The politics of emergency relief
Photo: latimes.com
Last week, Mexican citizens and international onlookers watched in fear as Hurricane Patricia barreled towards the Western coast of Mexico. Before touching down, meteorologists ranked Patricia as a Category 5 hurricane, with winds of up to 200 miles per hour. Scientists warned that damage from the storm could parallel that of the infamous Typhoon Haiyan, which hit the Philippines in 2013 and killed thousands.
While waiting for disaster, politics may seem irrelevant. And yet, it is during disaster situations that we see how well politics really works; whether it serves the common good when the people need the government the most.
Disasters also give a welcome window into the better side of politicians. Political scientists generally agree that politicians are self serving individuals: in democracies they seek reelection first and foremost. Especially in crisis situations, the desire to maintain power causes representatives to work rigorously for the good of their people. They know they will be held accountable for their response come the next election cycle.
This dynamic was exemplified last week as Mexico braced for Hurricane Patricia. In past years, Mexico's ruling party, the Partido Revolucionario Institutional (Institutional Revolutionary Party, or (PRI) has mismanaged similar disasters and suffered at the ballot box as a result. Luckily, it seems the PRI took this lesson to heart. Before Hurricane Patricia touched down, the government used a variety of measures to ensure the safety of the Mexican people.
Before the storm hit, the government opened 1,782 shelters in Michoacan, Colima, Jalisco and Nayarit. Mexican officials used everything from radio sirens to a twitter hashtag to keep citizens informed about evacuation and safety procedures. In total, the government helped to evacuate more than 50,000 residents and 15,000 tourists from the affected areas before Patricia touched down. More than 3,800 soldiers and police officers were sent to the coastal cities to coordinate relief efforts.
It seems these efforts paid off. In spite of damage to homes and businesses, as of this week, the death toll from Patricia is still at zero. Part of this good news simply has to do with the unpredictability of weather. Shortly after touching town, Patricia calmed to a tropical storm. Yet, a great deal of the success is also due to the efforts of the government preceding the storm, and the lessons learned from past failures.
The government continues to do its part to put life back in order for those affected. The the government plans to conduct a census to assess damages to citizens and property, and will allow citizens to request assistance from the government through machines, vehicles, food and money. Hopefully the desire to stay in the good graces of the Mexican people will push leaders to meet the needs of those affected by Patricia's damage in the coming weeks. Success would represent a look into the best that representative politics has to offer.
