An aid worker from Hong Kong was in a stable condition last
night after being shot whilst working in Indonesia's
tsunami-stricken Aceh Province on Wednesday night.
Eva Yeung, 28, from the Hong Kong Red Cross (HKRC), was wounded in the
neck as she was traveling with another Red Cross worker in a car
north of Lam No, a town 80 kilometers south of the provincial
capital Banda Aceh.
HKRC spokesperson Almen Chui said Yeung was airlifted to
Singapore yesterday to get further treatment and to be with her
mother, younger brother and a friend who traveled to be at her
bedside.
Yeung is the first reported foreign aid worker to be shot while
helping local tsunami survivors. She had been in Indonesia since
February as a member of the International Federation of Red Cross
and Red Crescent Societies from Hong Kong.
The incident has prompted concern in Hong Kong that aid workers
in hot spots are not receiving sufficient protection.
Although the Indonesian government and Free Aceh Movement rebels
have been holding peace talks in Helsinki, Finland in efforts to
end the three-decade-old insurgency, armed clashes are still common
in the province.
Choy So-yuk of the Legislative Council security
panel said the shooting was "immoral" and insisted that Hong Kong
take up the case with local authorities in Aceh.
"They must investigate the incident. The Hong Kong government
must act immediately to render help to the victim. I'm concerned
that incidents such as this may hamper future aid efforts," Choy
said.
Another security panel member, Lau Kong-wah, called on the HKRC
to review the safety of its workers. The incident should not affect
future aid efforts, as "relief services are a meaningful task," he
said.
Aceh police spokesperson Djoko Turochman said Yeung was shot
from a distance of about 100 meters and suspected separatist rebels
of the attack. At least two shots were fired, but it is unclear how
many hit Yeung.
According to the HKRC, Yeung was initially treated at a local
hospital before being taken to Medan for transit to Singapore where
more advanced medical facilities were available.
Following the shooting, Turochman promised to increase security
for foreigners working in Aceh to prevent a similar incident.
Relief organizations active in the province are taking their own
precautions and road travel around Lam No has been stopped. Acting
area security coordinator for the UN in Aceh, Michele Lipner, said
this was done as a precaution until they got more information about
the incident.
Meanwhile, the HKRC has suspended road travel for its workers
from Banda Aceh all the way to the city of Meulaboh, about 250
kilometers to the south.
In a separate development, another Hong Kong resident was
confirmed to have died in the earthquake-triggered tsunami on
December 26, taking the special administrative region's death toll
to 30.
Ten other residents last reported in Thailand are still
classified as missing.
(China Daily June 24, 2005)