Sumatra’s Ongoing Tragedy: Proof the Government Still Refuses to Learn

What an insane insult and catastrophe when, as a citizen, I have put my trust and hope in people who have continuously failed to learn from the past, even though they are now in a position of power to determine policy. A position so important, in fact, that they claimed that social media is currently only exaggerating the hydrometeorological and ecological disasters in many areas of Sumatra, which have clearly killed more than 600 people, left hundreds missing and hundreds of thousands of families displaced. It will take years to recover from all the material losses incurred by the natural disasters.

Source: The Independent

The illusion that everything is fine – perhaps to keep the disasters under the radar of  international media – tries to hide the reality: a rotten capacity to adapt and respond to well-documented events which should be anticipated every year especially during monsoon. The once-sturdy Bukit Barisan ranges of Sumatra are now bleeding, plundered, and deliberately and massively destroyed to satisfy the greed of selfish individuals who prioritize their own interests.

Science, which should serve as a bridge for policy, seems to have been neglected in revealing indicators, impacts, and predictions that may occur in the future. 1.6 million hectares of forest in North Sumatra, 860,000 hectares of forest in Aceh, and 740,000 hectares of forest in West Sumatra have been cleared since 2000 (Global Forest Watch). The combination of heavy rains and the loss of land cover is evident in videos, photos, even research articles showing massive amounts of wood being carried by water from upstream towards the coast. Science, which should serve as a bridge for policy, seems to have been neglected in revealing indicators, impacts, and predictions that may occur in the future. 

As of 1st of December, the government still refuses to declare this a national disaster.

The lack of mobile and internet connection, power outages, increasingly limited food supplies and incredibly difficult terrains for evacuation have devastated and changed the cultural identity of the area. More and more people are looting stores to survive. To continue breathing. It is ironic and should not be happening just because of the government's inability to protect its own citizens..Indeed, in the midst of a real climate crisis – one acknowledged worldwide – the budget for mitigation and disaster management has been cut by up to 50%.

It seems that the government has failed to learn from the past yet again – leaving only apologies to answer to the deaths of its citizens. As if human lives are worth only words and are just a number – a mere statistic to forget.

About Author:

Phidju Marrin Sagala is a Master’s Student in Forest and Ecosystem Sciences at the University of Göttingen. His interests are related to climate science and its effects on forestry. Currently, he is also a Research Fellow at the Center for International Forestry Research-World Agroforestry (CIFOR-ICRAF), working on mangrove blue carbon research.