Involuntary Displacement and Resettlement — Policy and ... - CEPA

In addition to the above survey, the study employed qualitative methods tocollect in-depth information from other sources to triangulate and to get abetter understanding of the resettlement process.3.3 Key informant interviewsInterviews with key informants such as fisheries inspectors, GN officers(in-charge of village), representatives of fisheries cooperatives and officialsof the Ministry of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources and other relevantorganisations were conducted to get a better understanding of the issuesrelated to resettlement.3.4 Focus group discussionsFocus group discussions were conducted in selected communities. Theparticipants represented the major age groups (young, middle-aged, old)and wide ranging socio-economic status. The purpose was to get a betterunderstanding and perspective of the above mentioned issues, as well as ofcurrent issues facing the community.4 Post-tsunami Government Policies on Resettlement/Relocation and HousingFollowing the devastation of the tsunami, Sri Lanka was fairly efficient andeffective in providing immediate relief to the affected people in the coastalbelt of the country. However, the rehabilitation of affected households wasmore challenging due to reasons such as lack of reliable information, lack ofcoordination among government, international and local donors and poorlocal level capacities. Permanent housing was the main priority.In March 2005, the government declared a no-build zone (buffer zone) of100m in the Southern and Western provinces and 200m in the Northern andEastern provinces. According this policy, households who lived within thebuffer zone limit were not allowed to rebuild their damaged or destroyedhouses. In addition, the government introduced two approaches to providehousing assistance, an owner driven program for households outside thebuffer zone and a donor driven program for those within the buffer zone.87