UNHumanitarian Response

Mahalchari

Genesis: On August 24th 2003 a

Mahalchari Bengali Businessman was kidnapped. August 25th the traders of Mahalchari bazaar organised a strike for the next day.

On August 26th over a 7 hour period, mobs attacked 9 villages setting fire to homes, looting, destroying crops and mills, stealing farm animals, burning and looting schools and temples and physically attacking and injuring tribals.

The Ministry of DMAR dispatched: 50 metric tonnes of rice, tins of biscuits and a cash allocation of 100,000 Taka.

The MoCHTA made available a grant of Taka 3,000,000 and allocated rice.

The DA sent candles, packets of food and others.

NGOs provided school books, family kits and medicine.

Notwithstanding the immediate and valuable humanitarian assistance provided, there was wide agreement that if further suffering was to be alleviated and family life restored the UN agencies in Bangladesh needed to play their part in augmenting the actions that have already taken place.

Joint Needs Assessment Mission

Composition: Ministry of CHT

Affairs CHT Regional Council UN System (FAO,

UNDP, UNICEF, WFP, WHO)

Duration: 06 – 11 October 2003

Villages Visited Lemuchari Nuapara Pahartali Saw-mill Para Rameshu Karbari

Para Babu Para Basanta Para Kerenganal Durpujjyanala

Problem Statement and Stakeholder Analysis:

Families lost everything. Homes nothing but burnt twisted shells. Cooking utensils, money furniture, bedding, clothes, children’s school books and family savings destroyed. Family stores of rice and seeds scorched into a blackened mass.

Farm tools, ploughs, fishing nets, boats, grinding mills, family sowing machines destroyed. Much needed paddy straw and hay stocks burnt and destroyed.

Partnership for Relief and Recovery

CONFIRMED DONOR RESPONSE

Donor ContributionECHO US$ 942,626OCHA US$ 77,600DANIDA US$ 46,608AusAid US$ 34,887BHC US$ 17,067Total: US$1,118,788

Immediate Interventions

Food Aid Health Water and

Sanitation Housing Education Family Household

Items Agriculture

Medium Term Assistance

Purpose:

To Restartthe Economy and Normal Life Activities

UNDP’s Strategy in the CHT: UNDP has formulated

assistance project for Promotion of Development and Confidence Building in the CHT.

Because of the need to avoid any mix between UNDP normative development activities and the Mahalchari action it is supervised and managed by UNDP international and national staff recruited for this purpose.

However …………..

Work at the programme level is being coordinated, supervised and supported, substantially as well as operationally by UNDP- CHTDF. These services include:

Resource mobilisation/ management and tracking, security management; radio and communication support, information management and technical and operational backstopping from Dhaka and the UNDP office in Rangamati and Khagrachari.

Monthly meetings are coordinated by, UNDP in Rangamati and Khagrachari for the participating humanitarian agencies.

Monthly meetings are planned by UNDP Dhaka with the Ministry of Chittagong Hill Tracts Affairs (MoCHTA), Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief (MDMR), The Regional Council, the District Administration and the Hills District Council and UN agencies.

The UP Chairmen, members of the respective ward, Headmen, Karbaris, locally respected person’s families, and individual victims were consulted. Their assessment of the situation and the most appropriate mix of interventions and priority of one intervention over another was fully taken into consideration.

Listening to Community, Local Leaders and Beneficiaries

Link between the intervention action, and the findings of the assessment:

Solutions to shelter needs are having an immediate impact and helping to restore confidence and a return to normal village life.

Replacement of destroyed and looted seeds, grinding mills, low lift pumps, and power tillers will reduce the dangers of families becoming dependent on food aid in the long term.

Improved access to household goods including clothes, bedding and others is having a profound impact on family health and confidence.

Community based Psychosocial support to reduce emotional and social problems.

Risks and Assumptions

On the basis of the assessment of risk and humanitarian needs, the risk to humanitarian workers and equipment is presently assessed, to be at an acceptable level to allow the humanitarian programme in Mahalchari to be implemented.

Security:

Post August 26th tension and mistrust amongst Tribals and Non-Tribals is extremely high.

Safety and security of UN and partner NGO personnel and property is provided by the Government law enforcing agencies.

The Safety Management Unit (SMU) is the designated unit of UNDP for all security matters. UNDP have extended to the Mahalchari Humanitarian Operation SMU support.

Arrangements for Safety Coverage

Movement of personnel by road and river routes are planned in advance so that security forces can be deployed to provide protection.

The SMU of UNDP implement and control security clearance procedures.

Field Coordination and Local Implementing Partners

Key roles were played by the Chittagong Hill Tracts Regional Council, and the Local Authorities including the Deputy Commissioner and officials and the staff of the District Medical Office. UNDP is seeking opportunities to strengthen the capacities of these key institutions including the Regional Council and local NGOs.

Actions since the first contribution was received in December ‘03

International and National Staff recruited.

Mahalchari Operation Unit established and hosted in the CHTDF offices in Rangamati and Khagrachari.

Mahalchari Humanitarian action hosted with the Ministry DMAR.

Budget and administration procedures established.

River and Road transport identified and dedicated.

Security coverage including radio systems established.

Construction of the first 30 shelters started.

Paddy seeds purchased and distributed to all affected farming families in time for the January planting season. Germination signals extremely positive.

Winter clothes procured and successfully distributed.

WFP assumed responsibility for food basket distribution.

First power tillers, irrigation pumps and rice grinding mills provided.

Community psychosocial models and guidelines for situation analysis developed.

Raise awareness amongst service providers about the psychosocial implications of humanitarian work

To develop skills in promoting psychosocial well-being when working with individuals and communities.

Workshops are being run to:

Situational analysis of the psychosocial needs and resources of the villages will shortly be implemented.

The findings will be used

by the communities and the project staff to plan appropriate and culturally relevant psychosocial interventions to enable communities to be socially, culturally and emotionally healthy.

The psychosocial component of the Mahalchari humanitarian project is underpinned by recently developed models.

A paper of best practices will be disseminated at the end of the project.

March 2004

Advocacy and information shared with a cross section of Dhaka based donor representatives along side ECHO Brussels.

Partnership arrangements with NGOs ongoing. (Agreements reached during the reporting period with CARITAS, BITA and Kabidang)