Amid death and destruction, life and hope
Action by Churches Together
Among the countries of South and Southeast Asia that were devastated by the December 26 earthquake and tsunamis, Indonesia was, by far, the hardest-hit in terms of deaths and people still missing. Amid incomprehensible numbers of deaths and amounts of destruction, and as survivors struggle to live irreparably changed lives, it is hard to find signs of hope.
Yet life among survivors continues - and even begins. In Muara Batu, in the northern parts of Indonesia's Aceh province, on December 29, during the shock and chaos following the tsunami, Warda lay at the makeshift Paskhas camp for displaced people, trying to ease her pain in the final days of her pregnancy. She and her husband, Muhammad, a fisherman, had fled in panic when they heard of the rising sea. On January 2, Warda gave birth to Hasanah Saputri, a baby girl.
Arshinta, the director of YAKKUM Emergency Unit (YEU), one of the members of Action by Churches Together (ACT) International that is responding to the disaster in Indonesia, reports, "The baby and mother are in good health." She says the baby was delivered with the assistance of a skilled midwife who is a volunteer with YEU. Not only is the birth of Hasanah a sign of hope
amid death and despair, but her delivery and the health care her mother has been receiving are an example of the help people are receiving from ACT members in the region.
In India, signs of the destruction are inescapable in some eastern coastal areas. In Nagapattinam, two large fishing boats have been removed from the railway line. The remains of other boats lie piled against bridges, across streets and against houses and blocks of flats.
Using distribution cards, residents of the village have already been registered to receive relief supplies that include plastic sheeting for shelter from Churches Auxiliary for Social Action, a member of Action by Churches Together (ACT) International.
In Passikudah, Sri Lanka, the Rev. Nadarajah
Arulnathan helps unload relief supplies at a Methodist Church in Valaichchenai. Arulnathan, who lost 18 relatives to the disaster, leads a local committee of church leaders coordinating the response in the region of the National Christian Council of Sri Lanka, a member of Action by Churches Together (ACT) International.
Churches and NGOs have provided almost all of the relief to tsunami survivors in the area.
While the relief programs of ACT members in these countries are on an enormous scale, personal help is still being offered. The Rev. K.M. Reginald Esparan, a Methodist pastor in Trincomalee, Sri Lanka, visits with people left homeless by the December 26 tsunami. They are living in a refugee camp near Palattadichchenai, which has received assistance from a variety of organizations, including the National Christian Council of Sri Lanka, a member of Action by Churches Together (ACT) International. Esparan participates in a local committee of church leaders coordinating ACT's response on the northeast Sri Lankan coastline.
Back in Indonesia, Hasanah and her parents have lost their home, but they are being provided with what they need for the time being. The personal attention that is also being provided here to them and other families has made a huge difference, helping to bring hope amid a great tragedy.
