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This paper investigates the role of Islamic faith‐based organisations (FBOs) in Indonesia and examines the way in which their disaster recovery aid can be successful or less successful depending on social capital formation in communities affected by a disaster. The paper argues that Islamic FBOs play a prominent role in disaster‐affected communities by building new social capital or strengthening existing social capital. Failure to do so may affect a community's recovery and its long‐term resilience. Applying a framework that considers three types of social capital—bonding, bridging, and linking—from a comparative perspective, the paper discusses two cases of disaster recovery: one following the earthquake that struck Aceh in 2013; and the other after the Mount Kelud volcanic eruptions in East Java in 2014. In both instances, the findings highlight the importance of the village facilitator, cultural sensitivity, and understanding of local indigenous and religious practices for successful disaster recovery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aceh is the only province in Indonesia with an exceptional degree of autonomy to implement Sharia. This paper explores how Serambi Indonesia—the leading Acehnese local newspaper—framed the implementation of Sharia in the region. This study employed content analysis of the Sharia coverage in Aceh from 2012 to 2020 using a hybrid approach, combining issue-specific and generic frames. The results revealed the four identified frames: Sharia codification, deviance from Sharia, desirable Sharia enforcement, and Islamic morality. among those frames, the deviance from Sharia was much preferred. The frame prominence was more prevalent after Qanun Jinayat (Islamic Criminal Bylaw) took into effect in Aceh. It was also given more prominence on the front page than on other pages. However, other frames made up 60% of the articles, implying that the Acehnese local newspaper positively represented the implementation of Sharia in Aceh while highlighting Sharia problems surrounding its enforcement. These findings exemplify the use of a hybrid approach to better examine the media frames, support the effect of critical events on changes in the media frames, and confirm the different prominence of the frame based on the page placement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article engages with an under-researched field that specifically looks into the gendered nature of women education leaders' agency in the context of Islamic boarding schools in post-tsunami and post-war Aceh province of Indonesia. The key aim of this paper is to understand various ways in which Acehnese women educators' negotiate and navigate restricted, gendered and religiously orthodox spaces. We analyse the role of grassroots education actors in processes of societal transformation and peacebuilding through a gender-specific lens, to explore our contextual understanding of agency through a cultural political economy approach, complemented with insights from critical and decolonial peace education. By presenting the often silenced and marginalized stories of women leaders, educators and grassroots actors, we explore their views and experiences in – consciously or unconsciously – transforming or reproducing existing (in)equalities and potential conflict-triggers in contemporary Aceh. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a post-earthquake damage assessment of the 6.5 Mw earthquake in Pidie Jaya, Indonesia which occurred on December, 7th 2016. The earthquake killed 112 people and caused the collapse of about 3000 buildings. The assessment started on the day after the earthquake. The survey covered nine sub-districts of Pidie Jaya regency in the Province of Aceh, northern Sumatra. The post-event damage assessment was conducted by a team of researchers from Syiah Kuala University and local authorities. The damage survey assessed the damage levels of residential houses, school buildings and markets. The most common construction damages reported in this article are failures of reinforced concrete, confined masonry and timber structures. The ground motion field was modeled using Openquake application and the site response employed Vs30 values inferred from topography. This calculated ground motion was compared to data from post-earthquake field assessment reports. The highest percentage of heavy damage was recorded in the area of the fault rupture and along the shorelines area. The types of failure observed are summarized in the context of Indonesian construction practice, with particular reference to the seismic resilience of the Rumoh Aceh traditional wood construction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the discovery of major oil and gas reserves in carbonate rocks in the Middle East, carbonate reservoirs became important to the petroleum industry. Carbonate rocks have covered only 20% of the sedimentary rock records. However, carbonate reservoirs hold 50% of the world petroleum reserves. Arun Carbonate Reservoir is one of the biggest proven retrograde gas reservoirs in the world. After more than thirty years of production, Arun Carbonate Reservoir had an initial gas in place of 14.1 TCF residual hydrocarbon gas. The issue makes Arun Carbonate Reservoir became an interest to be studied for the development and production of hydrocarbon in other carbonate reservoirs in Indonesia. One of the fundamental topics to be studied is the characteristics of Arun Carbonate Reservoir itself. The characteristics of carbonate reservoir usually cause a lot of geologic and engineering problems in the development and production of hydrocarbon reserves. This paper aims to identify the characteristics of Arun Carbonate Reservoir and its implication to optimize the most potential gas resource zone in Arun Gas Field, Aceh, Indonesia. The data from sixteen wells have been examined through several multidiscipline studies: geophysics (well logging), geology (facies, lithology and diagenetic analyses), and petrophysics (core analysis). The result of this study shows that Arun Carbonate Reservoir (N5-N8) contains limestone 92%, 5% dolomite, and 3% dolomitic limestone (or other), and petrophysically have 16% porosity and 13.5 md permeability in average. Arun Carbonate Reservoir is divided into four facies (Reef, Near Reef, Lagoon, and Middle Shelf). Of four facies in Arun Carbonate Reservoir, only two facies which can be categorized as productive facies: Reef and Lagoon Facies. The potential zones of hydrocarbon resource have vertically been documented in Arun Carbonate Reservoir. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated surviving women's learning experiences from the 2004 tsunami in Aceh. Women were the majority of casualties and the most vulnerable after the tsunami. Almost a decade later, we used a conceptual framework of experiential learning, critical reflection, and transformative learning to understand the surviving women's ways of learning after the disaster. This paper highlights a qualitative study from a larger mixed methods study. Of the larger study's 450 survey respondents, we interviewed 103 participants using a semi-structured interview protocol for 1 to 1.5 hr. From those participants, this paper highlights 13 women who articulated significant learning during their experience. The findings indicate the women learnt through reflection, talking, and feelings. Furthermore, their learning and reflection on life's experiences enabled them to strike a balance and lead a better life. This study highlights that learning experiences in a critical life event can eventually result in a person's changed behavior, attitudes, knowledge, beliefs, or skills. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract In the last decade, housing has become one of the most prominent and best funded sectors in large-scale post-disaster reconstruction efforts. This has especially been the case in Asian developing countries where both official and private aid helped finance a significant amount of the housing reconstruction. Despite the emphasis upon community involvement, inclusive and participatory processes for housing reconstruction by international non-governmental organizations, recent experiences show that such ideas often do not readily translate in practice on the ground. This paper analyses the necessary conditions for successful involvement by local beneficiaries in rebuilding their homes following natural disasters. The analysis is situated within the context of community recovery, and the trade-off between centralized donor planning, and community driven initiatives, using primary and secondary data collected from post-tsunami Aceh, Indonesia. The paper also discusses how various stakeholders (including recipient government and donors) evaluate and make use of the practical capacities of affected persons and communities to be involved in planning, building and monitoring processes in the housing sector. Our research focused on the level and types of roles played by the aid beneficiaries in the housing reconstruction process in Aceh. In spite of considerable rhetoric about participation and inclusive reconstruction accompanying the post-tsunami reconstruction by various donors, a number of systemic barriers created considerable distance between beneficiaries and NGOs in Aceh in the housing sector. The drive for efficiency and need to produce tangible results quickly, mixed with the sheer number of stakeholders and resources involved, created a largely top-down environment in which decisions were centralized, and arbitrary standards imposed. This was exacerbated by an extensive chain of sub-contractors, a large supply of lower-cost imported labor, and highlighted the importance of local political affiliations, leading to weak accountability and reduced aid effectiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aceh province is the most affected area by the tsunami of 26 December 2004. Aceh also has experiencing a number of natural hazards; flood, earthquakes, and volcano's eruptions. Until now, Aceh has no natural hazards information system which can be used to increase public awareness in order to reduce the impact of the hazards. Natural hazards information system provides hazard maps as the guideline for disaster risk mitigation planning. Therefore, the development of a Web GIS based information system for Aceh natural hazards, referred as Aceh Natural Hazards Information System (ANHIS), is a very strategic decision to increase public awareness of the risks of natural disaster hazard in Aceh. This paper proposes conceptual design and the development of prototype for ANHIS. The main purpose of ANHIS is to visualize many natural hazards maps and disseminate information of the hazardous areas for disaster agencies, researchers and communities in order to help them act on warning issue. In order to develop the prototype, the system requirements, configuration, system design and implementation are presented in this paper. Furthermore, the results of prototype for ANHIS are demonstrated in terms of individual hazard map and multi-hazard map of many natural hazards in Aceh. Finally, the conclusions give the perspectives for future implementation of ANHIS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the interface between human rights and humanitarian action in the context of the conflict and tsunami in Aceh, Indonesia, between 1998 and 2007. It looks at the challenges international humanitarian non-governmental organisations (NGOs) faced as they engaged in human rights work in the conflict period and in conflict-related activities in the post-tsunami period. The paper argues that many large NGOs may have compromised what some would hold to be essential principles for humanitarian action because of domestic political concerns, donor restrictions and resistance among certain NGO chiefs. In contrast with the pre-tsunami period, in which NGOs worked for years amid military operations, in the post-tsunami period NGOs were decidedly apolitical, neglecting the conflict in their tsunami response-despite significant developments that permitted greater political engagement in Aceh's post-conflict transformation. The evidence suggests that NGOs are challenged in contextualising humanitarian responses and that there is a need to underscore donor flexibility and independence in humanitarian action. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In August 2005, after the devastating tsunami in the Indian Ocean Basin, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the cessation of hostilities was signed by Aceh's longstanding adversaries—the Government of Indonesia and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM). The tsunami was a major catalyst for ‘disaster diplomacy’—international political pressure, which, this paper argues, was an important ingredient in creating conditions for the MoU, although the situation within Aceh also shaped the peace process. Based on interviews conducted in 2006 and 2007 with government officials, GAM representatives and fighters, and non-governmental organization staff in Aceh, this paper finds that assistance for tsunami survivors far exceeds that available for conflict survivors and ex-combatants. The formation of these two solitudes—the tsunami-affected and the conflict-affected—compounds challenges for sustaining peace in Aceh. This research points to an enduring lack of livelihoods for former fighters and conflict victims that may threaten a sustainable peace. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Global attention generated after the December 2004 Asia tsunami disaster catalyzed one of the most successful internationally-mediated peace processes in the world in Aceh, Indonesia, but did not save the peace process in Sri Lanka. Rather, international aid contributed to a "no war, no peace" equilibrium in Sri Lanka that was brought to an end by the military victory of the government. This paper compares these two highly internationalized peace processes in Southeast and South Asia, particularly, the role of international actors in reconstruction, and analyses the reasons for the different outcomes. Based on ethnographic fieldwork, the paper traces how transnational aid networks, discourses and practices may become endogenous in local or internal conflicts and peace dynamics over time. Finally, it is clear that inclusive and comprehensive peace building, as well as the space for transformation of conflicting groups, is the key to successful peace building. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to investigate the issue of post-disaster livelihood recovery through economic rehabilitation, with the illustration of post-tsunami promotion of microentrepreneurship activities generating employment and income among the affected populations. Design/methodology/approach - The paper examines two field case studies in Aceh (Indonesia) and Tamil Nadu (India), where a well-established European NGO carried out economic relief and microentrepreneurship rehabilitation in 2005-2007. Findings - Despite unlimited trust in rapid reconstruction capacity, post-tsunami livelihood recovery has been chaotic and uncoordinated. Contrary to humanitarian agencies in charge of emergency relief, only a few development agencies and NGOs were able to deliver a rapid rehabilitation of microeconomic activities existing locally before the disaster. Research limitations/implications - There are values but also obvious limits to comparing the micro-level experiences of a major European NGO in two different locations such as Aceh and Tamil Nadu, and to deducing macro- and meso-level lessons to be learned. Practical implications - There are difficulties in benchmarking the divison of labour but necessary coordination among development agencies and their humanitarian counterparts in the field of post-disaster sustainable economic rehabilitation. Originality/value - Post-disaster economic security and livelihood recovery are at the forefront of current international policy research in humanitarian and development cooperation circles. Documented case studies and lessons to be learned are still scarce for feeding possible best practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami brought Aceh's long-drawn separatist conflict back to international attention. Yet, the precise way in which the different aspects of the conflict entangled with resource-related grievances have remained poorly understood. Taking a political ecology approach, this paper sets out to understand the role of natural resource grievances within the complex and shifting set of mutually implicated factors leading to and sustaining the conflict from the early days of Indonesia's independence. The paper argues that the management of Aceh's natural resources – especially the rich gas and oil reserves – was not the sole or primary causal factor. Rather, state managed exploitation of natural resources had a demonstration effect, exemplifying other grievances and supporting the articulation of a separatist discourse naturalizing ‘Acehnese’ conceptualizations of resource entitlement. Comparing Aceh with other separatist conflicts, the paper suggests that, as conflict unfolds at the intersection of a shifting set of concerns, it is increasingly difficult to separate the underlying issues of identity, resource entitlements and human rights. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The passing of Law No. 18 of 2001 on 'Special Autonomy for the Province of Aceh Special Region as the Province of Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam' signified a major development in the Indonesian government's strategy to resolve Aceh's protracted conflict. Ratified by President Megawati Sukarnoputri on 9 August 2001, the 'NAD law' conferred unprecedented authority to Aceh over its internal affairs. This paper evaluates the challenges that have been involved in implementing the three main tenets of the legislation -- aspects of Syari'ah (Islamic law), the return of Aceh's natural resource revenue and a provision to hold direct local elections. The paper argues that the Megawati administration's failure to redress Acehnese grievances through special autonomy largely stems from its suspicion of the NAD law itself, its greater reliance on militaristic measures than on political policies in Aceh, and pre-existing systemic factors such as Aceh's dysfunctional state infrastructure, corrupt political culture and war economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How do civilians respond to and shape civil war? Dominant approaches emphasise territorial control, while rival sociological explanations understand civilian behaviour as rooted in justice, pleasure, and social norms. This paper assesses these divergent sensibilities by examining rebel-controlled areas from Aceh, Indonesia. Many civilians provided the rebels with symbolic support, information and provisions, support that deepened over time as the rebels established control. By disaggregating ‘civilians’ into social groups, a more complex story appears. Only some civilian groups supported the dominant armed group, suggesting that control and sociological approaches can be complementary in explaining civilian behaviour. