Listening to GoodTV's Xin Lin Bu Da Yang. He Rong was interviewing a Taiwan Christian composer and conductor. He said, after being a Christian, there were a lot of self-controlled to be done. Then may be sometimes we will think, then it'll be best if during our youth we can do all the things first (thing that we will not be allowed to do after being Christian), then enough of all those, at age of 20s become Christian and have all those sins forgiven. But for him, he's grateful that he has become a Christian since very young, in his 13. Why? because by that, he can understand problem faced by Christians more. When He Rong asked what's for him the biggest problem a Christian face? He answered, it's when you are spiritually down, troubled, especially if you are a leader, it's very hard for you to tell or let others know. And yep, it's true!, i said in my heart. So by understanding this, he can be a company for those facing this situation. When they are speechless, down in their loneliness, he can be there to understand, care and comfort.
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Thursday, October 8, 2009
SMS Berisi Isu Diskriminasi dari Kampung Pecinan
Jawa Pos[ Senin, 05 Oktober 2009 ]
SMS Berisi Isu Diskriminasi dari Kampung Pecinan
HARI keempat pascagempa di Padang mulai diwarnai munculnya isu-isu sensitif dan kabar penjarahan yang potensial mempergetir nasib para korban.
Warga Tionghoa yang bermukim di sebuah kampung pecinan di pusat Kota Padang, misalnya, dikabarkan telah menjadi korban diskriminasi dalam hal penanganan evakuasi dan pembagian bantuan. Sebuah pesan singkat yang beredar dari HP ke HP kemarin, misalnya, berbunyi: Tell the world, Stop the donation to West Sumatra!!! Primordialism and racism is happening in there, Chinese people didn't allowed to have food and was forced to buy the food aid. Family of mine was at there!!! Please sent out this massage to the world so they know the true!!! (katakan pada dunia, stop bantuan ke Sumatra Barat!!! Primordialisme dan rasisme terjadi di sana, warga Tionghoa tak diperbolehkan mendapatkan makanan dan dipaksa membeli bantuan makanan. Keluargaku di sana!!! Tolong sebarkan pesan ini ke seluruh dunia biar mereka tahu kenyataan ini!!!)
Benar tidaknya kenyataan yang terjadi di kampung Tionghoa dengan isi SMS itu, Sutan Zaili Asril, direktur Padang Ekspres, anak perusahaan Jawa Pos di Padang semalam memberi penuturan. Dari pengamatannya selama empat hari setelah terjadi gempa, proses evakuasi terhadap korban bencana di Pondok China memang dinilai lambat. Hal itulah yang memicu merebaknya isu pendistribusian bantuan yang tak adil di beberapa tempat, termasuk di kawasan Pecinan.
Padahal, buruknya manajemen dan ketidakberdayaan petugaslah yang sebenarnya terjadi. Di sisi lain, para korban sangat membutuhkan bantuan. Zaili menilai, distribusi bantuan yang diberikan pemkot juga tidak mengarah. "Entah kenapa, kesannya pemerintah cenderung memprioritaskan evakuasi di Hotel Ambacang, LBB Gama, Prayoga, Sigma, maupun LBB Lia. Padahal, evakuasi di Pondok China maupun Pasaraya seharusnya juga menjadi prioritas karena jumlah korbannya sangat banyak," terang Zaili lebih lanjut.
Perlu juga diketahui, situasi lebih memiriskan dulu juga terjadi beberapa hari pascagempa tsunami Aceh pada 2004. Buruknya manajemen penyaluran bantuan dan minimnya pengawasan membuat situasi menjadi bar-bar dan tak terkontrol. Di berbagai tempat di Aceh, waktu itu, para penjarah bahkan sampai tega memotong jari mayat korban tsunami untuk mengambil cincin, anting di kuping, dan perhiasan lain.
"Sejak hari pertama gempa, kami belum mendapat bantuan sama sekali," kata Ny Esther, salah seorang warga yang bermukim di Jalan Klenteng. Padahal, lokasi kampung tempat tinggal Esther berada di pusat Kota Padang. Apalagi, rumah wanita 43 tahun itu luluh lantak. Bangunannya tinggal separo, seperti dibelah menjadi dua.
