Mar 23, 2005 - The World in Aceh

If the people of Aceh inspire respect, so do the many thousands of outsiders who have come here to offer their help. They are doctors, nurses, road engineers, pilots, truck drivers, map-makers, water experts, architects, radio operators, carpenters and psychologists. They are foreigners and Indonesians, secular and religious, civilian and military, first-timers and professionals with gruelling missions in Rwanda, Kosovo and Iraq under their belts. The U.N. agencies and the ICRC are obviously the 800-pound gorillas, followed by large...

Feb 23, 2005 - Aceh, Indonesia - Part 1

I arrived in Medan on the east coast of the island of Sumatra on Monday evening. At the airport I was met by Duman and Monang, volunteers from Walhi, the Indonesian organization I would be working with. Walhi had been working as an environmental protection organization, but since the tragedy they have been focusing on the humanitarian relief efforts in Aceh. Duman and Monang took me to the guesthouse where I would stay for one night before traveling to Aceh and then we went to the Walhi headquarters. At the headquarters, I met all the local...