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Journal from the Ground
by Saiful Mahdi
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Saturday, January 15, 2005 - uploaded 02/13/05
07:00PM |
¬[01/14/05]
[01/16/05]® |
9:00pm. Eko and I were already at the bus station. We were departing for
Banda Aceh. This time I am better prepared with all the gear and
supplies. My surviving sister was already in Jakarta with my brother. I
can work more for others and not worry about my family anymore. Of
course, when I go around the camps in Banda Aceh and Aceh Besar
delivering aid supplies with my friends, I can still search for my
missing family members.
We are not renting a minivan anymore as we have set-up networks of
distribution from Medan to Banda Aceh and along the way between the two
capitals. So people and volunteers can now travel by bus or other means,
and our purchased supplies in Medan and elsewhere can be trucked to
Banda Aceh separately. We now can just call our friends, the local
networks in Medan, to buy needed supplies for us based on our
assessments on the ground in Aceh.
Bus departed at 9:46am. It was full and we got seats in the last third
row at the back. Acehnese buses traveling the Banda Aceh – Medan route
are famous for their convenience. Their best new buses were directly
bought from Germany by Acehnese famous bus liners. The only problem one
might have in non-stop buses might be the smoking habit of Acehnese.
Air-conditioned bus will not stop the Acehnese smoking habit!
11:05am. During the bus ride, Eko and I exchanged our memories about
friends and places. Eko was excited about going back to Aceh. Actually,
he just visited Aceh three months ago. He told me about one fundraising
event he and his friends did in Munich, Germany. He showed handy-cam
pictures they’d taken to German audiences and compared them with the
pictures they got after tsunami. Many people cried to see how beautiful
Aceh was before and how it looks after the disaster. Some told him that
they are sorry to know about Aceh’s beauty only after the quake and
waves. The Acehnese student and Indonesian communities in Germany have
been doing all kinds of fundraising, including asking for donations on
subway stations. And Eko brought some of the donations with the planned
two week visit he was commencing right then.
2:15pm. From the bus, I point out IDP shelters along the way as we enter
East Aceh. Eko was especially sad to see IDPs around his college in
Buket Rata, near Lhokseumawe on North Aceh. He tried to picture the
shelters and scenic views of Aceh which appear repeatedly along our way
to Banda Aceh.
4:10pm. My cell phone suddenly rang when we were approaching Bireuen, a
new district which was part of North Aceh. Syaukani, my colleague
studying in Japan called to let me know that he was transferring 400
thousand Yen to my Medan’s bank account. The fund was collected by
Acehnese, Indonesian, and Malaysian students in Japan. Syaukani is also
teaching at the same university, Universitas Syiah Kuala. He and three
other colleagues, all are lecturers from Syiah Kuala are coming back to
Aceh at the beginning of February. We had agreed with them and with
other Acehnese students all over the world that fundraising needs to be
done continuously so our networks on the ground can work without
worrying about funding. My task is to ensure networks of funds,
purchasing, warehousing, trucking, and deliveries of supplies until the
beneficiaries, i.e. IDPs and victims of the tsunami, are working on the
ground. I believe I am engaging in a useful pioneering trip to set-up
such networks for my colleagues and friends.
Eko and supplies he bought with the help of KKSP in Medan.
Shipping was assisted by our networks until the supplies reached
the PCC command post. They were then delivered to our
beneficiaries, the IDPs and victims of the quake and tsunami.
That way, donated funds and supplies from communities in Munich
were ensured to be delivered directly and speedily. |
10:45pm. We arrived in Banda Aceh. The trip with the bus was longer that
we expected. It was supposed to be a non-stop bus, but it stopped at
many places taking passengers along the road. The passengers actually
did not have any more seats to comfortably sit on, but were provided
“attached seats” aka “bangku temple” along the aisle of the bus.
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