Menanggapi isu sensitif itu, Pengurus Wilayah Muhammadiyah Jatim Sulton Amin benar-benar sangat prihatin. Menurut dia, hal itu sangat memalukan. Terlebih, perhatian dunia saat ini juga mengarah pada kondisi para korban gempa. ''Jangan sampai relawan asing yang membantu di Padang hengkang sebelum waktunya gara-gara masalah ini,'' ujarnya.
Dia menambahkan, sudah waktunya membuang ego pribadi yang muncul akibat perbedaan suku, agama, ras ,dan warna kulit. Perasaan senasib sebagai warga Indonesia dan sesama korban gempa yang membutuhkan bantuan seharusnya mampu melebur perbedaan itu.
Selain itu, dia mengharapkan seluruh masyarakat tetap tenang dan tidak terprovokasi. Bahkan, dia siap membantu kalau langkah prosedural seperti melaporkan kepada pihak terkait tetap tidak membawa perubahan. ''Langkah terkahir adalah menyerahkan bantuan langsung ke etnis Tionghoa maupun kelompok lain yang didiskriminasikan,'' tegasnya.
SMS Berisi Isu Diskriminasi dari Kampung Pecinan
HARI keempat pascagempa di Padang mulai diwarnai munculnya isu-isu sensitif dan kabar penjarahan yang potensial mempergetir nasib para korban.
Warga Tionghoa yang bermukim di sebuah kampung pecinan di pusat Kota Padang, misalnya, dikabarkan telah menjadi korban diskriminasi dalam hal penanganan evakuasi dan pembagian bantuan. Sebuah pesan singkat yang beredar dari HP ke HP kemarin, misalnya, berbunyi: Tell the world, Stop the donation to West Sumatra!!! Primordialism and racism is happening in there, Chinese people didn't allowed to have food and was forced to buy the food aid. Family of mine was at there!!! Please sent out this massage to the world so they know the true!!! (katakan pada dunia, stop bantuan ke Sumatra Barat!!! Primordialisme dan rasisme terjadi di sana, warga Tionghoa tak diperbolehkan mendapatkan makanan dan dipaksa membeli bantuan makanan. Keluargaku di sana!!! Tolong sebarkan pesan ini ke seluruh dunia biar mereka tahu kenyataan ini!!!)
Benar tidaknya kenyataan yang terjadi di kampung Tionghoa dengan isi SMS itu, Sutan Zaili Asril, direktur Padang Ekspres, anak perusahaan Jawa Pos di Padang semalam memberi penuturan. Dari pengamatannya selama empat hari setelah terjadi gempa, proses evakuasi terhadap korban bencana di Pondok China memang dinilai lambat. Hal itulah yang memicu merebaknya isu pendistribusian bantuan yang tak adil di beberapa tempat, termasuk di kawasan Pecinan.
Padahal, buruknya manajemen dan ketidakberdayaan petugaslah yang sebenarnya terjadi. Di sisi lain, para korban sangat membutuhkan bantuan. Zaili menilai, distribusi bantuan yang diberikan pemkot juga tidak mengarah. "Entah kenapa, kesannya pemerintah cenderung memprioritaskan evakuasi di Hotel Ambacang, LBB Gama, Prayoga, Sigma, maupun LBB Lia. Padahal, evakuasi di Pondok China maupun Pasaraya seharusnya juga menjadi prioritas karena jumlah korbannya sangat banyak," terang Zaili lebih lanjut.
Perlu juga diketahui, situasi lebih memiriskan dulu juga terjadi beberapa hari pascagempa tsunami Aceh pada 2004. Buruknya manajemen penyaluran bantuan dan minimnya pengawasan membuat situasi menjadi bar-bar dan tak terkontrol. Di berbagai tempat di Aceh, waktu itu, para penjarah bahkan sampai tega memotong jari mayat korban tsunami untuk mengambil cincin, anting di kuping, dan perhiasan lain.
"Sejak hari pertama gempa, kami belum mendapat bantuan sama sekali," kata Ny Esther, salah seorang warga yang bermukim di Jalan Klenteng. Padahal, lokasi kampung tempat tinggal Esther berada di pusat Kota Padang. Apalagi, rumah wanita 43 tahun itu luluh lantak. Bangunannya tinggal separo, seperti dibelah menjadi dua.
