end of this year and move all remaining bodies to Ban Bang Maruan cemetery in Phang Nga province and Bangkok. The Nation reports that Noppadol said that if the unidentified bodies could still not be identified within a few months, they would be removed from refrigerated containers and buried to save money. Australia on August 19 donated a mobile disaster victim identification facility worth some US$52,000 to the Thai national police office. (Aug-19,22, AFP; Aug-22, The Nation)