IN PADANG, WEST SUMATRA
THE tents they pitched in Padang were in blue, orange, grey, white and green.
The men and women who sleep in those tents speak in Bahasa Indonesia, different twangs of English, Arabic, Russian, Japanese, Korean, Bahasa Malaysia and German among others. And yes, Singlish was there too.
And the dogs they brought were just as colourful — black, white, tan, brown and other beautiful shades.
Welcome to a mini gathering of the human race, some 500 of them from outside Indonesia, brought together by a major tragedy.
The last few days in the aftermath of a big earthquake in Sumbar or Sumatra Barat (West Sumatra) have indeed seen hundreds of death and many tears shed over dead relatives and toppled dreams.
But, as the colourful tents pitched on the expansive lawns of the Sumbar Governor showed, the frightful quake also showed the brotherhood of men.
Walk into one corner and listen to British men discussing rescue work with Indonesian officials.
Peer into one of the many offices of the Governor and one hears Swiss rescue team members talking to colleagues from Australia and Singapore.
And then there was the urban rescue team from the United Arab Emirates arriving in a giant white Hummer to discuss issues with friends from Japan, a translator in tow.
And several teams from the UK, speaking in distinctive English, to others from Australia.
Some visited the tents of others for chats and coffee, others to pat each other's rescue dogs.
An official from a United Nations agency said more than two dozen nations responded to the call for help by Indonesia.
Others sent doctor and nurses, blankets and tents.
The search and rescue teams brought along 48 rescue dogs.
Over maps and bottles of mineral water the men and women discussed strategies on alleviating the pain suffered by thousands of Padang and Sumbar residents due to the quake.
Seeing forlorn relatives of people still buried under the rubble did not make me cry.
Neither did the sight of collapsed schools or shops, nor seeing people collecting dirty water from drains because water pipes were broken.
But I was moved to ask this question when I walked among these colourful tents on Sunday: Why do we need a huge disaster in order to unite?
This sounds corny, I know, but: Why can't we all just get along?
Read more:
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SCDF dogs help out
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