Cyclone Giri - Two Years On - Burma Action Ireland

Arakan Human Rights and Development Organisation
Social forestry is:
“a forestry which aims at ensuring economic, ecological, and social benefits to the people, particularly
to the rural masses and those living below poverty line, especially by involving the beneficiaries right
from the planning stage to the harvesting stage. The target of the social forestry is the ‘rural poor’ and
not the ‘tree’ alone.” 128
For sustainable forest resources, it is vital to ensure the active participation of the people. In the Delta
a beginning has been made by the Forest Department of the Ministry of Forestry and the International
Tropical Timber Organisation. 129 This can be seen as a positive first step to improving the livelihoods of
citizens in the Delta area.
Apart from mangrove forests, coral reefs also function as natural barriers to storm surges. 130 However
this natural defence is also being damaged due to the construction of the Shwe Gas pipeline, an undersea
pipeline 131 three miles north of Kyaukphru. One third of the coral reefs have been severely damaged by
dynamite dredging. 132
4.4 Nargis: a watershed in “lessons learned” 133
“The disaster in the Ayeyarwady Delta was not just a cyclone, which is a natural event. The disaster
was the preventable deaths and damage due to a lack of preparedness and disaster risk reduction.”
Robert Turner et al., Inter-Agency Real Time Evaluation of the Response to Cyclone Nargis 134
Cyclone Nargis, which struck the Irrawaddy Delta on 2 May 2008 135 was one of the worst natural
disasters to hit Burma in living memory. Nargis should have provided the experience and the best
lessons for the junta in respect of how to prepare for and respond to future natural disasters: but little
was done to prepare for future cyclones.
The difference in death toll between Nargis and Giri, both with similar wind speeds, may be explained by
a number of factors, including:
1. Despite several days advance knowledge, there was a total lack of any official warning from the
government when Nargis struck. However there were some warnings issued prior to Cyclone
Giri, both on the internet and over the radio. Because people had experienced Nargis recently
they were somewhat aware of what was coming. There is some debate, regarding whether the
warnings fully communicated the danger and the potential impact of the impending storm.
2. The Irrawaddy Delta has shallow water compared to the much deeper water of the Arakan coast
and this meant that the storm surge created by Cyclone Nargis was able to reach deeper inland.
3. The Irrawaddy Delta is lower lying and closer to sea level than Arakan State, again making it
more vulnerable to storm surges and flooding.
4. The population density is much lower in Arakan State, which in 2008 was 88/km², compared
with 224/km² for Irrawaddy State. 136
In the aftermath of destruction brought by cyclone Nargis, there were some realisations and some lessons
learned:
There was some advance warning, limited evacuation and prepositioning of relief supplies. 137
This, without question, played a huge part in reducing the death toll caused by Giri, especially in
comparison to the impact of Cyclone Nargis; 138
After the 1968 Sitetway cyclone there was no civil society response, since no civil society existed
then, and the entire relief effort was spearheaded by the U Nu government: during the Nargis
response new, truly independent and experienced civil society organisations emerged, which
sought to address other humanitarian/development challenges in the country; 139 and
After Nargis the people forced the government to include information on emergency preparedness
in the school curriculum. 140
However some post-Nargis lessons were not acted upon in the post-Giri relief and recovery:
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