Even after one year since the devastating Indian Ocean tsunami wreaked havoc in about ten coastal countries, killing hundreds of thousands of people and leaving behind a trail of destruction, a large number of survivors still live in miserable conditions, waiting to be rehabilitated, a UN report has said.
Women are increasingly vulnerable to physical and sexual violence, according to Mr Miloon Kothari, Special Rapporteur on adequate housing of the UN Commission on Human Rights, and UN Secretary General Kofi Annan’s Representative on the Human Rights of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), Walter Kälin.
“We are concerned that a year later, reconstruction efforts are plagued by serious delays and have not been awarded the priority they so urgently warrant,” they said in their report.
“On this, the one-year anniversary of the Asian tsunami, we strongly encourage the international community to intensify its efforts to assist the governments of India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, the Maldives, Thailand and Somalia to rebuild the lives, livelihoods and homes of those affected by the Tsunami, in fulfilment of their obligations under international human rights law,” they said.
The experts cited as examples poor living conditions that fail to meet international human rights standards, lack of attention to high numbers of IDPs, lack of access to basic services like water, sanitation and healthcare, inequities in aid distribution and failure to involve affected communities in aid distribution and reconstruction.
The statement said that although international attention seemed to be waning rapidly, post-Tsunami challenges continued to have an enormous impact on affected communities, family structures and social relations. This was particularly so in case of women and vulnerable groups like children.
The experts said the presence of military forces in some camps where Tsunami survivors are living, as well as the lack of privacy in temporary shelters, raised serious concerns regarding women’s physical safety, and has increased their vulnerability to physical and sexual violence, illustrating once again the close nexus between violence against women and the lack of adequate housing.
“Reports of domestic violence have been widespread, as the inadequate nature of housing design and settlement layout have only served to exacerbate already tense relations in the home due to the stressful nature of life post-Tsunami,” it said.
Noting that the phenomenon of so-called ‘tsunami marriages’ among under-age girls was common in some areas, especially in southern India and Sri Lanka, they said it was essential that relief and rehabilitation efforts were carried out in a gender-sensitive manner and take into account the special needs and concerns of women.
Efforts must also be made to uphold the rights of children, they also said. Special guarantees should be put in place for orphaned children to enable them to receive entitlements to land and compensation instead of merely absorbing them into existing family units exercising temporary guardianship.
The experts recommended urgent steps like increased accountability of public and private aid providers towards the people they are trying to assist, a more pro-active role in reconstruction efforts by governments, mechanisms ensuring transparency in disbursal of funds and concerted efforts to ensure that political interests do not threaten rehabilitation work, especially in conflict-ravaged areas.
Women are increasingly vulnerable to physical and sexual violence, according to Mr Miloon Kothari, Special Rapporteur on adequate housing of the UN Commission on Human Rights, and UN Secretary General Kofi Annan’s Representative on the Human Rights of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), Walter Kälin.
“We are concerned that a year later, reconstruction efforts are plagued by serious delays and have not been awarded the priority they so urgently warrant,” they said in their report.
“On this, the one-year anniversary of the Asian tsunami, we strongly encourage the international community to intensify its efforts to assist the governments of India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, the Maldives, Thailand and Somalia to rebuild the lives, livelihoods and homes of those affected by the Tsunami, in fulfilment of their obligations under international human rights law,” they said.
The experts cited as examples poor living conditions that fail to meet international human rights standards, lack of attention to high numbers of IDPs, lack of access to basic services like water, sanitation and healthcare, inequities in aid distribution and failure to involve affected communities in aid distribution and reconstruction.
The statement said that although international attention seemed to be waning rapidly, post-Tsunami challenges continued to have an enormous impact on affected communities, family structures and social relations. This was particularly so in case of women and vulnerable groups like children.
The experts said the presence of military forces in some camps where Tsunami survivors are living, as well as the lack of privacy in temporary shelters, raised serious concerns regarding women’s physical safety, and has increased their vulnerability to physical and sexual violence, illustrating once again the close nexus between violence against women and the lack of adequate housing.
“Reports of domestic violence have been widespread, as the inadequate nature of housing design and settlement layout have only served to exacerbate already tense relations in the home due to the stressful nature of life post-Tsunami,” it said.
Noting that the phenomenon of so-called ‘tsunami marriages’ among under-age girls was common in some areas, especially in southern India and Sri Lanka, they said it was essential that relief and rehabilitation efforts were carried out in a gender-sensitive manner and take into account the special needs and concerns of women.
Efforts must also be made to uphold the rights of children, they also said. Special guarantees should be put in place for orphaned children to enable them to receive entitlements to land and compensation instead of merely absorbing them into existing family units exercising temporary guardianship.
The experts recommended urgent steps like increased accountability of public and private aid providers towards the people they are trying to assist, a more pro-active role in reconstruction efforts by governments, mechanisms ensuring transparency in disbursal of funds and concerted efforts to ensure that political interests do not threaten rehabilitation work, especially in conflict-ravaged areas.
