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Making the relief effort effective

This is an hour of deep torment for Sri Lanka. For at least 140 persons, Ratnapura and some adjacent districts have proved a cavernous watery grave in flash floods estimated as the worst since 1947. Thousands of others are marooned or are homeless. In the case of several, the immediate, dire need is safety and protection from rampaging flood waters.

Besides the magnitude and vast extent of the floods, it is the seeming suddenness of the deluge which has taken most by surprise. Yesterday, we focussed on relentless environmental degradation and connected factors as contributing significantly towards this calamity.

Callous disregard of environmental safety concerns and considerations, besides the over-exploitation of natural resources are likely to figure prominently in an analysis of the causes which could have led to a deluge of these proportions but we also need to seriously re-assess our concept of development if future tragedies of this kind are to be averted. In fact, while doing everything possible to relieve the suffering of the flood-affected, we need to learn lessons for the future from this great tribulation.

If there is one lesson we learnt from the "great deluge" of 1992 in Colombo, it was the need to carefully plan out our physical infrastructure and housing construction projects. In the final analysis it was the "building boom" and haphazard development which caused the great watery woes of 1992. We found that important marsh land and low-lying areas in Colombo and the suburbs, which functioned as sponges in the absorption of excess water, had been built on to a large extent.

Likewise, we need to find out where we have erred in our physical infrastructure development plans in the provinces too. Meanwhile, the humanitarian relief effort in the flood-affected areas should be implemented effectively and in double-quick time. Lives need to be saved and the needs of flood victims met expeditiously.

We notice that a number of State agencies and other organisations are involved in the relief effort. The activities of these bodies need to be effectively coordinated and organised, to guard against an overlapping of functions and the wasteful disbursement of resources. We reiterate, however, that the saving of lives should take priority over other considerations.

In view of the gravity of this tragedy, Sri Lankans need to work as one man towards the bringing of relief to the flood-affected. We call for a sinking of all differences among the people in this trying humanitarian effort. The problem facing the country should be considered a national challenge requiring an united, alleviatory effort on the part of all. Political opportunism in particular, should never be resorted to, in consideration of the enormous human dimension of the problem.

Ideally, a spirit of austerity and sacrifice needs to descend on the people - particularly on those who could consider themselves more fortunate. Willingly and with outstretched arms should they go to the rescue of their brethren victimized by the flood waters. Giving and caring are vitally important at the moment.

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