Honor those who perished and survived Moeldoko  ;   Indonesian Military (TNI) commander

JAKARTA POST,  26 Desember 2014

                                                                                                                       

On the morning of Dec. 26, 2004, a massive wall of water rolled across the Indian Ocean at hundreds of miles an hour, in the aftermath of a powerful undersea earthquake. The tsunami struck Aceh with unimaginable force, virtually wiping out parts of the capital, Banda Aceh, and destroying numerous coastal towns along hundreds of kilometers of Aceh’s coast. When the water receded, it left in its wake nearly 170,000 dead, and damage beyond measure. The terrible event devastated one of Indonesia’s most beautiful areas and claimed the lives of tens of thousands of Indonesians, many of them children. The nation, and the world, wept for Aceh. But while the tragedy of the tsunami will never be forgotten by the survivors or by generations to come, the story of Aceh is also one of the triumph of the human spirit. Almost as quickly as the water receded, Aceh’s recovery and rebuilding began, with help from all over the world. The US navy, the United Nations, the International Red Cross, the US Agency for International Development and dozens of NGOs arrived with food and water, manpower and machinery. Then president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono created the Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Agency for Aceh and Nias and put minister Kuntoro Mangkusubroto in charge. In the four years after the disaster he oversaw the spending of more than US$7 billion to rebuild the region. Kuntoro’s efforts and the agency he led have become models of disaster relief for other nations, and the Aceh that rose from the rubble is today the pride of Indonesia. Indonesia has many people and many agencies to thank for their generous efforts that enabled Aceh to recover and rebuild, but most of all on this 10th anniversary of the tsunami we honor the people of Aceh, who lost so much but gave so much to rebuild their land and their lives. Their courage, spirit, faith and determination inspire us all, and are a tremendous source of pride to all Indonesians. On the 10th anniversary of the terrible events of Dec. 26, 2004 let us all keep Aceh in our hearts and minds and offer our deepest gratitude to all who contributed to Aceh’s revival — especially to the citizens of Aceh, who still grieve for their lost loved ones but who can take great pride in both what they have accomplished and what they will accomplish. I call on all Indonesians to join me and the soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines of the Indonesian Military in a moment of silent prayer and reflection at 8 a.m. on the morning of Dec. 26, to remember those whose lives were lost, to honor the struggles of those who survived and to thank all those whose hard work and sacrifices contributed to the recovery and rebuilding of Aceh. ●