1st December 2006 – 2nd Tsunami Memorial Reception Message

“In the scale of this catastrophe we may be very small and our efforts miniscule, but we have a duty to fight for those who have no voice and to help where otherwise there will be none. Our cause is just: we will not waste your money and with your help we are determined that we will not fail the Tsunami Child in Sri Lanka”.

Ayubowan, Wanakkam, Welcome once again to Garden Court Chambers, Lincoln’s Inn Fields. London to the 2nd Tsunami Reception to commemorate the calamity of Sunday, 26 December 2004.

Once more we proclaim a message that we are with the Tsunami affected children of Sri Lanka – poor, suffering and traumatized. Once more we light the oil lamp to symbolize hope for the future. We again light this candle to dispel the gloom that envelops the land of our birth. This is our response to the violence, the horror and the carnage of first the 20 years of civil war in Sri Lanka and then this dreadful natural calamity. That is why we Solicitors and Barristers established the “Association of Sri Lankan Lawyers (UK) Tsunami Appeal” Registered Charity No. 1108341 and have actively raised money and highlighted the needs of children affected by the Tsunami. As thought precedes action we again pay homage to Lanka.

As we commemorate the 2nd anniversary of the Tsunami, may I thank the Association of Sri Lankan Lawyers and in particular all the members of the Tsunami Committee past and present who tirelessly volunteered their services over the last two years – campaigning, publicizing the issues, attending meetings, selling T-shirts, burning the midnight oil to raise money for the Tsunami Child. To Garden Court Chambers for hosting this Reception in this beautiful building. And most of all the many people who generously supported and assisted us. We say “bohama isthuthi” – Thank you.

The earthquake off the west coast of Northern Sumatra, that occurred at 00:58:50 hours GMT (06:58 a.m. Sri Lanka standard time) with a magnitude of 8.9 on Richter scale was the strongest earthquake recorded anywhere in the world for the last 50 years. It generated a wall of water that sped across thousands of kilometers of sea – the Tsunami.
The first Tsunami to reach the Indian mainland in the last 100 years was in 1941. Before that, a Tsunami was recorded in December 1881.

The Tsunami that was unleashed on Sunday, 26 December 2004 was the worst ever-natural disaster in Sri Lanka. As the Tsunami approached the shore and the depth decreased, the waves slowed down but became higher and it came ashore as a breaking wave – a wall of water – a tide-like flood that smashed into the coastal areas in early morning, leaving a massive trail of death and destruction and rendering millions homeless. Not 2,500 but 40,000 died.

The cruel civil war in Sri Lanka that destroyed the lives of two generations of children has been succeeded by the Tsunami that has destroyed the lives of two more generations of children.

Foremost among the victims of this appalling tragedy were children with thousands killed, seriously wounded and traumatised. Children who survived the Tsunami remain in unsafe environments and are vulnerable to violence, economic exploitation and sexual abuse. Their homes and communities were reduced to rubble. These children of the fishing and coastal communities face an uncertain future, as they may never be allowed to return to their land.
The devastation caused by the Tsunami to the people of Sri Lanka dominated media coverage in the United Kingdom. Many in Britain including the Sri Lankan Community were in a state of shock as it began to unravel with all its horror and devastation.
We recall that the British public was overwhelmingly generous and donated £400 million to help the victims in the affected countries including Sri Lanka. To them we again say thank you. But where did this money go?

We thank those many volunteers that went to Sri Lanka and gave their services without payment and supported the poor and the destitute in their hour of need. We thank the charities for co-coordinating Tsunami relief and assisting reconstruction, but we pour scorn on the shameless, salaried bureaucrats who have wasted enormous amounts money that was raised by the public.

We yet again condemn their waste, the 5star hotels, the four-wheel drive vehicles, etc. Much better had these so-called experts stayed at home and instead allowed the local communities Sinhalese or Tamil to sort out their own problems. We exist because of the scandal that Tsunami relief is still needed 2 years later; that despite the £400 million that was raised by the British public through the Disaster Emergency Committee.

We condemn the fact that £ millions have remained in banks in London, unused, only profiting the bankers of London whilst the victims of the Tsunami have suffered.

We call for the end of any arbitrary rule that prevents the poor, coastal fishing communities – Sinhala, Tamil and Muslim from re-building their homes. We say what is needed is a Tsunami early warning system. The solution to the fear of another Tsunami is an effective early warning system installed in the Indian Ocean without delay and not the denial of people’s rights to their land, their homes and the place of their birth.
We call for Peace. We call for unity between the Sinhalese and the Tamil people, to end the carnage of war and to work together to find a lasting peace in Sri Lanka. Too much blood has been spilt.

A fitting memorial to those who have died might be that of the Tamil Tiger or the Sinhala soldier who died saving the other. It is time to end the cruel war and social inequality that fuelled that strife, by supporting these communities to develop and create their future themselves according to their own needs and aspirations.

This hour yet presents a golden opportunity to remember those who have died by investing in the survivors of the Tsunami, to protect children, orphans and widows, to construct proper homes, to establish decent schools and hospitals, to create jobs and to thereby alleviate endemic poverty.

Why should you support us? We recognize that you may have given a lot to the Disaster Emergency Committee Appeal in 2004 but we appeal for funds because there is still a crying necessity to provide immediate and long-term support, and to protect the rights of Sri Lankan Tsunami affected children in the Northern, Eastern, Western and Southern provinces, regardless of race, caste, or religion.

We appeal for funds because we can provide effective assistance through local organizations that have knowledge and experience.
We have so far assisted: –
1. St Mary’s, Matara in supporting 11 Tsunami affected children until they complete their full-time education. We need assistance to Continue to help these 11 children.
2. The Prithipura Communities – an organisation dedicated to the care and assistance of children with disabilities. This community now includes children affected by the Tsunami.
3. Senthalir project a children’s home in Udayarkuddu in the Northeast of Sri Lanka.The Tsunami destroyed the Senthalir home, and 111 children lost their lives.
4. Coir workers who were affected by the Tsunami.
5. Success Sri Lanka – a group of retired and current doctors committed in providing medical equipment to rural areas.
6. Back to life project, Ahangama to build homes for Tsunami victims.
7. Collecting and sending books and science lab equipment to Tsunami affected areas.
8. The International Bar Association and The Law Society of England and Wales in exchanging information with regard to Lawyers who were personally affected by the Tsunami and given assistance that they may require. Sent Books and financial aid to Law to tsunami affected lawyers.

We intend to support the UK-Sri Lanka Trauma Group that is a set of UK based Sri Lankan doctors dedicated to helping victims traumatised by the tsunami

We are also hoping to help the Peraliya Community Centre that is at the heart of one of the worst losses of life when the sea engulfed a train. The centre is dedicated to provide women with the knowledge, skills, and training to be independent and self- employed.

As we remember with gratitude what our parents and ancestors did for us, we understand the sadness and loss of those who suffered from the Tsunami. We will ensure that the intended recipients – the Tsunami affected children from the poorest sections of Sri Lankan society will be the actual beneficiaries. We will therefore do our best for the Tsunami Child. We ask you for your generous support so that the lives of the survivors may be rebuilt.

Lalith de Kauwe
London
1st December 2006.