Sunday 28 October 2018

Learning Brings Hope Amidst the Rubble in Tsunami-stricken Indonesia’s Central Sulawesi


By Lely Djuhari, UNICEF Communication Specialist 



PALU, Indonesia 28 October –  A faint but a determined heartbeat has returned to the provincial capital city of Palu in Indonesia’s Central Sulawesi. A month after a powerful 7.4 magnitude earthquake and tsunami devastated this once palm-fringed bayside area, 11-year-old girl Sophia Angelica Majid woke up from her slumber on one sunny morning.

Her room is now a tent, shared with nine other family members and neighbours. Her bed is a mattress, protected by a mosquito net. Her morning routine now includes showering or washing her face and hands with soap; brushing her teeth with water from a large container at the end of a field dotted with white and khaki green canvas temporary shelters.


She no longer has a school bag, full of books. Her laptop, full of homework notes, computer games, and her favourite Disney movies Frozen and Moana, is nowhere to be found.



With only one exercise book and a pen, she started to get ready for her school day. Her mother Evni Majid bid her goodbye as she busied herself filling in a city form to record that she, her husband, Sophia and her two brothers were safe. Though it would be forever imprinted in her mind how they ran desperately to get away from the waves that engulfed large swathes of the shoreline. Sophia’s quick reaction made her grab two mobile phones. They became the family’s lifeline in the following chaotic days, trying to find food, drink and information on where the rest of the family sought refuge.

On Sophia’s 30-minute-walk to school amidst the debris, cars and motorbikes rumbled in the streets as her hometown came back to life.

“Oh my, that entire wall is gone,” Sophia gasped, as she arrived to SDN Inpres II Talise and gazed for the first time the surreal landscape at the back of her school, which faced the waterfront. “It’s heartbreaking. This used to be a neat row of school buildings. There was a large housing complex over there. There used to be durian fruit sellers (on the coastline). Now it’s all gone.”


 
Of the 202 students registered at Sophia’s school only 70 from all the six grades showed up that day. However, she and her friends sat down on the plastic-covered ground ready to learn the first lesson of the day.

It's a long way from normal, but it's a start.
UNICEF was the first UN agency to transport 94 metric tonnes of essential emergency supplies through an airbridge from a neighbouring island of Borneo. Sophie’s school was one of the first to receive the 450 school tents and 300 school-in-a-box that UNICEF has committed to deliver to over 1,400 affected schools, more than184,000 children and nearly 13,000 teachers. UNICEF also successfully advocated a standard-setting first as the Government procured another 150 tents using UNICEF specifications. 




The Head of the Education Office Irwan Lahece has issued a back to school appeal. All schools are to resume school from 8 to 11 AM in the morning, with an hour dedicated to psychosocial support – singing, playing games, talking in a group or one-on-one with the teachers about whatever is on their mind.

But aftershocks are still a regular occurrence. Many parents fear that after surviving thus far, their lives may still be changed for the worse. Officials are still confirming the total number of children who have already regained access to education. They will also step up efforts to clear up broken furniture, mangled metal pieces, shards of glass from the school grounds. Another challenge for the coming months is to set up latrines and handwashing facilities in the school tents.

The searing heat outside of the not-quite-yet noon sun signalled that classes were over. The tent was considerably cooler as the teachers raised the wall flaps to allow air to circulate inside the 72-meter square room. The children – including Sophia - lined up to receive a UNICEF white bag with exercise books, pens, rulers, an eraser, a sharpener and crayons.



A bag full of hope to add to her sole school possession of one note book and one pen.
“Education is for every child. There are hundreds and thousands of children affected by the earthquake and tsunami here. It’s time for them to go back to school and get a sense of normalcy in their lives,” said Yusra Tebe, UNICEF Emergency Education Specialist. He added that with the onset of a monsoon, in some areas their hardships may be compounded by more landslides.



After school, Sophia and her older brother returned to her house stripped of its roof, wooden walls, doors. Only a cement foundation is now left behind, marking the four rooms of her house. She looks through the wreckage to try and find some of her belongings, including her school uniform, shoes or sandals without any luck. She manages to find a white frilly dress belonging to Tasha her friend and promises to tell her of the find.


With the Government of Indonesia leading the response, UNICEF was ready to support in the critical hours and days after an emergency in Central Sulawesi. A six-month plan has been completed. UNICEF now stands ready to support the Government, partners and the community, as the emergency response moves into early recovery.





