Whereabouts of Children Missing Since 2004 Tsunami Still Unknown: LBH

Banda Aceh (Antara) -- The Legal Aid Institute for Children's Affairs (LBH Anak) in Aceh province revealed that the whereabouts of 37 children who went missing following the December 26, 2004, tsunami are still unknown. "Complaints filed by parents, who were victims of the tsunami, from 2004 to 2012 show that 37 children are believed to have survived the impact of the tsunami," LBH Anak Program Manager in Aceh province Rudy Bastian stated here on Monday. An earthquake with a magnitude of 9.0 on the Richter Scale rocked Aceh on December 26, 2004, and triggered a tsunami. In Aceh and Nias (North Sumatra) alone, the tsunami caused wide-scale destruction, killed more than 200 thousand people, and rendered some one million homeless. It affected 18 countries in Southeast Asia and Southern Africa, killed more than 250 thousand people in a single day, and left more than 1.7 million people homeless. Malaysia, Thailand, Sri Lanka, India, Maldives, Bangladesh, Somalia, and Tanzania were among the 18 countries affected by the disaster. Furthermore, the belief that the 37 children are still alive stems from information received after the tsunami, according to which the children were spotted by relatives and people who knew them, Bastian noted. LBH Anak, however, cannot do much due to limitations on jurisdiction or working area, which allegedly involves multiple nations. Bastian explained, "It is a public secret that after the tsunami, the children of Aceh were brought en masse to areas outside Aceh either by volunteers or by relatives who knew them." Citing an example, Bastian pointed out the story of 15-year-old Fanisa Rizkia from Lhokseumawe, North Aceh, who was employed as a housemaid in Malaysia. According to him, the government and other parties should be informed if other children like Rizkia were found subjected to a similar fate. Therefore, the government should be alert and willing to revisit data and the last complaint filed regarding the tsunami. "Of course, we hope other Acehnese children who are still missing can be found and reunited with their families," Bastian added. (*) Reporting by M Haris SA