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NGOs blame government for sluggish relief operation
A coalition of NGOs has criticized what they perceive as a sluggish relief operation following last week’s deadly tsunami in Mentawai, West Sumatra
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coalition of NGOs has criticized what they perceive as a sluggish relief operation following last week’s deadly tsunami in Mentawai, West Sumatra.
The coalition includes the West Sumatra Forum for the Environment (Walhi) and the Padang Legal Aid Institute, which is affiliated with the Koalisi Lumbung Derma (KLD) charity coalition.
“We don’t see the weather as an excuse for slow aid distribution. The main reasons are weak coordination and the lack of alternatives for operations in the field during extreme weather,” KLD coordinator Khalid Saifullah told reporters on Monday.
Earlier, the local disaster mitigation agency blamed bad weather for the slow distribution of relief aid, citing 6-meter waves that hampered the operation.
“It is risky to travel to affected areas by boat or helicopter to reach victims,” West Sumatra Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) Emergency and Logistics Affairs head Ade Edward told The Jakarta Post in recent interview.
Ade complained about the pressure from the media and NGOs to distribute aid more quickly without considering the risks encountered by relief workers despite the warning of storms and high tides for Mentawai Islands and West Sumatra’s coastal areas issued by the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG).
“We are very concerned that it might be fatal if we’re forced to distribute aid during extreme weather conditions, especially since some of the boats have capsized while distributing aid. Fortunately the relief workers are safe,” said Ade.
Khalid said that the sluggish distribution of aid would have a serious effect on victims. He added that currently, relief aid from various groups was piling up at the Padang and Sikakap disaster command posts.
“According to law, the BPBD is the lead institution for disaster response. Seven days have already passed and the institution should have been able to take command and not depend on other parties,” said Khalid, who is Walhi’s West Sumatra chief.
He added that weak coordination and management had caused many boats and ships to back up
in Sikakap.
“Relief coordination by the government is very poor and this is the dominant factor for sluggish distribution of aid to villages,” said the former Mentawai Islands regency council speaker.
He suggested that one of the solutions was assigning large ships operated by the Indonesian Military, the National Police, state-run shipping firm PT Pelni and the Transportation Ministry to immediately deliver aid to the waters nearest the affected villages, and then commandeer boats owned by local residents who were more adept in handling the surf in Mentawai.
On Monday, the island’s children returned to school, Antara reported, after classes were cancelled for a week after the tsunami killed 449 people.
Several students loitered under the terraces of their school, near helicopters ready to deliver supplies to affected areas.
