| In June, we took a look at some of the people affected by the tsunami and how they were coping. Now five months later, the Bank's external affairs officer in Colombo, Chulie de Silva, revisits those people to see how they've fared and meets some others…... The Fisherman's Fishing... December 16, 2005 —Mahamarakkalage Patabendi Malini is hanging clothes on a clothes line in front of her newly completed house. The freshly plastered house sits adjoining the temporary shelter, they were living in back in June. The Save the Fishermen sign is still nailed to the wooden boards, but inside the shelter is bare, with only some fishing nets. Eleven months after the tsunami Malini's husband Norman is out fishing. He and his family had been lucky last December - safely away from this fishing village in Kalamulla, Paiyagala, so escaping the wrath of the tsunami. "Some days his catch is good but some days it isn't. That's the way with fishing, " Maleni showing the house. Their original house had been outside the Government's buffer zone - the area decreed a no-go zone for rebuilding. Malini says she was lucky to be able to rebuild, but still needs furniture. The Baker is Baking…. Just a few paces down the road in Kalamulla, Paiyagala, within the hundred meter buffer zone, it's a different situation. Don Noel Palliyaguruge, whom we also met in June, is still living in transitional shelter and has not received any housing support or resources to resume his livelihood as a baker. "The fishermen got boats - there are more boats than before, " Noel says. "I could have got a boat, but what use is boat for me." As the sole breadwinner for his family of four, he could not remain idle for long. Scouting around he found and rented an abandoned bakery about four months ago, away from his village, closer to the interior of the Paiyagala town. "There are many bakeries in this part of the town and it is more competitive-I need to start baking in my area because there are no bakeries there," he adds. He is worried about losing his customers and not being able to capitalize on the festive season of Christmas -- the best for making money from baking.  |  |  | | Don Noel Palliyaguruge has rented a bakery inland from his old damaged workplace. |
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The rent for the dilapidated bakery is US$20 [LKR 2000] a month. The recent rains have made the garden water- logged. There are wooden planks set above the squashy mud for access to the bakery. But it has the essential ingredients for Noel the baker-- an oven and a long wooden table to knead his dough. A large pile of kneaded dough is piled on one sides of the table and the empty metal pans are another side. Noel sprinkles flour on the table, oils his hands, breaks a lump from the big pile and with two flicks of his hands, the dough is kneaded and placed it in the pan. The oven is rudimentary. He opens its rusty door, and explains how he loads the oven with firewood and sets them aflame to get hot coals. The hot coals are spread over the floor of the oven. Later the coals are pushed to aside, and the dough filled pans are set to bake in the heated oven. Now he bakes about 175 to 180 loaves a day. He says he is lucky if he can make $7 [LKR 700] a day. He delivers the bread himself using a motorbike, which was donated through a church in Rawathewattha, Moratuwa on the outskirts of Colombo. Noel also bakes part of the bread in the oven that survived the tsunami. "My bakery was new. I had it for only sixteen months and then came the tsunami. --- then I used to bake about 400 loaves a day," says Noel. "I can't make any fancy bread or cakes here." He needs about $3000 [LKR300,000] to rebuild but can't yet see the light at the end of the tunnel. The Government has now relaxed the buffer zone restrictions but he and many others who lived inside the buffer zone, are not sure when or what support will be forthcoming. The Tailor is Sewing…. Further down the road in Maggona at Best Top Tailors, brothers Sujith Priyantha and Ajith Priyanta are busy cutting and sewing. Sujith, the elder worked in Lebanon for four years in a garment factory and invested his savings to set up the tailoring business. "I was a tailor before I left for Lebanon. On my return, I scouted round to find a good location to set up my shop. Maggona had only one old tailor so I set up an attractive shop. One needs to have a posh shop to attract the customers," Sujith says. "Business was good and on good months I earned about $3000 [LKR 30,000] a month and I opened a second shop and put my brother in charge there," he adds. In just a few minutes, the tsunami wiped all his assets and a stock of materials worth $1000. | |  | | Ajith Priyantha and his older brother, Sujith, started "Best Top Tailors" on their return from working in the Middle East. |
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The second shop fared better in the tsunami and damage was relatively less. Using whatever he could salvage, and selling some of his wife's jewellery, Sujith was able to open the shop in March this year. At 30 years of age, Sujith, is the main breadwinner and supports his elderly parents. He had to let go the two other workers he used to employ and now works only with his brother. Some damaged machines are at the repair shop but he has not been able to pay for the repairs. "We need to stay visible at least to provide the most basic service." But he says business is yet to pick up and he can just manage to survive. He, too, has given all his particulars and filled numerous forms but no assistance for small enterprises has been forthcoming. "I am not asking for handouts, but support so we can raise our heads - when I ask the Bank Manager for a $3000 [LKR300,000] loan, he asks for security, and I have none, " Sujith says. Women's Federation Help The situation is different for Nazeera Palli, a mother of two teenagers - a son and a daughter - left destitute by the tsunami. Help was at hand for Nazeera, who lost her total investment in a chicken farm in the arid Hambantota town, one of the worst tsunami hit towns. All her chickens died - they were without food, after the tsunami. But Nazeera had a good Samaritan - the non government organization, the Women's Development Federation, [WDF] more commonly known as Janashakthi, or people's power. The Federation is being supported by a US$944,000 grant from the Japan Social Development Fund [JSDF], one of the World Bank's grant facilities and has supported the establishment of Janashakthi Banking Units to provide micro credit to women. | |  | | Ms. Nazeera Palli runs a small poultry business raising broilers for local consumers. |
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The Japan Social Development Fund provided about $ 1 million to assist tsunami victims in Hambantota in the South and Jaffna, Vavunia, Trincomalee districts in North and East. In Hambantota the WDF provided seed capital, extended micro-credit for income generating activities, gave scholarships to tsunami orphans, and funds to reconstruct damaged banking units in Hambantota, Tangalle and Siribopura. In addition, WDF set up three day care centers, provided sewing machines, bicycles and water pumps to help people resume agricultural activity. Nazeera received a loan of $150 [LKR 15,000] and a cash grant of $50 [LKR 5000] to start afresh. She takes orders for chickens in advance - for weddings, from business organizations. Now she sells about 200 birds a month. Her new location is cramped, but it's close to her extended family. But the limited space means there is not enough room for her to produce eggs. "Getting another house is a dream, but I am determined to get rid of my loan and stand on my own feet," she says. Her other dream is to educate her daughter Siyara and son Sihad. Helping Others In Lewayagoda, Hambantota, WDF provided US$250 [LKR25,000] to Sriyani Mangala to start her brick making business. Sriyani lost her mother, sisters and four other members of her family. Krishna Ranjanie, of the Navaudara village,in Akkarapaha who survived the tsunami too obtained a Janashakthi loan of US30 [LKR3000] to start a small grocery shop on one side of her house The Federation lost 184 members and sixteen volunteers in the tsunami. It's now also helping children orphaned by the tsunami. "We are currently providing scholarships of US$27 [LKR2750] per month to 150 orphans. We will extend this to cover the rest of the orphans," says S.P. Sriyani Mangalika, the dynamic General Manager of WDF. Nazeera Palli sums it up for women in Hambantota: "WDF has been my strength, they gave me the will to live." |
