EUROPE/ITALY - In tsunami stricken south east Asia children one third of the dead and one third of the homeless and also the most exposed to possible outbreaks of preventable diseases: malaria and hepatitis A, typhoid fever and cholera.

Rome (Fides Service) - The tragic toll of the tsunami on 26 December which affected countries in south east Asia has now reached a total of 165,000 dead and several million homeless: 1/3 of the victims were children, over 1.5 million in Thailand alone.
Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, Thailand were the countries most affected but the tragedy struck also in Myanmar, Malaysia, Bangladesh and the Maldives and some people were killed as far away from the epicentre as Africa, in Somalia, Tanzania and Kenya. The number of dead is bound to rise. Hundreds of children have been separated from their families.
The number of persons killed in Indonesia is estimated at over 107,000 and another 15,420 are missing. UNICEF said in the affected zone there are at least 875,000 children aged 6 months to 15 years who need protection and assistance.
In Sri Lanka where at least 30,000 were killed it is estimated that between 80,000 and 100,00 of the 200,000 homeless people were children. In India 13,000 people were killed and in Thailand the number of persons confirmed dead is 5,305.
For UNICEF there are four priorities to keep children victims of the seaquake alive: clean water, healthcare, essential food, basic sanitation. In Indonesia survival is the major challenge is to guarantee the survival of children in isolated communities. In every affected country UNICEF is helping to register and assist orphaned children and to ensure they are not exploited. It is also fundamental to help children overcome the trauma by helping them return to school as soon as possible and training adults, teachers and health care workers, how to recognise symptoms of trauma and counsel traumatised children. (AP) (8/1/2005 Agenzia Fides; Righe:28; Parole:347)