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In this paper I argue that the ways in which a genealogical idiom brings together multiple scales of space and time is as important to its social, political, or religious efficacy as the particular people, places, and events it incorporates. To illustrate this point, I turn to the unusual patrilineal genealogy of Habib Abdurrahim, a nineteenth-century descendant of the Prophet Muhammad buried in the Indonesian region of Seunagan. Since the late 1950s, Habib Abdurrahim's descendants have cultivated a version of his patriline emphasizing five prominent figures. This constellation of figures, together with the relationships Muslims in Seunagan foster with each of the five, produce configurations of spatial-temporal scale through which local Muslims inscribe themselves as participants in several Islamic pasts: the establishment of Seunagan's customary practice, the Islamization of the Indonesian nation, and Islam's cosmic history. Narrative, social, and ritual practices surrounding Habib Abdurahim's patriline link Muslims in Seunagan to the multiple scales that inhere in the genealogy, encouraging them to see themselves as actors within entwined and unfolding histories of Islamization. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The paper analyses the context in which education in Aceh acts strategically to advance an agenda of social transformation. Applying a cultural, political economy analytical framework, it identifies ways in which education is embedded in key cultural, political, economic and social struggles at present. They include: (1) the redistribution of educational opportunities and access; (2) ambiguous spaces for democratic representation in a decentralised educational structure; (3) competing notions of how diversity is acknowledged within Indonesia and Aceh Province; and (4) conflicted approaches to reconstruction following the 2004 tsunami and end of conflict in 2005. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper examines the use of Acehnese among Acehnese descendants living in Kampung Aceh (KA), in the district of Yan, Kedah, northwest of Peninsular Malaysia. The data were collected by interviewing 57 residents from different generations about their use of Acehnese, and how they identify themselves as a group, given that they were born and bred in Malaysia. The findings indicate that Acehnese is still used in KA, albeit decreasingly by the youngest generation. Nevertheless, the respondents who generally regard themselves as ureueng Acèh, consider Acehnese as an important aspect of their identity and their perceived ties with the Aceh province in Indonesia. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Many foreign aid agencies promote peacebuilding as a global policy objective. This paper considers how they have fared in practice in subnational, “peripheral” conflicts in Asia that have relatively low international profiles, using case material from Aceh in Indonesia, the Far South of Thailand, and Sri Lanka. Foreign aid has supported long-term economic growth in these countries but typically failed to address peacebuilding concerns or associated inequalities between ethnic groups. Many barriers limit the scope to promote peacebuilding, stemming from recipient governments’ reluctance to accept external involvement and from aid agencies’ own limitations. Those agencies that do address conflict concerns tend not to use technical peacebuilding tools or methodologies. Instead, they prioritize the root causes of conflicts, recognizing human rights protection and equality of opportunity as policy aims. They also devise responses locally, build good relationships with governments, and work incrementally from a strong knowledge base. Wider adoption of similar policy objectives and practice would enable further small-scale peacebuilding initiatives. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Tithe or alms is an important source of revenue for the state to improve the economic condition of the poor. Management of the tithe collection as well as its effective distribution will help develop the community. Thus, this paper aims to study the Islamic administration of tithe in two states, namely Aceh in Indonesia and Kedah in Malaysia. Both states have their own relationship in a context where they both have a large number of Muslims, the majority of which are ethnic Malays, and they constitute one of the early regions to accept Islam. The focus of the study is based on historical analysis, economic growth and development, as well as the contemporary scenario in the administration of tithe law. The study will investigate the role of tithe as a fund for community development within the state, its management as well as the administration of the law. For this purpose, the study is conducted using qualitative methods and interviews with a number of respondents in order to examine the administrative aspects of Islamic law on tithe. The finding shows that the strict enforcement of law, accompanied by institutions organised with manpower and focused objectives, will have an impact on the tithe collections as well as the confidence of community towards the institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the peace agreement has put an end to the 30-year-long civil conflict in the province of Aceh in Indonesia, poverty, parental loss, lack of opportunities and an old tradition have caused a growing number of Acehnese girls and boys to spend between three and ten years in residential Koranic schools [dayah or pesantren]. There, they process their experience of the conflict, be it direct or indirect. In this article, thanks to ethnographical data, the author explores this labour of transformation. An idea of resilience which is culturally based in local societies is analysed. Key issues are the difference between personal and social resilience, plus the transformations that a resilient process enhances in the very culture from which it stems. The dayah have proved very effective structures in facing the needs of the poorest Acehnese children. Nevertheless, the author argues, they tend to shape the children according to a general model that can create exclusion and crystallize pre-existing psychic suffering. This paper indicates that different visions of trauma and memory characterize different parts of the same society, and that selecting one or another is a