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rom President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo to Indonesian soccer players, the nation has been pouring heartfelt sympathies and humanitarian assistance to the Acehnese, whose families perished and homes were flattened on Wednesday following yet another major earthquake.

The show of solidarity for quake victims is perhaps the blessing in disguise of the natural disaster, which as of Thursday has left over 100 dead, with 85 having been identified. The enthusiasm of individuals, community groups, civil society organizations, local governments outside Aceh and corporations to help those in need in Pidie Jaya regency is a testament to the camaraderie of the nation.

The message of friendship has spread across the region, with Japanese and Malaysian governments being the first good neighbors to announce plans to send humanitarian relief to Aceh.

This cherished spirit has prevailed anytime a major disaster or humanitarian tragedy has wreaked havoc on the country. When terrorist bombs devastated Bali in 2002, a tsunami swept Aceh in 2004 or when an earthquake destroyed Yogyakarta and its neighboring towns in 2008, altruism drove a nationwide movement to become good Samaritans.

A sense of nationhood prompted the Indonesian soccer team to dedicate its hard-earned win over host Vietnam in the semifinals of the AFF Cup in Hanoi to the team’s fellow countrymen in Aceh.

Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim nation, has been rocked in the past month by a series of major protests against Jakarta Governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama over alleged blasphemy, which many deem as a test for national unity amid diversity.

We, therefore, cannot agree more with Vice President Jusuf Kalla’s call on Thursday, in a bid to boost national solidarity, for all elements of the nation to lend a hand to the Aceh quake victims. Kalla, who is chairman of the Indonesian Red Cross (PMI), knows for certain that the government alone, despite its constitutional responsibility to deliver humanitarian relief to those affected by natural disasters, is unable to tackle the multifold impacts of the quake.

“Both the government and people have to roll up their sleeves to evacuate and save victims and rehabilitate the regency,” Kalla said

Indeed, hundreds of people in Pidie Jaya remain in need of medical treatment to heal their wounds, while thousands are now homeless and will have to survive on the generosity of others, at least until the government lifts the one-month state of disaster emergency imposed on the regency. Technically, the emergency state will enable the central and local governments to deploy resources to mitigate the impacts of the quake.

As happened in Aceh, Yogyakarta and in other areas, it will take quake victims quite a long time to recover. This means that Pidie Jaya and its neighboring regions adversely affected by the quake will rely on assistance.

Aceh, as well as many other parts of the country, is geographically prone to earthquakes. The fact that over a dozen quakes since 2004 have rattled Aceh should lead to anticipatory measures, which can take form in new building designs that can withstand quakes.