Poor eating cassava in Boyolali, W. Lombok<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Thousands of people in Boyolali, Central Java,
\nand West Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara, have started eating dried
\ncassava following failed harvests in the two regions.<\/p>\n
Poor people living around the Kedungombo Dam in Boyolali
\nregency are consuming processed cassava, known locally as tiwul,
\nbecause they are no longer able to purchase rice because their
\nown harvests have been destroyed.<\/p>\n
Yasdi and Sudin, residents of Kedungmulyo district confirmed
\nthat almost all people living around the big dam had no
\nalternative food to the tiwul because they could not afford to
\nbuy rice.<\/p>\n
\"Rice of low-quality costs Rp 3,500 (32 U.S. cents) per
\nkilogram,\" Yasdi said, adding that the failed harvests were
\ncaused by attacks by rats.<\/p>\n
Sudin expressed her fears about the farmers' fate since their
\nfood stocks had declined.<\/p>\n
She said efforts by farmers to change to other crops had also
\nfailed because of a lack of rain.<\/p>\n
Diyo, 30, Wagiyem, 27, and Sugiyanto, 37, all residents of
\nWuluhan subdistrict said they had consumed cassava for breakfast,
\ncassava porridge for lunch and tiwul for dinner.<\/p>\n
They said they were also facing difficulties earning money to
\npay their children's tuition fees, Antara reported on Thursday.<\/p>\n
Despite receiving rice aid from the local administration,
\nthousands of people in Sekotong subdistrict in West Lombok have
\nalso begun eating cassava following the prolonged drought in the
\nprovince.<\/p>\n
The local administration recently provided two kilograms of
\nrice for every family, plus used clothes and instant noodles for
\npoor people in the subdistrict.<\/p>\n
Syahri Suwandi, who handed over the aid relief, promised that
\nthe local government in the near future would also supply cheap
\nrice to the subdistrict in order to help alleviate the suffering.<\/p>\n
He said poor people would be given 10 kilograms of rice every
\nmonth.<\/p>\n
Many children have become malnourished because of the food
\nshortage.<\/p>\n
At least 188,000 people in the province were living in abject
\npoverty, Antara said.<\/p>\n
More than 500 tons of rice could not be transported to
\ndrought-hit Semeulue Island in Aceh province because of bad
\nweather on the island.<\/p>\n
As of Tuesday the rice could not be transported to the island
\nafter the passenger ship KMP Lily plying the Meulaboh-Senabang
\nroute was stranded at another island by the bad weather.<\/p>\n
Antara reported recently that at least 62,000 people living on
\nthe island were facing a food crisis after harvest failures over
\nthe last two years.<\/p>\n
Yunita Warti, spokeswoman for the state-owned land and sea
\ntransportation company PT ASDP in the West Aceh town of Meulaboh,
\nsaid her office had asked the company's branch office in Medan,
\nNorth Sumatra, to send another ship to transport the rice to the
\nisland. (rms)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/poor-eating-cassava-in-boyolali-w-lombok-1447893297",
"image": ""
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