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NGO in Special Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations
WorkingPaperNo.4,
2008
WE ARE BABY TURTLES,
WHO HAVE TO BE CLOSE TO THE SEA:
Research Team:George Junus Aditjondro
Eddy Purwanto
HOW LOCAL OWNERSHIP IS UNDERMINED BY DONORS
A Case Study of Tsunami Victims,Whose Resettlement Rights are Threatened
by a USAID-financed Highwayin Aceh, Northern Sumatera, Indonesia
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WE ARE BABY TURTLES,
WHO HAVE TO BE CLOSE TO THE SEA:HOW LOCAL OWNERSHIP IS UNDERMINED BY DONORS
A Case Study of Tsunami Victims,Whose Resettlement Rights are Threatened
by a USAID-financed Highwayin Aceh, Northern Sumatera, Indonesia
Research Team:George Junus Aditjondro
Eddy Purwanto
Working Paper No.4, 2008
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CONTENT
Acknowledgment i
HowLocalOwnershipisUnderminedbyDonors ii
Introduction: 1
ResearchMethodology: 4
ResearchFindings: 10
Conclusions: 16
Recommendations: 18
Bibliography: 19
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Acknowledgment
ThestudywasfullyfinancedbyYAKKUMEmergencyUnit(YEU),aprominent
organizationworkingindisastermanagementandpreventioninIndonesia.YEU
isamember
of
ACT
(Action
by
Church
Together).
YEU
has
extensive
works
in
disaster areas,both naturaldisasters and humantriggereddisasters (conflicts)
suchasinthetsunamiandearthquakedevastatedregionofAcehandNias,the
disaster areas of Yogyakarta and Central Java, interreligious conflicts in
CentralSulawesiandMaluku,andinotherareasinIndonesia.YEUisalsotaking
partinsupportinghumanitarianaidinthecyclonedevastatedareasinBurma.
Grateful thanks toDr.GeorgeJunusAditjondroandMr.EddyPurwantowho
didtheresearchinthefieldsandinthelibrariesandnewspapersofficesinAceh
and
Yogyakarta.
Special
thanks
to
Dr.
Sigit
Widjajanto,
the
director
of
YAKKUM,
who is persistently doing advocacy for the rights of people in Kuala Bubon
althoughheknowsthatheischallengingtheglobalgiant.
Thanks toRebeccaYoung from the PresbyterianChurchJakartawho did the
EnglisheditingofthereportandtoMr.SuwarnoatINFIDwhomadethepaper
intothisform.
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HOWLOCALOWNERSHIPISUNDERMINEDBYDONORS
Thefollowingcaseistrulyanexampleofhowownershipisunderminedwhenit
comes to its implementationat local level,where the lifeand livelihoodof the
grassrootspeopleareconcerned,wherethepeoplesdignityisthreatened,where
all the desperate efforts of the people to restore their life and livelihood are
underminedbythedonorsandthegovernment.
The reconstruction of the village ofKuala Bubon inAcehwas an example of
what theparticipatorydevelopmentpractitionersarealwaysdreamingof: fully
participationofthecommunitymembersfromplanning,physicalreconstruction
design, environmental considerations, participatory implementation and
participatorymanagement,womenparticipationandleadershipandtherespect
tothe
childrens
rights.
It
was
not
an
easy
task,
of
course.
Even
when
the
humanitarian agencies came to offer the support to the community, the
communityasked to theagencieswhether theirdesignswere in linewithwhat
the people expected. The community members elected the agency through a
ballotboxmechanismfacilitatedbyUNOCHA,afterapresentationofdesignsof
programsbytheagencies.YEU(YAKKUMEmergencyUnit)wastheoneelected
by majority of the community members to facilitate the whole process of
reconstructionandalongtermcommunitydevelopmentplans.
The
village
of
Kuala
Bubon
that
was
totally
devastated
by
tsunami
in
December
2006 is now in place. They people are happy with the results of the
reconstruction; the results of their own efforts.The sense of ownership of the
wholeprocessand results isvery strongand thepeopleofKualaBubonhave
enjoyedlivinginthehousestheyplanandtheybuildtogetherinthecommunity.
Thestudyshowshowthedonorpersistentlypushedthepeopletorelocateand
howthedonordoesnotrespecttherightsofthelocalcommunities.Thoughitis
agrantforthesurvivorsoftsunamiinAceh,itdoesnotmeanthattherightsof
thesurvivorscanbeunderminedandtheirvoicescanbeignored.
The case study also proves what Naomi Klein said in her book The Shock
Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism that the donors in cooperation with
transnationalcorporations (consultancy firmsand theminingcorporations)use
the disaster as vehicle to impose their conditionalities (with ultimatum) to
achieve theirownobjectives.Thehighwayconstruction innarrowanddensely
populated areas is hardly accepted that it is for the benefit of the local
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communities. It must be for the interests of big corporations that need fast
transportation;andAcehisrichofoilandnaturalgasthetwonaturalresources
that have been long exploited by transnational corporations and that have
becomethemaincausesoflongconflictsinAceh.
