The Tidal Wave Disaster
Posted by Bill Molesworth
Jamie Hunter gave everyone a late Christmas present by canceling his presentation and introduced Steve Robillard who has strong ties to, great affection for, and a lot of experience in Indonesia. He had agreed on short notice to come and tell the Club a little about the areas around the Indian Ocean that have been so tragically affected by the earthquake and subsequent tidal wave.
Steve first visited Indonesia with Canada World Youth in the 70's, an experience he described as life changing. Indonesia, composed of thousands of islands divided into 27 Provinces (since the secession of East Timor) with millions of people speaking hundreds of languages is about as long as Canada is wide. Under the Suharto regime all profits and materials flowed to Jakarta, the capital, and the Provinces suffered, encouraging several secessionist movements. One of the strongest has been in the Province most affected by this series of events, so strong indeed that it has been sealed off from world view for 18 months.
Since Suharto's overthrow, the country has taken great strides towards full democracy. The newly elected President is working with a minority government and this disaster is a huge test for him, but also an opportunity to show the people that the government has a role to play in their well being. There is oil there, as there is in East Timor, which raises the stakes enormously.
As the islands are quite mountainous, the majority of people and all the transportation lines are on the coast, which means this type of natural disaster affects a disproportionately large number of the population. The typical construction is very light, bamboo and palm leaves, and easily swept away.
Steve feels the country is better organized than we might think, with good record keeping, good communications with the internet and cell phones and huge manpower resources, but distances are great, the military is spread thin and race will be to keep ahead of decay and disease.
Steve's remarks added quite a bit to what the members had been seeing in the media and put a more immediate perspective on the disaster. He recommended contributions be made through the major organizations that are devoted to and experienced in helping in these kind of events. Individual efforts would be too small, too hard to organize and would be difficult to deliver.
In response to a question, President Jim said the Club was researching how best to contribute.
Jamie Tripp thanked Steve for bringing his experience to life for the Club.
Since Suharto's overthrow, the country has taken great strides towards full democracy. The newly elected President is working with a minority government and this disaster is a huge test for him, but also an opportunity to show the people that the government has a role to play in their well being. There is oil there, as there is in East Timor, which raises the stakes enormously.
As the islands are quite mountainous, the majority of people and all the transportation lines are on the coast, which means this type of natural disaster affects a disproportionately large number of the population. The typical construction is very light, bamboo and palm leaves, and easily swept away.
Steve feels the country is better organized than we might think, with good record keeping, good communications with the internet and cell phones and huge manpower resources, but distances are great, the military is spread thin and race will be to keep ahead of decay and disease.
Steve's remarks added quite a bit to what the members had been seeing in the media and put a more immediate perspective on the disaster. He recommended contributions be made through the major organizations that are devoted to and experienced in helping in these kind of events. Individual efforts would be too small, too hard to organize and would be difficult to deliver.
In response to a question, President Jim said the Club was researching how best to contribute.
Jamie Tripp thanked Steve for bringing his experience to life for the Club.