Disaster is a regular phenomenon and part of life and livelihood in the world including Bangladesh. Most of the year Bangladesh encounters manmade or natural disasters like flood, tornadoes, cyclone, river erosion, fire etc where children are a highly vulnerable segment of the population. In the normal situation the government and non-government organisations have collective or individual programmes to support children development and protect them from harm. In normal situation, in addition to the institutional systems, children fall under the supervision of their parents, guardians or primary caregivers. But once a disaster occurs, most or all of these foundations in a child's life may suddenly collapse. The child care centres and schools to which they were enrolled may be damaged, destroyed or used for shelters. Their parents or guardians may be stretched between caring for the needs of their children and addressing the needs of the whole family's recovery. The child victims, who are generally incapable of managing their own needs, suffer disproportionately and may fall behind their peers in development and education. Additionally, the physical and psychological damage sustained by children can far outweigh the same effects inflicted on fully-grown members of society, often requiring years of physical, psychological and other therapy to address.
A number of measures may be undertaken to protect the affected children from any unwanted situation. Children take indication from their caregivers. The caregivers, though remain busy to cleanup and rebuild after the disaster, may assure the children that the family and friends will take care of them and their life will be normal. The children should be allowed to discuss their feelings, concerns and experiences, and any questions or queries they may have regarding the event should be addressed. They should not be ignored, rather be given due attention. An empathetic listener is very important. Children need an opportunity to ventilate their experiences in a safe, accepting environment. This may include a range of methods (both verbal and nonverbal) and incorporate varying projects (e.g., drawing, stories, music, drama, audio and video recording). The school psychologist, counsellor, or social worker may be consulted to decipher the ideas of the children or managing their conversation. The children should be taught how to respond to disasters, and encourage them to develop realistic and positive methods of coping with the situation.
The children should be allowed to cope up with the situation from their own. They may be asked to identify what they had done in the past that helped them cope when they were frightened or upset. Their attention may be drawn to other communities that have experienced natural disasters and recovered. Children with strong emotional support from others are better able to cope with adversity. Children's relationships with peers can provide suggestions for how to cope and can help decrease isolation. In many disaster situations, friendships may be disrupted because of family relocations. In some cases, parents may be less available to provide support to their children because of their own distress and feelings of being overwhelmed. Activities such as asking children to work cooperatively in small groups can help them strengthen supportive relationships with their peers. Elders or caregivers should study the entire situation and decide how to deal with it. They will be better able to help their children if they themselves can cope well. If elders are anxious or upset, the children are more likely to be frightened. The elders should share the problem with other members of the family, friends, faith leaders, or counsellors. Sharing feelings with others often makes people feel more connected and secure. There should be no sign of pessimism in their face.
In the advent of a disaster or during post-disaster period parents, teachers, and other caregivers can help children and youth to cope with the situation by remaining calm and reassuring children that they will be all right. Immediate response efforts should emphasise teaching effective coping strategies, fostering supportive relationships, and helping children understand their reactions. Schools can help play an important role in this process by providing a stable and familiar environment. Through the support of caring adults, school authority can help children return to normal activities and routine and provide an opportunity to transform a frightening event into a learning experience. So immediately after disaster we should practice some values towards children;
Additionally with proper planning and guidance, emergency management agencies can minimise the risk faced by the community's children. Families and those tasked with the care of children can all take action before disasters occur to prepare for and mitigate their effects. Response and child-stewardship organisations that is most likely to assume the role of protecting children in the immediate aftermath of a disastrous event can be equipped for and provided with proper training to manage the specific needs of this special population. And the community can plan for the specific needs that children will have in the longer-term recovery phase, when these vulnerable lives are gradually brought back to normalcy.
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The writer is a development activist and student of Institute of Disaster Management, University of Dhaka
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