Mass exodus from Bonggo site due to damaged road<\/p>\n
RK Nugroho, The Jakarta Post, Jayapura<\/p>\n
More than 7,000 of the 9,000 people sent as migrants to the
\ngovernment sponsored Bonggo migration site several years ago have
\nmoved to Jayapura, the capital city of Irian Jaya province, due
\nto serious damage in the road linking it to the city.<\/p>\n
Bonggo subdistrict's head of administration, B. Kyeu Kyeu said
\nthat currently only some 1,573 people remained in the migration
\nsite, which consists of four villages.<\/p>\n
\"They have been migrating to Jayapura since June 2000 when the
\nroad was seriously damaged and it ruined local businesses,\" he
\ntold The Jakarta Post when visited by Trikora Military Commander
\nMaj. Gen. Mahidin Simbolon in Bonggo, about 200 kilometers west
\nof Jayapura, on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
He pointed out that due to the damaged road, the local
\nresidents could not transport their goods to Jayapura, where they
\nusually sold them.<\/p>\n
He cited peanut as an example, which is the mainstay of Bonggo
\nfarmers. Because of the damaged road, peanut could not be
\ntransported to Jayapura and its price had dropped from Rp 9,000
\nto Rp 2,500 per kilogram.<\/p>\n
According to him, sea transportation to the coastal
\nsubdistrict was also poor as ships rarely entered its port.<\/p>\n
\"We've reported the condition to the Jayapura administration
\nand asked them to repair the road. But there has been no response
\nyet,\" he said.<\/p>\n
The subdistrict head was optimistic that they would return to
\nthe migration site once the road was repaired and public
\ntransportation resumed.<\/p>\n
One of the Bonggo residents, Sumadi, who come from Central
\nJava and stays in Bonggo, complained that due to the damaged road
\nthe prices of staple foods had sharply increased.<\/p>\n
Rice had increased from Rp 3,500 per kg to Rp 7,000 per kg,
\nkerosene from Rp 1,000 to Rp 3,500 per liter, sugar from Rp 5,000
\nto Rp 8,000 per kg.<\/p>\n
\"The only way I can survive is by cutting my spending,\" he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Muhamad Ali, a civil servant in Bonggo, confirmed Sumadi's
\nstatement, saying that the prices of all goods had jumped
\nsignificantly because of the damaged road.<\/p>\n
He said that before the road was damaged, the bus fare from
\nJayapura to Bonggo was just Rp 15,000 per ticket. After the road
\nwas damaged the bus fare jumped to Rp 75,000 per ticket.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Kyeu Kyeu said that security conditions in Bonggo
\nsubdistrict, which used to be a base camp of the separatist
\nmovement in the province, were getting better.<\/p>\n
\"This is because Meruai village that had been used by the
\nseparatist movement as a base camp since 1988 had been seized by
\nthe Indonesian Military in a military operation in September
\n2000,\" he said.<\/p>\n
He added that there were no casualties during the military
\noperation as the separatist members fled the base before the
\nIndonesian troops came to attack them.<\/p>\n
They reportedly fled to Sarmi subdistrict near Jayapura and to
\nAnus island, off the coast.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/mass-exodus-from-bonggo-site-due-to-damaged-road-1447893297",
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"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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