Yogyakarta Quake

Relief Aid In Short Supply
Friday, 02 June, 2006 | 14:10 WIB

TEMPO Interactive, Yogyakarta: Now earthquake victims are threatened by stocks that are running low with the distribution problem still not solved. On the sixth day after the quake, the supplies stored in Yogyakarta Special District Disaster Recovery and Refugee Coordinating Unit (Satkorlak) is decreasing. Yesterday morning the stocks were so depleted that many areas did not receive any.

The stocks at Satkorlak Main Post located at Kepatihan were depleted at 10am yesterday. The remainder consisted of only a dozen oil stoves, boxes of drinking water, two 50-kilogram sacks of rice, and some pillows. Instant noodles and cookies were gone. So were tents and lamps. “The supplies have been depleted, and no more stocks arrived yet. We had to shop at the stores,” said Bambang Susanto Priyohadi, Yogkarta’s Satkorlak Deputy Head.

This emergency took place because at the time more than 500 people came for help. Mittah, 37, from Glugo, Panggungharjo, Sewon, Bantul, was one of them who waited. She said that on Sunday and Monday, representing her village residents, she could obtain some rice, instant noodles, canned corned beef, and vegetables. But these last two days, Miftah only received rice. “I have 25 kilograms (of rice) after queuing for five hours today,” she said yesterday.

Back in her village, she must divide the rice into five ‘open kitchens’ which serve 600 people from 171 families. It is obviously insufficient. But Miftah and her friends did not lose hope. They walked around looking for aid from other posts. “It depends on how clever we are. Yesterday we had some aid from an NGO or political party. We had five kilos, then we carried it, ten kilos is fine,” she said.

Not only food, but medicine supplies at hospitals were also running low. “Medicine for external infectious wounds are almost used up,” said Djoko Wardoyo, Head of Medical Service at Suradji Tirtonegoro Hospital, Klaten. Medicine, especially anti-infection drugs, needles and thread, bone pins, plaster for casts, wound drains are limited. “Many patients cannot be treated,” said Djoko.

In Klaten Satkorlak planned to distribute money for food at Rp3,000 per victim of the quake. However, this was not yet carried out. Imam Purwadi, Daily Deputy Head of Satkorlak in Klaten Regency, said they are still collecting the data of the people to receive the money. “We don’t want to slow down the distribution, but we also don’t want to be disorganized. Especially regarding the data validity,” he said.

One of the possibilities of the stock insufficiency at central posts (at the level of province and regency) is the stocks were sent directly to district and sub-district posts. From Tempo’s observation, many contributors do not want to be connected with bureaucracy, so they prefer to submit the aid straight to the people in the villages instead of going through the aid posts.

Syaiful Amin, Imron Rosyid, Pramono, Taufiq, Zaky Almubarok I, and Anas Syahirul