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 In Focus |
On 28 January 2005, Thailand commenced its two-day Ministerial Meeting on Regional Cooperation on Tsunami Early Warning Arrangements in Phuket, Thailand. H.E. Prime Minister Dr. Thaksin Shinawatra delivered the Opening Statement at the Opening Ceremony. Gist of the statement is as follows:
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On 28 January 2005, Thailand commenced its two-day Ministerial Meeting on Regional Cooperation on Tsunami Early Warning Arrangements in Phuket, Thailand. H.E. Prime Minister Dr. Thaksin Shinawatra delivered the Opening Statement at the Opening Ceremony. Gist of the statement is as follows:
1. The tsunami destruction was unprecedented killing over 5,000 people, 3,000 more missing and leaving thousands more homeless. To mourn these victims and remember this incident, a memorial will be built in their honor.
2. The tragedy brought the recognition of the need to provide public confidence against Tsunami disasters in the Indian Ocean and the Southeast Asian region and the urgency for an establishment of a regional early warning system that would link with national mechanisms that can be integrated into a global system with the UN at the core.
3. Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra underscored that the early warning arrangement cannot be based on hardware and technology alone, but must also integrate awareness building, education and training of experts and ordinary citizens into the system as well.
4. A tsunami early warning system in the region would comprise several key elements: a network of collaborative national centers to enhance capacities; several sub-regional centers that could coordinate and support specified zones within the region; a regional center that could integrate the information and activities of participating national systems and sub-regional centers, as well as oversee the region as a whole; and lastly, a partnership with other regional arrangements and international organizations.
5. The Asian Disaster Preparedness Center, which was established since 1986, can forge closer links with the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii to plug into existing Tsunami-related knowledge and technology, creating a global network.
6. Prime Minister Thaksin also emphasized the need for this idea to be backed by strong political will as well as financial and technical resources, which is the reason for the proposal of a Voluntary Trust Fund.
7. Prime Minister Thaksin concluded by requesting the delegates to join hands in the task of establishing an effective regional Tsunami early warning system to bring back security and livelihood for the people in the region.
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