Govt blasted for hampering relief efforts

Govt blasted for hampering relief efforts

M. Taufiqurrahman, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Aid organizations working for humanitarian relief programs in
tsunami-hit Aceh complained on Wednesday that instead of
providing them with assistance, the government had hampered
effective efforts to mitigate the effects of the calamity.

Two Jakarta-based relief organizations, the Humanitarian
Emergency Commission and the Aceh Working Group (AWG), said that
despite the scale of the devastation the tsunamis inflicted on
Aceh, it was business as usual for the government as aid workers
had to deal with bureaucratic red tape in their efforts.

National coordinator of the Humanitarian Emergency Commission
Faisal Basri said aid workers had to go through complicated
procedures imposed by the central and local governments before
embarking on a full-fledged humanitarian mission.

He said that one of the biggest hurdles for the relief program
was encountered at the Office of the Vice President, which also
serves as the National Disaster Mitigation Agency.

Faisal said that as a result his mission failed to dispatch
six helicopters to tsunami-hit regions. "We've asked the vice
presidential office to provide barrels to store fuel for our
helicopters. But the office failed to meet such a simple demand.
Our request may have got stuck somewhere," he said, adding that
the helicopters were now sitting idle at Halim Perdanakusuma air
base.

Faisal said that due to the complicated bureaucratic
procedures, his humanitarian mission was now counting on personal
connections with government officials.

"The only reason our mission still prevails is due to close
cooperation with an Indonesian Military (TNI) general who helped
us bypass all procedures. Such is the way things work," Faisal
told The Jakarta Post.

He also suggested that the government install a single
official to oversee all relief operations in Aceh, especially one
experienced in dealing with logistical problems.

"The destruction in Aceh is similar to that of the Iraq war,
so we need someone who is capable of handling massive problems,
not just a minister who happens to oversee social affairs," he
said, referring to the role of the Coordinating Minister for
People's Welfare Alwi Shihab.

Along with Army Chief of Staff Gen. Ryamizard Ryacudu, Alwi in
his capacity as Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare has
been appointed by Vice President Jusuf Kalla to coordinate all
relief programs in Aceh.

Contacted separately, Ori Rahman of the Aceh Working Group
said the disaster mitigation agency which was superimposed on the
existing bureaucratic structures complicated the already
extensive bureaucratic system.