The risk of being poor?
The risk of being poor?
A horrific picture was shown on TV of a fishing village in
West Aceh devastated by the tsunami. The landscape was flat; only
one building stuck out, the village mosque. What did the picture
tell me?
The mosque is the strongest building in the area, as it is the
most precious property that the villagers have. The rest of the
buildings including the homes used cheaper materials, and
therefore, were not as strong. This shows me how great the
devotion of the villagers to God is.
In my travels in Indonesia I have never seen a wealthy fishing
village. Their villages are poor, as their catch depends on small
wooden boats, with a small portable motor. I have never seen
trawlers with a big crane on the back, with refrigerated storage
and equipped with sonar and radio, on their docks. They saved
what they had earned for the beautiful mosque, to express their
love for God.
History shows that the Acehnese people stand up for what they
believe in, which is a rare quality these days. So, why did these
God-loving, honest villagers experience such a tragic fate? Many
of them drowned or lost their loved ones. Has God forsaken them?
Having no knowledge in theology and afraid that I may
jeopardize my own faith, I chose not to pursue such a question. I
tried to find the answer simply by using logic, and I have come
up with a painful conclusion that many of people affected by the
tsunami died simply because they were poor.
Nobody can stop such a natural disaster; however, the number
of casualties could be minimized. That is, if, and only if, those
people could afford it. The government when asked why a tsunami
warning system is not in place in the Indian ocean replied that
the system is expensive.
How expensive? Something is deemed expensive when the cost is
bigger than the benefit.
A problem was once posed in an engineering school about 10
years ago, in which students were asked to calculate how many
safety fences had to be installed, and where, along the highway
around a small city in Texas. The cost of installing and
maintaining the fences was given and the students were given
access to the highway accident data from the local government.
The state of Texas estimates a loss of US$2 million for a
fatality, while the losses through various other injuries are
also calculated. The students had to analyze the accident
database to see in what areas spending money to install and
maintain the fences would save a lot more money than the losses
incurred due to fatalities and injuries. Meaning, the investment
is justified or not expensive.
ROBERTUS HERU TRIHARJANTO
Jakarta