As if skin infections and other diseases weren't enough, Manggarai residents also have to contend with the lack of toilets in their homes.

"Why should we have a toilet in our house if we don't have water?" said 64-year-old farmer Norbertus Lembu. "A toilet is not a necessity in Manggarai. We have a wide backyard if we want to relieve ourselves."

A standard permanent toilet costs around 7 million rupiah (763 U.S. dollars) in Manggarai and is considered a luxury in an area where the annual per capita income stands at 1.5 million rupiah (163.5 dollars).

Instead, some Manggarai villagers have constructed cubicles using bamboo and aluminium sheets in their backyards, but these often do not meet standard sanitation requirements.

Like most houses, schools, polyclinics and churches in the predominantly Catholic regency have no toilets as well.

"We just have to hide behind tall grasses if we want to defecate," said Benediktus Budin, one of five teachers at Watudali Elementary School.

Literally, every grassy area in many Manggarai villages is littered with human waste and even when households have toilets, the disposal facility is poor due to the lack of a sewerage system. For instance, the house allocated to a health officer in Denge village has a toilet, but it has no septic tank. Thus, the toilet was converted into a kitchen.

"The health awareness of Manggarai people is very low," lamented Satar Lenda health officer Anselmus Embo.

Health officers in Satar Lenda subdistrict have twice gathered local public figures to explain the importance of having toilets in homes.

"The result has been rather disappointing because those who attended the gatherings have not built toilets until now," said Embo, pondering on the next move on how to convince local residents to construct toilets. - (END/RD/LC/240706)