CRS launches appeal for Indonesia quake victims

Social justice news
July 2006

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CRS launches appeal for Indonesia quake victims
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Remembering Jack Egan and Peggy Roach
UN says can't cope with displaced people in Iraq
Urgent appeal from Caritas and churches in Gaza
USCCB president calls immigration system 'seriously flawed'
USCCB urges 'highest ethical standards' in treatment of prisoners

CRS launches appeal for Indonesia quake victims
More than a month after a deadly 6.3 magnitude earthquake rocked Yogyakarta, Indonesia, Catholic Relief Services (CRS) continues to provide life-saving relief to survivors. CRS and its partners have launched a multi-year $15.5 million appeal to aid nearly 130,000 people affected by the deadly quake.

CRS emergency teams have thus far distributed 4,085 hygiene kits; 4,675 shelter kits and 5,053 clothing kits, which include blankets and sarongs. Clean-up tool kits have also been distributed to survivors in the Bantul, Sleman, Katen and Gunung Kidul districts. CRS will focus its longer-term relief operations on cash-for-work programs and the establishment of semi-permanent and permanent shelters for those left homeless. Temporary houses are already being rebuilt. In Central Java, it is estimated that 34% of the 360,000 homes that were destroyed or badly damaged are currently being rebuilt.

The number of casualties has reached 5,744 and the number of injured stands at 38,790. An estimated 1.4 million people have been displaced from their homes, with most survivors sleeping in tents or under the stars for fear of aftershocks.

In addition to the ongoing earthquake response, CRS aid workers continue to be on high alert should Mt. Merapi erupt. CRS has been working with its partners in the region on disaster preparedness planning and pre-positioning of resources in the event of a volcanic eruption. Mt. Merapi, which is located just 50 kilometers north of Yogyakarta, has been expelling large clouds of hot gas and ash in recent weeks, and volcanic activity increased soon after the Yogyakarta earthquake. Nearly 17,000 refugees have fled their homes, with 6,256 in shelters at the base of the volcano.

CRS has worked in Indonesia since 1957. Catholic Relief Services is the official international humanitarian agency of the Catholic community in the United States. The agency provides assistance to people in 99 countries and territories based on need, regardless of race, nationality or creed. For more information about CRS, visit www.crs.org.

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