Riyadi Suparno

Executive Director 2011-present

Despite its terrible toll, the tsunami, ironically, also brought many good things in its wake.

When I arrived in the province a week after the tsunami, I was engulfed by fear, especially when distant gunshots rang out at night.

The tsunami forced the warring parties to sit down at the negotiating table. Aceh finally got its peace after years of conflict, with the freedom to mind its own business.

 Indonesia also learned many things, including introduction of a tsunami warning system and disaster preparedness, and adoption of good governance practices in managing foreign aid.

 This was one of my biggest professional journeys because I had to write headline stories almost every day. It also carried personal meaning for me.

I set out to discover the fate of an Acehnese friend; we had studied in Birmingham, the UK, only a few months before the disaster.

I found his house, now flattened to the ground. Among the rubble was a toy we had bought together for his baby. We never found his body, or knew for certain his fate, but I was content to have at least found his home.

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