Jakarta Tales Vol 4 (contd)

THE YOGYAKARTA EARTHQUAKE...

The Yogyakarta (pronounced Jogjakarta) earthquake, indeed, was the most shocking incident I've come across during my stay here so far. You'll know the details of what and how it happened so I'm not gonna waste time doing another BBC. But what I'll utilize my time doing is describing how the feeling was being right in the country where it happened.

Initially, I hated myself and a lot of Jakartans for being so oblivious to it. Most people got to know of the quake only when the news channels flashed it all over the world. And even then, there was no sense of remorse or grief. It was a weekend so everyone was still partying as ever. In fact, I didn't know untill 12 hours after it and was so ashamed of myself and my colleagues who didn't know a thing either.

But don't judge a book by its cover. Once the news had spread like wild fire, Jakarta was a city possessed. While Indonesia's disaster management teams worked round the clock (and they are quite efficient according to Asian standards), people of Jakarta chipped in like never before. Money and medical supplies were being collected door-to-door, makeshift booths came up on major street crossings where the rich and the poor alike were contributing all-you-ask-for like mad and literally every one was up in arms for beloved Yogya. An NGO called Dompet Dhuafa was the most active with banners all over Jakarta saying "Love our Yogya".

In fact, our office also contributed money to set up 20 relief camps for the survivors and a month's salary and I was happy I could do my bit, however small it was. And that's what made me appreciate the city. It seems, with natural disasters becoming part of the Indonesian annual calendar of events, Jakartans have taken catastrophes in their stride. While they may seem untouched or made-of-stone, they know what to do, when to do and how to do it. And they don't make much ado about nothing. You wouldn't blame them or any other Indonesians for that matter, would you. It's a country that's been hit by a tsunami, landslides, bomb blasts, plan crashes and an earth quake all within 15 months!! It still stands... and it stands tall.

I was desperate to go to Yogya to see how the situation was but the government strongly advised laymen against it. Only national and international aid workers and relatives of victims and survivors were permitted. In fact, a colleague of mine was in Yogya for 2 days after the quake because he lost his cousin when his house collapsed. I wished I could go with him but alas, no chance. But what I observed and genuinely saluted was the relief efforts. No bureaucracy (although Indonesia is as bad or as good as India when it comes to it), no government delays and no scams. All foreign aid was quickly rushed to as many places as possible (it truly is remarkable considering the number of people who were affected). I felt really proud when PM Manmohan Singh ordered some ships in the Indian Ocean to change their course and head with relief material straight to Jakarta.

The magnitude of the Yogya tragedy was doubled due to its timing. All these days, the whole country was anxiously anticipating Mt Merapi to erupt. Indonesia's most unruly volcano had been raging for almost a month and the meteorology department had put it on the higest alert status. Evacuations had been carried out when the mountain spewed clouds of gas and rocks 4 kms down its 8000 ft slopes only a few days before the quake struck. Mt Merapi is to the north of Yogya. The earthquake struck the southern part of the city and came from under the water. People thought it was another tsunami and when they had to flee their homes, they had literally nowhere to go. The only option was to leave the city and go to neighbouring Solo. But that's where the relief operations' organizing headquarters were and if everyone was allowed in, the process would have gone haywire. In despair, people took to the streets spending the night and the following days thereafter in cars and on the sidewalks. Yogyakarta's infrastructure isn't impressive or scientific as Jakarta's so the 140 aftershocks that hit the region and Merapi's heighthened activity after the quake added to the fear of further collapse. My colleague showed us photographs and the only question I had was, "Why God, why?" And then it dawned on me how petty we all are and how mighty nature is. 15 years, or how many? I don't really know how much time it takes for man to build a city and in 15 seconds its all rubble? We truly become what we come from no matter how modern we may try to get, don't we... ashes to ashes, dust to dust?

For once, I was relieved... because the quake hadn't struck Jakarta (although I got at least 10-15 frantic calls and even more emails from India) and that I was alive. Believe me, you might think I am exaggerating but at that moment, I really thanked God for everything he had given me, including such caring people who called or emailed me thinking I might have been a recipient of nature's fury. The thought of something happening here scared the daylights out of me and I realized how much of a comfort zone my family, friends and city provided me in my daily life back home. Moreover, I also saw my destiny playing a part here. I was planning to go to the Budddhist temples at Borobodur (one of the old Seven Wonders of the World) that very weekend but my colleagues and friends dissuaded me. And why is it destiny? Because you can't get to Borobudur without going to Yogya.

The only piece of comforting news to all Indonesians was that Borobudur was mostly untouched. Except for a few small carvings that fell out, the ancient shrines at the temples there were intact, and they still are. I pray that they may forever be. Remnants of our past, they deserve this planet as much as, if not more than, we do. Hopefully, it should be safe to go to Yogya in 3 months' time and God willing, I might be able to visit the heritage site of Borobudur before I come back to India.

Honestly, I also want to go to see the Merapi but its unsafe and no one is allowed to go near the mountain. Imagine what a feeling it would be to see golden red lava flowing down the slopes. Whoa! What an experience!! Excited?!?!?! So was I. But this is where you should slap your selfish self just like I did and think for a moment. The other side of the story is the devastation it could cause to the neighbouring villages if it erupted. The last time it erupted it killed 64 people only with the steam emanating from its crater.


That's it for now
Yousuf