Relief for families in Lombok
Donation protected
On 5 August, north Lombok was rocked by a major earthquake - one of three major earthquakes to hit the region in a fortnight. The impact of these earthquakes on the impoverished coastal villages of Setangi and Lendang Luar - the research site for my current PhD study on poor, young Sasak fathers - has been devastating, with almost every home destroyed and at least one fatality (a three-year-old boy).
Setangi, Lendang Luar and surrounding villages are comprised of mostly low income households, 42% of which are living in absolute poverty. The area records the lowest education levels, literacy rates and gross domestic product (GDP) per capita in Lombok and, at just 61.72 years, the shortest average life expectancy in all of Indonesia. It is also critically food insecure. Despite efforts at the provincial level to promote "quality" tourism in the area, the local Sasaks (the indigenous people of Lombok whom make up 99% of the populations of Setangi and Lendang Luar) have benefitted very little from the tourism industry, which is dominated by foreign-owned enterprises.
Despite such low levels of development, the people of Setangi and Lendang Luar are some of the friendliest, kind-hearted, most generous people I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. And now they desperately need our help!
This here is Jainudin, one of the young fathers whose lives are the foci of my research project. We are standing at the front of what was once his home which he shared with his three-year-old son. Jainudin's young wife passed away two months before I first interviewed him in January and so he is raising his son alone with the help of family. Like most of the young fathers at the centre of my research, he earns a monthly salary of less than 500,000rp (au$47), which is less than a third of the minimum wage in Lombok. Even before the earthquake, daily life was a struggle.
This is his home right now, following the earthquake....
And below are photos of what is now the home of one of the other young fathers, Awal, who holds down two jobs as a labourer and supermarket assistant (earning a combined income of around 500,000rp) to support his wife and 13-month-old son...
Villagers are currently camped outside of the ruins of their homes. They have now started to receive government assistance but, of course, there are now over 350,000 people currently homeless in north Lombok and so resources are spread thin.
Donations from this page have, to date, funded the purchase of the following items for over 400 families (approx. 1,600 individuals) living in these villages :
30 large tarpaulins and 214 plywood panels for temporary shelter, as well as timber framing for 6 houses.
2,612kg of rice
1,020 eggs
435 litres of cooking oil
40kg of dried fish
1,695 packets of noodles
21 large crates of drinking water
Donations from this page have also funded:
Diapers, baby soaps, towels and anti-mosquito oils for 52 infants
Soap, toothpaste and shampoo for 46 elderly men and women
Eid al-Adha gifts (shoes and sarongs) for 30 elderly men and women
Over-the-counter medications for those who have fallen ill
Crutches for two homeless villagers with paraplegia
Sleeping mats, blankets, and soap, buckets and dippers (for bathing) for 16 villagers with disabilities
4 large tarpaulins for the local schools to offer students a safe place for learning
School supplies for all school-aged children in the villages
Activity packs for all preschool-aged children in the villages
Two large water tanks with a combined capacity of 750 litres was also provided to the remote mountainous hamlet of Gunung Setangi, which is home to 60 families, to enable the collection and storage of freshwater from a spring 2km away (the exisiting reservoir was damaged during the earthquake and so the water in it had become contaminated).
Beyond the provision of supplies, cash grants totalling 7 million rupiah (AU$655) have been provided to Jainudin, Awal, and other young fathers at the centre of my research for the purchase of water filters, temporary shelter and other necessities.
After smashing my initial fundraising goal thanks to the generosity of friends from around the world, I am hoping to continue raising as much money as possible to continue providing support for these 400 families in Setangi and Lendang Luar. Beyond the emergency relief currently being provided to these families, funds are required to assist with rebuilding and/or repairing damage to their homes. There is no way they can afford to do it alone!
Please please please help by giving whatever you can. Even a donation of $20, which is the equivalent of a fortnight's wage for Jainudin, Awal and many others in these villages, will go a long way towards rebuilding their lives. That is just a few coffees for the rest of us!