Thecasestudyshowsthateventhedonorscannotrecognizethelocaldemocratic
ownershipasthefirstprincipleintheParisDeclarationonAidEffectiveness.
DonK.Marut
ExecutiveDirector
INFID
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WEAREBABYTURTLES,WHOHAVETOBECLOSETOTHESEA:
ACaseStudyofTsunamiVictims,WhoseResettlementRightsareThreatened
byaUSAIDfinancedHighwayinAceh,NorthernSumatera,Indonesia
ByGeorgeJunusAditjondro1andEddyPurwanto2
INTRODUCTION:
THISisacasestudywithvariouscharacteristics.Firstofall,thisisacase
studywhere the sovereignty of grassroots villagers is threatenedby the self
proclaimedsovereigntyofoneoftheworldslargestaidagencies:theUSAgency
for InternationalDevelopment (USAID).Secondly, it isacase studywhere the
reconstructionofaregion, terriblydestroyedbyanaturaldisaster,hasbecome
heavilydependent
on
the
dictates
of
aid
agencies,
and
in
particular,
on
USAID.
Thirdly, it is a case study
which further highlights
what Graham Hancock
has emphasized in his
LordsofPoverty:ThePower,
Prestige and Corruption of
the International Aid
Business (1989), namely
howofficial
development
aid(ODA)oftenmasksthe
interests of large private
corporations, particularly,
oil and construction
companies.
Next, it is a case studywhere the peace settlementbetween a national
government and a provincebased independence movement is financially
underminedbybureaucratsinthenationalcapital,increasingthedependenceof
Acehsprovincial
government
on
USAID,
thereby
eroding
the
accountability
of
1). Independent researcher, with special interest in the political economy of post-disaster reconstruction in
Aceh and Nias, and has written several reports published by the International NGO Forum for Indonesian
Development (INFID). With a Ph.D. and an M.S. from Cornell University, Dr. Aditjondro is currently a
guest lecturer at the Sanata Dharma University in Yogyakarta.2). Community organizer (CO) of YAKKUM Emergency Unit (YEU), with field experience in Aceh,
currently in charge of advocacy for the rights of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Aceh and other
places served by YEU. He has a B.A. in Law.
26 August 2005. Post-tsunami Kuala Bubon. A large part of the villagelandmass has been reclaimed by the sea
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thegovernmenttograssrootscommunities,inparticular,thefisherfolksofKuala
Bubon,whoarerebuildingtheirlivelihoodafterthe2004tsunamitookathirdof
theirvillageandmanyoftheirrelativesandneighbors.
Finally, this isacasestudyof resilientvillagers,whohavecontinued to
fightfortheirrightstomaintaintheintegrityoftheircommunityvisvisUSAID,
inaDavidversusGoliathtypestruggle.
Obviously, this is also a case studywhere postdisaster reconstruction
activities,threatenedbytime(andbudget)constraints,oftenoverlookecological
factors, local wisdom in rebuilding communities, health factors, and existing
legalregulations.Whatmakesthiscasemoreunique,though,isthefactthatthe
cultureand localwisdom in theprovinceofAceh is recognizedby Indonesian
laws and provincial regulations (qanun), as well as by the Memorandum of
Understanding(MoU)
between
the
Government
of
Indonesia
and
the
Free
Aceh
Movement(GAM,GerakanAcehMerdeka),signedinHelsinkionAugust15,2005.
These legal obligations have been overruled by most posttsunami housing
projects.
Incontrasttothatgeneralpractice,thereconstructionofhousesofKuala
Bubon,agampong (village) in thedistrictofWestAceh,hasbeenplannedand
executed by an Indonesian nongovernment organization, YEU (YAKKUM
Emergency Unit), after consulting the villagers and then rebuilding the entire
village
based
on
the
peoples
wish
to
remain
near
to
the
sea,
to
continue
living
as
fisherfolks.Inan innovativeway,YEUhasrebuilt thepeoplesvillagewithan
architecturalstyleinspiredbythevernaculararchitectureoftheSeruipeoplein
WestPapua,wholiveinstiltedhousesabovethesea.Wearebabyturtles,who
have tobeclose to thesea, is thepopularsayingof theKualaBubonvillagers
(PuthutEA2007b:133).
Atthetimeofwritingthisresearchreport,thisnewlyrebuiltKualaBubon
villageand95otherhousesbuildbyotherNGOsinsevennearbyvillages are
threatenedtobedestroyedbya30metrewidehighwaywhichistobebuiltwith
aUSAID
grant.
Appeals
from
the
Kuala
Bubon
villagers
to
USAID
to
reroute
the
road have fallen ondeaf ears.This hasmadepeoplewonder,what exactly is
USAIDs motive to build a 30metre wide highway across a river delta,
bulldozing its way through villages and houses rebuilt by national and
internationalNGOs for these fisher folkswho refused to relocate far from the
coast?
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InordertoinvestigatethehiddenagendaofUSAIDspersistencetobuild
itshighwayacrossKualaaswellasinvestigatethereluctanceofthenationaland
provincial governments to challenge USAIDs persistence with its planned
highway across Kuala Bubon, YEUs partner organization, CD Bethesda, has
commissioned the authors of this report to do combined library and field
research on thismatter.Admittedly, this research reporthasnot answered all
questionssatisfactory.
