Acehnese clerics brief Arab countries' envoys

Acehnese clerics brief Arab countries' envoys

Veeramalla Anjaiah, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

The Saudi Arabian Ambassador hosted on Friday a group of
clerics from Aceh province for a meeting with a group of Arab
ambassadors in Jakarta.

Saudi Arabian Ambassador Abdullah Abdul Rahman Alim, who
hosted the dinner in honor of the guests from Aceh at his
residence on Friday, told The Jakarta Post that the main aim of
the meeting was to extend Arab countries' solidarity and support
to the Acehnese people.

The secretary-general of the Indonesian Ulema Council, Din
Syamsuddin, who played a key role in bringing the Acehnese team
to Jakarta, introduced the clerics to several Arab countries'
ambassadors and explained the grave situation in Aceh.

"These people lost everything. They need not only food, water
and medicine, but also schools, houses, hospitals and mosques.
They need doctors. They also need psychologists and religious
teachers for counseling," Din said in fluent Arabic at the
gathering.

Several ulemas revealed their sufferings and how they lost
their loved one's and their belongings.

While addressing the gathering, Abdullah said Saudi Arabia was
ready to help Aceh, especially in the reconstruction process.

"Our government has given a $30 million grant to tsunami-
affected countries. Saudi people raised more than $100 million in
private donations. The kingdom has so far dispatched more than
1,000 tons of humanitarian aid consisting of food, medicine,
carpets and emergency equipment," Abdullah said.

Most of the Saudi Arabian assistance will go to Aceh and the
Saudi government said it was ready to donate more money for
building schools, mosques and a big project to build an orphanage
center, which can accommodate up to 4,000 children, Abdullah
said.

He said that Saudi Arabia's Red Crescent is currently
undertaking a study to assess the damage and make recommendations
on how the government can help Aceh's reconstruction.

Sudan's Ambassador to Indonesia Siddig Yousif Abu-Agla said
there is a need for a concrete plan to rebuild Aceh so that Arab
countries can contribute to this process.

Other ambassadors in attendance were, Mohammad Fadel Khalaf
from Kuwait, Ahmed Salem Saleh Al-Wahishi from Yemen, Hamzah
Yahia-Cherif from Algeria and Syria's Ambassador-designate
Mohamad Darwish Baladi.