Rebuilding a New Aceh for Acehnese

Bondan Winarno, Jakarta

Now that the dust has settled and the tears dried, we are slowly recovering from our grief and have come to terms with the call to rebuild Aceh. But, just how must we do it?

The meaning of the word rebuild or reconstruct itself must be agreed on first. It is not like rebuilding a fallen bridge when it was proven that the construction was faulty. It is about the creation of a New Aceh. In the past, a lot of considerations had been waived in the development of Aceh. It had taken place in a repressive, centralistic manner, disregarding the ecological and socio-cultural capability or assets of the area.

The reconstruction must aim at achieving something a lot better -- in holistic terms -- than what has been destroyed.

First and foremost, the reconstruction plan must allow the participation of the Acehnese right from day one and throughout the entire process.

Second, it must be understood that we are rebuilding a community, not merely reconstructing buildings.

Third, the social and cultural assets of Aceh must be taken into consideration.

One little example is the concept of meunasah. Meunasah literally is the village mosque where Muslims congregate to pray five times a day. But in fact, the life of the villagers is always centered around it. Young boys of the village usually take up residence there, to learn, work, and play together. All cultural activities -- like the world-renowned seudati dance, and pantun (traditional chanting) -- all have their genesis in the meunasah. In other words, a meunasah is thus a community -- a living community.

In other word, the meunasah is one of the most important social and cultural assets of Aceh which is central to the rebuilding of the community.

Neither must the rebuilding of Aceh overlook local wisdom that have so far been documented through a number of studies. The aspirations of the Acehnese are also well documented. Why reinvent the wheel? If this local wisdom is well documented, it can be applied in the reconstruction plan.

In the rebuilding of Aceh, we must allow space for the recovery of local resources -- economic, social and cultural. When the Republic of Indonesia first achieved independence, the people of Aceh donated a DC-3 plane to the new government; the country's first plane. Aceh was, and still is, a rich province. Not taking this into consideration would be a gross mistake. But, the centralistic and greedy government in the past has reduced Aceh significantly where it has lost most of its comparative and competitive advantages.

Not only is Aceh rich in natural resources, it is also has a rich social and cultural heritage. Lost traditions and cultural heritage must be rediscovered and given the proper place to develop.

Let's not overlook the role of women either. In this catastrophe, women and children have suffered the most. Their voice must be heard in the rebuilding of Aceh. The women's perspective must be part of the mainstream in New Aceh. Acehnese women must be considered first in taking care of the children who lost their parents in this human tragedy.

Yes, Aceh has also lost a generation. A lot of children have lost their parents. Priority must be given to the care of those children, not only physically, but also taking into account their spiritual needs, such as: playing, education, creative and cultural expression. Here again, is another proof of where the meunasah could play a role in making the children feel part of the community, and feel protected by the community, when they have actually lost their social safety net.

One last note is on the environmental and ecological considerations. During my mission to Meulaboh, the hardest hit city in the province of Aceh, I was amazed to see that not a single coconut tree was toppled by the tsunami. Amid the ruins of what were concrete buildings, coconut trees are still standing firm. Had coconut trees and mangroves still lined the waterfront of Aceh like they used to, the greenbelt would have prevented the catastrophic casualties.

Environmental sustainability, therefore, must be the foundation of the New Aceh. We must respect the time-honored relationship of the Acehnese with their sources of livelihoods -- the forest and the ocean that surrounds them.

However, before we embark on the daunting task of rebuilding of Aceh, we must first heal the trauma of the Acehnese. We must make the community alive again. We must quickly put all the sadness behind us. We must be able to see them dance the dynamic seudati, and listen to their deeply philosophical pantun again.

It must be borne in mind that the New Aceh is for the Acehnese. The Acehnese must have a say -- and be listened to -- at every step of the process of rebuilding the province.

The writer is a Jakarta-based writer and relief volunteer.