Thank you from the very bottom of my heart and on behalf of the families which will benefit from your support xx
Setangi, Lendang Luar and surrounding villages are comprised of mostly low income households, 42% of which are living in absolute poverty. The area records the lowest education levels, literacy rates and gross domestic product (GDP) per capita in Lombok and, at just 61.72 years, the shortest average life expectancy in all of Indonesia. It is also critically food insecure. Despite efforts at the provincial level to promote "quality" tourism in the area, the local Sasaks (the indigenous people of Lombok whom make up 99% of the populations of Setangi and Lendang Luar) have benefitted very little from the tourism industry, which is dominated by foreign-owned enterprises.
Despite such low levels of development, the people of Setangi and Lendang Luar are some of the friendliest, kind-hearted, most generous people I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. And now they desperately need our help!
This here is Jainudin, one of the young fathers whose lives are the foci of my research project. We are standing at the front of what was once his home which he shared with his three-year-old son. Jainudin's young wife passed away two months before I first interviewed him in January and so he is raising his son alone with the help of family. Like most of the young fathers at the centre of my research, he earns a monthly salary of less than 500,000rp (au$47), which is less than a third of the minimum wage in Lombok. Even before the earthquake, daily life was a struggle.
This is his home right now, following the earthquake....
And below are photos of what is now the home of one of the other young fathers, Awal, who holds down two jobs as a labourer and supermarket assistant (earning a combined income of around 500,000rp) to support his wife and 13-month-old son...
Villagers are currently camped outside of the ruins of their homes. They have now started to receive government assistance but, of course, there are now over 350,000 people currently homeless in north Lombok and so resources are spread thin.
Donations from this page have, to date, funded the purchase of the following items for over 400 families (approx. 1,600 individuals) living in these villages :
30 large tarpaulins and 214 plywood panels for temporary shelter, as well as timber framing for 6 houses.
2,612kg of rice
1,020 eggs
435 litres of cooking oil
40kg of dried fish
1,695 packets of noodles
21 large crates of drinking water
Donations from this page have also funded:
Diapers, baby soaps, towels and anti-mosquito oils for 52 infants
Soap, toothpaste and shampoo for 46 elderly men and women
Eid al-Adha gifts (shoes and sarongs) for 30 elderly men and women
Over-the-counter medications for those who have fallen ill
Crutches for two homeless villagers with paraplegia
Sleeping mats, blankets, and soap, buckets and dippers (for bathing) for 16 villagers with disabilities
4 large tarpaulins for the local schools to offer students a safe place for learning
School supplies for all school-aged children in the villages
Activity packs for all preschool-aged children in the villages
Two large water tanks with a combined capacity of 750 litres was also provided to the remote mountainous hamlet of Gunung Setangi, which is home to 60 families, to enable the collection and storage of freshwater from a spring 2km away (the exisiting reservoir was damaged during the earthquake and so the water in it had become contaminated).
Beyond the provision of supplies, cash grants totalling 7 million rupiah (AU$655) have been provided to Jainudin, Awal, and other young fathers at the centre of my research for the purchase of water filters, temporary shelter and other necessities.
After smashing my initial fundraising goal thanks to the generosity of friends from around the world, I am hoping to continue raising as much money as possible to continue providing support for these 400 families in Setangi and Lendang Luar. Beyond the emergency relief currently being provided to these families, funds are required to assist with rebuilding and/or repairing damage to their homes. There is no way they can afford to do it alone!
Please please please help by giving whatever you can. Even a donation of $20, which is the equivalent of a fortnight's wage for Jainudin, Awal and many others in these villages, will go a long way towards rebuilding their lives. That is just a few coffees for the rest of us!
Thank you from the very bottom of my heart and on behalf of the families which will benefit from your support xx
Organizer
Lisa Colquhoun
Organizer