Saturday 13 October 2018

A child found, a family reunited


By Kinanti Pinta Karana, UNICEF Indonesia Communications Specialist




Iqbal As Sywie parked his motorbike at the Central Sulawesi Office of Social Affairs and half ran to the blue tent where the Child Protection Joint Secretariat located. “Is he here yet?” he asked Astrid Gonzaga Dionisio, a UNICEF Child Protection Specialist staff who shook her head and smiled, “He’ll be here, Pak, take a deep breath.”

Iqbal, 33, smiled and looked at his mother, Marta.  Iqbal is the father of Mufli, 10, and Fikri, 7. Both sons went missing after the earthquake and tsunami hit the cities of Palu and Donggala on 28 September 2018. “They are good children, they kiss my hand before going to school and mengaji (Quran reciting course, a common after-school activity for children of Islamic faith),” he said.

He reported the missing children to the Child Protection Joint Secretariat Post. The social workers filed the report and shared it with colleagues in other posts in Central Sulawesi. When disaster strikes, children are often separated from their parents or immediate families and in many cases, missing. In Central Sulawesi, as of October 11, the number of separated[1] and unaccompanied[2] children is estimated to be 300, while the number of registered missing children is 74.

The Social Ministry’s social workers (Satuan Bakti Pekerja Sosial or Sakti Peksos) in collaboration with UNICEF provided a host of support for children affected by the Central Sulawesi disaster. From psycho-social support to help children cope with the traumatic experience to family tracing and reunification (FTR) to reunify separated families. Twelve posts will be set up in disaster-hit areas to identify children who are separated or unaccompanied. Similar posts have been set up in Makassar to register separated/unaccompanied children moving out of Palu.

After days of tracing, social workers found a child matching the description of Fikri in Morowali Utara, a district located eight hours away from Palu. After a series of cross-checking and a thorough identification process, it was confirmed that Fikri had been found. Today, the elated family gathered at the Joint Secretariat tent for their reunification with Fikri.

Iqbal, his mother and some members of his extended family sat on the tarpaulined floor, when a small child entered carrying a bag of toys in his hand. It was Fikri. Iqbal broke in tears and hugged his lost son.



“Masya Allah (whatever Allah will), Fikri, you are alive,” he said between tears as he kissed his forehead.

Fikri was playing outside the house with his older brother, Mufli (10), when tsunami swept them away. He was stranded on a pedestrian walk and rescued by a local person who was being evacuated to Morowali Utara. The situation in Palu at that time was still very chaotic, the person decided to bring Fikri with him while trying to get medical help on the way. He filed a report at the social worker’s post in the district while caring for the child.  

“This is a miracle. It makes me and the social workers happy every time we are successful in reuniting a child with their families,” the Director of Child Rehabilitation at the Ministry of Social Affairs Nahar (it is common for Indonesians to have only one name) said.

Prior to the meeting, Iqbal and his family had had a chance to speak to Fikri over the phone. They were thankful to know he was well treated by the family and he had been going to Quran reciting course.

UNICEF Indonesia Child Protection Specialist Naning Puji Julianingsih said that family tracing and reunification is important because a child should be with their family. “The best environment for a child is with their own immediate or extended families. Institutional care or family-based adoption should be the last options,” Naning said.

UNICEF recently introduced digital-based innovation named Primero application. Data of separated children found will automatically be matched with missing children report. UNICEF currently works with Social Ministry to conduct a training for social workers whose main task is to trace and reunify separated children with their families.

“I can’t tell you how I feel right now, I want to meet with the person who rescued my son and thanked him in person,” Iqbal said. He still had not heard any news of Mufli but he remained hopeful. His mother, Marta, touched her son’s hand and said, “Wherever he is, I hope he (Mufli) is alive and with good people,” she said.





[1] Separated children are those separated from both parents, or from their previous legal or customary primary care-giver, but not necessarily from other relatives. These may therefore, include children accompanied by other adult family members. Source: Inter-Agency Guiding Principles on unaccompanied and separated children, 2004
[2] Unaccompanied children (also called unaccompanied minors) are children who have been separated from both  parents and other relatives and are not being cared for by an adult, who, by law or custom, is responsible for doing so. Source: Inter-Agency Guiding Principles on unaccompanied and separated children, 2004