political choice that is embedded in international policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Aceh, Indonesia is one of the few societies that have successfully navigated a post-disaster transition following simultaneous natural and man-made disasters. Since the August 2005 peace agreement, Aceh's road to recovery from the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami and 30 years of separatist war has been largely successful. However, key challenges remain to consolidate the success of Aceh's post-disaster transition and ensure sustainable peace in the province. Reconciliation is among the challenges that has to date been largely neglected. While significant political and economic change has occurred, prolonged armed conflict left behind a legacy of negative intergroup relations in Aceh that has yet to be addressed. As political realities have delayed implementation of mechanisms designed to promote reconciliation such as the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the Human Rights Court, this paper argues that peacebuilding practitioners should adopt complementary approaches to reconciliation such as intergroup contact programs that are being proven effective in various international contexts. It will explore an important, and largely neglected aspect of Aceh's post-disaster transition by providing an overview of the literature on reconciliation and intergroup contact, and highlighting key efforts to pilot these techniques and advance reconciliation in Aceh. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The Tsunami disaster on the morning of December 26th, 2004 caused thousands of casualties and created enormous destruction in the twelve affected countries around the Indian Ocean. The hardest hit region was the conflict ridden province of Aceh in Indonesia, with an estimated 165,000 people dead or missing and around 15 percent of the surviving population made homeless (see BRR 2005). The Tsunami catastrophe was followed by - at least for developing countries - an unprecedented scale of relief, rehabilitation and reconstruction operations. A multitude of actors from all over the world took action in the affected areas and contributed to the rebuilding of the devastated areas, following a 'build back better' policy. In the light of the huge number of people made homeless, one of the most prominent aspects of the reconstruction process was housing, where about 130,000 reconstruction homes were built in Aceh alone after the disaster (see UNORC-IAS 2009). This paper discusses the housing reconstruction approach based on a case study in a Tsunami affected village on the north-east coast of Aceh. In conclusion this case demonstrates the benefits of more participation in reconstruction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Physical restraint and confinement of the mentally ill (called pasung in Indonesia) is common in Aceh. In early 2010, the local government initiated a program called Aceh Free Pasung 2010. The main goal of the program is to release the mentally ill in the province from restraint and to provide appropriate medical treatment and care. The aim of the paper is to report the findings of a preliminary investigation of the demographic and clinical characteristics of patients who have been admitted to the Banda Aceh Mental Hospital as part of the Aceh Free Pasung program. Methods: This is a cross-sectional descriptive study conducted at the Banda Aceh Mental Hospital, where people who had been restrained or confined in the community are being admitted for psychiatric treatment and, where necessary, physical rehabilitation, as part of the Aceh Free Pasung program. Results: Fifty-nine of former ex-pasung patients were examined. The majority (88.1%) of the patients were male, aged 18 to 68 years. The duration of pasung varied from a few days to 20 years, with a mean duration of 4.0 years. The reasons for applying pasung are many, with concerns about dangerousness being most common. The great majority (89.8%) had a diagnosis of schizophrenia. Discussion: The development of a community mental health system and the introduction of a health insurance system in Aceh (together with the national health insurance scheme for the poor) has enabled access to free hospital treatment for people with severe mental disorders, including those who have been in pasung. The demographic and clinical characteristics of this group of ex-pasung patients are broadly similar to those reported in previous studies. Conclusions: The Aceh Free Pasung program is an important mental health and human rights initiative that can serve to inform similar efforts in other parts of Indonesia and other low and middle-income countries where restraint and confinement of the mentally ill is receiving insufficient attention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the contest between the clams to jurisdiction of shari'a courts and other tribunals in the framework of dynamic legal pluralism in Aceh, Indonesia. During Aceh's sultanates, Islamic law and adat co-existed and at times were hardly distinguished. The Dutch colonial presence contributed to sharper demarcations between shari'a and adat, the Dutch policies tending to support adat institutions and adat leaders. In post-independence Indonesia the colonial legacy of legal pluralism continued with some modifications. While adat legal institutions (peradilan desa) were largely eliminated in the 1950s for the sake of Indonesian unity and judicial integrity, adat norms were retained and continued to be applied by the state civil courts (pengadilan negeri). Some particular areas of Islamic law were applied by an Indonesian system of state religious courts (pengadilan agama), and Indonesia developed a complex system of legal pluralism that allowed a variety of legal sub-systems to be operative in the realm of a single sovereign state power. Partly in response to the frustration of Islamic interests, a rebellion arose in the 1950s aimed at Acehnese independence from Indonesia. In response, on the ground of `unity and the unitary nation', the New Order regime (1968-1998) sought to reinforce legal centralism by issuing laws which effectively abolished the special status of Islamic religious courts in the province. Thereafter, in the post- New Order era the willingness of the central government to allow more legal pluralism in Aceh appeared to be an initial step towards the political peace