ASIA/SRI LANKA - A year after the tsunami Caritas sees relief efforts bear fruit

Colombo (Fides Service) - In Sri Lanka the work of Caritas after the tsunami focussed mainly on building new homes and also on the work of diversification of the peoples’ sources of support traditionally connected with fishing. These communities were the poorest even before the tsunami. Some had already been penalised by the civil war which has raged in Sri Lank for more than twenty years. This was explained by Caritas Internationalis in a leaflet issued a year after the seaquake which struck southern Asia “Rebuilding communities, restoring lives and rebuilding hope after the tsunami: rebuilding communities, rehabilitating life, restoring hope after the tsunami”. In the leaflet Caritas reports on work in Sri Lanka, Indonesia and Thailand where it harnessed all available energies involving the network of diocesan and parish Caritas centres to face the natural disaster of unprecedented dimensions.
Caritas and other Catholic relief organisations rebuilt homes and schools, provided new fishing boats and nets and guaranteed school lessons for displaced children. Thanks to the efforts of many and the fact that the survivors were determined to overcome the tragedy life has returned to normal in many of the affected villages in Sri Lanka. (Agenzia Fides 13/12/2005 Righe: 23 Parole: 237)