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Winds Japan 2-11-5 Sakurashinmachi, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo 154-0015 Japan Telephone: +81-3-5451-5400 Facsimilie: +81-3-5451-5401 www.peace-winds.org meet@peace-winds.org |
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| Top Message from chairperson Summary of 2004 Iraq Mongolia Indonesia East Timor Sierra Leone Liberia Afghanistan Iran Nigata Strengthening Ourselves and Our Civil Society Major Activities in FY2004 Organizational Time Line Organizational Structure Financial Statement PWJ English Top |
Republic
of Indonesia Peace
Winds Japan (PWJ) has conducted relief operationsin Indonesia since 1997 and has
long been concerned with the situation in the troubled area of Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam
Province (Aceh Province), located in the north of Sumatra Island. PWJ has attempted
by various meansto alleviate the tension over Aceh. Since April 2003, PWJ has been providing resettlement support in the Municipality of Boyolali in Central Java Province to refugees who previously transmigrated from Java Province to Aceh Province, but returned to Java because of the ongoing independence conflict in Aceh. Also, in FY2004, PWJ continued to provide support through local NGOs for increases in wages and the stabilization of life.  Entry of
foreigners into Aceh was restricted before the Sumatra Earthquake and the Indian
Ocean Tsunami in December 2004. Therefore, it was anticipated that, even if the
damage caused by the earthquake proved to be enormous, it would be difficult for
initial support from abroad to reach the disaster zone. However, PWJ had eight
years of experience working in Indonesia, including approaches to problems surrounding
Aceh, and it was in a position to acquire local information relatively easily.
This allowed PWJ to provide immediate relief to Aceh when it was struck by the
Sumatra Earthquake and the Indian Ocean Tsunami. The first part of Aceh where PWJ provided support was Meulaboh and the surrounding area, located on the west coast. This area suffered catastrophic damage and was isolated from other areas in Aceh. PWJ established a supplies procurement base in Medan, the capital of North Sumatra Province, and in January alone delivered and distributed over 70 tons of emergency relief supplies including water, food and medicine.  From mid-January,
PWJ started support operations after establishing a base in Banda Aceh, the capital
of Aceh Province. In Lambaro Skep in the north of the city, located 2.5km inland
from the coast, partially or completely collapsed houses, together with rubble
and mud carried inland by the tsunami, prevented evacuees returning home.PWJ began
providing resettlement support so that residents who had evacuated to refuges
and relatives' homes could return to their homes as soon as possible. PWJ provided
the tools for residents to carry out rubble removal work in their own communities.
Because most residents had lost their jobs as a result of the tsunami, wages for
the clearing work became a valuable source of income and helped them purchase
everyday living essentials. Moreover, the physical activity alleviated post-tsunami
trauma and helped people focus on the future. PWJ's support in Aceh has continued
through and since February, shifting from emergency relief to assistance for recovery
and restoration.Beyond that, PWJ has maintained community empowerment (capacity building) operations in Sorong (Papua Province) in the east of Indonesia, which started in 1997. In addition to providing farm tools to local farmers and instruction in organic farming, this program offered support to a local NGO. |