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RESEARCHMETHODOLOGY:
TO investigate the interestsbehindUSAIDspersistence inbuilding the
northwesternhighwayacrossKualaBubon,aswellasthereluctanceofnational
andprovincial authorities to challenge the agencys ignoranceof thevillagers
feelings, the following researchmethodologyhavebeenemployed.Firstlyand
continuously,theresearchteamhascollectedandreadvariousreportsavailable
about the history and development of the Kuala Bubon resettlement project,
literature about the localwisdom in themanagement of coastal villages, and
official reports of the provincial government of the existing and forthcoming
investmentprojectsinAceh,especiallyonthenorthwesterncoast.
Secondly, the team did a content analysis of the local print media,
especially the Serambi Indonesia daily, focusing on any news of the USAID
financedhighway,
to
assess
the
attitude
of
provincial
authorities
and
USAID
officials towards local people protesting against the eviction or destruction of
theirland,houses,andfacilitiestoearntheirliving.
Thirdly, the research team carried out participant observation of the
conditionofsegmentsoftheUSAIDfinancedroadbydrivingarentalcaralong
the road fromMeulaboh toCalang and fromCalang toBandaAceh.Another
formofparticipantobservationwasspendinganightatKualaBubontoobserve
thedailylifeinthevillage.
Fourthly,theresearchteamcarriedoutinterviewswithAcehgovernment
officials, USAID officials,business people, activists, YEU staffwho hadbeen
involved in the reconstructionofKualaBubonandvillagersalong theCalang
BandaAcehhighway,whoselandhavebeenappropriatedtowidentheexisting
road, and drivers of trucks employedby the road contractors.Unfortunately,
interviews with Aceh officials, including the Governor, did not provide any
usefulinformation,sinceeithertheydidnotknowmuchabouttheroadproject,
ortheywerereluctanttocriticizetheUSaidagency.
Fifthly,afocus
group
discussion
(FGD)
was
carried
out
by
the
research
teamwith thevillageeldersofKualaBubononJuly11,2008,attendedamong
othersbytheKualaBubonvillagehead(keuchik),villagesecretary,villagecouncil
of four elders (tuha peut), Village Development Body (LPD, or Lembaga
Pembangunan Desa), and the marine customary chief (Panglima Laot) of the
Samatigasubdistrict.
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Thesixthandfinalresearchmethodwasbyusing the internet facilityat
YEUs TrainingCentre in Pakem,Yogyakarta, to search for ongoing news on
KualaBubonandtoinvestigatethebackgroundofUScorporationsclosetiesto
USAID.
KUALABUBON,BEFOREANDAFTERTHE2004TSUNAMI:
BEFORE the 2004 tsunami, Kuala Bubon literally, the mouth of the
Bubon river wasaverybusy fishingvillage,withhundredsof fishingboats
coming in and out the river every day. The villagers themselves at that time
owned121boats.Themenweremostlyfishermen,famousfortheirfishingskills,
with thewomenbuying the incoming catch,whichwas sold to fish vendors
(muge),whom in turnrode theirmotorcycles tosell thefish toothervillages in
theWestAceh district.Outsiders from the nearby districts ofAcehJaya and
NaganRaya
also
frequented
or
stayed
in
Kuala
Bubon,
working
as
muge,
as
workersatthefishauctionterminal(TPI=tempatpelelangan ikan),asworkersat
theicefactory,orascrewonKualaBubonfishingboats.Thevillagewasalways
busy around the clock, except on Thursdays, when the men did not go out
fishingatnight,sothattheycouldattendtheFridayprayersatthelocalmosque
(PuthutEA2007a:1278;interviews).
Administratively,KualaBubonbelongstotheSamatigasubdistrict,itselfa
partofWestAcehdistrict,sandwichedbetweentheIndianOceanonitssouth
and
swamps
on
the
north
(Puthut
2007a:
128),
which
had
partly
been
turned
into
brackishwaterfishponds(tambak).AspartofSamatigasubdistrict,the
customaryfisheryormarineombudsman,orPanglimaLaot,accordingtoAcehs
tradition(Syarif2003)ofKualaBubon,fallsunderthePanglimaLaotofSamatiga.
Economically, the village and its inhabitantswere quitewell off. Taxes
paid from the fish trade, ice factory, thenearbyport forCPO (crudepalmoil)
tankers ofPTKaryaTanah Subur (KTS), and the fishingboatdockyard,have
earned the title donorsvillage toKualaBubon. In addition to its economic
reputation,manypeople fromMeulaboh, thedistrictcapital,oftencame to the
villagejust
to
enjoy
its
beautiful
sea,
coast,
and
fish
ponds,
with
the
mountains
onthebackground(PuthutEA20071:128).
