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🇮🇩 Indonesia /Health & Science

Students hospitalized after suspected MBG poisoning say they are traumatized

From Republika · () Indonesian

Translated from Indonesian and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Named sources Under investigation
  • MBG Watch said students hospitalized after a suspected Free Nutritious Meals poisoning incident at SMAN 1 Lasem in Central Java reported trauma about consuming the program’s food again.
  • The case involved 777 suspected victims, including 752 students and teachers, while about a dozen students remained hospitalized on September 5.
  • The group called for a full evaluation of the program and said treatment costs were covered by the local SPPG provider.

Students hospitalized after a suspected poisoning incident at SMAN 1 Lasem in Rembang, Central Java, told MBG Watch that they were traumatized by the Free Nutritious Meals program and reluctant to consume it again.

As of midday yesterday, around a dozen students were still hospitalized.

· Galau D. MuhammadHe described the number of students still receiving inpatient treatment when MBG Watch visited the school.

Galau D. Muhammad, a member of MBG Watch, said his team visited students still receiving inpatient care on Saturday, September 5. “As of midday yesterday, around a dozen students were still hospitalized,” he said in an interview on Tuesday, September 8. The suspected poisoning case involved 777 people, including 752 students and teachers.

The group interviewed four of the hospitalized students. Galau said they told the team they had not eaten any food other than MBG before developing symptoms. “So if there are reports that this suspected poisoning case may have been caused by food consumed outside MBG, the students’ accounts confirm that they did not consume anything else,” he said.

So if there are reports that this suspected poisoning case may have been caused by food consumed outside MBG, the students’ accounts confirm that they did not consume anything else.

· Galau D. MuhammadHe said four hospitalized students told MBG Watch they had eaten no other food before developing symptoms.

When asked whether they would consume MBG again, some students said they would rather bring food from home. Others said the food should at least be checked first. Galau said the responses showed trauma among the students who had required hospitalization.

We would rather bring food from home.

· Students interviewed by MBG WatchThis was one response when the hospitalized students were asked whether they would consume MBG meals again.

Some parents also called for a complete evaluation of how the program operates. Galau said some believed the program could instead provide pocket money rather than prepared meals. He described the incident at SMAN 1 Lasem, and similar cases elsewhere, as a consequence of negligence in managing the MBG program rather than an unavoidable disaster. MBG Watch said it would continue supporting affected families, including if they chose to seek material damages. Treatment and hospitalization costs for the suspected victims were covered by the SPPG.

This is a real consequence of negligence in managing the MBG program.

· Galau D. MuhammadHe rejected the idea that the suspected poisoning incidents were unavoidable disasters.
About this summary

Originally published by Republika in Indonesian. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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