MEDIA RELEASE Date: 29 May 2006

NGOs respond to Indonesia earthquake

The 6.2 Richter scale earthquake that struck Yogyakarta in the early hours of Saturday morning with devastating results has elicited a quick response from New Zealand Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs).

With the death toll of 3,500 expected to rise, the damage inflicted by the quake has created a dire situation for the thousands injured and the estimated 100,000 made homeless.

Many survivors have been forced to stay outside through fear of aftershocks and heavy rain has compounded victims’ suffering, and intensified the need for tents and shelter. No associated tsunami has been reported.

New Zealand NGOs have reacted quickly with many currently active in response and relief operations in Yogyakarta. A number of NGOs were able to divert staff and resources from the anticipated eruption of Mt Merapi to assist the victims of the quake.

The following provides a brief description of the response of New Zealand NGOs, often through their international bodies, in Yogyakarta.

The Salvation Army

The Salvation Army is on the ground assisting the victims of this earthquake with the Salvation Army Indonesian Relief teams and a medical team having been dispatched to the affected area.

The Salvation Army immediately began assisting in the villages in the earthquake area. A Salvation Army boy’s home was partially destroyed by the earthquake, but the boys and staff escaped unharmed and are assisting neighbours whose houses totally collapsed. Relief funds have been immediately made available from the Salvation Army International Headquarters and public funds are being collected world wide to assist. The Salvation Army is organizing the provision of food, shelter, medical assistance and clothes.

For more information, or to make a donation, contact the Salvation Army on:
0800 53 00 00 or online at www.salvationarmy.org.nz

TEAR Fund

TEAR Fund is working to provide food, water and shelter to victims of the Yogyakarta earthquake.

TEAR Fund, through its partners in the region, is currently working in the village of Gadongan, east of Yogjakarta. This village of 175 families has received no assistance from any other source. The houses in the village, constructed from flimsy building materials, have been completely destroyed.

So far TEAR Fund has provided Gadongan village with 850 kg of rice, 4,200 packages of instant noodles and 8,400 containers of drinking water. They are in process of sourcing and providing 175 tents.

Their partners on the ground are reporting that when they first approached Gadongan village, a dozen families have erected makeshift tarps; the rest were lying in the open, picking through rubble to salvage what they could, or nursing their wounded. One man had sustained serious head wounds but was too weak to be moved to the hospital. Field staff said that heavy rain yesterday had compounded victims’ suffering, and intensified the need for tents and shelter.

TEAR Fund is receiving donations for its emergency relief response in Yogjakarta and its surrounding areas.

For more information, or to make a donation, contact TEAR Fund on:
0800 800 777 or online at: www.tearfund.org.nz

ChildFund

ChildFund New Zealand’s supporters sponsor over 800 children in Indonesia through their partner, CCF Indonesia.

While it appears that none of CCF Indonesia’s long-term community development projects have been directly affected by the earthquake, ChildFund International is responding to assist CCF Indonesia to assess the situation, with a particular focus on the needs of children who have survived the earthquake. At this stage, they are looking to establish Child-Centred Spaces, safe areas for children that protect their well-being and provide a safe place for them to recover from the trauma they have experienced.

There are also plans to provide nutrition monitoring of children and items such as cooking utensils and blankets for survivors. A New Zealander who recently returned from managing an emergency response in Kenya for ChildFund International, Renzo Benfatto, is on his way to Indonesia now to assess the situation and manage the response.

ChildFund International, of which ChildFund New Zealand is a member, is looking to raise at least $160,000 for the emergency response in Indonesia.

For further information about ChildFund please contact Paul Brown, National Director, ChildFund New Zealand, on 09 966 0864 or 0275 566 196

To make a donation, contact ChildFund call 0800 808 822 or visit www.childfund.org.nz

Save the Children New Zealand

Approximately 40,000 children have been directly affected by the earthquake that hit Java on Saturday evening leaving devastation in its wake. Many have been injured and many more still are without shelter.