Politically,KualaBubonwas a safeplaceduring theprotractedguerilla
war between the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) and the Indonesian military,
where refugees from other villages orparts ofAceh felt safe (idem).Thiswas
important in those days as it is still now, after theAugust 15, 2005,Helsinki
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26 August 2005. A view of post-tsunami Kuala Bubon and the rubbleof the remaining homes
AgreementbetweenGAM and theTNI, since the rivalry is still alivebetween
thosewho supportand thosewhooppose the independencemovement in the
westernpartofAceh,whichharboralatentmovementtoseparatewesternand
southernAceh from theprovince,backedby antiHelsinki agents in and from
Jakarta.
ThispeacefulandprosperouspictureofKualaBubonchanged radically
after thewavesof the IndianOceansweptover thevillageon theafternoonof
December 26, 2004.After the
water resided, it was found
that221ofthe929inhabitants
ofKualaBubonhadperished,
consistingof116 femalesand
105 males. All the buildings
hadbeen
leveled
to
the
ground, the existing bridge
across the Bubon river that
connected Kuala Bubon and
its southern neighbour, Suak
Timah,was sweptaway, and
600m2 (6,500 square feet) of
the village land was now
under water (Puthut EA
2007a:130).
With thehelpofoutsideorganizations, the remaining 754KualaBubon
villagers received temporary shelter in seven IDP barracks in the Samatiga
subdistrict. TheWestAceh district government planned to resettle the entire
village inCotSeumereung, avillagequite far from the sea,and issued anew
regulation prohibiting anybody to residewithin 500metres of the coast line.
Finally,only60families,mostlynotfisherfolks,relocatedtotwonearbyvillages
CotSeumereungandGampongTengah ,while118familiesremainedinthe
barracks,waitingforthetimetoreturntotheiroldvillage(PuthutEA2007a:130
1,2007b:
137
8;
interviews).
ThatwasthetimethatYEU,whohadhelpedtobuildtherefugeebarracks
at the old village,began seriously discussingwith the village leaders how to
rebuildtheirvillage.First,theyneeded tocompensatefortheir land,losttothe
sea,butwhatwasavailablewasonlyformerfishponds(tambak)thathadturned
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20 May 2006. Building feeling of togetherness among the people ofKuala Bubon to start reconstruction (Strategic Plan forum)
into swamps. With financial assistance of the Board of Rehabilitation and
Reconstruction,orBRR (BadanKoordinasiRehabilitasidan Rekonstruksi) forAceh
andNias,theWestAcehdistrictgovernmentpurchasedfourhectaresofland
actually, swamps,with seawaterat adepthofone to threemetres , for the
priceofRp17,000rupiahpersquaremetretorebuildKualaBubon.
Consequently, this triggered thesecondquestions:should thoseswamps
be reclaimedand thehousesbuilton solidground?Or, should thenewKuala
Bubonhousesbebuiltonstilts,abovetheseawater?
The second option
was chosen. Apart from
being too costly, estimated
to reach 50 billion rupiah,
the
environmental
and
health risks of transporting
millions of tons of gravel
and sand from faraway
places would be quite
monumental. In addition,
thenewunderwatersoiland
sand in the Bubon delta
were stillmoving, since the
river
currents
and
marine
waveshadnotyetreacheda
new equilibrium, and were still depositing sand. Hence, YEUs shelter team,
headed by Setyo Dharmodjo, an architect with years of experience in the
reconstructionofhomesfornumerousdisastervictims inIndonesia,decided to
design 118 houses on stilts on the seabottom,with the accompanying public
buildings on the remaining solid ground. As he told the researchers in an
interview inYogyakarta onAugust 21, 2008, thiswashis second time he has
designed houses on stilts on thewater. The first onewas inJayapura,West
Papua, inspiredby the traditionalarchitectureof theSeruipeople.As it turned
out,the
costs
of
building
118
houses
on
the
water
in
Kuala
Bubon
was
much
less
thanthefirstoption,namelyaround16billionrupiah.
Unfortunately,whilethevillagerswerestillcooperatingwithstaffpersons
of YEU and its sister organization, CD Bethesda, to rebuild the community,
residingin118housesonthewater,whichwasnotaneasytask,consideringall
thetraumawhichthevillagershadgonethrough,anewdangerwaslurkingon
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thehorizon:a30metrewidebridgeandhighway thatUSAIDwasplanning to
build across theBubonBay.Letusnow turn to the history of thisproject, as
reconstructedfromreportsandinterviewswithvariouspersonsinvolved.
USAID:
WHILE the Kuala Bubon
villagers had basic survival as
their ultimate goal in rebuilding
their village, completely different
considerationswereinthemindof
certain international aid agencies,
which had rushed to Aceh
immediately
after
the
2004
earthquakeandtsunami.Sincenot
onlyKualaBubon,butmajorparts
of the northwestern coast
provincial road fromMeulaboh to
BandaAcehwasalsodestroyed,thisfactcreatedtheneedforamajoraidproject
in the region.The two largest creditornations in theAsiaPacific,namely the
USAandJapan,wereboth interested inrebuilding the240kilometreroadasa
signatureproject,anaidprojectwhichwouldenable theAcehneseandother
Indonesian
people
always
to
remember
the
generosity
of
those
who
donated
that
projecttotheIndonesianpeople.