process. The central government believed that greater local authority over religion, customs and education would overcome the problems resulting from violent conflict. Indonesian legal policy has dramatically shifted to include the principle of `legal distinction', according to which particular groups of citizens have certain specific laws applicable exclusively to them. The tsunami that caused severe damage in December 2004 created a surge of momentum for the further implementation of the shari'a, including the actual authority of the shari'a court. It resulted in higher case-loads for courts, including the shari'a court, and it is possible that the international relief effort brought in international actors who have been influential in deepening the existing configuration of legal pluralism in Aceh. All of these processes have involved contestation between the different laws and courts, played out in complex institutional settings. To explore these a detailed study is made of the written laws and the actual practice, and case-studies are examined. The course of dynamic legal pluralism has not yet ended, and in practice the different legal orders in Aceh continue their contests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Remote sensing technology can be used to better understand the earth's characteristics. SeaWiFS (sea-viewing wide field-of-view sensor) is one of remote sensors used to observe global ocean phenomena. Previous studies showed that the distribution of chlorophyll-a in the ocean indicates the presence of fish. However, only a few studies tried to directly relate the chlorophyll-a distribution obtained through interpretation of satellite imagery to in-situ data of fish distribution. This paper investigates the relation between chlorophyll-a distribution and fish-capturing points in Aceh Province sea waters using overlay image analysis. The results are then used to identify the potential fishing ground in Aceh. The profile of chlorophyll-a concentration is derived from SeaWIFS satellite imagery. Fish-capturing points data is obtained from the fisherman communities of Banda Aceh, starting from June to November 2008. The results showed that the chlorophyll-a profile derived from satellite imagery has a positive relationship to fish-capturing point data. The most potential fish-capturing zone in Aceh sea waters is identified at 5-8° north latitude (N) and 96-99° east longitude (E). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami inundated about 37,500ha of coastal farmland in Aceh, and crops planted after the tsunami were severely affected by soil salinity. This paper describes the changes of soil salinity over time on tsunami affected farms and the implications for resuming crop production after natural disasters. Soil salinity and salt leaching processes were assessed across the tsunami affected region by measuring soil apparent electrical conductivity (ECa) using an electromagnetic induction soil conductivity instrument (EM38) combined with limited soil analysis. The ECa was measured 5 times between August 2005 and December 2007 in both the vertical (EMv) and horizontal (EMh) dipole orientations at 23 sites across Aceh. The level of salinity and direction of salt movement were assessed by comparing changes in mean profile ECa and relative changes in EMv and EMh. Eight months after the tsunami the average soil salinity in the 0–1.2m soil depth varied from ECe 22.6 to 1.6dSm−1 across sites in the affected region and three years after the tsunami it varied from 13.0 to 1.4dSm−1. Soil salinity tended to be higher in rice paddy areas that trapped saline tsunami sediments and held seawater for longer periods. Leaching of salts occurred slowly by both vertical displacement and horizontal movement in surface waters. Hence, soil salinity persisted at a level which could reduce crop production for several years after the 2004 tsunami. High soil salinity persisted three years after the tsunami even though there had been more than 3000–7000mm of accumulated rainfall to leach salts. The slow leaching is likely to have been due to the loss of functional drainage systems and general low relief of the affected areas. Monitoring of soil salinity with EM38 assisted local agricultural extension agencies to identify sites that were too saline for crops and determine when they were suitable for cropping again. The methodology used in this study could be used after similar disasters where coastal agriculture areas become inundated by seawater from storm surges or future tsunamis. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The relationship between development and religion is an uneasy one. Since the invention of modernisation theory in the 1950s religion has been marginalised-seen as something that would fade as secularisation increased. Although this has not occurred, religion is still considered a taboo subject which falls outside the gamut of development, despite the religiosity of many faith-based development organisations, donors, and recipient communities. In this paper I emphasise the importance of religion to development by tracing religious influences within transnational development networks operating in Aceh, Indonesia, after the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami. Religious influences are analysed amongst donor communities in Australia and New Zealand/Aotearoa; within the activities of religious NGOs in Aceh; amongst recipient communities; and in the physical landscape of Aceh, where the rebuilding of sacred spaces has been slow and difficult. It is argued that the current approach to religion within development, and much development research, is outdated and inappropriate, reflecting and enforcing particular Western divisions between church and state. For more effective aid which attends to local concerns and priorities, transnational development networks need to acknowledge, incorporate, and involve religious spaces and institutions rather than continue to promote a culture of secularism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: In this case study, we investigate the applicability of rainwater harvesting as a sustainable water supply option in Banda Aceh, Indonesia, an area severely hit by the tsunami in 2004. Due to technical and geographical factors, the local residents spend approximately 16% of their incomes on the purchase of water. For this reason, a new, economical, and sustainable way of obtaining water is a most important and urgent concern. A team from Seoul National University recently developed and installed several rainwater harvesting systems in the area in January 2007 and 2008, focusing particularly on increasing public awareness of rainwater harvesting and capacity building in Banda Aceh. This paper discusses the general public perceptions, installation methods, and viability of the system. We found that rainwater harvesting, accompanied by an increase in public awareness and appropriate education, can best serve the needs of the community. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

