Flores residents demand accountability over earthquake recovery

Ruteng — Residents and civil-society groups in Flores issued a legal notice on Oct. 15, 2026, accusing the government of negligence over the slow response to the island’s earthquake disaster.

The notice followed continuing complaints about conditions in evacuation shelters two months after a magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck Flores. The Jakarta Post reported limited access to food, clothing, sanitation, health care and essential infrastructure, including schools.

The legal action was attributed to the Tim Advokasi Korban dan Pengungsi Bencana Flores, or Flores Disaster Victims and Refugees Advocacy Team. Ekora NTT reported that the group notified seven government institutions, including the President, the National Disaster Management Agency, the Health Ministry, the Social Affairs Ministry, the Ministry of Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection, the Public Works Ministry and the governor of East Nusa Tenggara.

Why the Flores notice matters to foreign residents and visitors

The dispute concerns the delivery of basic services after a major disaster, rather than a new travel or immigration rule. For foreign residents and visitors in Flores, the reports describe an ongoing humanitarian situation affecting shelter, health care, sanitation, food access and school infrastructure. The reported shortages are concentrated among displaced communities and do not by themselves establish restrictions on travel or tourism.

The Jakarta Post said the earthquake killed 48 people in Flores in August. It also reported that 108 people died in evacuation shelters in late September, while some displaced residents built around 450 makeshift tents across Ende. Those tents were reportedly absent from the National Disaster Mitigation Agency’s evacuee data.

Ekora NTT reported that the advocacy team’s notice sought government supervision, coordination and oversight during the disaster-response process. The government’s position, as reported by The Jakarta Post, was that many shelter deaths involved elderly residents with pre-existing chronic illnesses and that health authorities had provided maximum care.

Sources

• The Jakarta Post — national news organisation
• Ekora NTT — regional news organisation
• article.wn.com
• worldvision.org.sg