Soeagerwas theUSAgency for InternationalDevelopment (USAID)as
well as theJapan InternationalCooperation System (JICS) to rebuild the road
along Acehs northwestern coastline that the Indonesian Minister for Public
Workshad to interfere. A compromisedealwas forged,bydividing the road
into twosections.TheBandaAcehCalangsegmentof104,13kilometreswas to
bebuiltbyUSAID,whiletheconstructionoftheCalangMeulabohsegmentwas
handedovertoJICS.
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18 January 2007. Mr Setjo Darmojo explains the Kuala Bubon house
building plan to Christine from USAID. The arrow points to the standingdemo houses
Each aid agency
contracted the
construction of the
roadsegmentallocated
to them to different
contractors, according
to different standards
and with quite
different results. The
USAID segment
followed the US
standard of 30metre
wide highways, which
was contracted to a
jointventure
of
the
South Korean
construction company,
SsangyongConstructionandEngineeringLtd,and the Indonesian stateowned
company,PTHutamaKarya,forUS$108million(BisnisIndonesia,June25,2007),
while the JICS segment was contracted to another Indonesian stateowned
company,PTAdhiKarya,which in turn subcontracted it toa local contractor,
known asHajiTito.ThisJICS segmentwas of verypoor standard, consisting
mainly of capping the existing roadwith a thin layer of gravel and asphalt,
which
in
many
places
has
already
worn
off
(Serambi,
June
30
&
July
2,
2007;
interviews;observations).
From Teunom inAcehJaya district to Samatiga inWestAceh district,
JICSscontractordidnot follow theexisting road,butbuiltanewroad further
inland,8metreswide.ThisroadcircumventedKualaBubonandothervillages
around theBubonBaybyabout24kilometres, inanalignmentpopularizedby
USAIDstaffinBandaAcehasthehorseshoe.Accordingtooneinformant,this
wasdone tobring the road to thedoorstepsof thepersonalhouseofa former
districthead(Bupati)ofWestAceh.Anotherinformant,however,deniedthatany
WestAceh
Bupati
owned
apersonal
house
anywhere
along
that
horseshoe.
The overall planning and supervision of the 240kilometre road from
BandaAceh toMeulaboh, however,was contractedbyUSAID to aUS firm,
namelyParsonsGlobalServicesInc,forUS$34.9million,ormorethanfourteen
percentoftheprojectedvalueoftheentireroad,namelyUS$245million(Suara
MerdekaCyberNews,Nov.14,2005;USAIDIndonesiaPressRelease,Nov.14,2005).
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4 April 2007. Roy Ventura and Christine from USAID present andexplain the road construction to the people of Kuala Bubon, BRR,
Spanish Red Cross, CRS and YEU
RESEARCHFINDINGS:
IN the following section we will describe the findings of the research
team,whichhavecombined libraryresearch,fieldobservations, interviewsand
internet search,which took place inYogyakarta andAceh fromJuly 18, 2008untilAugust25,2008:
(a).AlthoughtheentireCalangMeulabohsegmenthadbeenassignedtoJICS,
andnottoUSAID,afterthehorseshoealignmenthadbeenbuiltbyPTAdhi
Karyaanditssubcontractor,theUSAIDofficeinBandaAcehsteppedinby
askingParsonsGlobalServicesInc.tosuggestseveraloptionstoshortcutthat24
kilometrehorseshoe
alignment.
Consequently,although
theconsultancy
companyofferedseveral
options,rangingfrom
moredeeperinlandto
closertotheseashore,
USAIDeventuallychose
theoptionthatcrosses
theriverwithahuge
bridgeandthencuts
acrossKualaBubonand
alsocrushesahundred
newlybuilthousesin
sevenadjoiningvillages.
NosatisfactoryanswerhasbeengivenwhyRoyR.VenturaJr.,theUSAIDAceh
RoadProjectTeamLeaderhasrigidlymaintainedthatposition.
(b).According to information provided to the research teambyKuala Bubon
villagers,theUSAIDpersonstheyhadmetmaintainedthattheroutechosenby
theAgency
could
neither
be
moved
further
inland
nor
closer
to
the
seashore,
and
couldnotbebent.Observationbytheresearchteamhasfoundout,though,that
alongtheCalangBandaAcehUSAIDfinancedroad,therearemanybends,and
althoughinsomeplacesrockshavebeenblastedtoallowtheroadtogothrough,
inmostplacesthe30metrewideroadsmoothlyfollowed thehillytopography,
and insomeplaces theroadcamequiteclose to theshore,and inotherplaces,
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the road went through reclaimed swamps, using geotextile sheets as a
foundationfortherocksandsand.