In this paper we will explore the purported tension that lies between one's so-called Islamic identity and the demands of civic identity—seen as proof of “integration”—in liberal democratic societies, and show that the relationship is philosophically and existentially more complex than advocates of the “clash of civilizations” thesis or “democratic Islam” admit. To this end, we will explore the historical experience of two Muslim communities, one very ethnically heterogeneous Muslim minority in the democratic Netherlands, and the other, a more homogeneous ethnic Muslim minority in the province of Aceh in a democratizing Indonesia. We believe such a comparative examination of empirical cases where religious and ethnic differences simultaneously and differentially impact relations between minority Muslim communities and the democratic or democratizing societies they inhabit will offer a more nuanced, and therefore more useful, understanding of the complexities of belonging for Muslims in democratic/democratizing multicultural societies and offer insight into social and educational policies more likely to mitigate rather than exacerbate whatever tensions that may exist. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The 26 December 2004 tsunami disaster around the Indian Ocean provided an opportunity to see if decades of knowledge and experience on post-disaster settlement and shelter could be applied to match the tagline which many groups gave to the post-tsunami reconstruction: ‘build back better’ (or ‘building back better’). This paper uses evidence from field work completed on implementing settlement and shelter in post-tsunami Aceh and Sri Lanka to examine whether or not the theory and practice of ‘build back better’ were witnessed. Focusing on settlement and shelter, four areas are examined: (i) safety, security, and livelihoods; (ii) how post-disaster settlement and shelter could have an improved connection with permanent housing and communities (the ‘transition to what?’ question); (iii) fairness and equity; and (iv) connecting relief and development by tackling root causes of vulnerability. Based on the field work, addressing these four areas is suggested as how ‘build back better’ could be implemented. Recommendations are 1.Community involvement is essential, but that does not necessarily mean community control. 2.Organizations involved in implementing transitional settlement and shelter need to consider their capacity and links to other sectors. 3.Thinking ahead is necessary by integrating relief and development through long-term planning and disaster risk reduction. Overall, ‘building back safer’ might be a preferable tagline to ‘building back better’ because ‘better’ has multiple interpretations, many of which caused further problems, whereas ‘safer’ provides a clearer goal on which to focus for post-disaster settlement and shelter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Indonesian military sees itself as the guarantor of national unity, the state's last line of defence against separatist movements. This paper argues that the military's methods for maintaining national unity have been counterproductive. Its counter-insurgency wars in Aceh and Papua have exacerbated the sense of alienation from Indonesia that the people in these provinces have felt. In this post-Suharto era of political reform, the military has been unable to recognise that its old methods have failed, even after its obvious failure in East Timor, whose people, after living under a 24-year military occupation, rejected continued integration with Indonesia in a referendum in 1999. The fact that the politicians in the legislative and executive branches of the state have tended to encourage the military to persist with its old methods suggests that the military by itself should not be faulted. Only political resolutions, such as the Helsinki agreement for ending the conflict in Aceh – an agreement that resulted more from the devastation of the December 2004 tsunami than from the Indonesian military's counter-insurgency warfare – offer any guarantee of national unity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Indonesia has slowly evolved as a national which though afflicted by the international differences and problems since independence. Also in the recent past it transformed itself into a democracy in 2004 and also managed to survive the financial crisis of 1997. Though many commentators and social scientists have lamented on the fact that there are too many conflict areas in Indonesia to let it emerge from the financial crisis. But the times have changed and now even the superpowers are trying to be at 'good terms' with a culturally diversified country like Indonesia. Indonesia has in the recent times has managed to overcome the decades long problems like Aceh and has started to become a major player in the politics of southeast Asia. The importance of Indonesia also gained ground after few of its terror groups were countered and subdued by the active government intervention and the help of religious leaders in containing terrorism in the country. This is not to undermine the fact that there are still few grey areas where concern and consideration is required like Poso, Ambon and the security architecture of the region which has always shown apprehensions about the rise of the China in the region and the slow yet subtle demise of US presence in the region. The coordinates are more pronounced and the role of emerging countries like Indonesia becomes an important element for understanding the evolving security dynamics of the region. The paper would discuss the variables and also the factors which might create a comprehensive security architecture for the region in general and Indonesia in particular, though there are still quite a number