RESILIENCE IN DEVASTATION

 

Charles Badenoch, Chief Executive of World Vision UK, has just returned from Tamil Nadu in southeast India. He was there to view for himself, not just the much talked about destruction, but also to see how the international aid agencies are working together to ease the plight of those whose lives have been devastated by the Asian tsunami. Faith for Life caught up with him for his on-the-spot report.

 

FFL:  The Asian tsunami was the world's worst natural disaster in living memory. How will aid agencies such as World Vision manage to avoid 'compassion fatigue'?

CB:"World Vision was able to respond quickly to the disaster across the region because we were already working in many of the affected areas. This would not have been possible without the ongoing commitment of our supporters, but we understand that poverty and recovery from disasters takes a long time. In Asia, the tremendous damage that was done in 15 minutes could take up to 15 years to put right.

"But compassion is an infinite resource. The impact of the tsunami has been felt around the world and there is a great will to work towards the long-term global goal of eradicating poverty. We need to help people to realise that they have much in common with communities ravaged on Boxing Day and that it is not a one-way relationship; in our giving, we will receive. The people in Tamil Nadu where I was, as in Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Thailand may live with material poverty, but there is no poverty of spirit there. We can learn a great deal from them.

FFL: World Vision and more than 150 agencies formed a coalition to spearhead an initiative called Make Poverty History . Together they urge Governments and international decision-makers to effect urgent changes in three critical areas: trade justice, debt cancellation and more and better aid. Does the Chief Executive of World Vision think that this catastrophe in Asia will prove to be a catalyst for change?

 

CB:"Yes I do think so. There has been an unprecedented outpouring of donations from all across the world, and for the first time the people are leading the politicians. For example, World Vision's worldwide tsunami appeal is likely to top £100 million, but the interesting thing is that nearly three quarters of this will come from the public and the rest from government donors - that's about the opposite of the ratio we would normally expect.  

 

FFL:One surprising thing about the aftermath of the devastating wall of water that day is that while most experts expected a wave of various diseases to follow, this has not been the case. Why is that?

 

CB:"Yes, a number of people have picked up on that one, although we're not through yet. I think it's down to the tremendous response and expertise of aid agencies in coordination with local communities and authorities. Getting clean water to affected communities and providing sanitation is a major priority in any disaster response. In addition, people have been quick to deal with the traumatic and grim task of dealing with hundreds, even thousands of corpses lying in the sun.

 

FFL:Many people, including Kofi Annan, have said that the scale of the utter destruction is the worst they have ever seen. Charles agreed, but he was equally struck by the resilience of the people, young and old alike.

 

CB:"The people weren't sitting around moping. There was no poverty of spirit. Everywhere there was activity, resilience, hope and smiles. Electricity lines were going up, communities were already starting to be rebuilt, children were saying that they wanted to be back at school to see their friends who had survived. One little boy told me he wanted to go fishing to help support his family.  

"I was reminded of a farmer whom World Vision helped in Ethiopia. When we met him he offered us a basket with 40 eggs in. Our first reaction was to graciously refuse, he needed the eggs far more than we did. But he insisted, 'You must take them, for it is in giving that I receive', he said.  

"That spirit was everywhere in Tamil Nadu. There are many stories of selflessness. In households visited by World Vision staff in an effort to find out how best to help the people they would often say, 'Before you go, you must see the people next door', or 'The neighbour across the street is in hospital. Please see that they are visited'. It seems that however little they have, they are willing to share it. That was the Spirit of Jesus."

 

 

If governments around the world invested as much on a War on Poverty as
they do their War on Terrorism, we would make great strides towards
making poverty history.