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Feb. 27, 2005 By now the images of horrendous devastation wrought by the December 26 tsunami, which smashed the coasts of over 11 South Asian countries and killed over 200,000 people, have been beamed across the world countless times. The images and sounds of destruction and human pain, suffering, and courage are imbedded in our collective memories, and will perhaps remain for long as part of our visual vocabulary for nature unleashed. The coverage of the tsunami relief efforts, as well as the generous response of ordinary people, especially of people living in democracies—which I believe spurred the action of our leaders—revealed our electronically wired world at its best. In case I had forgotten, Jim, reminds me of the concern I expressed on this website about post-Tsunami development assistance beyond the relief stage [Electronic Words And The Heart Of The Global Village, http://www.useless-knowledge.com/1234/dec/article514.html]. Thank you, Jim, for the nudge. I expressed concern because although calamities bring to the fore the spirit and strengths of a society and its culture, they also surface its fault lines. These fault lines, fissures, and cracks need to be monitored because they make development work a much more challenging undertaking than the initial disaster relief efforts. Exclusion is the bane of every day Indian life. In times of calamities it gets worse. In this case, Jim wants everyone to know, the exclusions are based, at the minimum, on class, caste, and gender. These preferences point to a society wrapped up in an existential and developmental time warp. The signs of impending trouble could be seen even in the early stages of tsunami relief itself, as Dilip D’Souza found out in Pattinacherry Village, Tamilnadu, south India. After reporting the fighting, arguing, and unfairness among neighbors provoked by a private relief effort that he observed in Pattinacherry, D'Souza quotes the late disaster expert, Fred Cuny: "For the survivors of a natural disaster, a second disaster may also be looming." [‘I Deserve More,’ Why Must tragedy be compounded by indignity? India Currents, February 2005, page 8.] News stories of the unequal treatment of elderly tsunami survivors in south India continue to confirm Fred Cuny’s “second disaster” prediction. The exclusion of the lower castes from disaster assistance provides another confirmation. “‘We were pushed out of the queues for food, relief material, and even drinking water. But when two of our youth were hit, we set camp on our own,’” complained one of the victims to a reporter. [Krithika Ramalingam, India Together ezine, Jan. 12, 2005]. A third confirmation of the prediction is the exclusion of women tsunami survivors and people who own no property from assistance programs, although their “livelihoods have also been wrecked by the tsunami.” [Ammu Joseph, India Together, Feb 2, 2005]. Sadly the list of occupations excluded from rehabilitation assistance, which Bangalore-based Ammu Joseph identifies, is a long one and includes several skill sets essential for diversified development: Landless agricultural laborers, share croppers and tenant farmers, fish and boat workers, street vendors and petty traders, transport workers, construction laborers, salt pan workers, service providers like barbers, tailors and cobblers, and crafts persons such as basket-weavers. “Wow!” cries Jim. “This is a system of exclusion gone mad. These exclusions based on class, caste, and gender discrimination will surely turn off the very engines of self-sustaining development the devastated communities need.” “Jim,” I pitch in before his attention flags, “the sad part of all this is that with inclusion these communities would be rebuilt faster. Think of all the engines of development fired up, all the worlds of possibilities opened up! “I believe Ms. Joseph is on target when she says, ‘Disasters are not socially neutral in their impact.’ If not socially neutral, shouldn’t we push for correcting the imbalance? "The more I read about imbalances in development assistance, the more I continue to like the strategy of the American Friends Service Committee (www.afsc.org), the Quaker group, ‘to provide support for groups or communities that might not be served by larger aid responses.’” Jim turns skeptic and wonders whether the Indian and non-Indian non-governmental organizations have the guts to include the excluded groups. “And,” continues Jim “while they are at it, could they please transform the development assistance from a ‘Give-away Program’ into a ‘Community Building Program’? I wish they’d all go for the Jimmy Carter, Habitat for Humanity approach: Expect and require equitable treatment of all as well as sweat equity.” Jim propounds his Democratic Development 101 Maxim: “Each step in development must enhance social, economic, and political participation and choice.” “You ol’ red and blue dawg!” I cry. “After all these years, Jim, YOU ARE INTO TRUE BLUE NATION BUILDING!” My ol’ bhai (Hindi for bro/brother) glows when he hears those words. Go figure that. ------------ About the author: Michael Chacko Daniels, a Californian, grew up in India. He is a writer, editor, community worker, and former clown. Visit him and his works at: http://IndiaWritingStation.squarespace.com Email: mchackod@pacbell.net Tell a friend about this site! ------------ All articles are EXCLUSIVE to Useless-Knowledge.com and are not allowed to be posted on other websites. ARTICLE THIEVES WILL BE PROSECUTED! |
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