Tsunami victims soon to get new homes

Nani Afrida, The Jakarta Post, Aceh Jaya

Hayatul Nufus smiled. "Please come in to my house", she said, welcoming her guest into her simple house in Janguet village in Aceh Jaya regency, 90 kilometers from Banda Aceh.

The 28-year-old woman, who is now on her own after losing her husband and three children in the Dec. 26 tsunami, lives in a temporary house measuring six by four meters, comprising a room, a family room, a bathroom and a kitchen.

The house has a cement floor, but no electricity, and the woman has to use oil lamps for light. There is very little furniture inside, only a mat and a small number of kitchen appliances.

"All the residents in this village have refused to move to the barracks. We're blessed that we can get houses built in places where our houses used to stand," she smiled.

Compared to living in makeshift tents or in the barracks built by the government for tsunami victims, this woman's house was much more pleasant.

Some 800 similar houses will be built by the Turkish organizations Deniz Fineri Dernegi and International Brotherhood and Solidarity Association (IBS).

The houses will be built in several areas of Aceh Jaya regency, including the worst-hit Babah Dua, Meunasah Teungoh and Janguet villages in Jaya district.

Under the plan, all people in these villages will get a temporary house, just like Hayatul's.

Burhanuddin, a 56-year-old resident who works to build the houses, said the construction work has been going on for a month.

The construction, he said, was slow because of problems in getting building materials, such as timber and cement. All materials have to be transported from Banda Aceh, meaning a two and a half an hour drive over a damaged road.

Construction workers, he added, also have to be brought in from outside Aceh Jaya, such as from Indrapuri district. The workers are being paid Rp 25,000 (US$2.60) a day.

Moreover, he said, many people claim to own land and then ask for the houses to be constructed. "Now, 10 houses in Janguet village have to wait before the construction can be continued because of this problem," Burhanuddin said.

Mustafa Sabri of the Deniz Feneri Dernegi said that the 800 houses would be built on the tsunami victims' own land.

"We don't construct (the houses) on other people's land. All houses are going to be built on their own land," he said.

The organizations decided to build the houses in these three villages because they had been left-out in the reconstruction process when compared to Banda Aceh, Calang or Meulaboh.

"We build houses, not barracks or temporary shelters. That's what the people need most apart from food," Mustafa said.

People's response to the houses has been good, with some already waiting to move in.

Mak Ruyah, a 60-year-old resident of Meunasah Teungoh, lives with her children and grandchildren nearby to their prospective house.

"I'm happy that we can live in a house again, without having to pay anything," she said.

The houses are expected to be finished soon, and soon all the villagers will again be able to greet their guests by saying, "please come in to our house".