Deadline to deal with refugees extended<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Ambon<\/p>\n
The Maluku administration has extended the deadline for resolving
\nthe province's refugee problem to the end of the year following
\nits failure to meet the Sept. 15 deadline, an official said on
\nTuesday.<\/p>\n
The new deadline was disclosed by the head of Maluku
\nprovince's Social Services Office, Chris Hehanussa, who said the
\nadministration had worked hard to address the problem since 2001
\nbut was finding it difficult.<\/p>\n
Currently, he said, 15,788 families were living in various
\nmakeshift camps for displaced persons in the city and were still
\nwaiting to be relocated or sent back to their hometowns.<\/p>\n
He cited a number of problems, including inaccurate data on
\nthe number of refugees and limited funds, as the reasons for the
\nadministration's failure to resettle the refugees.<\/p>\n
\"Hopefully, by the end of 2005, the refugee problem will be
\nsolved,\" Chris told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday, adding that the
\ncentral government had told 12 provinces with refugees living in
\ncamps to solve the matter by the end of the year at the latest.<\/p>\n
This is not the first time the deadline to deal with refugees
\nin the conflict-torn province has been changed by the provincial
\nadministration. It was moved back when the province was under
\nformer Insp. Gen. Sinyo Harry Sarundajang, who is currently the
\nNorth Sulawesi governor, and again under governor Karel Albert
\nRalahalu.<\/p>\n
The initial deadline was set by Sinyo for December 2002, but
\nno significant progress had been made by 2003.<\/p>\n
When Karel took office, the deadline was set for April 2004
\nbut was extended to Sept. 15 this year. With the refugees
\nremaining in camps, the administration has been forced to move
\nthe deadline back yet again.<\/p>\n
Chris said there were 15,788 refugees families in regencies
\nand cities throughout Maluku. The province, he said, had been
\npromised Rp 170 billion (US$17 million) by the Ministry of Social
\nServices to send the refugees back home or relocate them.<\/p>\n
He said that out of the Rp 170 billion, Rp 61 billion had been
\ndisbursed to the Maluku provincial administration in August and
\nthe remaining money would be directly delivered by Minister of
\nSocial Services Bachtiar Chamsyah on Sept. 19.<\/p>\n
But with an increase in fuel prices inevitable, he fears the
\nallocated budget will not be enough since the higher fuel prices
\nwill affect the cost of building materials needed to build houses
\nfor the refugees.<\/p>\n
\"Prices on the local market have increased and this will
\ncertainly affect the budget to build houses for refugees,\" he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
The deputy speaker of the Maluku provincial council, Jhon
\nMailoa, blamed the repeated deadline extension for the lack of
\nvalid data.<\/p>\n
\"We have a special committee to deal with refugees, but we've
\ndiscovered that its numbers vary from those registered with the
\nadministration,\" he said, without giving details of the numbers.<\/p>\n
He also advised the provincial administration not to
\ncompletely transfer responsibility for the refugees to regental
\nor municipal administrations.<\/p>\n
\"The refugee problem should be addressed by both by the
\nprovincial and regental\/municipal administrations,\" Jhon said.<\/p>\n
Chris said his office had no valid data on the real number of
\nrefugees but his office and the central government would allocate
\nmoney for 15,788 refugee families.<\/p>\n
\"That's our agreement with the central government because no
\none knows the official number of refugees. Only God knows. We
\nwon't reregister them because that wouldn't solve the problem,\"
\nhe said.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/deadline-to-deal-with-refugees-extended-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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