Residents wish to stay put despite volcanic hazards

MAGELANG, Central Java (JP): The government will not insist that residents living on the slopes of Mount Merapi leave their homes and relocate to another area despite the mountain's frequent volcanic activity.

Speaking during a brief visit on Wednesday to the Babadan Observation Post, Minister of Resettlement and Infrastructure Erna Witoelar maintained that inhabitants around the active volcano had chosen to reside there by choice.

"Moreover we can't guarantee that they will find a better place (if they moved)," she said.

"I'm not sure that the government can build new houses for those thousands of families, just trying to relocate a million refugees has already confused the government."

She said that the best form of assistance that the government could provide was to ensure that information concerning the volcano's activity was readily available and that preparations for a possible emergency were well in place.

She also said that the residents of Merapi had a mystical belief that inspired them to remain beside one of the most active volcanos in the world.

"It is also their right to take the risk of living beside the volcano. And they have learnt to live in this area which they love dearly," she said.

The 2,968-meter volcano, which is located between Yogyakarta and Magelang, has shown an increasing level of activity in the past few weeks.

During an eruption in the 1930s it claimed more than 1,300 lives, 28 lives in a 1976 eruption, and 60 lives during a 1994 eruption.

Despite its frequent activity, thousands live around the volcano and have refused to move to safer ground.

There are 32 villages within a seven kilometer radius where close to 80,000 people reside most of whom are farmers. (44)