U.S. AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT BUREAU FOR HUMANITARIAN RESPONSE (BHR) OFFICE OF U.S. FOREIGN DISASTER ASSISTANCE (OFDA) INDONESIA - Complex Emergency Fact Sheet # 2, FY1999 September 21, 1999
Background In early September, pro-integrationist militias in East Timor conducted a week-long rampage in several cities and towns, following the UN-supported vote for independence from Indonesia on August 30. Hundreds of civilians were killed and more than 300,000 were displaced from their homes in the violence that ensued. The militias forcibly moved civilians out of East Timor into West Timor, while thousands fled into the surrounding hills and jungles of East Timor. Homes and private assets on the island, including UN and NGO offices, were plundered or burned by militia forces during their rampage. Most UN personnel were evacuated on September 10 due to the civil strife. Currently, water and sanitation are key concerns in camps in West Timor where displaced populations have gathered. Insecurity is also a serious concern in camps in West Timor following increased militia presence. Tensions remain particularly high in the border town of Atambua, with increasing refugee flows. The most immediate material needs of IDPs in East Timor -- many of whom are dispersed in scattered settlements -- are supplemental food, blankets, cooking utensils, and shelter. According to ICRC reports, there are substantial medical and health needs in Dare, a large IDP concentration located near Dili. Insecurity and logistical constraints have limited road access in East Timor. Humanitarian access to East and West Timor has also been restricted by anti-foreign and anti-UN sentiments in Indonesia. Numbers Affected As of September 20, the Government of Indonesia (GOI) has registered 190,818 IDPs (38,503 households) in 31 camps and shelters throughout West Timor and nearby islands. (UN estimates are closer to 150,000 IDPs.) According to the GOI, the majority of IDPs are located in Kupang, Belu, and Timor Tengah Utara. There are an estimated 200,000 IDPs in East Timor, and the food supply for an additional 300,000 East Timorese has been significantly disrupted by militia activity, including burning and looting of food warehouses. Up to 500,000 individuals could require bulk food assistance, including grain and oil, in East Timor. USG Assistance On May 7, 1999, the US Ambassador to Indonesia Stapleton Roy issued a disaster declaration in response to the complex emergency affecting several regions in Indonesia, including East Timor. Based on the findings of the USAID/OFDA assessment team in Jakarta, the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) donated a total of 300,000 donated humanitarian daily rations, or HDRs. The rations were dispatched to Darwin, Australia, via USAID-funded commercial aircraft. The first batch of 100,000 units arrived in East Timor on September 18, and the second 100,000 units arrived on September 20. The third and final 100,000 units arrived on September 21. Current reports indicate that, on September 18, the UN World Food Program (WFP) airdropped 12,000 HDRs in Ermera and Bobonaro, East Timor. These areas are known to have large IDP concentrations. WFP expects to resume airdrops in East Timor on September 22. In addition, USAID/OFDA has dispatched relief items requested in phase two of a three-phase donor response. (Note: Phase one is the airdrop of HDRs and other emergency food rations, phase two is the delivery of commodities via helicopter once peacekeepers have secured airways, and phase three is the delivery of commodities and services via road by relief organizations to meet the longer term needs of refugees.) The USAID/OFDA items include: 500 rolls plastic sheeting; 20,000 blankets; and 5,200 collapsible 5-gallon water containers. These commodities are expected to arrive in Darwin on September 22 and will be distributed by helicopter by the UN to IDPs in both East and West Timor. In support of phase three, the USAID/OFDA assessment team and USAID/Jakarta Mission are considering proposals from NGO partners who have been working in East Timor to assist with the delivery of food, shelter, medical assistance, water, sanitation, and seeds and tools to IDPs. An ongoing USAID/OFDA grant to an Indonesia NGO is supporting water/sanitation activities to assist IDPs along the West Timor border. The USAID/Jakarta mission is also supporting water projects in four sites, one of which will be completed this week. Water is a key problem in Timor, as this period is the height of the dry season. USAID/Office of Food for Peace (FFP) has authorized the provision of 4,000 MT of bagged corn and 5,900 MT of bagged rice, valued at $4.4 million, to WFP for refugees and IDPs affected by the fighting in East Timor. These commodities are sufficient to meet the basic grain requirements of 360,000 people for 60 