Menanggapi isu sensitif itu, Pengurus Wilayah Muhammadiyah Jatim Sulton Amin benar-benar sangat prihatin. Menurut dia, hal itu sangat memalukan. Terlebih, perhatian dunia saat ini juga mengarah pada kondisi para korban gempa. ''Jangan sampai relawan asing yang membantu di Padang hengkang sebelum waktunya gara-gara masalah ini,'' ujarnya.
Dia menambahkan, sudah waktunya membuang ego pribadi yang muncul akibat perbedaan suku, agama, ras ,dan warna kulit. Perasaan senasib sebagai warga Indonesia dan sesama korban gempa yang membutuhkan bantuan seharusnya mampu melebur perbedaan itu.
Selain itu, dia mengharapkan seluruh masyarakat tetap tenang dan tidak terprovokasi. Bahkan, dia siap membantu kalau langkah prosedural seperti melaporkan kepada pihak terkait tetap tidak membawa perubahan. ''Langkah terkahir adalah menyerahkan bantuan langsung ke etnis Tionghoa maupun kelompok lain yang didiskriminasikan,'' tegasnya.
Rumors of Anti-Chinese Discrimination Spread in Padang Quake Zone
Rumors of Anti-Chinese Discrimination Spread in Padang Quake Zone
(Jakarta Globe, 5 Oct 09)
Padang. Ethnic Chinese survivors of last week’s earthquake are becoming alarmed about widespread rumors, including some sent by text message, that they are being discriminated against in the distribution of emergency aid.
Whether rumor or fact, word spread across Padang during the weekend that local officials in charge of distributing aid weren’t giving equal attention to Pondok Cina, or Chinatown, where about 80 percent of the homes were destroyed.
Rustam Pakaya, head of the Ministry of Health’s Crisis Center, said his team had been checking areas throughout the city and noted that Chinatown was among the worst-hit.
He said an estimated 21,600 people were in the area when the 7.6-magnitude earthquake struck Padang, the provincial capital of West Sumatra, and the surrounding area. “It’s very bad there,” Rustam said, adding that a search team found 35 bodies in a single house on Friday.
While Rustam couldn’t confirm any examples of discrimination, the claims were a familiar echo of other disasters, including after the 2004 tsunami in Aceh, where ethnic Chinese said they were neglected by aid teams.
Mintarja, head of head of the RW III Kampung Pondok neighborhood, said the area had only received 40 boxes of packaged tea as aid.
“Well, I received this text message suggesting that there has been some discrimination and that we are Chinese, so we can’t get aid,” he said.
“But you know, it’s just a rumor. We have been coordinating very well in the area, so none of us will go hungry. We have a free canteen here and an [aid] post for all of us.”
Priyadi Kardono, a spokesman for the National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB), denied the rumors. “I don’t think there’s discrimination against Chinese people in Padang. This is a disaster and we know that everyone needs the same help and that we will help them all. It doesn’t matter who they are,” Priyadi said.
Meals were being prepared on Jalan Niaga in an emergency kitchen covered by a tarpaulin.
“Yes, I heard the rumors, but we don’t care. We are cooking here, so people can eat. Please come, Chinese or not Chinese, everyone,” said a woman named Marline as she cooked.
Rita Wuliango, a housewife living nearby, has come to the emergency kitchen every day, sometimes donating money for fuel to run a water pump.
“I also take food from the kitchen — it’s free. If I come late and don’t get any, I move to another [aid] post,” she said. “But this kitchen is great. They don’t care if you are Chinese or not. We are people helping each other.”
(Jakarta Globe, 5 Oct 09)
Padang. Ethnic Chinese survivors of last week’s earthquake are becoming alarmed about widespread rumors, including some sent by text message, that they are being discriminated against in the distribution of emergency aid.
Whether rumor or fact, word spread across Padang during the weekend that local officials in charge of distributing aid weren’t giving equal attention to Pondok Cina, or Chinatown, where about 80 percent of the homes were destroyed.