(c).TheUSAIDAcehRoadProjectTeamLeaderhas consistentlyunderplayed
the social and environmental impact ofbuilding thebridge and road across
KualaBubonandsevenothervillages,byplayingdown thenumberofhouses
that may need tobe relocated. Sometimes mentioning four houses in Kuala
Bubon, and at other occasions mentioning one or two houses, hasbeen the
rhetoricgamehehasplayed.Infact,assessingfromtheyellowandredtagstied
to spikes in the ground,which indicate the alignment of the proposed road,
YEUsfieldstaffinMeulabohhasestimatedthatatotalof125housesneedtobe
relocated, namely twenty in Suak Timah, twenty in Kuala Bubon, four in
Gampong Tengah, five inGampongCut, 38 in Suak Pandan, fifteen in Suak
Padebreh,threeinSuakSemaseuh,andtwentyinPribu.Thesehouseswerebuilt
notonly
by
YEU,
an
Indonesian
NGO,
but
also
by
the
World
Vision,
the
Catholic
ReliefService(CRS),SOS(Swiss),theSpanishRedCross,theIslamicRelief,and
HTF International.Apart from this direct adverse impact,what has notbeen
publicizedbytheUSAIDisthatthe30metrewidehighwaywillsplitthoseeight
villagesinaBerlinWallstyle,sinceforsecurityreasonsaswellasfortheirown
safety, the localvillagerswill lose their freedom towalk across thathighway,
wheremotoristswillenjoytheluxuryofracingtheirmotorcyclesandcarswith
speedsofupto100kilometres/hour,whichtheyhaveneverexperiencedbefore
inAceh.Oneneedsonly to lookat the statisticsofcasualties fromautomotive
accidents
in
local
clinics,
to
understand
how
any
minor
improvement
in
the
qualityof the roads inAcehhas increased those fatalitiesevenbefore theUS
stylehighwayhasbeenintroducedtotheprovince.
(d).SpeakingoftheUShighwaysystem,oneshouldunderstanditshistoryinthe
UnitedStatesofAmerica,whichmayhavesomerelevanceforusinIndonesia.In
1921, theUSgovernmentstarted theUShighwaysystem,basedonaUSArmy
report for national defense. US President Eisenhower greatly expanded the
systeminthe1950s,anditisthereforeofficiallycalledtheEisenhowerNational
SystemofInterstateandDefenseHighways.AccordingtoRebeccaYoung,aUS
Presbyteriantheologian
teaching
at
the
Jakarta
Theological
Seminary
(STT
Jakarta),herownvillageinNorthGeorgiaisfightingagainstahighwaythrough
herarea,becausethereasonforbuildingthathighwayistoallowthemilitaryto
transportnuclearwastethrougharuralareainsteadofthecityofAtlanta.Soit
isclear that theUSGovernmentregularly is in thehabitofdisruptingcitizens
lives and the environment for military purposes, said Ms. Young in an
interviewwith theresearch team.Thisraises than thequestion, isAceh indeed
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facingsimilardefensechallengesas imaginedbyEisenhower, that theprovince
needssuchwidehighways?
(e).Unfortunately,theUSAIDteaminAcehhasaquitedominantpositionvis
vis theprovincialgovernment,whichmakes thegovernment lessresponsive to
the grassroots peoples complaints. This USAID dominance canbe deduced
from three factors.Firstly, it canbededuced from the languageused topush
through theconstructionof theCalangBandaAcehsegment,whichhadbeen
slowed downby local peoples resistance at various places.After theUSAID
team threatened to pull out from the entire project, labeled in the local print
mediaasanultimatum,onecanreadstatementsfromtheAcehauthoritiesthat
alsobecameharsher to the resistingparties (seeheadlinesofSerambi Indonesia,
July 910, 2008). Secondly, Acehs provincial government has become quite
financiallydependentontheUSAID,sinceIndonesiasnationalgovernmenthas
delayedthe
transfer
of
routine
and
development
budget
from
Jakarta
to
Banda
Acehformorethansixmonthsatthetimeofwritingthispaper.Thisdependence
canbeseenfromthefactthatthethirdandfourthflooroftheAcehGovernors
office is rented to the Acehbased USAID team (Majuddin, n.d.). Thirdly,
althoughtheCalangMeulabohsectionhadbeencontractedtoJICS,theUSAIDs
interferencetoshortcutthesocalledhorseshoehasnotreceivedanyresistance
fromtheWestAcehandprovincialgovernments.
(f). Hence, it is extremely important to study USAIDs links to large US
companies,
which
have
already
invested
their
capital
in
Aceh,
or
are
in
the
processofbiddingforlargebusinessdeals.Inthatlightonehastoseetherecent
openingofabrandnewpolytechnicinstituteinBandaAceh,financedbyajoint
US$10billionbudgetoftheUSAIDandoneofthe largestoilcompaniesinthe
world, namely ChevronTexaco, or Chevron, called the Vocational Training
Alliance forAceh.Thegroundbreaking ceremonyof thispolytechnic institute,
whichwilloccupysevenhectaresoflandintheUleeKarengsubdistrictinBanda
Aceh,tookplaceonMonday,April23,2007,andwasattendedbyAcehDeputy
GovernorMuhammadNazar andBandaAcehMayorMawardiNurdin. This
jointventurewasprecededbyaUSAIDChevronjointprogram to trainyoung
personsfrom
Aceh
and
Nias
at
the
Caltex
Polytechnic
School
in
Pekanbaru,
Riau
(SiaranPersKedubesAS,April29,2006).AsthenUSAmbassadorB.LynnPascoe
stated inPekanbaru,after the firstgroupof132AcehandNiasyouth finished
their training:ThepartnershipbetweenUSAIDandChevron reflecteda long
term investment for AcehNias economy (BRR daily news on
http://www.brr.go.id/,Thursday,August10,2006).Hence, it isnotunlikely that
Chevron ispaving theway toopen theirownoil andgasmining activities in
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Acehwiththesupportoftheirpartner,USAID,especiallyafterthediscoveryof
the huge hydrocarbon reservenortheast of Simeulue island (Serambi Indonesia,
February12,2008).
