Floodwaters trigger fear of widespread poverty crisis

Floodwaters trigger fear of widespread poverty crisis

Damar Harsanto and Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post,
Jakarta

Many flood victims have been left homeless, jobless, sick and
penniless as a result of the recent floods. Some have returned
home, while others are still staying in inadequate makeshift
shelters.

Kuswanto, a resident of Kampung Melayu, has left the
evacuation camp. A street vendor who sold mechanics' tools in
front of Jatinegara railway station, Kuswanto says he lost all
his goods during the disaster.

"I have nothing left. I don't have a penny to reestablish my
business," he told The Jakarta Post his eyes brimming with tears.

Before the flood hit his neighborhood, he had just spent Rp
200,000 to buy some goods to be sold on the street.

To feed his wife and two children, Kuswanto now acts as an
unofficial traffic warden who "directs" traffic for a tip.

As a vendor, he got Rp 15,000 a day, now he can only earn
between Rp 5,000 to 7,500.

Being out of pocket is not the only problem facing many flood
victims.

Hundreds of evacuees were seen on Saturday cramped in tattered
tents alongside Jl. Jatinegara Barat, East Jakarta, next to a
pile of garbage exposed to rain and wind. In Manggarai
subdistrict, South Jakarta, the victims took shelter in schools
and open shelters.

"I am suffering from diarrhea right now, while my two children
have a fever," said Amran, a resident of Kalibata subdistrict in
South Jakarta, adding that they had taken medicine.

Irwanto, a sociologist of the Center for Societal Development
Studies at Atma Jaya University here, warned that the recent
calamities could further impoverish those people who had been
burdened by the country's economic crisis.

"Those who are between the lower income to middle income
bracket are those who have felt the impact of the massive floods
as they've lost their source of livelihood," Irwanto said.

As they are living in squalid conditions, Irwanto said, they
could easily fall sick, which prevents them from working. They
are in dire need of an income.

Irwanto said such a difficult situation could prompt the
parents to send their children out to work.

"Besides a massive number of unemployed people, there will be
a huge number of jobless young people who are unable to attain a
high level of education as they have quit school," he said.

"That will be a trigger for protracted poverty as the chain of
poverty grows longer and becomes unbreakable," Irwanto said.