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Aceh marches on with lingering grief 20 years after tsunami
Mourners flocked to several mass grave sites in Banda Aceh and neighboring Aceh Besar regency starting on Thursday morning.
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Residents pray on Dec. 26, 2024 at the Ulee Lheue mass grave for victims of the 2004 earthquake and tsunami in Banda Aceh, Aceh, the 20th anniversary of the disaster that killed more than 170,000 people in the province. (JP/Junaidi Hanafiah)
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three-minute siren, grave visits and mass prayers across Aceh on Thursday marked the 20th anniversary of the 2004 earthquake and tsunami disaster that hit several countries, including Indonesia, and killed more than 220,000 people worldwide.
The siren, sounded by acting Aceh governor Safrizal Zakaria Ali, marked the start of a city-wide moment of silence to remember more than 170,000 victims who lost their lives across the province when the giant wave hit Aceh 20 years ago.
Also attending the commemoration event at Baiturrahman mosque in Banda Aceh were thousands of Aceh residents and representatives of foreign countries that assisted the rebuilding of disaster-stricken areas for years.
The tsunami and destruction it caused were deemed unprecedented in modern history. But the Indian Ocean disaster was also often referenced as an example of how countries should help each other in times of disaster and other crises. At least 50 countries have contributed to rehabilitating Aceh since 2004.
The rebuilding has now finished, with former vice president Jusuf Kalla, one of the officials leading the efforts to rebuild the tsunami-hit province, saying that Aceh, in general, had recovered.
Read also: Death and rebirth: Aceh marches on, slowly, after 2004 tsunami
However, survivors admit that some wounds may be hard to heal. Several studies found an increase in people seeing psychiatrists and being prescribed mental health medications years after the disaster.
