Sidoarjo, NU Online
Emotions ran high Tuesday as thousands of residents whose homes in Sidoarjo, East Java, have been submerged by hot mud marked the first full year of an ecological disaster that shows no signs of slowing down.
Anger and frustration were in the air, and some victims could not help breaking into tears when they saw their former homes submerged under mud, leaving only the roofs visible.<>
"I am very sad and ashamed. I live here like a homeless person," Melia Prihatiningsih, who recently gave birth to a baby girl at a makeshift shelter for displaced residents, told Reuters.
Some 2,000 residents, dressed in white prayer clothes, observed the day by attending a sermon in a soccer stadium.
Residents from the affected Tanggulangin Anggun Sejahtera housing complex launched a protest Tuesday morning, parading around Sidoarjo on motorcycles and trucks before heading to their former neighborhood.
Some residents even waded into the mud to get a closer look at their former homes.
"We came here to remember the places that used to be our homes, the places where we gathered with our families and neighbors," said the protest's coordinator.
Flowers were scattered in honor of family members and neighbors buried in a cemetery that is now covered in hot mud. The sludge is still flowing despite efforts to halt it.
"We have to keep our spirits up to fight for our rights," said one resident.
Near the source of the mud, at a Lapindo Brantas Inc. gas exploration site, some 200 people rallied, carrying banners condemning the government, Lapindo and the government-appointed Sidoarjo Mudflow Mitigation Agency.
"All this misery is caused by Lapindo and the government," a protester charged.
Police blocked the demonstrators from getting too close to the mud geyser.
Sidoarjo Deputy Regent Syaiful Illah, who met protesters at a mud dam in Besuki, was even pressured into signing a statement including four new villages in a map of the mud-flooded area.
"If that is what residents want, I'll try to fight to get it for them," Syaiful said.
The anger and concern have spread to other parts of the country.
In Makassar, South Sulawesi, residents rallied in support of the victims while urging the government and Lapindo to fulfill their promises.
In Jakarta, Reuters reported some 40 victims staged a protest at the city center, carrying banners demanding cash compensation.
They also carried five birthday cakes made of mud, decorated with flowers and candles, to be presented to leaders including President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Vice President Jusuf Kalla. (tjp/dar)
Emotions ran high Tuesday as thousands of residents whose homes in Sidoarjo, East Java, have been submerged by hot mud marked the first full year of an ecological disaster that shows no signs of slowing down.
Anger and frustration were in the air, and some victims could not help breaking into tears when they saw their former homes submerged under mud, leaving only the roofs visible.<>
"I am very sad and ashamed. I live here like a homeless person," Melia Prihatiningsih, who recently gave birth to a baby girl at a makeshift shelter for displaced residents, told Reuters.
Some 2,000 residents, dressed in white prayer clothes, observed the day by attending a sermon in a soccer stadium.
Residents from the affected Tanggulangin Anggun Sejahtera housing complex launched a protest Tuesday morning, parading around Sidoarjo on motorcycles and trucks before heading to their former neighborhood.
Some residents even waded into the mud to get a closer look at their former homes.
"We came here to remember the places that used to be our homes, the places where we gathered with our families and neighbors," said the protest's coordinator.
Flowers were scattered in honor of family members and neighbors buried in a cemetery that is now covered in hot mud. The sludge is still flowing despite efforts to halt it.
"We have to keep our spirits up to fight for our rights," said one resident.
Near the source of the mud, at a Lapindo Brantas Inc. gas exploration site, some 200 people rallied, carrying banners condemning the government, Lapindo and the government-appointed Sidoarjo Mudflow Mitigation Agency.
"All this misery is caused by Lapindo and the government," a protester charged.
Police blocked the demonstrators from getting too close to the mud geyser.
Sidoarjo Deputy Regent Syaiful Illah, who met protesters at a mud dam in Besuki, was even pressured into signing a statement including four new villages in a map of the mud-flooded area.
"If that is what residents want, I'll try to fight to get it for them," Syaiful said.
The anger and concern have spread to other parts of the country.
In Makassar, South Sulawesi, residents rallied in support of the victims while urging the government and Lapindo to fulfill their promises.
In Jakarta, Reuters reported some 40 victims staged a protest at the city center, carrying banners demanding cash compensation.
They also carried five birthday cakes made of mud, decorated with flowers and candles, to be presented to leaders including President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Vice President Jusuf Kalla. (tjp/dar)
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