days. In addition, USAID/FFP is currently supporting ongoing programs in Indonesia through a number of PVOs and through WFP. USAID/FFP Title II partners' stocks in Indonesia total 8,350 MT, with an additional 29,000 MT in the pipeline. The USAID/OFDA assessment team currently in Jakarta has not received any reports of starvation or critical malnutrition in Timor. According to the USAIDOFDA assessment team, food stocks in West Timor are sufficient to meet current needs, but access to food may worsen without external assistance and/or if militia activity persists. The planting season is expected to begin in six weeks, highlighting the need for rapid resettlement of IDPs. In contrast, food access and availability is a growing problem in East Timor, particularly for IDPs in isolated locations. Displacement may disrupt the farming cycle and reduce planting, which could cause food shortages for the next 18 months, the USAID/OFDA team reports. There are also concerns about micro-nutrient and protein deficiencies resulting from an extended bulk grain (rice) diet, especially in children. To address this concern, USAID is considering rapid delivery of corn or wheat and soya blended foods. Food security activities, such as seeds and tools and community gardening, are also under consideration to reduce the impact of displacement on the cropping cycle. Additionally, the USG will provide 200 troops to assist the UN-authorized International Force for East Timor (INTERFET) in intelligence gathering, communications, logistics, and airlift capability. A small contingent of US Marines already are providing logistical assistance in Darwin. The first INTERFET contingent of about 1,000 soldiers arrived in Dili on September 20 and met with GOI army (TNI) forces. (Press reports indicate Dili appeared relatively deserted and calm, although militias reportedly maintain a presence in parts of the city.) A total of about 7,500 troops, mostly from Australia, are expected to arrive to restore peace and security and to assist with humanitarian relief efforts in the near future. The UN Security Council voted unanimously to send a peacekeeping force to East Timor on September 15. About 80 percent of the TNI's 7,000 troops, and 5,000 police in the territory have reportedly been evacuated. An estimated 11,000 Indonesian police are expected to remain in the island. The GOI is expected to formally end martial law in the territory in the coming days, according to press sources. The GOI reportedly imposed martial law in East Timor on September 7. A USG team headed by State Department's Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM) Assistant Secretary Julia Taft is currently visiting Indonesia and will meet with USG officials, international organizations, and donors, as well as representatives from the GOI and CNRT, the pro-independence forces. The USG team, accompanied by a member of the USAID/OFDA assessment team, expects to travel to Dili and affected areas in West Timor as part of a multi-lateral humanitarian assessment mission. UN officials and donor representatives from the EU, Japan, Korea, and Thailand are expected to participate in the mission. The mission will push the GOI on the need for humanitarian access and protection in Timor and mobilize donor support. USAID and PRM are also advocating the opening of a humanitarian logistics corridor between East and West Timor to allow secure and free movement of food and other humanitarian assistance commodities. Relief Efforts On September 17, WFP organized airdrops in three locations using two Australian high capacity C-130 aircraft. The airdrops delivered 40 tons of rice in the districts of Ermera, Malaputu, and Malapa (enough to feed 100,000 people for one day.) WFP, the lead agency for logistics in East Timor, organized the airdrops from Darwin, Australia, following approval from the GOI. Airdrops continued on September 18 and 19 but was delayed by the deployment of the peacekeeping force, WFP reports. WFP expects to resume airdrops of DOD-provided HDRs and WFP-donated high protein biscuits on September 22 using three WFP planes and military aircraft from countries engaged in the UN peacekeeping operation. WFP reportedly plans to continue airdrops from Darwin to East Timor for the next twenty days and is currently working to reduce air traffic congestion at the airport in Dili. The GOI has yet to authorize airdrop cargo clearance from Darwin to preclude the need to stop in Dili during future flights. In addition, WFP reports it will soon begin to ship food aid to Dili for overland distribution by implementing partners. WFP is also distributing GOI donated food; about 3,500 MT of rice has already been released from existing GOI stocks. Total GOI stocks total 29,000 MT of rice, including 16,500 MT now in Kupang. GOI stocks contain enough food for 175,000 IDPs for up to 14 months. WFP currently