The government is advised to follow the steps taken by the Japanese government who uses the school building as a shelter for refugees in the event of a disaster. Therefore, there is the need to design earthquake-resistant school buildings with better sanitation facilities.
This was stated by a disaster expert from Japan, Prof. Stefano Toshiya Tsukamoto, when met on the sidelines of public lecture 'Disaster Management and Community Participation' in the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences, Thursday (1/2).
The lecturer of International Politics, Economics and Communication Graduate School, Aoyama Gakuin University, Tokyo, Japan confirmed that the concept of disaster management applied in Japan was based from the experience learned of the earthquake in Kobe in 1995. "Now in Japan the school building is used to shelter refugees. There is also disaster simulation teaching," he said.
A strong school building is not only intended as shelter but also protecting children's safety during an earthquake. "In Japan, schools are built to be resistant to earthquakes," he said.
He saw from his observations of the post-disaster management model in Indonesia that still put displaced people in emergency tents which is not comfortable. Therefore, there is the need to look for a good and comfortable building, which is school building. "People will face serious problems when living in a tent, when they were hit by a disaster," he said.
He highlighted the condition of Indonesia which does not differ much from Japan as a country prone to disasters, with earthquakes, tsunamis and volcanic eruptions, therefore, the government has to prioritize the people's participation in post-disaster management program. "Disaster management is not necessarily interpreted as top-down process, where the government becomes the actor who plays a role in determining disaster management policy and the implementation in the community," he said.
He added that public participation is solution to the difficulties that have always emerged in post-disaster management methods that do not include the involvement of the community itself. "The problem that usually arises is the gap in the disaster management program itself," he said.
Meanwhile, UGM lecturer in International Relations, Dr. Muhadi Sugiono, said that Japanese society has a strong character in facing disaster and post-disaster situation. "They can live close to each other. That all is due to the government's political ability in preparing people to be ready in a disaster," he said.