By Usha Rajeev

“We wanted to share our experiences with media, but media was focusing mostly on VIPs who were visiting our affected areas. Though media covered news of the compensation to be given by the government, still we are waiting to receive it….”

“Many television channels, especially BBC, unnecessarily communalised the situation and reported that Dalits have been exploited. But it was not true. Based on this report, even our local media also reported the same. Is this the role of media? We look to the media for help and we don’t want media to add any fuel to the situation.”

“Many orphan children are around us. We do not have any confidence to send our children to some stranger’s family. There should be some long term plans for rehabilitation…”

These are just a few of the statements made by survivors of the tsunami disaster who attended a seminar on 'Role of the media in disaster management', recently held in Bangalore.

The event, which took place on 6 February 2005, was jointly organised by Saarathi - A Resource Centre for Communication, the prestigious CMR Institute of Management, and AID-India. The main focus of the seminar was the media’s role and responsibility in such situations.

Discussions at the seminar took place in two sessions. The first provided a platform for direct interaction between survivors of the tsunami disaster, media persons who had covered the tragic event and its aftermath, and people working with NGOs involved in relief and rehabilitation.

Shravana, a survivor from Caddalur district in TN said that the hamlet to which he belonged was washed away by the killer waves; people who were trying to run away from waves could not escape as the waves dragged them to the side. With approximately 100 huts washed away, he thought that it would take a minimum of three months to get back to normalcy. Dhanalakshmi, a fisherwoman from the same area, added that it was unfortunate that there were no relief measures from the government. Similar feelings were also expressed by Manimaran and Vasudevan.

Balakrishna Puttige, a reporter from Prajavani, said he was emotionally moved as he travelled through the area and passed by broken boats, women and children buried in sand, and other such sad sights. His description of this experience made a deep impression on the audience.

K.R. Sreenivas, metro bureau chief of The Times of India, Bangalore, added that vehicles bearing Karnataka registration were seen moving in affected areas, carrying immediate basic needs — mainly food items — which provided relief and happiness to the survivors. He stressed the need to prioritise the fulfilment of basic needs in such disaster scenarios.

Subramani, secretary and station in charge, Upagraha Amateur Radio Club (HAM Radio), ISRO, gave a brief introduction to HAM and its functioning. He described HAMs as Helping Another Man. He explained how money was pooled to set up radio communication services which provided access to the outside world. Joseph Hoover, photographer, Deccan Herald, also confirmed much of what was said by the other speakers.

All the speakers mentioned the hindrance to relief work caused by the visits of VIPs. At the same time, the spontaneous relief measures taken up by some celebrities were appreciated. The speakers and the audience deplored the sensationalising of coverage by certain sections of the media. The gathering collectively felt that the media should play a mature and responsible role in the coverage of such tragedies. The moderator, Shiv Shankar, chief reporter, Kannada Prabha, summed up the session.

The second session focused on the role of voluntary organisations in providing relief measures through the media. Chetan Kumar, Regional Director of the Indo-global Social Service Society, explained the role played by IGSSS in the affected areas, as well the role of some of efficient/dedicated government officials and NGOs.

Dr. Parthasarathi, professor and head of the department of psychiatric social work, NIMHANS, spoke about the importance of relieving the mental trauma of survivors. Explaining the various phases of disaster — from a few hours after the event to the reconstruction phase – he talked about the role of voluntary organisations in each of these phases. He specially highlighted the factors involved in the psychological response to survivors in each phase.

A.S. Chandramouli, deputy director, audience research and marketing, Doordarshan, Bangalore, was of the opinion that by and large the media is aware of its limitations. However, he did point out the tendency of some private channels to sensationalise tragedies. That, according to him, is not possible to control.

C.U. Bellakki, assistant station director, All India Radio, Bangalore, regretted the neglect of radio. According to him, radio can be a highly effective tool of communication during natural disasters. Vasudevan, from DYFD, also spoke, outlining his organisation’s involvement in relief operations.

The moderator, Poornima Vysalu, Project Director, CBPS, summed up the sessions with these valuable recommendations:

1. The relief operations from the government should be speeded up.
2. Fishing, the main occupation of the affected people, should be resumed at the earliest.
3. Widows and orphaned children should be rehabilitated suitably.
4. NGOs should play an important role in restoring the self-confidence of the affected people.
   

The chief guest, C. Chandrashekar, IPS, department of information, said that life is continuous and must go on in spite of occurrences such as disasters. Now the time has come to think about the reconstruction of life in the affected areas. He stated the need to make prior preparations to effectively face natural disasters and to formulate proper procedures and rules for implementing such plans.

According to participants in the seminar, the government and other agencies should function in an atmosphere of mutual cooperation and trust. The symposium focused in depth on a humanitarian response to the tragedy and methods of dispensing information through and by the media.
The audience also disapproved of those agencies that got free publicity without any meaningful participation. Further, the audience felt that the electronic media had failed to sensitise the people.

The symposium succeeded in eliciting meaningful ideas about the responsibilities of everyone concerned during natural disasters. It also effectively focused on how a responsible government should react in such times of disaster and what kind of relief should be taken up, keeping in view humanitarian considerations and the sensitivities of the affected people.

Despite the fact that India experiences major disasters frequently, the administration and civil society fail to face such situations in a timely and effective manner. One way to increase efficiency would be to streamline the disaster management cell of the government.

Before concluding, it would be appropriate to quote from a recent article by journalist Ammu Joseph (from India Together):

“… If disasters are not socially neutral in their impact, policies and programmes for relief, reconstruction and rehabilitation cannot afford to be socially neutral either.

"If the government and other agencies involved in post-disaster or, indeed, post-conflict work have not yet learnt this well-documented lesson, it is up to the media to remind them – and the public -- of the special needs, problems and vulnerabilities of various groups, including women, in the aftermath of such events.

“Otherwise why cover disaster or conflict at all? To my mind, if the media are not to play a meaningful, constructive role of this kind, there is no justification for the kind of carpet coverage extended to such events, especially by the 24-hour news channels…”

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