has about 15,400 MT of food available and/or in the pipeline for East Timor, which is enough to feed 500,000 people for about 2.5 months. WFP will also ship about 6,400 MT of rice to Dili within ten days. (Despite earlier reports, WFP reports that GOI stocks in Dili were not looted; about 5,000 MT of rice remain intact in warehouses in Dili.) According to WFP, the GOI will provide 30 trucks for humanitarian organizations and a local association has identified 24 trucks in West Timor. The GOI has reportedly erected tents for 2,300 IDPs at Tunukiik and is building shelter sites near Atamuba. WFP's Emergency Division has approved a Special Operations program to finance a joint logistics cell for the East Timor crisis. The cell will receive, store and transport humanitarian aid. The WFP Special Operations will also coordinate the management of seaports, air transport, and vehicle fleet. WFP has also approved an emergency operation plan (EMOP) to provide emergency food rations to 150,000 IDPs within East Timor for a two-month period. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) is assisting in organizing WFP airdrops, as the lead coordination agency, and expects to issue an appeal in the near future. UNHCR has established a presence in West Timor to assist affected East Timorese. Several aid agencies, including WFP, UNCIEF, and Action contre la Faim (ACF), currently have international staff working in Dili and are beginning to establish field offices to implement phase two relief operations. Agencies also continue to pre- position relief personnel and commodities for distribution in East Timor once security improves. Aid agencies have managed to truck in 10 tons of food to Dare, located southwest of Dili and where 50,000 IDPs remain. ICRC has delivered 5 tons of non- food assistance to Dare and is preparing an expanded emergency inter-agency relief appeal to respond to immediate needs. ICRC/Geneva also plans to distribute 32,000 USG-donated HDRs in East Timor. These rations are the remainder of a previous donation for use in Kosovo. With the arrival of the INTERFET, ICRC is deploying a field hospital from Norway, as well as a shipment of food for 100,000 people to Dili. An ICRC water/sanitation specialist recently arrived in Atambua. In addition, Medecins sans Frontieres (MSF)/Holland has accessed IDP camps in Kupang and is assessing the health and water/situation using local staff. MSF is working in 13 IDP sites in Kupang, each hosting about 200 IDPs, and has deployed three water engineers and one doctor to West Timor. According to recent MSF/H assessments, drugs supplies are low and sanitation remains inadequate in IDP camps, although water supply has improved. Cases of measles have been reported in three IDP camps in Kupang. Many aid agencies working in Indonesia remain concerned about protection, security, and access. UNICEF has approved a one-year $4.9 million plan for East and West Timor. The plan includes immediate longer-term strategies for assistance. UNICEF plans to establish a field office Atambua and is distributing baby food, using local staff. UNICEF has purchased 500 jerry cans, five water tanks, and 500 family kits and kitchen sets and expects to ship an additional 4,000 jerry cans, 1,000 water jugs, 20 water bladders, and 120 water tanks to East Timor soon. The International Organization for Migration has also submitted an appeal for $11.23 million. Financial Support To date, USAID/OFDA has provided approximately $1.4 million towards the East Timor crisis, primarily for transport and logistical support in response to the East Timor crisis. USAID/OFDA is providing an additional $620,000 for plastic sheeting, water containers, and blankets for phase two of the donor response. This amount includes transport and logistical costs. In addition, USAID/FFP has provided to date $4.4 million for the provision of 9,900 MT of food commodities to WFP for refugees and IDPs affected by the fighting in East Timor. USAID/OFDA ASSISTANCE $1,400,000 USAID/FFP $4,400,000 TOTAL USAID ASSISTANCE $5,800,000 Public Donation Information - In the interest of effective coordination of such public response, we encourage concerned citizens to provide monetary donations to appropriate organizations. USAID encourages the public to contact directly those private voluntary organizations (PVOs) currently working in the region to provide monetary donations. Those interested in providing specific technical relief services or commodities should contact Volunteers in Technical Assistance's (VITA) Disaster Information Center for information and guidelines (703) 276-1914. distributed by - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Volunteers in Technical Assistance Disaster Information Center lists: www.vita.org/listsub.htm sitreps nat-dsr web: www.vita.org appeal fireline - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -