As delivered - provisional transcript
Mr Chairman, your Excellencies, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen. I would like to thank you for this opportunity to review our relief and rehabilitation measures for loss and damage of Cyclone Nargis in the Union of Myanmar.
The Cyclone Nargis that hit Myanmar recently – on the 2nd and 3rd May 2008 – was of unprecedented intensity in the history of Myanmar. The depression originated in the Bay of Bengal on the 27th April 2008. It became stronger and formed into a tropical storm the following day. Our Department of Meteorology and Hydrology contacted meteorology and hydrology centres all over the world for the storm news. The storm became severe on the 1st May at about 16.30, and the radius of the storm was of about 200 miles. The wind speed was approximately 120-150 mph, and because of the strong winds, the sea tide reached up to 12 feet high.
Cyclone Nargis struck the southern part of the Irrawaddy Delta area beginning on the evening of the 2nd May. By midnight, it had the struck southern areas of the Yangon Division and the Bago Division. On the 3rd May, it went to Mon and Kayin States. Consequently, seven townships in the Ayeyarwardy Division, with the population of about 1.74 million, and also for the townships in the Yangon Division, with the population of about 5.37 million, reaching a total of about 7.11 million of population, were severely affected by the cyclone.
The strong wind and the accompanying high tidal waves have cost heavy losses of human lives, farming cattle, livestock, as well as extensive damage to properties. Some of the villages were completely wiped out due to the storm and the tidal waves. In Yangon, the roofs of about 50% of houses are damaged. 75% of the trees were uprooted. There were temporary collapses of power supply, telephone communication, and there were water shortages.
Please let me explain the measures taken by the state. The Government had been warning the general public about the cyclone through newspapers, radio and television since the 24th April. On the 1st May, it was broadcast. On the 2nd May, the newspapers warned that the wind could be strong and could bring damage to the Yangon and Ayeyarwardy Divisions. Likewise, our national disaster preparedness central committee also warned about the cyclone.
On the morning of the 3rd May, an emergency committee meeting was heard, attended by the Prime Minister. The Cabinet ministers then rushed to the storm-hit areas to carry out immediate rescue operations. On the 4th May, at the supervision of our Cabinet ministers, many homeless people – totalling more than one million – were rescued and evacuated to the temporary shelters at 12 frontline camps, 15 transit camps, and five base camps. Emergency relief items, such as food and drinking water, were also delivered by using the helicopters and boats to the cyclone hit areas. The ministers, together with our District Peace and Development Council members, are working closely and supervising the relief and rescue activities. Also, medical attention and relocations are being carried out in cooperation with the armed forces, the People’s Police Force, the Red Cross, and social organisations, and international non government organisations. Until now, the government has spent over 70 billion Kyats in relief aid and rehabilitation.
According to the data collected to date, 77,738 people were confirmed dead. 55,917 were still missing. 19,359 were injured. There was a huge loss in properties in material damage. The total loss in public-owned properties is of approximately $3.05 billion. Also, in the privately-owned properties, the total loss is of approximately $7.62 billion. That is a total of approximately $10.67 billion.
I will now talk about how relief aid and rehabilitation works. The three townships in Yangon were storm-hit areas. Due to the falling down and uprooting of 75% of the huge trees, roads were blocked and the power lines were cut off. Some houses were damaged by falling trees. We have to clear the debris and reconnect the electric power in order to be able to supply water and power generators to maintain water distribution centres to be able to send water into Yangon City. We have removed fallen lampposts and reconstructed power lines, and maintained hospitals in order to make those townships comfortable within three days. The other townships – outside the Yangon City Development Council area – were also back to normal relief period, from the emergency relief period, within seven days.
In the Ayeyarwardy Division, the Delta area, seven townships were hit by the cyclone. The total population of these seven townships is approximately 1.74 million. Following the aftermath of Cyclone Nargis, the supervisory central body, led by the Prime Minister, which consists of Cabinet ministers, sent food, clothing, drinking water and household items to the Ayeyarwardy division. To carry out relief, helicopters were used to send the emergency relief supplies.
