National media race to help quake victims

The Jakarta Post, Sunday 4 June 2006

Days following the Yogyakarta earthquake, the media becomes one of the most powerful tool in rallying public support and distributing aid to those in need.

“We were at the site only hours after the earthquake, with three ambulances and 11 paramedics sent to the Sarjito Hospital in Yogyakarta,” MetroTV PR and publicity manager Henny Puspitasari told The Jakarta Post Tuesday.

Media-driven public aid continues to flow to stricken areas, regardless of the bickering of politicians over whether or not to consider the Yogya quake a national disaster.

Media Group’s Humanitarian Purse for Yogya and Central Java, for example, has collected more than Rp 16 billion (about US$1.7 million) in cash as well as 715 boxes of mineral water, 2,846 boxes of milk, 5,443 boxes of instant noodles, 2,759 ready-serve food and biscuits, 1,037 boxes of drugs and vitamins, 124 boxes of toiletries, 621 boxes of bedding, 1,508 boxes of clothing, and 1,317 boxes of other logistics.

“These are aid that the public sent to us since Sunday, and we have distributed them to hospitals and posts in the stricken areas,” Henny said, explaining that Media Group comprise of Media Indonesia daily newspaper, television station MetroTV, and Lampung Post local newspaper.

The group begun its charity work with the tsunami in Aceh at the end of 2004, raising Rp 162 billion in cash from the public. The money for Aceh is now managed through the Sukma Foundation for the rehabilitation of the area, including the rebuilding of five schools, Henny said.

“We will open the Humanitarian Purse for Yogya until June 3, and will see until then before deciding if we should extend the time,” Henny said.

Meanwhile, SCTV’s spokesman Budi Dharmawan said that the private television station could quickly respond to Saturday’s emergency from the ready-money contributed by the public through the SCTV Charity Jar.

“We have established the charity jar since Sept. 2000 especially for cases of natural disasters, and it was this money that we will use in the initial weeks, before more funding from the public could flow,” Budi said.

Besides other disasters, the charity jar has helped people get through the tsunami in Aceh and most recently through the flashflood and landslide in Trenggalek, East Java, in April.

“We have so far distributed 950 blankets, 50 small tents, five platoon tents, 1,000 t-shirts, and will distribute 1,000 chicken lunch meal packages from McDonalds a day until Saturday,” Budi said.

Indonesia’s major newspaper, Kompas’s spokesman Saliman said that the Kompas Humanitarian Fund has collected more than Rp 58 million in cash for Yogya aid, explaining that the fund will continue receiving donations from the public until June 10.

“We have also distributed drugs, clothing, basic foodstuffs, in all the areas hit by the earthquake,” he said, explaining that besides the main office in Jakarta, Kompas’s offices in Yogyakarta, Semarang, and Solo have also sent in help.

The company’s subsidiary, television station TV7, meanwhile has collected more than Rp 62 million in cash, and will distribute the funds through its mother company.

“We’ve only begun raising the money two days ago through our own bank account, but we will distribute it through Kompas Humanitarian Fund,” TV7’s public relations manager Anita said.

Another major mover is the Indonesian daily Republika’s charity arm, Dompet Dhuafa Republika.

To provide better aid for the victims of the Yogya earthquake, Dompet Dhuafa has coordinated with 21 other humanitarian organizations under the banner of Jogja Guyub (togetherness for Yogya).

“We established Jogja Guyub to revitalize the concept of cooperation and togetherness that is so much part of the Javanese community. We hope to rouse all potentials in society to help,” Jogja Guyub coordinator Kusnandar, from Dompet Dhuafa, said in a statement.

The organization has set up eight humanitarian posts in various worst-hit locations, and has collected some Rp 335 million in cash.

Media Group’s “Dompet Kemanusiaan Jogja dan Jateng”:
Acc. No. 288.301.5959
BCA Puri Indah branch,
c/o PT Media Televisi Indonesia

Acc. No. 101 000.2777.777
Bank Mandiri Pd. Indah Mall branch,
c/o PT Media Televisi Indonesia

Acc. No. 288.309.1515
BCA Puri Indah branch,
c/o PT Citra Nusa Purnama

Other aid should be sent to:
Posko Bantuan Kemanusiaan
Jl. Pilar Mas Raya Kav. A-D
Kedoya, Jakarta Barat
Phone: 021-58300077 ext. 21014, 5812088 ext. 5555
SCTV Charity Jar:

Acc. No. 084.266.2000
BCA Wisma Asia branch
c/o Pundi Amal SCTV

Kompas Humanitarian Fund:

Acc. No. 14132840
Bank BNI Jakarta Kota branch
c/o PT Kompas Media Nusantara/Dana Kemanusiaan Kompas

Acc. No. 012300577.2
BCA Gajahmada branch
c/o PT Kompas Media Nusantara/Dana Kemanusiaan Kompas

Acc. No. 07-000-777-88888
Bank Mandiri, Plaza Mandiri branch
c/o PT Kompas Media Nusantara/Dana Kemanusiaan Kompas

Dompet Dhuafa Republika:

Acc. No. 101-00-9830099-7
Bank Mandiri Pd. Indah branch
c/o Yayasan Dompet Dhuafa Republika

Acc. No. 000.5302291
Bank BNI Fatmawati branch
c/o Yayasan Dompet Dhuafa Republika

Acc. No. 237.3004723
Bank BCA Pd. Indah branch
c/o Yayasan Dompet Dhuafa Republika

Quake takes toll on historical sites

The Jakarta Post, Sunday 28 May 2006

Archaeologists surveying the Prambanan Temple complex in Yogyakarta hours after Saturday’s devastating earthquake found extensive damage to the ancient site.

