Acehnese must define what's necessary for them

Among the dozens of foreign non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that arrived in Indonesia to help tsunami survivors was Finland's FinnChurchAid. Accompanied by its local partners, the NGO's representatives traveled to Meulaboh, West Aceh and Nias, North Sumatra. The Jakarta Post's Kanis Dursin interviewed head of humanitarian aid at FinnChurchAid Helena Manninen-Visuri in Jakarta last week. The following is an excerpt of the interview.

Question: What is your organization doing in Aceh?

Answer: We have a relief program going on together with our local partners. We have a water purification and sanitation program in Meulaboh and surrounding areas. We distribute clean water to IDP (internally displaced persons) settlements and clean up wells. We also build latrines at IDP settlements. In Nias, we have just started. There had been some distribution of relief goods and water and sanitation projects on the island.

Who are your local partners?

Our local partners are the YTB (Development and Relief Organization), a humanitarian group linked to PGI (the Communion of Churches in Indonesia). The other one is Yakum Emergency Unit, which specializes in the health sector and water and sanitation and trauma healing.

What relief goods did you provide for tsunami victims?

In the beginning, our partners provided tents, food, medicine, mosquito nets, household equipment, stoves, school kits, mattresses and clothes. I heard they still need those goods, especially in faraway villages.

There are a lot of organizations in Banda Aceh and Meulaboh, but if you go to villages further away, there are no relief workers, while the needs are so big.

How much money are you allocating for Aceh operations?

We have set aside 1.1 million euros (US$1,43 million) and will consider the most urgent needs as the reconstruction process is about to start.

What problems have to be resolved immediately?

I think it is the access. Roads and bridges have to be repaired as soon as possible so that we can transport goods to faraway villages. I also hope that telecommunications will be restored soon as we want to ensure that local people and their needs are being heard.

We have to respect the needs of local people as we want them to take responsibility for the programs. We also don't want to define what is necessary for the Acehnese. We want the Acehnese to tell us what they need and we will support them.

What do the Acehnese need now?

The issue of their livelihoods is also very important. They need some basic services, like health and education, and they need to restore their livelihoods. Farmers should be helped to cultivate their farms again, and fishermen must be supported so that they can go fishing again. They cannot depend on grants for ever and actually Acehnese themselves don't like the idea (of depending on grants).

How can your organization help in the reconstruction work?

We have made some plans as to how to support reconstruction and will take into account local people's needs. If they say that, OK, here are 10 villages, then we can count how much money we have in our pocket. (And) it is very important that the reconstruction process is well coordinated as there are so many organizations involved in Aceh.

What are your plans for Aceh and Nias?

Actually, they are being finalized and should be available via the Internet next week or the week after. Our reconstruction plans are for this year and next year only. We will take responsibility for certain areas only.

Do you have plans for children orphaned by the tsunami?

There were some psychologists and nurses who really took care of some children with trauma and mental problems. But so far, we have no specific projects because the needs were so big that we tried to cover the general needs of all displaced people. There are a lot of specific problems that children have like trauma healing.

What is your comment on suggestions that foreigners were out to Christianize Muslim Acehnese?

I heard some religious (Christian) groups wanted to educate child victims. Any missionary activities should not be allowed in this kind of situation. For my organization and our local partners, such a campaign is strictly forbidden. Our members have all signed a code of conduct for humanitarian activities, the same code of conduct signed by the Red Cross and the Red Crescent.

Has the suspicion affected your operations?

I don't expect it to happen because we have not had problems anywhere else. We work in Bangladesh, Afghanistan and many other Muslim countries and it has always worked out fine.

But, should there be fears, we have to take time out and explain the principles of our engagement, that no evangelization or missionary activities are permissible during humanitarian operations.

How long do you think you will stay in Aceh?

I would think at least two years, and then we will consider the resources we have. We also have a principle that if we are engaged in a relief operation, we must also participate in the reconstruction and development. So, it may very well be that we will stay there for three years.