Sri Lanka, Feb. 5 -- The piece today is dedicated to an esteemed friend and colleague, Prof. David Ratnavale, from whom I learned a great deal on the subject today and with whom a small group worked as a Presidential Task Force on Human Disaster Management commissioned by President Chandrika Kumaratunga.

When disasters strike, individuals and the societies in which they live will experience various forms of stress reactions, both mental and physical. People who have been psychologically traumatised are known to run a spectrum of reactions from denying the emotional consequences to living in constant dread of re-exposure. While everybody understands why war and violent communal conflict are traumatic to the individuals involved, the conce...