Emergency Response

Since December 26, 2004, when an earthquake off the northern Indonesian island of Sumatra unleashed the tsunami, leaving as many as 230,000 dead and hundreds of thousands of people homeless in South and Southeast Asia, the United Church has been working with partners in the affected region to help rebuild damaged and destroyed communities. As we take stock of what has been achieved, there is much to celebrate.

We have worked successfully with such partners as Churches Auxiliary for Social Action (CASA) in Tamil Nadu, India, to help build new homes and restore livelihoods for many families. Some partners had the capacity for immediate food and clothing relief work, while others such as the Church of North India are still building schools and churches that were washed away.

Vikas Adhyayan Kendra (VAK), with community participation, has created a five-year plan for reconstruction that includes alternative livelihoods and training courses as well as reinvigoration of the marine ecology and agricultural capacity.

Some partners, such as Human Rights and Advocacy Foundation (HRF), concentrate on advocacy and campaign for the rights of traditional fishers and for just compensation for those rights in post-tsunami reconstruction are blocked by societal discrimination.

The generous donations of United Church members across Canada, including support from the Mission and Service Fund, have made possible this work of restoration and rehabilitation work that touches the lives of individual families in real and concrete ways. Over $1.5 million has been raised in donations to the Tsunami Appeal.

The Canadian International Development Agency* (CIDA) has contributed $844,705 in matched funds. These contributions are being put to work in ways that are having a meaningful impact for people at the grassroots of South and Southeast Asian society.

Working ecumenically with other Canadian churches and bilaterally with partners, the United Church is living up to its commitment to long-term accompaniment of global partners by being present for partners in South and Southeast Asia as they enter new stages of the rebuilding process. We will continue to receive and support their proposals for community and livelihood reconstruction. We will also continue to support their efforts for changes in policies that affect the lives of people affected by the tsunami by engaging in advocacy work here in Canada.

Updates and resources shared on the United Church website and through Infopac mailings to pastoral charges over the last year have been helping to share information and stories from our partners related to the unfolding emergency in the region.

News & Resources

• Day by Day, Step by Step: an ecumenically produced video on the tsunami response is broadcast February 12, 2006.
• Action by Churches Together (ACT) has posted material on The ACT Tsunami Response: Two Years Later* including the PDF "ACT Members Mark Second Year of Tsunami Response "