(g).A largeUS companywithmuch closer links toUSAID, as far asAceh is
concerned, is Parsons Global Service Inc. This company,based in Pasadena,California,USA,hasbeencontracted todesignand supervise theBandaAceh
MeulabohroadforUS$34.9million.As theresearch teams internetsearchhas
shown,thiscompanyhasalsobeensubcontractedbyUSAIDinvariouspostwar
andpostdisastercountries,suchasinIraq,whereParsonsreceivedacontractof
$500million,includingUS$240milliontobuild150primaryhealthcare(PHC)
clinicsthroughoutIraq.However,twoyearsafterthecontractwasawarded,the
Special InspectorGeneral for IraqReconstruction (SIGIR), an independentUS
governmentagency,issuedareportwhichstatedthatParsonshadreapedaUS$
3.3million
profit,
although
US$
70
million
worth
of
expensive
medical
equipmenthadnotbeendeliveredtothePHCs,whilemostofthePHCshadnot
beenbuilt yet or hadbeen rejected due to poor quality (Moses 2004;Mandel
2006;Chatterjee2007). Hence,itisamazingthatdespitethisnegativereputation,
USAIDhasstillcontractedParsonsGlobalServicesInc.toplanandsupervisethe
constructionof theBandaAcehMeulaboh road,whileParsons themselves are
theoneswhoneedtobesupervised.
(h).Fromtheinterviewsthathavebeenconductedbytheresearchteamandby
analyzingpriorlanduseplansintheBubonBay,itseemsthattheAcehUSAID
team,whoareveryclosetotheauthoritiesinBandaAceh,alreadyknewofplanstobuildnewharborsintheBay,andthatthoseplanscouldonlybeexecutedif
theKualaBubonvillagehasbeenremoved.Thesefollowingeventsshow those
indicators:
(h.1.). When Christine, whom at one stage was recruited as a surveyor by
USAID, visited the village area onJanuary 18, 2007, five stilted houseswere
alreadycompletedandshowntothesurveyor,whorecordedtheboundariesof
KualaBubonslandwithherGPSdevice.Thispersonadmittedthatbythattime
theAceh
USAID
team
had
hoped
that
all
the
Kuala
Bubon
villagers
would
have
followed thedistrict governments appeal to relocate toCot Seumereung. She
also stated to the community leaders that she would raise the communitys
concern about the USAID plan to build the road across the village to her
superiors inBandaAceh,However, ina followupmeetingwithRoyVentura,
theUSAIDAcehRoad Team Leader, at theUSAIDAceh office onMarch 11,
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2007,VenturastatedthatChristineisnolongerworkingfortheAgencyandthat
shedidnothavetherighttosayanythingonbehalfofUSAIDatthattime.
(h.2.).WhenotherUSAIDsurveyorscametoKualaBubontoconductsounding
tests to determine the soils strength to carry theburden ofbridges or other
buildings,theydidituntiladepthof50metres.YEUsengineerwhowasatthe
sitetosupervisetheconstructionofthestiltedhousesaskedthesurveyors,why
they did the sounding so deep, because usually 15 metres is deep enough.
Unfortunately,hedidnotreceiveasatisfactoryanswer.Bythattime,theUSAID
surveyorscouldseethatfiveexemplaryhouseshadalreadybeenbuilt,andthe
constructionhadalreadybegunforthe113otherhouses.
(h.3.).Accordingtooneinformant,ayearbeforethe2004tsunami,asoiltesthad
alreadybeencarriedoutbycertainparties tobuildanewharbor in theBubon
riverdelta,
more
or
less
where
the
newly
rebuilt
Kuala
Bubon
village
is
located.
The testwas carried outby a teacher of the local engineering high school in
Meulaboh,andwasofquitehighstandards.
(h.4.).Before the2004 tsunami, thenearbyLhokBubonvillageat thenorthern
endoftheBubonBayhadharboredspecialships(tankers,asthelocalpeoplecall
them),carryingthecrudepalmoil(CPO)producedbyPTKaryaTanahSubur,a
member companyof theAstraAgroLestariGroup,whichhas a 5,000hectare
palm oilplantation inWestAceh.After the tsunami,PTKTSmoved itsCPO
export
to
the
Ujung
Karang
harbor
of
Meulaboh,
which
has
been
rebuilt
with
Singaporean aid. It is not unlikely that the business community on Acehs
westerncoastisinterestedinfinancingtheconstructionofanewandlargerCPO
portintheBayarea,sinceinadditiontoPTKTS,anothercompany,PTBosowa
Megapolis isopeninganewpalmoilplantation in thePangasubdistrictof the
neighboringAcehJayadistrict.
