Tsunami - an
Asian Disaster
While people in North America, Europe and elsewhere
were celebrating Christmas and reveling the holidays,
an enormous earthquake of 9.0 magnitude off the
coast of Sumatra in Indonesia erupted suddenly triggering
gargantuan Tsunamis causing one of the worst natural
disasters in history. Undoubtedly the worst cataclysm
of modern era, it has already claimed, till the
time of writing, some 125,000 lives in 11 countries
throughout Southern Asia.
To many in North America, the countries along the
rim of the Indian Ocean are a mystery, the geography
complex, the national borders hard to follow, the
ethnicity, race and religion of the inhabitants
difficult to fathom. But, to the readers of this
weekly, the region may not be so remote and amorphous.
For me, it holds a special significance as I have
spent several years of my working life in that part
of the world.
I was born, raised and educated in Hyderabad Deccan
and was posted to Indonesia and Thailand during
the 1950s. Twenty years later I had to return to
the region as an international civil servant with
headquarters in Colombo and most of the countries
of South and South-East Asia in the region of my
assignment. A synopsis of the impressions gained
during extensive travels and discussions with planers,
academics and media men are given in a book that
I wrote then and which is now totally outdated and
out of print. Yet, my deep affection and respect
for the people abide.
No wonder, the devastation caused by the Tsunami
has deeply anguished my heart.
There have been catastrophes around the world in
recent years, but this one is of a different order,
not just bigger and crueler, a great destroyer of
human life but a monster that devoured children
preferentially. Words are rendered meaningless and
TV coverage shows only tiny slices of what is happening.
The big screen of a TV is not big enough to portray
the magnitude of the tragedy; and, words fail to
paint it graphically to fully convey the impact.
What is a Tsunami? The dictionary informs us that
it is a Japanese word that stands for “harbor
wave” but it is now used internationally to
refer to a series of waves traveling across the
ocean with extremely long wave lengths, up to hundreds
of miles between one wave crest and the other. It
is caused by a sudden rise or fall of a section
of the earth’s crust under the sea mostly
by a volcanic eruption.
Indonesia tops the list of worst affected countries
with the loss of life exceeding 80,000.
Images of the odd, interesting and noteworthy that
had impacted my memory during my tenure of duty
in Indonesia during 1956-57 and the three trips
decades later, kept occurring to my mind stirring
feelings of empathy and of intense sorrow. The people
are so polite and considerate of the feelings of
others that their language lacks abusive words.
Buddhu (ignorant) and Shaitan (Satan) are regarded
as excessively abusive and offensive terms while
many of us call our children by these words endearingly.
An Indonesian does not take his life very seriously.
Today counts for him much more than tomorrow. This
attitude might mitigate, at least to some extent,
the havoc and agony caused by the Tsunami. But,
it must have certainly damaged the fascinating and
idyllic beauty of that 3,661-island archipelago.
It has turned into rubble and debris the contributions
of man to augment the natural beauty of the area.
My memory of Thailand, another country of my posting,
is full of images of a tourist paradise, of a thousand
nightclubs, friendly and beautiful women, magnificent
Buddhist temples, monasteries, and the intricacies
of an ancient culture. What impressed me most was
the remarkable faculty of the Thai people to come
to terms with rapidly changing condition both at
home and abroad, without compromising their independence.
In 1253 when the hordes of Kublai Khan conquered
their kingdom in Southeast China where they had
lived independently since 650 A.D., they elected
to migrate thousand of miles to the area now called
Siam or Thailand rather than accept an alien rule.
During the nineteenth century they responded with
great tact and sensitivity to thwart the encroachments
of the French and English colonial powers. This
uncanny faculty to adapt and adjust might help them
overcome the damage caused by Tsunami to their coastal
areas and to their souls.
The 3-½ years (1973-76) that I spent in Sri
Lanka have left with me some of the most pleasant
memories of my life. That only adds to the bitterness
of my cup when I see the huge destruction caused
by Tsunami on the east coast of that island.
The vast Yala animal sanctuary in the southeast
of that lush-green garden state was submerged under
seawater. But, surprisingly enough the wild animals
-elephants, leopards, buffaloes, deer and a host
of fowls- appear to have escaped annihilation. They
could perhaps sense the oncoming calamity and rushed
to highlands. Human beings in the coastal areas
could not escape likewise the catastrophe. They
murky hand of death snatched thousands and turned
their living quarters into debris.
A good portion of Male, capital of Maldives, and
many islands are under water till the writing of
this piece. Exact figure on the loss of life is
not available. But, it does not appear to be very
high as the total population of the state is less
than half a million. The 2,000 islands covering
some 475 miles north to south are divided into 19
groups with each group located on a ring shaped
coral reef enclosing a lagoon. These coral islands
rise like platforms, barely eight feet above sea
level, but they are protected by the surrounding
coral reefs that must have dissipated the violence
and energy of Tsunami.
The U.S. media has been referring to the offer of
$35 million made by President Bush as “stingy”.
Being the richest country of the world, they expect
the U.S. to come out with offers befitting the status
of the country in the comity of nations.
Mr. Bush is not a callous person, nor is he all
about America first. He is likely to enhance the
level of assistance once he receives reports from
his brother, Governor Jeb Bush, and from his Secretary
of State, Collin Powell who are currently on a study
tour of the region.
Private citizens like us should, on their part,
donate lavishly to any Tsunami-related charity of
their choice. This is the biggest calamity of our
time and their contribution may save the lives of
some still struggling to keep body and soul together.
Please donate generously, I beg.
(arifhussaini@hotmail.com
Jan. 1, 2005)
