Indonesian City Struggles After Tsunami

7 April 2005 - 12:00pm

There is little sign of reconstruction in the Indonesian city of Aceh that was devastated by Asian Tsunami.

"In this devastated city, and for many miles along the coastline of flattened fishing villages, there is little sign of the billions of dollars in assistance...It is very difficult to rebuild, especially permanent structures, if you don't have a clear idea who the land belongs to and how many people are going to be living there...Along the coast, many fishing villages have simply disappeared. There are no bulldozers or heavy equipment to be seen here; no one is clearing away rubble or repairing roads or bridges; wells are not being decontaminated; power lines are not being put up; there are no sounds of hammers or saws."

Source: International Herald Tribune, April 6, 2005
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No matter how one wanted to organize the ideal city, housing security would be part of it. No community can function effectively if large numbers of its residents are regularly displaced or perpetually at risk of being displaced.