The Local Government Response To Gigantic Natural Disasters Management Strategy Research

Since the date of its birth, human society has always been accompanied with avariety of natural disasters. With the increasing frequency of natural disasters outbreak,and the diversification of inducement and types, it seems more and more powerless torely solely on traditional scientific and technological means to accomplish disasterprevention, mitigation and relief. Especially after ‘5.12’ Wenchuan Earthquake in2008,it is even more important from modern management perspective to discuss how to reactproperly upon natural disasters, and how to reduce the losses to a minimum levelthrough scientific emergency management. Although China has set up a master plan anda series of special schemes for emergency management, which lays the foundation formacro-system construction for natural disasters management, the real situation vary alot when it comes to how local governments deal with natural disasters and people fromdisaster-hit areas. Without specified guidance from national macro-system, it is hard forthe local governments to react scientifically and reasonably in front of natural disasters.This dissertation focuses on how the local governments stand up to and managegigantic natural disasters. By analyzing the status quo of China’s disasters managementand its challenges in the prevention and mitigation of natural disasters, and byreviewing theoretical researches on disaster management and crisis leadership, thisdissertation stresses the role played by natural disasters management for localgovernments and four basic principles: people-friendly and theme-stressed;nature-based and scientific prevention; government leading and responsibility-graded;overall consideration and future-orientated. By applying the methods of comprehensiveanalysis and case study, it compares the experiences from Japan’s post-quakeconstruction to the practices of Italy and Turkey in quake-resistant infrastructureconstruction, thus putting forward suggestions for strengthening China’s natural disastermanagement and relevant policy formulation. Case-studying on the rescue andpost-quake construction of Wenchuan earthquake, it summarizes the successfulpractices in encouraging grassroots Party organizations and Party members to work inthe frontline of Disaster emergency management, formulating emergency managingrules for grassroots Party organizations, establishing extensive emergency-responding network and system for Party organizations, etc. It discusses, particularly, the loopholesin six aspects, namely, China’s citizens’ disaster awareness and self-rescue ability,disaster-responding monitoring system, disaster relief system, emergency programs,emergency supplies and reserves, and emergency-related laws and rules. It points out,therefore, how to improve the disaster-management ability for grassroot officials andhow to enhance disaster prevention and mitigation awareness for common people.