Rustam Pakaya, head of the Ministry of Health’s Crisis Center, said his team had been checking areas throughout the city and noted that Chinatown was among the worst-hit.
He said an estimated 21,600 people were in the area when the 7.6-magnitude earthquake struck Padang, the provincial capital of West Sumatra, and the surrounding area. “It’s very bad there,” Rustam said, adding that a search team found 35 bodies in a single house on Friday.
While Rustam couldn’t confirm any examples of discrimination, the claims were a familiar echo of other disasters, including after the 2004 tsunami in Aceh, where ethnic Chinese said they were neglected by aid teams.
Mintarja, head of head of the RW III Kampung Pondok neighborhood, said the area had only received 40 boxes of packaged tea as aid.
“Well, I received this text message suggesting that there has been some discrimination and that we are Chinese, so we can’t get aid,” he said.
“But you know, it’s just a rumor. We have been coordinating very well in the area, so none of us will go hungry. We have a free canteen here and an [aid] post for all of us.”
Priyadi Kardono, a spokesman for the National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB), denied the rumors. “I don’t think there’s discrimination against Chinese people in Padang. This is a disaster and we know that everyone needs the same help and that we will help them all. It doesn’t matter who they are,” Priyadi said.
Meals were being prepared on Jalan Niaga in an emergency kitchen covered by a tarpaulin.
“Yes, I heard the rumors, but we don’t care. We are cooking here, so people can eat. Please come, Chinese or not Chinese, everyone,” said a woman named Marline as she cooked.
Rita Wuliango, a housewife living nearby, has come to the emergency kitchen every day, sometimes donating money for fuel to run a water pump.
“I also take food from the kitchen — it’s free. If I come late and don’t get any, I move to another [aid] post,” she said. “But this kitchen is great. They don’t care if you are Chinese or not. We are people helping each other.”
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Padang update
The numbers by The Strait Times Wed 07 Oct 09. Glad that many countries had started volunteering. I'm thinking what I can do, which organization to donate through... Thinking of the possibility of some ppl who might take opportunity to 'steal' some of the money really hurt my heart. Oh Indonesia... Oh God, pls don't let them have any chance to do so, so all the help n money will 100%-ly go to the needies..
Friday, October 2, 2009
Disaster after disaster... End times!
08/08/2009: Taiwan Typhoon Morakot, more than 500 death
: Phillipines Tropical Storm Ketsana causing flood, more than 246 death
29/09/2009: Vietnam Typhoon Ketsana, at least 23 death
29/09/2009: Pacific Ocean Samoan Island,
30/09/2009: Magnitude 7.6 earthquake @ Padang Sumatera Barat, more than 1100 death
And all these happen during the period when we are preparing for the CBTL with the theme the second coming of the Lord and when we were suggested by Jessie to read the book of Revelation to sort of educate ourselves about it. And now, I am really more and more convinced that IT IS SO NEAR!
When it comes to Padang, my heart really cried badly already... Not only my heart goes to those people n children who lost everything, everyone, traumed, and... (I can't even describe it in words whenever I read those news), but also about this: No time anymore... no time anymore... but.. I'm still here???
: Phillipines Tropical Storm Ketsana causing flood, more than 246 death
29/09/2009: Vietnam Typhoon Ketsana, at least 23 death
29/09/2009: Pacific Ocean Samoan Island,
30/09/2009: Magnitude 7.6 earthquake @ Padang Sumatera Barat, more than 1100 death
And all these happen during the period when we are preparing for the CBTL with the theme the second coming of the Lord and when we were suggested by Jessie to read the book of Revelation to sort of educate ourselves about it. And now, I am really more and more convinced that IT IS SO NEAR!
When it comes to Padang, my heart really cried badly already... Not only my heart goes to those people n children who lost everything, everyone, traumed, and... (I can't even describe it in words whenever I read those news), but also about this: No time anymore... no time anymore... but.. I'm still here???
Btw, summary from World Vision Malaysia:
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Children Day breakfast
Stephanie cooked beehon n porridge for our breakfast today. When we asked in what occasion, she said, "Because today is children's day mah, so I cook for all my children lor.." hehe.. she's really truly our nice ATS mother ;)
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