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Aceh survivors slam agency over 'broken promises'

Source
Jakarta Post - September 12, 2006

Nani Afrida, Banda Aceh – More than 2,000 displaced people from 14 regencies in Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam braved a heavy rain Monday to stage a protest at the Aceh-Nias Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Agency (BRR) office in Banda Aceh (photo).

The crowd, grouped in the Inter Barracks Communication Forum, arrived in trucks and public transportation vehicles to demand the houses, land and economic assistance they say were promised them after the 2004 tsunami. Many of the protesters brandished banners, some of which read: "Don't steal people's money", "Open your eyes, your ears" and "Don't get paid without working."

They said they were tired of the unfulfilled promises of the BRR and the complicated bureaucratic procedures they faced when they attempted to claim assistance.

"We have been registered a number of times but have not received a house so far," Muktar, 45, a resident of Paya Kameng village in Mesjid Raya district, Aceh Besar, told The Jakarta Post.

He accused the agency of failing to help tsunami survivors. He said he had asked the BRR for help in restoring his shrimp pond destroyed in the tsunami, but received no response. "Other relief agencies involved in restoring fish ponds have completed their work in Aceh," Muktar said.

A resident of Punge Blang Cut in Banda Aceh, Nurhayati, 50, said the reconstruction agency had failed to deliver on promised start-up capital to help tsunami survivors open businesses. "Reports say a lot of money has been provided for Aceh, but why aren't we getting any?" she asked.

Nurhayati said survivors needed assistance to set up businesses that would allow them to support themselves. "We don't want to be called lazy and dependent on aid, but help us so we" can help ourselves, she said.

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