MASFIH Appeals For Tamil-Speaking Counsellors To Assist Nepal Flood Victims' Kin

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 3 (Bernama) -- Solidariti Malaysia: Keluarga Dalam Harapan (MASFIH), a support group for families of victims in the Nepal flash flood tragedy, has appealed for certified Tamil-speaking counsellors to provide psychological support to affected relatives.

MASFIH representative Dr R. Manivannan said Tamil-speaking counsellors were urgently needed as most of the next of kin were elderly individuals who were only comfortable communicating in their mother tongue.

He noted that while Wisma Putra and MERCY Malaysia proactively offered free counselling services, the initiative faced language barriers as sessions were conducted in Malay and English.

He said using third-party translators during therapy sessions was unsuitable as it could affect the emotional connection families needed during this difficult time.

"Translators may be available, but a third party's presence might make the families uncomfortable, and the counsellor's true intent or nuance might not get across to them," he said.

"Therefore, if there are government or private counsellors fluent in Tamil, we welcome them to contact us so that the screening process can be coordinated with MERCY Malaysia or Wisma Putra," he told a press conference on the Nepal-Tibet flash flood incident here today.

Meanwhile, he advised families to monitor the emotional state of their immediate relatives to ensure those experiencing trauma received proper screening.

"The families themselves must come forward. Other family members need to be attentive because everyone copes with trauma differently," he said.

Commenting on the Special Malaysia Disaster Assistance and Rescue Team (SMART) expected to deploy to Nepal this Saturday, Manivannan welcomed the effort, saying it would ensure more accurate on-the-ground information.

"At least when SMART arrives, we will receive first-hand updates from our own Malaysian personnel, which will be more accurate and hopefully pave the way for victims' families to go there later," he said.

Manivannan's younger sister, R. Komathi, 48, is among the Malaysians reported missing in the incident.

In a related development, Manivannan expressed MASFIH's hope of having a meeting with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to enable the victims' families to personally convey their grievances and the actual challenges they faced following the tragedy in Nepal.

He said the move was vital to ensure the families' voices were heard directly by the nation's top leadership, given the increasingly distressed emotional state of the relatives.

"We hope to meet the Prime Minister as soon as possible to obtain the latest updates, as well as to express the feelings of the relatives who are growing increasingly anxious and distressed," he said.

-- BERNAMA