The Save the Children team in Bantul, the worst affected region, estimates that 80% of houses are damaged. Initial assessments by the team report that families' immediate needs are shelter, blankets, cooking utensils and hygiene items.

Save the Children is already working to deliver hygiene kits to 1,000 affected families. These kits, containing soap, detergents, towels and toothbrushes, have been diverted from the proposed Merapi volcano response for use in Yogyakarta. Thirty boxes of games and toys, including sports equipment, are also heading for Yogyakarta to provide children with some relief.

Save the Children has also placed orders for the following kits which will be distributed as soon as is possible: family household kits (cooking utensils, plastic sheeting, tools, torches stove and jerry cans); game kits for use in safe play areas; education kits (textbooks, pencils, crayons, paper) and teacher kits (teaching supplies, chalk, paper etc).

Save the Children is appealing for donations to fund our response for the children in Java who have been left homeless and scared following the earthquake yesterday.

For more information contact Liz Gibbs 04 381 7577 or 029 200 9349 or to make a donation, call 0800 167 168 or visit www.savethechildren.org.nz

Save the Children spokesperson Fay Mahdi is also available for interview on +44 7831 650 409.

Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand

The Caritas Confederation is on the ground through a number of local and international agencies:

Caritas (Caritas USA – a long term Caritas NZ partner, including the tsunami relief effort) has been working in the area with local NGOs, providing preparedness for a possible eruption of Mt Merapi and therefore has transferred resources and support from there to the victims of the quake. These are mostly non-food items. The local Caritas attached to the local church is also very active in initial relief response.

Jesuit Refugee Services (JRS – a long term Caritas NZ partner in Indonesia) and their Director Fr. Edi Mulyono (who visited NZ in March) have their country base in Yogyakarta. They are safe and are now providing non-food support to the displaced. JRS was also in the preparing for an eruption of Mt Merapi and have relief materials in the area. Further assessments are ongoing.

Caritas NZ is accepting donations for this emergency. Caritas NZ would also like to encourage NZAID and New Zealand government to consider the New Zealand NGO networks as part of their overall funding response.

For more information, contact Anna Sussmilch 04 496 1742 or 021 528 071. To make a donation call 0900 4 11 11 (to make an automatic $20 donation) or visit www.caritas.org.nz

Christian World Service (CWS)

Within hours of Sunday’s earthquake striking central Java, Christian World Service (CWS) partners were working with survivors, distributing food, water, blankets and medicine and evacuating injured children to Tegalyoso hospital in Klaten. They report an urgent need for tents, health and hygiene supplies, more medicines, and relief items for babies. Longer-term needs are being assessed. New Zealanders wishing to support this relief work can donate to CWS.

For more information, or to make a donation, contact Christian World Service on
0800 74 73 72 or visit www.cws.org.nz

World Vision New Zealand

With the first batch of aid being distributed in Yogjakarta yesterday, World Vision New Zealand is sending an initial NZ$50,000 from its Children in Crisis pledge programme to help with relief efforts in the earthquake-devastated region. World Vision New Zealand now has 15 people on the ground in Indonesia in a variety of specialised roles.

The World Vision international partnership has initiated an immediate programme of relief of up to US$1.5 million, which will need to expand to a US$4 – 5 million programme. World Vision NZ Marketing Director, Bruce Waldin says if there is significant involvement in house building or repair, World Vision’s global input could be reach up to US$15 million.

“We will be going to our supporters with an appeal this week, and we hope to raise a further NZ$300,000 which will be a huge help to relief efforts in Indonesia in these critical first days,” he says.

World Vision Indonesia has transported and distributed its first batch of emergency relief aid, consisting of non-food items such as blankets, tarpaulins and clothing, to Yogyakarta yesterday [Sunday]. Meanwhile, WV relief officers flew to Central Java early this morning [NZ time] to handle the aid distribution and to do rapid need assessment and decide further responses to help the survivors.

