Indonesia donates money to Turkish quake victims

JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia has donated US$50,000 to Turkey to aid thousands of earthquake victims in Kocaeli province, Turkey.

Minister of Social Services Justika Baharsjah presented the donation to Turkish Ambassador Deniz Uzmen in a simple ceremony on Wednesday.

Justika said the money was taken from the state budget allocation for humanitarian assistance to victims of natural disasters with the approval of President B.J. Habibie.

The ambassador expressed his gratitude to the government for its attention to the plight of the Turkish people.

An quake measuring 7.4 on the Richter scale rocked the province on Aug. 17. The country's interior ministry said 17,997 people died in the disaster but international agencies fear the final death toll could reach some 40,000.

About 200,000 homeless are enduring rain and cold in muddy tent cities in the province. Turkey's central bank chief has put the cost of the quake damage at from $5 billion to $7 billion.

Another quake registering 4.8 on the Richter scale jolted Bolu province in northeast Turkey on Monday but there were no reports of casualties. A man was killed by falling masonry in aftershocks on Tuesday. (prb)