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Tsunami Relief for Marginalized
Groups
The catastrophic tsunami that devastated
South East Asia on Sunday 26th December 2004 struck six provinces
along Thailand's Andaman Coast. Small-scale fisher-folk communities
living in these provinces were very badly affected. Housing,
fishing boats and fishing gears were completely destroyed
in 43 villages and moderately damaged in a further 161 villages.
Some 669 small-scale fisher-folk were killed and 1016 are
still missing.
Immediately after the tsunami NGOs that had
been working with the small-scale fisher-folk provided rapid
assistance - seeking refuges, searching for the missing, arranging
funerals, mobilizing communities and establishing temporary
shelters. Local NGOs formed 'The Coalition Network for Andaman
Coastal Community Support', and some 35 NGOs from across the
country formed 'The Collaborative Network for the Rehabilitation
of Andaman Communities and Natural Resources'. This national
network has now expanded to include some 44 NGOs.
Relief, in most cases, is arriving too slowly
or is not meeting the small-scale fisher-folks needs. So the
Sustainable Development Foundation is coordinating the above
coalitions in working with 2,000 small-scale fisher-folk families
to provide immediate relief and ensure sustainable recovery
for the communities and the natural resources devastated by
the disaster.
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