Donggala residents face food shortages after flood

Ruslan Sangadji, The Jakarta Post/Donggala

Over 90,000 residents in three districts in Donggala regency, Central Sulawesi are experiencing a food crisis following a devastating flood that inundated the region on Sunday.

The flood damaged rice fields and plantations in Tanambulava, Dolo and Sigi Biromaru districts while irrigation canals from Gumbasa river were ruined, covered by mud and wood carried by the flood.

According to a report from the Tanambulava disaster mitigation task force, serious problems, such as malnutrition and poor sanitation, would follow the flood.

The group, comprising members of Tanambulava Youth Communication Forum, Jambata Foundation, Lore Lindu National Park Partnership Forum, Bantaya Association and Awam Green Foundation called on the government to take immediate action to deal with the disaster and the subsequent problems.

"The people there will go hungry if they are not given immediate attention," a member of the group, Roen Syah, told The Jakarta Post.

In four villages -- Lambara, South Sibalaya, North Sibalaya and Sibovi in Tanambulava district -- four children were reportedly suffering from severe malnutrition.

Head of Donggala regency Health Office, Anita B. Nurdin, confirmed the malnutrition cases, adding that her office has provided medical treatment for the children.

Roen pointed out that clean water facilities in Lambara and North Sibalaya villages were badly damaged in the disaster, while around 3,000 hectares of rice fields were ruined.

"We're worried this situation will cause a food shortage in the affected areas. Donggala regency administration should pay attention to the people's suffering, not only to politics," Roen said.

He warned that if the problem was not given immediate attention, apart from a food crisis, the administration would have to deal with conflict among the residents, and debate over illegal logging at the national park which is thought to have caused the flood.

"Currently, they are pointing the finger at one another. This is dangerous and the administration needs to take immediate action," Roen said.

Illegal logging in the area started to become widespread in early 2000, with 38 chain saws reportedly operating in Tanambulava district's four villages. One chain saw can cut around four cubic meters of timber a day.

Villagers, especially in North Sibalaya, have reported the illegal loggers to the authorities, including Lore Lindu National Park management and the police. They had even seized illegal logs but the information was not followed up by the police.

When asked for confirmation of the report, Central Sulawesi Police criminal unit director Sr. Comr. Tatang Sumantri denied that the police were trying to cover up illegal logging to protect certain people.

He said the police were always ready to respond to people's reports, especially on illegal logging.

He cited the action taken against the head of Donggala's Forestry Office, Ibrahim Drakel, for issuing a permit to fell trees in the national park. "That's an example of how we are taking this seriously," Tatang said.