Poison in the Water

The coastal village near Jakarta Bay had once thrived on its fishing industry, with colorful boats dotting the waters, bringing in the day’s catch and sustaining families for generations. But now, the sea was a dark, unnatural color—murky and toxic, carrying with it the stench of death. Piles of dead fish lay on the beach, their bodies bloated and swollen, while the air hung thick with a heavy silence. The villagers, who had once lived off the abundance of the ocean, now stared helplessly at the devastation before them. Illness spread like wildfire, and poverty seemed to rise with the tide.