Acheh Tsunami Disaster Data - 27.12. 04
Data is compiled by Achehnese activists in the Asia/Pacific from
messages received by civilians in Acheh, Northern Sumatra.
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One thing is clear, the devastation is very heavy and the local
authorities are clearly unable to cope.
A brief compilation of these reports shows that as at midnight last
night, Dec. 26, between 2500 and 4000 have died with thousands more
injured.
Worst hit is capital Banda Acheh with 1 400 to 3000 fatalities;
Immediately down South in the District of Pidie 165, further South in
Bireuen 123. Lhokseumawe and North Ach 710.
No figures of the injured are available as hospital have been
overcrowded even before this with war victims. Also not known is the
exact number of houses detroyed. In Bireuen alone some 3 000 are
heavily damaged.
Some 50 000 people are displaced all over Acheh, mostly have moved to
the hills and mountains where food is not available. These areas are
conflict areas usually interdicted for civilians by the Indonesian
military. The Free Acheh Movement has stated in a statement issued in
Stockholm that it has ordered its armed forces to observe a unilateral
ceasefire and will only fight if attacked. The first attack by
Indonesian troops since the disaster already taken place in Djuli,
Bireuen, with 4 GAM fighters killed.
From South West, South, West and Singkil Districts and especially in the
islands off the West coast such as Simeulue, no reports whatsover have
come through most probably because electricity and communication
facilities are all destroyed. The number of casualties may easily double
those in the East Coast as the epicentre of the quake is reported to be
around Simeulu.
The Acheh Support Group is a Wellington based group which supports
self-determination for the people of Acheh.
Media Contacts
Niklin Jusef (Acheh Support Group)
021 130 9313
Bakhtiar Amin (Acheh Support Group)
021 035 8971
John Anderson (Acheh Support Group)
asg@eclectic.org.nz
