Acehnese relocated to semi-permanent shelters<\/p>\n
Ridwan Max Sijabat, The Jakarta Post, Banda Aceh<\/p>\n
Abdul Djalil expressed relief after the government moved him and
\nhis family from a tent into a temporary shelter in Banda Aceh on
\nTuesday.<\/p>\n
\"Unlike the tents, we have our own room in the shelter where
\nwe can lay our heads down on mats on the floor. We can occupy the
\nbarracks for months while the government builds new housing for
\nus,\" said Djalil, who moved into the temporary housing with his
\nwife and two children.<\/p>\n
The temporary housing offers other benefits over the tents.
\nThe new housing has better sanitation facilities, which should
\nhelp cut down on health problems such as influenza, skin diseases
\nand diarrhea.<\/p>\n
\"These barracks will improve the dignity of all of you,\" Aceh
\nBesar district chief Rusli Muhammad said. \"Living in these
\nbarracks, your situation will improve compared to living in
\nrefugee camps,\" he said as quoted by AFP.<\/p>\n
Djalil was among the thousands of Acehnese who were moved into
\nthe new shelters in Banda Aceh on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
A total of 3,281 families, or more than 11,500 people, were
\nmoved into more than 300 temporary barracks in Banda Aceh, Aceh
\nBesar, Sigli, North Aceh, Aceh Jaya and West Aceh.<\/p>\n
In Banda Aceh and Aceh Besar, thousands of tsunami survivors
\nwere transported by buses and trucks to the barracks, which were
\nconstructed on the outskirts of the city.<\/p>\n
Aceh Deputy Governor Azwar Abubakar, who greeted tsunami
\nsurvivors at one of the temporary shelters in Lambaro, Banda
\nAceh, told people to accept the barracks as temporary shelters,
\npromising that they eventually would be resettled into permanent
\nhousing.<\/p>\n
The Ministry of Public Housing has declined to disclose the
\nbudget for the construction of the barracks. So far, about 300 of
\n803 planned barracks have been constructed.<\/p>\n
Banda Aceh Mayor Mawardy Nurdin said the cost of constructing
\none barracks was between Rp 200 million (US$22,222) and Rp 250
\nmillion. Each barrack consists of between 12 and 20 rooms.<\/p>\n
Officials have said 803 barracks would be built by the
\ngovernment by March 15, which would be able to accommodate 9,730
\nfamilies.<\/p>\n
The camps have been built according to internationally
\naccepted guidelines for sanitation, communal kitchens, places of
\nworship and other essentials, and will be managed by the tsunami
\nsurvivors themselves, officials have said as quoted by Reuter
\nnews agency.<\/p>\n
While the tsunami survivors expressed joy over the new
\nbarracks, international rights groups are concerned over the
\nmilitary's role in the shelters. In a joint statement, New York-
\nbased Human Rights Watch and Human Rights First expressed fear
\nlast week that the new barracks could be manipulated by the
\nmilitary to control the population for military purposes.<\/p>\n
The military's prominent role in transporting the Acehnese to
\nthe new sites, in camp management and in aid distribution will
\ninvariably create fear among the displaced population, they said
\nas quoted by AFP.<\/p>\n
But Banda Aceh Mayor Mawardy Nurdin said the government and
\nthe military would not forcibly relocate tsunami survivors.<\/p>\n
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