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Editorial: Test of solidarity

True friendship unfolds during a time of bad fortune, such as following a natural disaster, which the Philippine people are now experiencing after typhoon Haiyan swept through the central province of Leyte

The Jakarta Post
Tue, November 12, 2013

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Editorial: Test of solidarity

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rue friendship unfolds during a time of bad fortune, such as following a natural disaster, which the Philippine people are now experiencing after typhoon Haiyan swept through the central province of Leyte.

Indonesia'€™s sympathy for its Southeast Asian neighbor has been translated into humanitarian and disaster assistance to be coordinated by the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) along with the Foreign Ministry. This is in addition to the dispatching of food, medicine and volunteers by the Indonesian Red Cross (PMI) in the coming few days.

Local people and the Philippine government are surely in need of assistance to take care of victims, either those who perished or the many others who are displaced or affected by the disaster. Reports of survivors who were forced to loot shops for basic commodities reflect a humanitarian crisis now underway that Indonesia has to help deal with by sending food supplies.

Humanitarian aid is the most Indonesia can offer to the Philippines unless our northern neighbor asks us for more. The super typhoon has reportedly claimed 10,000 lives and destroyed three quarters of Leyte province'€™s land mass, leaving millions of people homeless. Another danger in the form of disease is lurking and, if realized, will exacerbate the catastrophe.

The damage caused by the storm reminds us of the tsunami in December 2004, which devastated coastal areas in Aceh, killing about 125,000 people. In a show of solidarity, the international community, including the Philippines, worked hand-in-hand to help Indonesia mitigate the impact of the disaster and rebuild the province, as well as forging a peace process that ended a decades-long rebellion.

Albeit on a lesser scale, the international community returned to Indonesia in 2008 to offer assistance after a major earthquake wrecked Yogyakarta and its surrounding towns.

These two major disasters only proved that international solidarity, in particular within ASEAN, remained intact regardless of conflicting national interests. The ordeal facing the Philippine people and government is, therefore, another test of global and regional camaraderie.

If we are to look for a blessing in disguise from the calamitous storm in the Philippines, it is certainly the quick disaster response from its neighbors to ensure the nation is not alone in dealing with its misery.

More than being just a friend when needed, Indonesia should show the world that it is a friend that is available at all times.

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