Waiting Too Long After the Disaster

By Kusnandar & Co., Attorneys At Law – Jakarta, Indonesia

 

Nearly two months after floods and landslides struck Aceh, North Sumatra, and West Sumatra, hundreds of thousands of people are still living in evacuation camps. They survive in temporary tents with very limited conditions. Time keeps moving forward, but a decent life has not yet arrived for them. Natural disasters may come suddenly, but slow and weak responses cannot continue to be justified.

According to data from the National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) as of January 16, 2026, a total of 166,579 people remain displaced. This number shows how serious and unresolved the situation is. Children are getting sick more often, adults are exhausted, and many families are losing hope. The government is indeed building temporary shelters, but the progress is far from enough. Out of nearly 28,000 proposed units, fewer than 1,000 are ready to be occupied. This gap between need and reality is too large to ignore.

Not all survivors live in official evacuation camps. Some choose to stay with relatives because it feels safer. However, these people often receive even less attention. Because they are not registered as camp residents, they do not receive cash assistance from the government. Yet their daily needs do not disappear. They still need money for food, medicine, electricity, and their children’s needs. The state seems to only recognize visible suffering, while hidden hardship is left unattended.

The government says it is racing against time to complete the construction of temporary shelters. The goal is to reduce overcrowding in evacuation camps and provide healthier living conditions. However, the reality on the ground tells a different story. Thousands of families are still waiting without certainty. The target to finish the shelters before Ramadan only highlights how unprepared the system remains in responding to post-disaster recovery.

Life in the evacuation tents is far from comfortable. During the day, the heat is unbearable; at night, the cold becomes a problem. Many displaced people spend their days looking at the remains of their destroyed homes. Roofs are gone, walls have collapsed, and the houses are no longer livable. They know they cannot return, but they also do not know where to go next.

This situation is not only about natural disasters, but about state responsibility. When citizens are forced to live in tents for months, it reflects a failure in emergency and recovery management. Government efforts should be acknowledged, but they are meaningless if the results are not felt by the people.

The state must be present more quickly and more seriously. Children who are falling ill, families who have lost their homes, and citizens living without certainty cannot be asked to be patient forever. Disasters may be unavoidable, but prolonged suffering should never be.

By : K&Co - January 19, 2026