A RE-VERSED NEWS

Hunger attacking Tribal Children which leading to the illness.

A Re-Versed News by Slamet Prasojo

Jon Afrizal, The Jakarta Post, Jambi | Headlines | Mon, March 09 2015, 6:03 AM

Headlines News

A nomadic group known as the Orang Rimba who stated in Batanghari regency Jambi suffer from hunger. Illness and hunger attack four children from the Orang Rimba nomadic group.

One-year-old Cipak and 12-year-old Merute were reported being isolated in the state-owned hospital in Muarabulian city, Batanghari by the pediatric ward’s isolation. The children were suspected having hunger live in a tribal group who live in Bukit Dua Belas National Park (TNBD)

Mangku Terap as the tribe’s chief said that The children have been treated since Saturday, followed by two other children. They are Besikap, 4, and Sebilau, 3 have been treated as outpatients.

He added that before being admitted to the hospital, the children had been suffering from a high fever in seven days not to mention the group had conducted a traditional herbs in first treatment to no avail.

Mangku continued his explanation that finally the group decided to bring them to the hospital.

“Seven more children in the forest where they lived had also been suffering from the same disease but they were yet to able to take them to the hospital” He extended.

Beby Andihara, one of the doctors at the hospital said the patients were suffering form fever, cough, and acute respiratory infection. He added “ Apparently, these were caused by malnutrition and bad sanitation.

He explained, being nomadic and malnourished weakened their bodies such that they were vulnerable to diseases.

“The patients would be referred to a hospital in Jambi city, the provincial capital if the patient did not improve in the next few days”. Said the doctor

The patients shoud not be afraid of medical expenses because as the Batanghari regency administration would cover it.

The unit coordinator of The Warsi Indonesian Conservation Community (KKI Warsi), Kristiawan said the patients belonged to the Temenggung Marituha tribal group. Eleven Orang Rimba in TNBD had died over the past two months.He added Most were members of the Temenggung Marituha group.

Kristiawan highly expected  that the government would proactively provide health and food aid, and, most importantly, medical treatments to the ill children.

Moreover, the Jambi provincial Social Manpower and Transmigration Agency’s Suku Anak Dalam section head Usup said his office had started investigating the deaths of the Orang Rimba caused by starvation to get further details of the cases.

The case was being serious problem because the tribe’s nomadic life difficult to track them down which inline with the difficulty of accessing the areas, he explained.

He added,  the government was committed to putting an end to the misery and curing all the sick people in the tribe. “That way no more people will die because of famine,” he said,

KKI Warsi reported detailly that the cases harmed the victims since they were difficult in finding their food because the forest was damaged by unresponsible parties.

Yomi added that tribe people have strong tradition in which they are not allowed to eat their own hunted meat. The condition was being worse since the areas are lack of clean water and had been polluted by industrial waste.

Statistic of KKI Warsi shows that around 3,850 Orang Rimba were forced to travel long distances without being able to feed themselves properly in which leading them to be attrackted by mulnutrition and suffer of hunger.

Temenggung Nyenyong as the leader of 35 families of Orang Rimba expects to really care toward the national park for clean water. He also hope that government must take much attention to the forest destruction that leading to the unsafety home for the Orang Rimba.

Re-versed based on the original source : http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/03/09/tribal-children-suffer-hunger-illness.html#sthash.QEbyJ1c6.dpuf