Indonesia unprepared for major natural disaster<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): President Soeharto said yesterday that Indonesia
\ndoes not have the scientific and technological know-how to face
\nsevere natural disasters, such as the widespread brush and forest
\nfires and warned that such calamities could compromise the
\nnation's economic stability.<\/p>\n
\"We had not anticipated a natural disaster of such magnitude
\nand we were totally unprepared,\" Soeharto said at the opening of
\nan international conference on Science and Technology for the
\nAssessment of Global Environmental Change and its Impact on the
\nIndonesian Maritime Conference.<\/p>\n
\"Despite our tireless efforts and the assistance provided by
\nother countries, it has taken a long time before they can be
\nextinguished,\" the President said. \"This has been compounded by
\nthe late rainy season,\" he added.<\/p>\n
More than 300,000 hectares of land and forest have been
\ndestroyed in the past few months. The fires have caused severe
\nhaze which has also affected neighboring Singapore and Malaysia.<\/p>\n
Soeharto said that as the country struggles to contain the
\nfires, further natural upheavals are set to hit the nation.<\/p>\n
\"While we are busy overcoming the drought, we must also
\nprepare ourselves for the eventual floods that will come with the
\nstart of the rainy season,\" he said. He said steps should be
\ntaken to anticipate the appropriate crops which should be
\ncultivated in such conditions.<\/p>\n
\"Unless we take appropriate measures, food shortages might
\noccur that will compromise the economic stability which we have
\nbeen trying very hard to maintain,\" Soeharto said.<\/p>\n
Soeharto underlined the importance of science and technology
\nin helping to alleviate these natural upheavals.<\/p>\n
\"If we could predict the unusual climactic changes that lead
\nto the drought, we could make the necessary preparations...
\nminimizing possible damage,\" he added.<\/p>\n
The long dry season has already postponed this year's harvest
\nand hundreds of drought related deaths have been reported in
\nseveral areas of the country.<\/p>\n
Soeharto lamented that the available technology to forecast
\nclimactic change was not evenly distributed.<\/p>\n
\"Apparently the scientific and technological mastery is not
\nevenly disseminated,\" he said. He hoped the conference would
\nproduce action plans and make an effort to share skills in
\npredicting climate change and thereby anticipate disasters.<\/p>\n
Soeharto noted that the events of recent months prove the
\ninter linkages of natural phenomenons.<\/p>\n
Security<\/p>\n
Minister of Research and Technology B.J. Habibie later told
\nthe conference that Indonesia supported the idea of establishing
\na multinational research center for climate prediction, crop
\nestimation and disaster mitigation.<\/p>\n
But Habibie admitted that in the recent case of the widespread
\nfires, national security reasons had hampered data collection
\nwhich was crucial in anticipating climate variability.<\/p>\n
\"We started this conference on global climate change 11 years
\nago, but still haven't been allowed to present the necessary data
\non Indonesian maritime conditions due to security reasons,\"
\nHabibie told journalists addressing the conference at the Agency
\nfor the Assessment and Application of Technology.<\/p>\n
Four hundred participants are taking part in the three-day
\nconference.<\/p>\n
Habibie claimed this would no longer be a hurdle since
\nPresident Soeharto had opened access to information on
\nIndonesia's territory, whether at sea, on land or in the air, for
\nscientific studies on climate, weather and the environment.<\/p>\n
Habibie said the decision was prompted by the fact that
\nIndonesia holds a strategic position as it is located between two
\ncontinents and two oceans which has been identified as areas that
\neffect global environmental change and the El Nio phenomenon.<\/p>\n
The El Nio is a warming of the Pacific Ocean and has wreaked
\nhavoc on the global climate. (10\/prb)<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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