Cyclone Stories (a continuation)
Posted by Katie on Wednesday, June 11th, 2008 On my visit back home to Myanmar, I traveled with a team from International Development Enterprises (a GlobalGiving partner) to Dedeya, a village five hours by car from Yangon, the former capital. There, I sat with U Aung Soe and Daw Chi Chi, a young couple with a baby girl, in what was left of their thatched hut. “The baby hasn’t cried since the storm” Daw Chi Chi told me, “I think she is t
oo scared. She fell in the water that night and we almost lost her” she said, tears slowly beginning to form behind her eyes (an unusual sight for most Burmese people). I learned that her family had put their entire life savings - equivalent to $200- in a small envelope beside a bamboo bed mat. The waves washed all the notes away. As Daw Chi Chi began to breastfeed her baby, she gently lifted up the infants head to reveal a deep cut on the back of her skull. “The waves and the wind stirred up everything in the house and a knife we use for cooking cut through her skin” she explained. My Burmese allowed me to understand her story but I was unable to form sentences back, I could only nod and listen. I finally mustered up, “I’m so sorry.”The father turned to me, “It is my fate. I paid for my sins that night.” I wanted to tell him he didn’t deserve this. That it was a horrible natural disaster that the government only made worse by not responding to their needs fast enough…nothing to do with what a person deserved.
Perhaps the only silver lining to this disaster is that the international community has been forced to turn its eyes to Myanmar: the situation is no longer a political catastrophe, it is a humanitarian tragedy. Although it’s taking some time, local and international NGO’s have been able to gain considerable access to hard-hit villages. GlobalGiving has done extensive research to find out which organizations have been able to get aid to the people who need it most. In the most immediate relief stages, some GG partners are addressing basic human needs by providing tarps used for roofing and clean water. The response from villagers has been tremendous- upon receiving a tarp, one lady smiled and said, “I’m going to sleep well tonight!” The cost of a roofing tarp is approximately $15 and a water basket used for clean water is about $20. For the thousands of cyclone survivors who lost everything, a dry place to sleep and clean water to drink are two necessities that have allowed people to finally smile again.
To help, visit www.globalgiving.com/myanmar.
Note: Names of villagers have been changed for their protection.
