Aceh's reconstruction should be based on village mapping

Aceh's reconstruction should be based on village mapping

Azwar Hasan, Banda Aceh

If we ask tsunami-affected Acehnese what they desire most,
they will almost invariably reply that their greatest desire is
to go back to where they used to live, in spite of the fact that
their homes have been completely destroyed. Their emotional ties
to the land where they and their ancestors were born, where they
grew up, the place where they experienced the joys and sadness of
their lives, are places that they cannot just leave behind.

There are no other places for them to start afresh after the
fury of the elements took everything they owned and many members
of their families. Refugee camps are only a temporary measure and
the same applies for those who have sought refuge in the houses
of their relatives.

These internally displaced people, as the survivors of the
tsunami are categorized, want to return to the place where they
were born and to their houses of which nothing is now left.

On the other hand, the desire of many, other than the
survivors themselves, to immediately provide much needed help --
first of all temporary or permanent housing -- is hampered not by
lack of funding or building allocation but by lack of government
policy, the unclear status of the land and its use. Ironically,
several survivors have returned to their places of origin and are
badly in need of temporary shelter.

Although many non-governmental organizations are committed to
start rebuilding, there is unclear information on policy, permits
and other post-earthquake measures from the government to rebuild
their homes in the same place. It is all very confusing and yet
everybody wants the survivors to return to their normal lives and
activities.

An initial step as an effort to bridge these hurdles is what
the locals themselves have started doing, that is, remapping
their village reflecting present and future village conditions.
The community-mapping process is quite simple; it is enough to
trust the locals to survey their land and village on their own.
The assumption is that only the residents of a given village know
with a great deal of certainty the status and ownership of each
parcel of land.

Additionally, it makes sense that it should be the residents
to decide how their village should be rebuilt, not outsiders who
come with big ideas and concepts and treat the locals as mere
laboratory objects for donors and other groups. It is an
unwritten law (convention) to recognize land ownership. Although
there is no formal certification for the land in question as is
the case in modern societies, nonetheless ownership is recognized
by the local residents.

Not only land, for instance, but also mango trees and their
ownership, are known and recognized within the Acehnese
community. From these conditions it is possible to conclude that
there is no party nor institution more knowledgeable or that
commands more authority on matters of land and survey, status and
ownership than the locals themselves.

Why should the people of Aceh have to wait and live with
uncertainty? Haven't they suffered enough already?

Just imagine what it must feel like for locals who want to map
their village and explain to the outsiders that this is "our
village now and in the future". A simple map would certainly be
of great help to anybody wanting to reconstruct Aceh. If all
villages hit by the tsunami could come up with a map developed
and recognized by its inhabitants -- and by the government --
perhaps problem such as where to start to rebuild Aceh and the
waiting and uncertainty could be minimized.

With minimal direction and training, the community can survey
and determine the borders of their own land. More than that,
their overwhelming enthusiasm to undertake this task is a great
motivator in pushing along the village mapping process. For
example, in a relatively short time Desa Deah Glumpang, Kelurahan
Punge Jurong, Desa Lamkuweuh, in the municipality of Banda Aceh
has successfully developed a village map.

The same can be said for other villages such in the sub-
districts of Meuraxa, Jaya Baru Banda Aceh and Lhok Nga Aceh
Besar. Of course, not all things proceed that smoothly because of
technical hurdles and this is quite understandable in a
participative process such as this. If this sort of effort could
be intensified, guided, supported and spread out to all the
affected areas, it would not take long to complete and it would
help everybody.

The survey of Gampong Kamoi was undertaken by the people
themselves and at the smallest dwelling level, the community.
Every community produces a map of the physical conditions
facilitated and described on a sheet of paper to eventually
produce a more accurate and professional, real physical condition
of the village.

It is expected that village mapping can provide clarity and
certainty for the affected community and for all those who intend
to immediately commence the reconstruction of Aceh. There is no
more effective and efficient way than the direct participation of
the survivors themselves in the reconstruction. It gives them
hope for a return to normality and kicks off the healing process.

These efforts of community self-starting needs the support of
the government, which is supposed to be the protector of the
people, and not just make life more difficult because of its
formal authority, but incompetence, for a number of reasons, to
proceed with a more practical approach.

A ravaged post-tsunami Aceh has made this province the largest
laboratory in the world for a number of disciplines and experts
because of the opportunities created and also by the large amount
of funds inundating the province. We should all take these
opportunities as the positive side of the disaster instead of
causing a further disaster in another form that in the end will
produce the same result: the continuous marginalization of the
people of Aceh.

The writer is the Team Leader of the Aceh Governance and
Development Program (AGDP/USAID). He can be reached at
azuardi@cbn.net.id