Gender and Natural Disasters: Why We Should Be Focusing on a Gender Perspective of the Tsunami Disaster

Rochelle Jones here argues that, in the aftermath of such catastrophes as the December 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami, disaster management plans and humanitarian assistance must be linked with gender dynamics in order to "precipitate a greater understanding of what is needed to ensure that women's unique circumstances during natural disasters are not only recognized, but acted upon." That is, while the physical aspects of natural disasters are fixed, "the social and economic aspects are not. They can be reshaped, used and sometimes abused." In the best cases, she suggests, natural disasters can even become a platform for social change: Using such communication tools as the media and such strategies as community mobilisation, women can voice their vulnerabilities, reduce their invisibility, and restructure misguided gendered conceptions that limit them - during disasters and beyond.

Excerpts from the article follow:

"...It has been argued that vulnerability to natural disasters and their consequences is gendered and socially constructed, meaning that women and men face different challenges during natural disasters because their roles in society have been constructed differently...

Women are more vulnerable during disasters because they have less access to resources, are victims of the gendered division of labour, and they are the primary caregivers to children, the elderly and the disabled. This means that they are less able to mobilise resources for rehabilitation, more likely to be over-represented in the unemployed following a disaster, and overburdened with domestic responsibilities leaving them with less freedom to pursue sources of income to alleviate their economic burdens. It is most often the women who go without food in order to feed their families during a disaster, also. In addition to these issues, women are often the victims of domestic and sexual violence following a natural disaster...

Recognizing the important role that gender plays in disaster management and relief, it is alarming that gender concerns often get pushed to the background in the event of a natural disaster...

Women and children constitute the majority of victims seen in the media's representation of natural disasters. Beyond the camera lens in the follow-up policies, however, there is a trend for women to be rendered almost invisible. Policies are formulated without careful consideration of asymmetrical power relations based on gender, leading to a silencing of women's experiences and strategies. There are even barriers to women's participation in disaster relief because some areas are not considered "safe" for women to work. This has major implications for women survivors who want assistance from women relief workers...

Just as women are more vulnerable to the consequences of natural disasters, they are often the most innovative actors in implementing immediate relief to their families and communities...Community based organizations naturally redirect staff and resources towards natural disaster relief when it is necessary and women form groups and mobilize to meet the most pressing needs of the
community.

In some cases women use the disaster as an opportunity to change society's perceptions of a woman's capabilities and challenge their gendered roles in society. Women in Nicaragua, for example, organized a very effective campaign against gender-based violence in response to increasing levels noted after a destructive hurricane swept through the area. The message they conveyed through the media was 'Violence against women is one disaster that men can prevent'. Women publicly involved in relief work in non-'traditional' tasks such as building houses and digging wells also often become role models in their communities and reduce barriers to women in the public sphere..."

Editor's note: Footnote numbers were omitted from this selection.