For more information or to make a donation, contact 0800 80 2000 or visit www.worldvision.org.nz

UNICEF New Zealand

UNICEF is gearing up to respond to the earthquake by moving staff and supplies into the region.

Supplies that were immediately on hand in Medan and distributed already include collapsible water tanks, hygiene kits, tents, lanterns, tarpaulins, cooking sets, school kits, school tents, recreation kits, school-in-a-box kits.

Further supplies of water bladders, tents, hygiene kits and cooking sets are being flown in and arrive today. UNICEF’s immediate focus, is water, sanitation, medical supplies and orphaned and separated children. Later they will start to get children back to school and provide trauma counseling. The UN, including UNICEF, met with the Government Ministers this afternoon to organise a UN assessment.

For more information or to make a donation, contact 0800 800 194 or visit www.unicef.org.nz

Oxfam New Zealand

Oxfam's emergency teams are working around the clock to bring clean drinking water and essential supplies to thousands of people made homeless by the Yogyakarta earthquake.

Oxfam staff worked throughout the day in the affected areas to gauge the needs of the many thousands of people affected and to plan the response.

"Many of our local staff were badly shaken by the quake, and they all have family in the area, so the pressures on them have been immense," said David Macdonald, Oxfam's Country Programme Manager for Indonesia. "The way they've responded has been really impressive - most people have decided to come in and play an active part in the emergency response."

Oxfam's teams are planning to set up water bladders and to truck water to the hospital in Bantul. They will also be distributing hygiene kits with soap, sanitary towels and sarongs. They estimate that around 30,000 households have been affected by the earthquake and many people were sleeping outside last night.

Oxfam has a stock of relief supplies including shelter materials, water and sanitation equipment in Yogyakarta.

"Luckily the contingency planning we'd been doing for a possible eruption of the Merapi volcano has meant we have immediate access to these stocks of equipment stored locally," said Oxfam's David Macdonald. Oxfam's teams are also arranging for 5000 buckets and jerry cans to be sent from Jakarta.

For more information contact Prue Smith (Oxfam New Zealand's Communications Manager) on 021 1400 825; office 09 355 6858. To make a donation call 0800 400 666 or visit http://www.oxfam.org.nz

ADRA New Zealand

Three Seventh-day Adventist Churches have opened their doors to provide shelter in Bantul where reports have indicated the most extensive damage has occurred. Medical supplies are being airlifted from Medan Adventist Hospital and is scheduled to arrive either tomorrow or Tuesday morning. ADRA International has made a commitment that the medical supplies for this emergency will be replenished.

The medical team from Bandung Adventist Hospital has been activated and will leave Bandung early Monday morning for the earthquake zone. The team will carry medical supplies to treat the injured. ADRA International will airlift ten medical boxes on Tuesday if there is a need for medical supplies. ADRA International has allocated $100,000 for the initial response while other offices have either offered cash or have requested a proposal.

New Zealander Robert Patton, ADRA Asia Emergency Management Coordinator, and the office at ADRA International are working together to support the relief operation in the earthquake zone.

For more information or to make a donation, call 0800 4999 111 or visit www.adra.org.nz

0800 numbers and websites

Salvation Army 0800 53 00 00 www.salvationarmy.org.nz
TEAR Fund 0800 800 777 www.tearfund.org.nz
ChildFund 0800 808 822 www.childfund.org.nz
Save the Children 0800 167 168 www.savethechildren.org.nz
Caritas 0900 4 11 11 (automatic $20 donation) www.caritas.org.nz
Christian World Service 0800 74 73 72 www.cws.org.nz
World Vision 0800 80 2000 www.worldvision.org.nz
UNICEF 0800 800 194 www.unicef.org.nz
Oxfam NZ 0800 400 666 www.oxfam.org.nz
ADRA 0800 4999 111 www.adra.org.nz

CID IS THE UMBRELLA ORGANISATION THAT REPRESENTS 81 NZ BASED AID AND DEVELOPMENT AGENCIES

ENDS

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