Developing Socio-Cultural Approach in the Evacuation Strategy of the 2010 Erupsion in Mount Merapi: Lessons Learned
Ludiro Madu
Department of International Relations, UPN Veteran Yogyakarta
Jl. Babarsari No. 2, Tambakbayan, Yogyakarta 55281, Indonesia
ludiro[at]gmail.com
Abstract
Evacuation strategy is one of important stages in disaster management, particularly in the case of the 2010 erupsion of Mount Merapi, Yogyakarta, Indonesia. Rather than just evacuating people, the case shows that Indonesias government had to manage peoples livestock wisely without taking risks of increasing victims of human. Several incidents of natural disaster have improved Indonesias experiences in dealing with disaster management. Various approaches ---behavioural and structural ones--- have been applied in various natural disasters. However, those approaches cannot easily be imposed in the evacuation strategy at the Mount Merapi. This paper analyses the use of socio-cultural approach in handling evacuation problems at the 2010 erupsion of the Mount Merapi. This third approach is of importance for dealing with unique local condition of people lived arround Mount Merapi. Socio-cultural approach aims at helping disasters stakeholders successfully managed problems of evacuation. Although people were managed to be evacuated to secured areas, they frequently returned to their home in disaster areas. Learning from their daily life and local culture helps successful evacuation in the Mount Merapi by bringing people and their livestock out of disaster areas. This approach helps disaster stakeholders to learn about local wisdom of people who lived in sorrounding areas of Mount Merapi. Another lesson is that this evacuation strategy enabled disaster-affected people kept looking after and securing their livestock, while they lived in secured areas. Therefore, developing socio-cultural approach in the evacuation strategy of the Mount Merapi also helps complement ---rather than substitute--- other useful approaches which were formerly applied in other disaster areas for disaster management.
Keywords: livestock, people, socio-cultural approach, evacuation strategy, Mount Merapi.
Topic: Disaster Management and Environmental Issues