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Thousands of Acehnese flee to Medan, concerns mount of overcrowding (Indonesia tsunami)
Channel News Asia ^ | 11 January 2005 | Sujadi Siswo

Posted on 01/11/2005 6:24:29 PM PST by CounterCounterCulture

Time is GMT + 8 hours
Posted: 11 January 2005 2025 hrs

Thousands of Acehnese flee to Medan, concerns mount of overcrowding

By Channel NewsAsia's Sujadi Siswo in Medan

MEDAN : The North Sumatran capital of Medan has once again become the city of refuge for thousands of fleeing Acehnese.

For the past 30 years, villagers fleeing the political conflict in Aceh have fled to Medan.

It is no different now, since the tsunami struck.

When the tsunami struck, Madam Rosme and husband took refuge in the Banda Aceh central mosque.

Their first plan was to fly to Medan, where they expect to find long-term shelter.

Madam Rosme said, "We're fine, thank you. We've been in Aceh for a long time. We get along well with the Acehnese, we're like siblings".

Madame Rosme lost her daughter and two grandchildren to the tsunami.

Her husband and their their children are now being helped by the Chinese clan associations in Medan.

Tsunami survivor Kho Wee Po said, "We hope to be able to get help from other Chinese in Medan. When we got here, we didn't feel troubled anymore. Our people have all fled Aceh and moved here to Medan for now."

For the Chinese community in Medan, helping the fleeing Acehnese is a responsibility they simply cannot turn their back on.

30 years ago, many of them were in a similar situation, fleeing the political conflict in Aceh.

Now, it is their turn to provide food, clothing and medical assistance.

The clan associations have already found adopted families in Medan for most of the 7,000 displaced Chinese Acehnese.

But the Chinese Acehnese are not the only ones heading to Medan.

Some ethnic Bataks were ferried to the North Sumatran capital by a village elder using military vehicles.

Tsunami survivor Serli Siregar said, "This area belongs to the Mandilings. We lived with them for four days in Banda Aceh which is the highest ground. We were brought to Medan by the Mandilings too."

Half of the 250 Bataks who arrived in Medan have already found relatives willing to take them in.

The rest are taking shelter in a half completed shophouse.

Among them are brothers Dedi and Deski, who lost their grandmother and most likely their parents - whom they have not heard from.

Dedi Harahap said, "Grandmother walked slowly. I had to let go of her hand and don't know what happened next."

For now the people of Medan seem eager and able to cope with the influx of displaced Acehnese.

But some in the capital are already questioning whether Medan can realistically accommodate them permanently in a city that is already over-populated. - CNA


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Foreign Affairs; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: aceh; acehnese; bandaaceh; earthquake; indonesia; medan; sumatra; sumatraquake; tsunami

1 posted on 01/11/2005 6:24:30 PM PST by CounterCounterCulture
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To: CounterCounterCulture
Dedi Harahap said, "Grandmother walked slowly. I had to let go of her hand and don't know what happened next."

Yikes, I'm sure this didn't translate well, but that sounded so cold.

2 posted on 01/11/2005 6:37:52 PM PST by SouthernFreebird
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To: CounterCounterCulture

Is Cindy going to get ANY rest??


3 posted on 01/11/2005 6:46:32 PM PST by RaceBannon (((awaiting new tag line)))
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To: CounterCounterCulture

it's all bush's fault </sarcasm


4 posted on 01/11/2005 6:49:14 PM PST by Cronos (Never forget 9/11)
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To: RaceBannon

Probably not. :-/
Nor am I, apparently.


5 posted on 01/11/2005 6:50:11 PM PST by CounterCounterCulture (We shall overcome)
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To: CounterCounterCulture

Maybe if they stop having too many children than they can feed, they won't have an overpopulation problem.
When animals, such as deer overpopulate, nature deals with the situation harshly. Why does mankind think nature shouldn't do the same for us? The more overpopulated a region is when natual events happen, the higher the number is of people dying. Overall, considering how many people there is in Indonesia and surrounding areas, the number of dead is a drop in the bucket. I'll bet there were 150,000 new births already.


6 posted on 01/12/2005 9:55:56 AM PST by Nuzcruizer
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