President asks people to shed superstitious belief about earthquakes

"Our country, Indonesia, lies over the Eurosian plate that has been moving every year since hundreds of years ago and therefore is prone to earthquakes," he said.

He said "magma moves not because SBY (Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono) has become president. It is malicious to link it with my having become president."

About the natural disassters themelves, he said all components of the community had better start getting used to them and to view them as blessings instead of as calamities.

He said West Sumatra was one of the regions in the country that was prone to natural disasters.

"West Sumatra is like `a disaster supermarket` because it has five active volcanoes, and is prone to tsunamis and also landslides because much of territory consists of hills ," he said.  more...