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View all search resultsEnggano islanders hit by severe economic, energy crisis amid Bengkulu port silting
Enggano Island district head Susanto said that in recent months, prices of staple foods like sugar and cooking oil have risen by 20 to 35 percent, while prices for farm produce grown by islanders have fallen by more than 50 percent due to oversupply.
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State of emergency: Hundreds of indigenous residents gather at Tugu Simpang Lima in Bengkulu City on June 5, calling on the Bengkulu administration to address the ongoing sea transportation crisis on Enggano Island. (Courtesy of /the Nusantara Indigenous Peoples’ Alliance (AMAN))
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ressure is mounting on the Bengkulu administration to declare a state of emergency on Enggano Island, where four months of disrupted sea transportation due to port silting have pushed thousands of residents into a worsening energy and economic crisis.
Lawmaker Rieke Diah Pitaloka of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) said declaring a state of emergency was necessary to expedite aid distribution and tackle the prolonged transportation crisis on the island.
"Efforts to resolve the issue have been sluggish for months. A state of emergency would help accelerate these measures," she said on Sunday, as quoted by Kompas.com.
Rieke added that she had brought the transportation crisis on Enggano Island to the attention of Deputy House Speaker Sufmi Dasco Ahmad, who, she said, would relay the matter to President Prabowo Subianto.
She also said she would push the government to deploy a 75-tonne capacity cargo vessel, two passenger ships and a tugboat to improve connectivity between Enggano Island and mainland Sumatra.
Fahmi Arisandi, head of the Bengkulu office of the Nusantara Indigenous Peoples’ Alliance (AMAN), also voiced support for the emergency declaration, emphasizing that the situation in Enggano requires an extraordinary response.
“For too long, officials in Bengkulu have assumed that life on Enggano Island has been going on as usual, when in fact, nothing could be further from the truth,” Fahmi said.