Stone blocks and statues lay scattered about the ground; decades of patient restoration work undone in less than a minute.

“Our initial survey of the site found wreckage at the Siwa, Wisnu and Brahma temples, as well as at several minor temples,” Yogyakarta Archaeological Conservation Agency head Agus Waluyo told The Jakarta Post on Saturday.

He said a thorough study was necessary to determine if the temples’ foundations were damaged in the quake.

“We need to make sure the earth under the temples will not cause the structures to subside,” Agus said.

Prambanan Temple was constructed by the rulers of the Sanjaya Dynasty, in a display of their power and influence in the ninth century.

But power struggles, volcanic explosions and earthquakes took their toll on the complex, so when the Dutch “discovered” the site in 1733 it was in urgent need of restoration. Work on the temples began in 1903 and continued until 1991.

“This time around, I don’t think the restoration will be finished in six months,” Agus said.

The land around Yogyakarta is also home to Borobudur, Kalasan, Sari and other holy temples, constructed by the rulers of the ancient Javanese kingdoms.

Yogyakarta and its people are the keepers of ancient traditions, and the city is home to a royal family that can trace its line back to the Mataram era in the 16th century.

The city survived with most of its culture and traditions intact through Dutch colonial rule, and served as the capital of a newly independent Indonesia between 1945 and 1950.

Saturday’s earthquake has left this usually laid-back city in shambles, with many of its residents left without homes or afraid to return to their houses.

There is no friendly banter between shoppers and vendors along Jl. Malioboro, a favorite shopping destination for both locals and tourists alike. Only the rubble of collapsed buildings and smashed glass from shops.

Near Malioboro, the ground is littered with slate from the roof of the former Dutch fort Vredeburg, though its thick walls stand undamaged.

Yogyakarta Palace was not totally spared. While the residence of the current sultan, Hamengku Buwono X, who is also the governor, escaped with only minor cracks to its walls, part of the Hamengku Buwono IX Museum collapsed during the quake.

The collapsed building housed an ancient set of gamelan instruments used for weddings. In the same compound, a building housing carriages used by former rulers suffered cracks to its walls.

Agus said a more extensive survey of the damage to the city’s ancient heritage would be conducted Monday.

“We are still in shock after the earthquake,” he said.

Yogyakartans face post-quake fears

The Jakarta Post, Sunday 28 May 2006

Night fell on a grieving population. Homes lost, loved ones dead, somber crowds of people were unable to imagine what tomorrow might bring.

Makeshift tents were built in front of ruins, and even in front of the homes that survived. Their occupants were wary of spending the night under roofs.

“We’re afraid to go inside,” Sardjono, a resident of Srigading, Sanden district, Bantul told The Jakarta Post Saturday.

Saturday’s earthquake had razed more than 80 percent of the buildings in Yogyakarta and Bantul, leaving thousands homeless.

Others found solace in practicalities, organizing security for houses left empty by their owners.

“This night, we have to carefully question strangers who enter the village. For all we know they could be burglars trying to profit from the empty houses,” another Srigading resident, Suwondo, told a group of youths, adding that an electrical blackout made the situation even more precarious.

Fearing aftershocks, hotels in downtown Yogyakarta were turning people away, while guests checking out formed long lines in their lobbies.

“If there’s an aftershock it’s important to be out in the open air, not inside a high-rise hotel,” said Hendi, who had been staying at Melia Purosani Hotel in Yogyakarta.

Yogyakarta’s great mosque and public square were filled with refugees, most having only the clothes on their backs. Many who came believed they would be safer near their sultan, Hamengkubuwono X.

“We feel at peace just from being near our Ngarso Dalem (royal highness),” said Sambudi, a resident of Palbapang, Bantul.

Faced with the continuous flow of incoming victims, and fearing aftershocks, hospitals set up emergency wards in the open. The street in front of the Muhammadiyah Hospital in Bantul was even closed off to allow victims to be treated there.

Suradji Hospital in Klaten, Central Java, opened makeshift hospitals in several districts in the area. The Indonesian Red Cross also set up emergency wards in the Dwi Windu field at its Bantul chapter, where about 1,500 people took refuge.

Thousands of others had to make do at mental hospitals and community health centers.

A shortage of ambulances in Klaten forced the injured to fend for themselves until 1 p.m., when vehicles finally arrived to take patients to hospitals in Surakarta, Karanganyar, Boyolali and other neighboring regencies in Central Java.

Both Yogyakarta Governor Hamengkubuwono X and Bantul Regent Idham Samawi said more medicine was needed.

“We even broke into our own pharmaceutical warehouses because we couldn’t get the keys quickly enough, but now the drugs have all been used up,” Idham said.

Earlier in the day, rumors of a tsunami caused traffic jams as people tried to flee to higher ground. Further chaos was created by vehicles lining up for gas before heading out of town.

Pickup trucks were filled with panicked people fleeing their homes, many without a clear idea of where to go.

“All we know is that we have to get as far away from Yogya as possible,” said Widodo, a refugee, from atop a truck leaving the area.

With additional reporting from Slamet Susanto in Bantul, Suherdjoko in Yogyakarta, Blontank Poer in Klaten.