On every Friday since last December's tsunami, villagers in Kuala Muda have been feted with a lavish lunch, served under two large tents erected on the coast.

Courtesy of a local businessman cum politician, this weekly feast is expected to continue until the end of this month and is much looked forward to by the locals. There are even those who come from Sungai Petani, about a half hour's drive away, to participate in the event.

"More should be done to help the Kuala Muda folk truly recover from the tsunami. I am afraid that the weekly kenduri is a small example of well-intentioned activities that infuse the villagers with notions of dependence on others to overcome their predicament.

"We want to rid of the idea that they need to survive on other's charity," said Mohd Azmi Abdul Hamid, president of Teras Pengupayaan Melayu (Malay Empowerment Core), a local NGO that has maintained an active presence in Kuala Muda since December.

"Our focus group comprises marginalised communities who are seldom able to bring their voices to the fore, and in Kuala Muda we have established a five-year plan of action to assist the locals in improving their livelihood," he responded when asked on Teras' envisaged role in the area.

"We requested funds from London-based NGO Muslim Aid International to build facilities for the locals such as a community and youth centre. However, our request was turned down since their help was needed more in Acheh and Sri Lanka. Since NGOs do not receive allocations under the National Disaster Fund, our sole source of funding is the Malaysian public."

Youth neglected

At the moment, their activities include the introduction of health self-help programs and skill building workshops for women and youth. In doing so however, Azmi said that all projects are carried out subject to the response from the villagers themselves.

"Reconstruction should be conducted in a participatory, bottom up approach if it is to be sustainable. This is why we always seek the opinions of the villagers before proceeding with any project."

"Through our work, we have found that the youth especially have been neglected in the process of reconstruction. There has been a rise in social ills such as loitering and drug abuse among them, and we hope to overcome this by developing solidarity with them and providing opportunities for them to acquire new skills such as motorcycle repair. We have even approached Pusat Giat Mara to help us in this."

Refusing to sound too lofty in detailing the proposed activities, he acknowledged the limitations of working as an NGO in the situation.

"As an NGO, we do not have the resources to fund large-scale projects, but we can act as intermediaries between the locals and relevant authorities. At the moment, we plan to document the grievances of the victims as many are too shy to admit that they are in the dark when it comes to their rights in seeking compensation for example. There are fishermen who are so disheartened by their situation that they are considering other jobs to support their families."

Sharing his opinions on the biggest challenges faced in carrying out their work, he said: "Bureaucracy is definitely the biggest hindrance for us. All projects need to go through the menteri besar's office, District Office and JKKK, which delays our activities considerably.

"Motivating a change of mindset in the villagers is another issue we grapple with. They need to stop simply waiting for assistance to come to them. Why wait for the government to check on you instead of conducting self-assessments of your situation?" he asked rhetorically, peering through his glasses.

Educating villagers

The issue of empowerment was also highlighted by Mahfuz Omar, Chairman of the Institute of Integration and Community Development (Impak), an NGO which raises awareness on the rights of a community especially among the marginalised. Better known as PAS deputy information chief, he repeatedly stressed that he was speaking solely in his capacity as an NGO leader.

"The Kuala Muda residents need to realise that they are capable of improving their situation and living comfortably as fishermen. We hope to teach them that being fishermen is not shameful. In fact, they can easily earn RM1,000 per month through their work.

"Our main goal is to educate the villagers. Even when we distribute school uniforms and health kits, there is the conscious effort to accompany it with presentations on how to manage their household income and take care of their health, for example. The education component cannot be separated from whatever we do."

He was also keen to introduce supplementary income generation activities for the fishermen in Kuala Muda to better equip them should incidents such as the tsunami recur.

"Unlike their peers in nearby Tanjung Dawai, the fishermen in Kuala Muda could not rely on other sources of income to support their families after the tsunami. We shall propose the development of cottage industries in light of this, specifically in the production of halal food, in line with the government's aspirations.

"The challenges we faced have been largely due to irregularities in the conduct of government authorities in facilitating the reconstruction efforts. For example, the distribution of public funds leaves much to be desired and is only under the purview of the government agencies. If NGOs were to be given allocations as well, it would help in ensuring swift action is taken to remedy the grave situation faced by the victims. Sadly, NGOs are almost seen as an unwelcome presence in helping the residents of Kuala Muda."

With a hint of optimism, he concluded the interview with the following words: "Despite the hardships, we foresee a continued role for NGOs in assisting the victims to effect change from within themselves and realise their ambitions of self-improvement and independence in facing challenges that might come their way."

ADRIANA NORDIN MANAN recently spent three days in Kuala Muda to assess the situation on the ground six months after the tsunami.