Photo: Reuters/Darren Whiteside, courtesy www.alertnet.org
12/29/2004

Rescue workers remove a body of a tsunami victim from the compound of the Grand Mosque in Banda Aceh, Indonesia. Refugees International has launched missions to Indonesia and Sri Lanka to focus on caring for displaced people and devising programs to help the displaced rebuild their homes and communities as quickly as possible.

Joel Charny, RI’s vice president for policy, and James McNaughton, an expert on Indonesia, are on their way to Aceh, Indonesia, the area hardest hit by the Tsunami. Aceh also has been plagued by a civil war, and Jakarta’s response to the Tsunami could either exacerbate or calm that war. The mission will also look at the Indonesian government’s role in relief and reconstruction. It will also assess the initial response from international agencies, non-governmental organizations, and the U.S. and Australian militaries.

Vast national and international aid programs are working to meet the shelter, food, water and sanitation needs of the displaced. Once the relief systems are in place, it is important to move quickly from relief to development, finding ways to help people rebuild their homes, businesses and communities.