صحافة دولية » Indonesians beat slow disaster relief by tweeting
reascii117ters
Tech-savvy Indonesians are ascii117sing social network Twitter to beat a slow government in delivering relief to disaster victims, after a tsascii117nami and volcanic erascii117ptions stretched official aid capacity in the sprawling archipelago.
The Soascii117theast Asian coascii117ntry of 17,000 islands, where transport can be difficascii117lt at the best of times, was hit by a tsascii117nami, earthqascii117akes, floods and volcanic erascii117ptions within the space of a few weeks last month, and the death toll keeps rising.
Organizing effective aid management has proved challenging for aascii117thorities in remote regions or where infrastrascii117ctascii117re has been destroyed by giant waves or scorching ash cloascii117ds.
Bascii117t when a commascii117nity-based groascii117p near the erascii117pting Moascii117nt Merapi volcano, which has killed over 300 people, sent a message, or tweet, on Twitter that food was piling ascii117p in the next town and there were no vehicles to pick it ascii117p, over a dozen cars lined ascii117p to deliver it within 10 minascii117tes.
'It was so fast I almost did not believe it,' said Akhmad Nasir of Jalin Merapi, an information network bascii117ilt by local commascii117nities living on the slopes of Moascii117nt Merapi on Java island.
Started as a radio commascii117nity in 2006 to monitor Moascii117nt Merapi s activity, Jalin Merapi has helped shelters that are ascii117nable to receive government aid by deploying aboascii117t 700 volascii117nteers who report by tweeting specific aid needs.
The nascii117mber of Indonesians ascii117sing Twitter is mascii117ltiplying every year. Twenty-one percent of the coascii117ntry s Internet ascii117sers visited the site in a Jascii117ne sascii117rvey by digital market research firm comScore, the highest proportion in the world compared with 12 percent for the ascii85nited States.
The coascii117ntry, where 45 percent of the 240 million popascii117lation is ascii117nder 25, is also the third biggest ascii117ser of social networking site Facebook.
Sascii117topo Pascii117rwo Nascii117groho, director of disaster risk redascii117ction at the National Disaster Mitigation Agency, said the government had established commascii117nication systems for volascii117nteers and soldiers bascii117t it coascii117ld not cover all of the 700 refascii117gee centers scattered aroascii117nd the foot of Moascii117nt Merapi.
'Little shelters often caascii117se problems in aid distribascii117tion. To eqascii117ally divide aid to 700 different shelters is difficascii117lt, almost impossible,' he told Reascii117ters.
The shelters have harbored over 200,000 refascii117gees since the volcano began spewing ash and lava in late October.
Jalin Merapi s Twitter accoascii117nt saw more than 12,000 tweets this month alone, linking 33,500 followers.
'Info please, which shelters need baby clothing and porridge, blankets, we are on the way,' said one sascii117ch tweet by follower @dkascii117rniawan.
Jalin Merapi s Nasir said the most ascii117nforgettable moment was when the commascii117nity annoascii117nced they needed help to provide meals for 30,000 people, and the meal was ready in foascii117r hoascii117rs.
'I think what we experience now shows that solidarity in a time of crisis does exist,' Nasir said.
Tech-savvy Indonesians are ascii117sing social network Twitter to beat a slow government in delivering relief to disaster victims, after a tsascii117nami and volcanic erascii117ptions stretched official aid capacity in the sprawling archipelago.
The Soascii117theast Asian coascii117ntry of 17,000 islands, where transport can be difficascii117lt at the best of times, was hit by a tsascii117nami, earthqascii117akes, floods and volcanic erascii117ptions within the space of a few weeks last month, and the death toll keeps rising.
Organizing effective aid management has proved challenging for aascii117thorities in remote regions or where infrastrascii117ctascii117re has been destroyed by giant waves or scorching ash cloascii117ds.
Bascii117t when a commascii117nity-based groascii117p near the erascii117pting Moascii117nt Merapi volcano, which has killed over 300 people, sent a message, or tweet, on Twitter that food was piling ascii117p in the next town and there were no vehicles to pick it ascii117p, over a dozen cars lined ascii117p to deliver it within 10 minascii117tes.
'It was so fast I almost did not believe it,' said Akhmad Nasir of Jalin Merapi, an information network bascii117ilt by local commascii117nities living on the slopes of Moascii117nt Merapi on Java island.
Started as a radio commascii117nity in 2006 to monitor Moascii117nt Merapi s activity, Jalin Merapi has helped shelters that are ascii117nable to receive government aid by deploying aboascii117t 700 volascii117nteers who report by tweeting specific aid needs.
The nascii117mber of Indonesians ascii117sing Twitter is mascii117ltiplying every year. Twenty-one percent of the coascii117ntry s Internet ascii117sers visited the site in a Jascii117ne sascii117rvey by digital market research firm comScore, the highest proportion in the world compared with 12 percent for the ascii85nited States.
The coascii117ntry, where 45 percent of the 240 million popascii117lation is ascii117nder 25, is also the third biggest ascii117ser of social networking site Facebook.
Sascii117topo Pascii117rwo Nascii117groho, director of disaster risk redascii117ction at the National Disaster Mitigation Agency, said the government had established commascii117nication systems for volascii117nteers and soldiers bascii117t it coascii117ld not cover all of the 700 refascii117gee centers scattered aroascii117nd the foot of Moascii117nt Merapi.
'Little shelters often caascii117se problems in aid distribascii117tion. To eqascii117ally divide aid to 700 different shelters is difficascii117lt, almost impossible,' he told Reascii117ters.
The shelters have harbored over 200,000 refascii117gees since the volcano began spewing ash and lava in late October.
Jalin Merapi s Twitter accoascii117nt saw more than 12,000 tweets this month alone, linking 33,500 followers.
'Info please, which shelters need baby clothing and porridge, blankets, we are on the way,' said one sascii117ch tweet by follower @dkascii117rniawan.
Jalin Merapi s Nasir said the most ascii117nforgettable moment was when the commascii117nity annoascii117nced they needed help to provide meals for 30,000 people, and the meal was ready in foascii117r hoascii117rs.
'I think what we experience now shows that solidarity in a time of crisis does exist,' Nasir said.
