By Indra Harsaputra
After more than three years since the hot mudflow displaced thousands of residents of Porong, Sidoarjo, East Java, in 2006, foreign assistance has started to flow in for the refugees.
Over the weekend Norway-sponsored humanitarian organization Dina Foundation provided free medication and medical treatment for hundreds of the mudflow refugees taking shelter at the Pasar Baru market in Porong.
Rune Edvardsen of the foundation said the two-day free health service would be followed up by the establishment of a health center in the affected region next year.
"The service we provide today is just a way of informing the people about the operation of our health center next year," Rune told reporters on Saturday.
The center, according to Rune, would aim to help disadvantaged people affected by the mudflow disaster and would operate in cooperation with the Yayasan Obor Berkat Indonesia foundation.
Spokesperson of the Sidoarjo Mudflow Handling Agency (BPLS), Achmad Zulkarnain, said the government would not stop foreign humanitarian organizations from helping the mudflow victims.
"But BPLS will not manage any foreign aid," he said, referring to a Presidential regulation that stipulates that all the funds needed to handle the mudflow would come from the state budget.
Coming into force on Sept. 23, the regulation gives the government full authority to handle the mudflow spew that was previously handled by the Lapindo Brantas Inc.
The company has reportedly spent about Rp 1.3 trillion to build a 650-hectare pond, 20-kilometer embankment and 20-kilometer pipeline in an attempt to contain the mudflow.
"Previously, Lapindo Brantas was fully in charge of dealing with the mudflow spew while BPLS was just assisting.
"Now it's all in BPLS' hands. This makes it easier for us to deal with the problem more quickly and efficiently," Achmad said.
BPLS, according to Achmad, was also in charge of providing compensation and social aid to the people living outside the map of the affected areas and building new infrastructure including highways and railways.
"We are also in charge of monitoring the payment of compensation by Lapindo Brantas Inc. *to the victims*," he said.
He added his agency had been urging the company to finish the payment of the 20 percent promised compensation to over 250 people affected by the mudflow.
Achmad said that in terms of dealing with the mudflow his agency would concentrate on optimizing the channeling of the mudflow into the Porong River by deploying more dredging ships.
Djaja Laksana of the November 10 Institute of Technology's team of experts, however, expressed hope that interested foreign organizations would not just focus on providing humanitarian aid to the victims but will also assist in stopping the mudflow spew.
"We are optimistic that the mudflow can still be stopped," he said.
