Big shot denies famine in Papua

Big shot denies famine in Papua

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

A high-ranking government official returning from Yahukimo
regency in Papua denied on Thursday a famine was underway in the
isolated region, describing people there as "fat".

Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare Aburizal Bakrie,
who just returned from the regency, said "people in the area are
fat, the pigs are big, and the corn and cabbage is growing well".

Aburizal, a well-known business tycoon, traveled to Yahukimo
at the order of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono after reports
began emerging that 55 people there had died of severe
malnutrition since November.

The minister, however, denied there was a famine or that 55
people had died in the area. He said food was abundant in
Yahukimo, except for sweet potatoes, which is a staple food in
the region.

He said Yahukimo, some 800 kilometers from the provincial
capital Jayapura, simply needed to improve its agricultural
methods to prevent future sweet potato crop failures.

After attending a function at the Vice President's Office,
Aburizal took the opportunity to criticize the media for its
reporting on the so-called famine in Yahukimo, saying the stories
were incorrect. He said journalists should travel to the area
themselves to get firsthand information on what is happening.

"I will show you the pictures. The people there are fat," he
said, adding that he did not know how the reports on the "famine"
began.

While Aburizal was denying a famine was underway, the
government on Thursday continued to send food and medical aid to
the regency.

Aid has reached 13 of 17 remote villages most at risk of food
shortages, Aburizal said.

He said to guarantee food security in the area, the government
would set up food barns and send in agricultural trainers and
experts to teach residents how to plant alternative crops.