|
Chaos over final death toll
20/01/2005 08:06 - (SA)
Jakarta - Almost four weeks after the December 26 tsunami, the governments of Indonesia and Sri Lanka are unable to agree on the number of people killed in their respective countries.
The confusion illustrates the difficulties faced by both nations as they struggle to recover from the killer waves, which swept countless bodies out to sea. It also makes estimating an overall death toll for the 11 Indian Ocean countries affected by the disaster problematic.
Indonesian's health ministry on Thursday said more than 70 000 people previously listed as missing were now considered to have died, bringing the number killed in Indonesia to 166 320 and the overall toll in 11 countries to as much as 221 100.
A separate count by the Social Affairs Ministry, which the Associated Press has been using for its tallies, put the toll at 114 978 with about 24 000 missing.
Experts to resolve issue
Both departments on Thursday stood by the figures, which they said were based on reports from officials on the affected island of Sumatra and estimates based on census figures and the numbers of people unaccounted for.
A spokesperson for Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who on Tuesday ordered the agencies to come up with a definite tally, was unable to clear up the confusion.
"I am not able to tell you if the president endorses the health ministry figure," said Dino Djalal. "To be honest we don't have a set number, and we don't think we will ever know the exact tally."
A similar discrepancy between two government agencies exists in Sri Lanka.
The Public Security Ministry announced Monday that it counted 38 195 people who died in the tsunami - 7 275 more than the number cited by the National Disaster Management Centre, which stuck by its total of 30 920.
The agencies both insist they are correct but experts were scheduled to meet on Thursday to try and resolve the stalemate. Both agencies expects the final figure to exceed 40 000.
Indonesian officials have frequently cautioned that compiling accurate figures for the dead or missing is almost impossible, and that a definitive total of dead may never be reached.
- AP
|
News
