The Jakarta Post 30 Apr 09;
The National Disaster Management Body (BNPB) has blamed local authorities and their environmentally unfriendly policies for the recent spate of disasters nationwide.
"The biggest challenge in preventing disasters for the government at both the central and local levels is the bureaucracy itself. Their thirst for income often leads to policies that are unfriendly to the environment," Deputy Chief of the BNPB Sugeng Triutomo told The Jakarta Post after launching the National Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction at the Borobudur Hotel in Central Jakarta.
The platform will serve as an advisory body at all levels of administrations, providing recommendations for environmentally-friendly policies, as well as raising public awareness, head of BNPB Syamsul Ma'arif said.
Sugeng outlined several instances of irresponsible policy development.
"In Puncak, West Java, both the provincial and the Bogor regency administrations have issued many building permits in conservation areas just to earn more land and building taxes," Sugeng said.
"That has been happening for years and the impact is long-term. But when the floods hit Jakarta, the Jakarta and West Java administrations just play the blame game. This must not happen anymore," he said.
The latest disaster, the Situ Gintung dam burst in Banten, killed more than 100 people and was a classic of example of this mismanagement, Sugeng said.
"It was always forbidden to build on the land encircling the lake. There are regulations about that. However, when people began to build their homes there, the authorities just ignored it and imposed taxes," he explained.
In Papua and Kalimantan, Sugeng said, the challenge to prevent environmental destruction was even more complicated due to the greater amount of potential taxes from logging and mining companies.
Sugeng said similar challenges face authorities nationwide, particularly in remote areas.
"On the one hand, the authorities' desire for money may harm the environment, while on the other a lack of public awareness about the natural environment may exacerbate it," he said.
A number of observers have also blamed the central government's law enforcement measures against regional governments.
They claim that existing regulations at the national level are largely ignored by many regional administrations, who instead implement their own measures to make a profit.
The National Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction, kicked off by the BNPB in cooperation with the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UN OCHA), aims to overcome those problems.
"This platform accommodates all stakeholders, including NGOs, academics, the media, private sector, the government and international communities," head of BNPB Syamsul Ma'arif said.
Syamsul said the platform will also bridge the gap between the authorities and local communities.
"Disaster management is a collective business of the government, communities and private sector," he said.
"I would like to congratulate the Indonesian government for this measure and hope it is not just a *supermarket' for NGOs and communities but actually manages disasters," Ignacio Leon-Garcia, the head of UN OCHA, said. (bbs)
