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| One Year On From the Asian Tsunami |
| In Aceh, children's mental health is the No. 1 priority |
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Lily Yulianti (myfawwaz)  |
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Published 2005-12-26 17:38 (KST) |
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 | | | | | | ©2005 Nayan Sthankiya | | A year has passed since the great earthquake and tsunami hit the Indian Ocean region on Dec. 26, 2004. I interviewed Suraiya Kamaruzzaman, Managing Director of Pesantren Al Falah, an Islamic Boarding School for junior and senior high school students founded by the Abu Lam U Foundation, in the province of Aceh.
Pesantren Al Falah is located in district of Aceh Besar. When the tsunami hit the province of Aceh last year, the district was less damaged and there were fewer fatalities compared to other places like Uleh-leh, the former village where the wave first struck.
However, about 110 students in the boarding school, who originally come from various locations, suddenly had to face a dreadful reality: they lost their parents, sisters, brothers and other relatives.
For Kamaruzzaman, the managing director of the boarding school, healing the trauma of her students is the most critical thing she has experienced, so far.
"Of course, there are many difficulties we have been facing. For example, for class facilities, we are still borrowing another school building for our senior high classes. But once we get donors who agree to provide grants to build a new school, we can manage to build it and set up a time line. But healing the students' trauma and mental health is something that I could not manage properly until now," explained Kamaruzzaman.
She described in detail that the school just recently received 200 new students. The students are children who have grown up within conflict areas when the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) rebels were fighting for an independent Aceh against the Indonesian government, and some of them are orphans who lost their parents in the tsunami.
"Now we have 315 students who have trauma from the tsunami or from conflicts. Some of them have double trauma. I have experienced myself how they always complain of having symptoms such as headaches, lost appetite, insomnia and pneumonia. I have taken them to see the doctors many times, and we end concluding that the children are physically healthy, but they need special attention for their mental health care. This is the most important thing that we do not have. Our teachers do not have knowledge to assist the children with mental health problems," she said.
In the recent past, the Indonesian government struggled to crack down on the separatist rebels in Aceh. The conflict between the Indonesian military forces (TNI) and GAM started in 1976 and claimed approximately 15,000 lives, mainly civilians. However, the latest peace agreement between the Indonesian government and GAM, this past August -- which was triggered by the tsunami -- has finally ended the violence in Aceh.
According to Kamaruzzaman, health conditions and mental care are an urgent need in her school. She has called for international donations by using her overseas network. "We have got donors for building the school, but now mental care is urgently needed. So, we hope if there is someone out there who could send manuals about providing mental care for my students, I would like to use them to train the local teachers here."
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| For more information on the school, you can find contact details and instructions on how to donate here (.DOC). |
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©2005 OhmyNews
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