Quake survivors in Java slam government for failing to provide aid
Yogyakarta (AsiaNews) Thousands of survivors from the May 27 quake that hit the Indonesian island of Java are taking part in a big rally inYogyakarta against the government's failure to provide adequate aid. In the immediate aftermath of the tragedy, Vice President Jusuf Kalla had announced special aid packages for survivors but so far they have not materialised. Little money has reached the victims as the authorities procrastinate.
In their early statements, the authorities had pledged at least 30 million rupiahs (about US$ 2,500) to those who lost their homes. But on their banners, demonstrators openly slam the government for its "lies". "Where is your Aid?" read one banner; "We are tired of your promises. Sooner or later, the rainy season will be coming," read another, with protesters shouting: "The government first said 2,500 dollars, then 1,000, and now 500. Where is the money?"
Ali Suharjono, from Pathuk in Gunung Kidul, explains that "the government had promised special aid packages for July then postponed them to early August. It's the end of the month and we haven't seen anything."
Protesters have called for a meeting with Yogyakarta governor, Sri Sultan Hamengku Buwono X, without any luck.
Today's rally follows another one that took place in Klaten Regency last week, when thousands of people protested.
The governor of Central Java, where Klaten is located, has already handed out aid worth US$ 440,000, but said: "We still need time".
A few days ago a AsiaNews correspondent travelled to the quake area in Klaten and saw first hand the slow pace of aid distribution.
"We only got five bucks for immediate needs and that was in July," some survivors said in Karangasem, Pandes and Gadungan, Wedi Sub-Regengy.
Father Barman, from the Holy Virgin Mary Mother of Christ Parish Church in Wedi, is pessimistic. He thinks that the aid that was promised will never arrive.
The quake, which struck central Java in late May, killed almost 6,000 people.
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