of hot-spots in the region which might create a regional imbalance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cash for work (CFW) programmes are utilised in various disaster and emergency contexts and were a prominent component of the tsunami response in Aceh province, Indonesia. This paper describes Mercy Corps' CFW programme, discusses CFW implementation experiences and provides key recommendations for similar programmes in future emergencies. For the majority of CFW participants and their households, CFW was the only source of household income and 93 per cent of household incomes were attributable to it. The CFW programme empowered displaced populations to return to their communities; 91 per cent of participants indicated that CFW facilitated their return. Other reported psychosocial benefits included providing productive activities and giving communities an opportunity to work together. Mercy Corps' experience in Aceh demonstrates that cash disbursements can be safely delivered in a widespread manner in emergencies, and that when implemented on a short-term basis, can have positive impacts at the individual and community level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The big irony of the Aceh conflict is that the Acehnese grassroots have never been regarded as its rightful stakeholder. More interestingly, the alienation of the people from the process of conflict resolution coincides with the current process of democratization of the Indonesian state following the collapse of Soeharto's authoritarian regime in mid 1998. This paper argues that the resolving of this conflict by the Indonesian government and CAM (Free Aceh Movement) has appeared as if it were the exclusionary business of the political elite of both sides. At the same time the escalation of military violence continues to victimize the civilians both in terms of human lives and socio-economic deprivation. It is now time to seek more participation of the Acehnese civil society groups in the peaceful resolution of this conflict, as these groups constitute one of the conflict's legitimate stakeholders. Otherwise, the prolongation of the conflict would only serve the vested interests of the Indonesian political and military elite. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the fall of Suharto's autocratic regime in May 1998, Indonesia has gone through a delicate process of democratisation. At the same time Indonesia is also confronted with the problem of nation-building. The question is: how can a democratic Indonesia unite itself? By using the theoretical relationship between the issue of democratisation and national identity, the paper tries to show the dilemma of nation-building in the post-Suharto Indonesia, especially with regard to the resolving of conflict in Aceh. On the one hand, the Indonesian leaders are required to show their commitment to democratic principles in ending the conflict and, on the other hand, they cannot rule out the possibility of using military means in keeping the nation united. An effective control by the civilian leaders over the military is essential for the peaceful solution of Aceh conflict. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stroke resources in Indonesia are limited; however, there has been demand to include nonbiomedical practitioners in stroke care. This paper will present a snapshot of available nonbiomedical stroke 'services' used by stroke survivors in two subdistricts of Aceh, Indonesia. Data were collected through interviews, observations, focus groups and vignettes with stroke survivors, their carers, biomedical and nonbiomedical stroke practitioners. Two categories of nonbiomedical practitioners were identified, all of whom discussed and demonstrated an understanding and approach to stroke treatment with multiple layers of influence, predominantly, education, religion and culture. There were a number of areas of overlap between the two categories; some of these influences were also evident in the biomedical practitioners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Analysis of anti-malarial antibody responses has the potential to improve characterization of the variation in exposure to infection in low transmission settings, where conventional measures, such as entomological estimates and parasitaemia point prevalence become less sensitive and expensive to measure. This study evaluates the use of sero-epidemiological analysis to investigate heterogeneity of transmission in area conducting elimination in Indonesia. Methods: Filter paper bloodspots and epidemiological data were collected through a community-based cross-sectional study conducted in two sub-districts in Sabang municipality, Aceh province, Indonesia in 2013. Antibody responses to merozoite surface protein 1 (MSP-119) and apical membrane antigen 1 (AMA-1) for Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax were measured using indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Seroconversion rates (SCR) were estimated by fitting a simple reversible catalytic model to seroprevalence data for each antibody. Spatial analysis was performed using a Normal model (SaTScan v.9.4.2) to identify the clustering of higher values of household antibody responses. Multiple logistic regression was used to investigate factors associated with exposure. Results: 1624 samples were collected from 605 households. Seroprevalence to any P. falciparum antigen was higher than to any P. vivax antigen, 6.9% (95% CI 5.8–8.2) vs 2.0% (95% CI 1.4–2.8). SCR estimates suggest that there was a significant change in P. falciparum transmission with no exposure seen in children under 5 years old. Plasmodium falciparum SCR in over 5 years old was 0.008 (95% CI 0.003–0.017) and 0.012 (95% CI 0.005–0.030) in Sukakarya and Sukajaya sub-districts, respectively. Clusters of exposure were detected for both P. falciparum and P. vivax, most of them in Sukajaya sub-district. Higher age, P. vivax seropositivity and use of long-lasting insecticide-treated bed net (LLIN) were associated with higher P. falciparum exposure. Conclusion: Analysis of community-based serological data helps describe the level of transmission, heterogeneity and factors associated with malaria transmission in Sabang. This approach could be an important additional tool for malaria monitoring and surveillance in low transmission settings in Indonesia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]