Due to the prompt and immediate supervisions of the supervisory central body, headed by the Prime Minister and member ministers, emergency rescue and relief was undertaken, including the opening of relief camps, the opening of hospitals at the front areas, clearing the debris, providing emergency power and water supply, providing temporary communication systems, clearing main access routes, and providing fuel oil, and security management.
Cyclone Nargis had caused the shortage of electrical power distribution, communication problems, and a water supply shortage in Yangon. Due to the concerted efforts of the department concerned, the power supply, telephone communication, and daily water usage in Yangon have been restored from the 20th May.
I would like to explain now about the implementation of relief and resettlement. There are three phases in the implementation of relief and resettlement. The first phase is with search and rescue, providing temporary shelters, and the supply of food and clothing. The second phase is with the resettlement, the rebuilding of the destroyed houses, and building new houses when necessary. The third phase is with the rehabilitation of business and the productive forces.
As we have carried out considerable efforts in emergency search and rescue tasks, we are now emphasising the second phase. Work in this phase includes rebuilding homes and the reconstruction of the villages for local people hit by the storm; assisting them in rehabilitating their livelihoods, mainly in agriculture, fisheries and salt[?] industries; reopening schools and temporary dispensaries in villages; arrangements to provide cattle, tractors, fishing trawlers and fishing nets. In the relief areas, we have rehabilitation works in progress. We have mobilised over 30,000 from our armed forces, more than 3,000 from the police forces, and more than 36,000 people from social organisations and international NGOs, including the Red Cross and the fire brigade. There are now 122 medical teams, numbering approximately 2,000 people, providing intensive medical services in cooperation with our local medical staff. As well as that, there are also civilian medical teams from 11 countries, including ASEAN countries, which are providing medical services in different areas, as prevention and medical treatment is fully extended to the storm-hit victims. There are no infectious diseases other than the normal diseases in the storm-hit regions. Similarly, agencies under the UN, international NGOs – altogether 27 countries and 10 organisations – are supporting relief supplies via chartered planes to Myanmar.
From the 14th to the 22nd May 2008, foreign guests and diplomats based in Myanmar, members from the international NGOs, representatives from donor agencies, and the European Commissioner have seen and observed that the relief items reached the storm victims in the time of the reconstruction. Also, the UN Secretary General and his entourage have seen the storm-hit areas, on the 22nd May 2008, grieved over the loss and damage called by the cyclone.
We have to do a lot of resettlement and rehabilitation work for the storm victims. In carrying out the above mentioned relief and resettlement and rehabilitation work, we warmly welcome any assistance and aid, which are provided with genuine goodwill, from any country or any organisation, provided that there are no strings attached. Relief supplies for the cyclone victims in Myanmar will be accepted through land route, by sea or by air.
For those groups who are interested in rehabilitation and reconstruction, we are ready to accept them. Due to the extent of work that needs to be done, we will consider allowing them, if they wish to engage in rehabilitation and reconstruction work township by township.
Recently, on the 25th May 2008, the ASEAN UN International Pledging Conference regarding humanitarian assistance to Myanmar was held in Yangon. The ASEAN task force will work with the UN and the Myanmar central coordinating body to facilitate the effective distribution and utilisation assistance from the international community for the relief, resettlement and rehabilitation work for the people in the storm-hit area.
In conclusion, I would like to take this opportunity to express our sincere thanks to our neighbouring countries, ASEAN countries, the donors, the UN agency, inter-governmental organisations and international NGOs for their support and assistance rendered for the storm-hit areas. The Government of the Union of Myanmar is fully cooperating with the UN agencies and the international NGOs for the rehabilitation of the storm-hit people. It is welcome that arrangements could be made for the donors and the international community to go to the cyclone-hit areas to observe the situation there. We would like to also invite ex pats and well-wishers to extend their help in our preventive measures in order to minimise casualties and damage in the event of such severe cyclones in the future.
