Aceh tsunami survivors still rebuilding lives
I saved myself by holding on to a piece of wood that was floating on the water. I drifted for about three kilometres before I found myself entangled on the dome of the mosque where I’m currently serving as imam.
BANDA ACEH: Exactly 14 years have gone since the Indonesian province of Aceh was struck by what the locals describe as a miniapocalypse.
Some 200,000 people perished in Aceh after it was hit by a killer tsunami on Dec 24, 2004, that was triggered by a 9.1-magnitude undersea earthquake off the coast of Sumatera. ( The Indian Ocean tsunami had hit a total of 14 countries, with the most badly affected ones being Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, Maldives and Thailand.)
This writer, who returned from a recent tour of Aceh, noted that while the people were busy picking up the pieces and rebuilding their lives, they still felt a sense of trepidation and feared a repetition of the catastrophe.
This writer was part of a group from the Perlis branch of the Malaysian Historical Society that visited Aceh from Dec 7 to 10.
Branch chairman Busu Ibrahim, who led the group, said their objective was to find out how the people of Aceh were faring and assess the post-tsunami developments in the province. Attracting tourists One of the people the writer spoke to was tour guide Mohd Rizal Zakaria, 30, who has left the past behind to build a new life for himself.
He went into the tourism line as he realised that the trail of destruction left behind by one of the deadliest natural disasters in history would attract the attention of tourists who would want to visit Aceh to witness for themselves the after- effects of the tsunami.
He also went all over Aceh collecting interesting stories of survivors that he could share with the visitors who used his tour guide services.
Mohd Rizal and his family managed to escape the wrath of the killer tsunami 14 years ago as their house was located on relatively higher ground in a suburban part of Banda Aceh.
Married with three children now, he said although he and his family were safe, it was still a harrowing experience and something he hoped he would never have to endure again. Mosque intact Buildings and other objects that were left unscathed by the giant waves have now become tourist attractions. Among them are several mosques, as well as a 1,600tonne ship that got stranded on the mainland, near Banda Aceh.
One of the mosques that escaped
Sulaiman Mohd Amin, Masjid Rahmatullah iman
destruction, Masjid Rahmatullah, is located in Kampung Lampuk in Aceh Besar. Its imam Sulaiman Mohd Amin, 64, said on the day the tsunami occurred, he and his fellow villagers were cooking for a wedding feast when all of a sudden the village was swiftly inundated by blackened sea water.
“I saved myself by holding on to a piece of wood that was floating on the water. I drifted for about three kilometres before I found myself entangled on the dome of the mosque where I’m currently serving as imam,” he recalled, adding that about 7,000 people in his village, including his wife and four children, lost their lives that day.
Only 300 people in his village survived, he said.
Tourists to Aceh always make it a point to visit Masjid Rahmatullah which despite being submerged during the tsunami emerged intact after the waters subsided. And, Sulaiman is always willing to share his experiences with tourists.
Other “attractions” that are drawing tourists and benefiting tour guides like Mohd Rizal are the 80-tonne dome of a mosque that was left floating on the water during the tsunami and now lies in Kampung Gurah Lamteugoh, about five kilometres from Banda Aceh, and a 20-tonne fishing boat that got stranded on the roof of a two- storey house in Kampung Lampulo, not far from the town centre.
Kampung Gurah Lamteugoh resident Sriana Rusli Abdullah, a 35-year-old homemaker, is the one who usually relates the story of the dome to visitors.
Over at Kampung Lampulo, it is homemaker Nilawati Ilyas Bintang, 42, who relates the story of the stranded fishing boat.
Sriana said she and her husband had a narrow escape as they had returned to his home village in another part of Aceh when the tsunami struck.
Nilawati, meanwhile, said she and her two children, who were still young then, managed to save themselves by clinging on to a coconut tree. Ended three- decade conflict As pointed out by Mohd Rizal, the 2004 disaster nevertheless was a blessing in disguise as it brought to an end the 30-year struggle by Free Aceh Movement, a group that has been fi ghting for an independent state in Aceh since the 1970s. The Indonesian government had signed a peace accord with the separatists on Aug 15, 2005.
“With the conflict having ended, our province has become more peaceful and development is taking place without any interruption,” he added. — Bernama