TSUNAMI IMPACT: Aceh’s Kids Get Space to Hope

By IPS Correspondents Reprint | | Print |

Fabio Scarpello

ACEH BESAR, Indonesia, Jun 27 2005 (IPS) - Six months after the tsunami hit Indonesia, half of the nearly 500,000 living in very poor conditions in tents or barracks are children. But there are some signs of a slow return to normality.

Riisa moves effortlessly, weaving her hands in harmony with six other young girls. Their embroidered dresses and red headscarves glitter under the midday Acehnese sun.

The childrens’ choreographed steps follow the tempo dictated by their teacher Sri, who in a mezzo-soprano voice sings ‘bines’ – a chant that tells of the happiness back in Takenon, a village nearby.

"I love this song, it reminds me of my hometown," says Riisa, 15.

She is one of 107 children from a 1,000-strong community who moved into half-built houses in this corner of Aceh after the Dec. 26 tsunami forever changed their lives. Riisa has been practicing the ‘bines’ every Wednesday for the past few weeks, the day allocated to traditional dances at Child Fund’s ‘Children Centred Spaces’ (CCS) project.

"Before Child Fund arrived we had nothing to do, we just sat and thought about the past. We were sad, but now," says Riisa softly but with a sparkle in her eyes, "we have something to look forward to every day and we are much happier."

Entire villages disappeared and most of the province’s infrastructure was either destroyed or badly damaged. The world rallied to help, but while most of the aid agencies are now busy rebuilding the province, children are finding it difficult to be heard.

According to the Indonesian government, one-third of the 168 thousand dead or missing in the natural disaster were children. Now, six months after, children make up about one-half of the nearly 500 thousand living in very poor conditions in tents or barracks. Orphans are believed to number between two and three thousand.

Regardless of direct loss, the earth tremor, the giant waves and the combined effect of the sight and stench of death has scarred many children for life. Some do not talk or laugh while others hide the trauma behind a veil of normality.

"Some are coping with the post-trauma stress but so many more are just suppressing it. They should be helped but they are not. It will surface later," said Christine Louw from the South Africa-based non-governmental organisation (NGO) Global Relief.

In this scenario Child Fund operates child centred spaces: areas designed with children in mind, where they can play, learn and – slowly, slowly – return to normality.

"It is important that children are protected and helped back to some sort of normality," said a passionate Jessica Lenz, child protection manager at Child Fund Indonesia.

In a disaster area where million-dollar mega-projects are abundant, Child Fund’s endeavour might sound small, but it is not. Do not be fooled: fundamentals for a better future are (also) laid by singing and dancing with children.

The CCS’s have created a safe heaven for children. They have put the spotlight on the young and made the older take notice. In such a way, the spaces have also helped protect the children from the dangers of child trafficking, child marriage, child labour and other abuses – all menaces that increase in the confusion following a natural disaster.

The latest reminder of the on-going danger was sounded Jun. 20 by several prominent figures from Nias, a small island off the coast of Aceh, who alleged that dozens of children had been taken away illegally since the tsunami.

According to a recent report by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) some 100,000 children and women are trafficked in Indonesia each year.

"Away – this is the key word. If someone comes and offers a job in Jakarta or a scholarship elsewhere, adults should be very aware," said Lenz, repeating what her staff have been telling Child Well-being Committees for the past few months.

The committees – 101 to date – are groups of eight community members, including a religious leader, men, women and youth, set up and trained on child protection issues by Child Funds. Through them, the NGO reaches over 12 thousand children.

"Children should stay in their community," continued Lenz, stressing the core belief of her organization, which is part of the Christian Children’s Fund, a U.S.-based charity.

In Banda Aceh, Aceh Besar, Aceh Barat, Aceh Jaya and Bireuen – the districts where Child Fund runs its 115 CCS’s – the spaces have become a focus for more than 450 children. Among the daily activities organized, dancing, singing and sport are the most popular but Koran reading and English language also score high.

"The activities are run in a variety of locations, including tents and mosques," said Lenz, adding that the charity has started building ‘jambos’, traditional wooden structures, which will become the new playing and learning spaces for new arrivals.

Location does not seem to matter so much to children. What matters more is that the activities continue.

"My favourite activity is singing, but I am also a pretty good goalkeeper," says Widia, 12, who plays in a mixed football match every Saturday.

To that statement, Putre, 14, lowered his baseball hat and begged to differ: "Girls cannot play football. It is just as simple as that," he said.

His answer – typical of any teenage boy worldwide – in Aceh is a sign of the slow return to normalcy.