WITH the confirmed death toll from the Indian Ocean tsunami still climbing, and with relatives and friends still awaiting news of the thousands missing, we might reasonably have hoped for more. Hoped that the world’s governments would at least ensure that the next giant wave or earthquake does not become a humanitarian disaster on such a scale.
But it was not to be. Last week’s World Conference on Disaster Reduction in Kobe, Japan, was once again bedevilled by realpolitik. What many were hoping for was a clear plan of action. Instead, the representatives of 168 nations settled for well-intentioned declarations and policy initiatives.…