(h.5.).The(national)DepartmentofMarineandFisheryhasalreadyannounced
planstobuildanewfishauctionsite(TPI)andfisheryharborinSuakTimahat
the southern end of the Bubon Bay,with abudget of 15billionRupiah. This
informationfirst
came
from
the
Panglima
Laot
of
Samatiga
subdistrict,
who
is
alsoaKualaBubonvillager,duringourFGD inKualaBubononJuly21,2008,
andhasbeenverifiedby threeother informants inMeulabohandBandaAceh
duringthecourseofourfieldresearch.
(h.6.).TwoinformantsinMeulabohalsoinformedtheresearchteamaboutplans
tomovethecurrentferryharborfromUjungKaranginMeulabohtotheBubon
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Bay. Ferries from this port daily transport passengers, vehicles, and other
merchandisefromMeulabohtoSinabangontheislandofSimeulue.Reportedly,
another15billionRupiahhasbeenallocated for thisproject,although itsexact
locationintheBubonBayisstillunknown.However,withthediscoveryofhuge
hydrocarbon reserves northeast of Simeulue by German and Indonesian
geologists,which couldbe seen as ablessing indisguise of the 2004 tsunami
(Serambi Indonesia, February 12, 2008), marine traffic between Simeulue may
increasetremendouslyandthenewferryportwillhaveanincreasinglystrategic
value.
(h.7.).Finally, in the comingyears theremayemergeadditionalpressure from
the mining sector to build or expand the existing harbours of West Aceh,
especiallyfromthegoldminesintheSungaiMassubdistrict,wheregoldmining
hastakenplaceontheupperstretchoftheWoylaRiver,withtraditionalaswell
asmodern
techniques,
for
the
last
two
decades.
(i). Last but certainly not least, the Kuala Bubon villagers themselves have
attemptedtoutilizeallpeacefulwaystodefendtheirrightstorebuildtheirown
livelihoodaccordingtowhathasbeentheirtraditionfordecades,namelyfishing
andbuildingandrepairingfishingboats.First, theyappealedforsupport from
theWestAcehdistricthead(Bupati)andthedistrictparliament(DPRK=Dewan
PerwakilanRakyatKabupaten).WithlettersofsupportfromtheBupatiandDPRK
of West Aceh, they have gone to see the Provincial Parliament (DPRA), the
Governor
of
Aceh,
the
Aceh
Nias
Rehabilitation
&
Reconstruction
Coordination
Body(BRRNADNias),theUNcoordinatingbodyforNGOs(UNORC),andthe
USAIDAcehRoadTeamLeader, allwithout any significant result.Hence, on
July 12, 2008, the village leaders sent letters of complaints to thePresident of
Indonesia, Soesilo Bambang Yudhoyono, and to the National Human Rights
Commission (Komnas HAM).Whilewaiting for an answer from thePresident,
theyhave invitedKomnasHAM commissioners tovisit theirvillage,beforeor
afterthefastingmonth,Ramadhan.
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CONCLUSIONS:
The followingconclusionsarederived from the findings in theprevious
section:
(1).Intheiranxietytoputasignatureontheirsupportforthereconstructionof
Aceh,theUSAgencyforInternationalDevelopment(USAID)hasintroducedthe
NorthAmericanhighwaysystemintotheprovince,withoutapriordebateabout
the appropriateness of the Eisenhower system of highways into a different
country, with a completely different history and culture, and without an in
depth study into the impact of road improvement to trafficbehavior. By this
careless introductionof theEisenhowerhighwaystyle inAceh, theUSAIDand
itscorporatepartner,namelyParsonsGlobalServicesInc.,havebehavedlikean
elephant in a china store, creating hundreds ofjobs forNorthAmerican and
othernon
Acehnese
consultants
and
business
people,
without
considering
the
BerlinWalleffect,and,in thespecialcaseofKualaBubon,theadverseimpact
on efforts to revitalize the maritime and coastal culture of Acehs coastal
villagers.
(2).Thereluctanceofnationalgovernmentofficials torecognizeGAMsvictory
intheprovincialanddistrictelectionsbywithholdingAcehsprovincialbudget
for the lastsixmonths.Thishasforced theprovincialgovernment tosearchfor
alternative financial sources andhas turned toUSAID and other international
agencies
as
the
major
financial
supporters
of
the
Aceh
provincial
government.
This financial dependence on the USAID hasbeen quite detrimental for the
peopleofKualaBubon,aswellasforothervillagersalongtheUSAIDfinanced
northwestern road, since their appeals for support andunderstanding of their
ownelectedleadersoftenfallondeafears.Thisexaggeratedsenseofgratitudeto
USAIDhasblinded theprovincialbureaucratseyes to theuniquecontribution
made by the people of Kuala Bubon in rebuilding their community by
revitalizingtheircoastalandmarineculture,asrequiredbytheLoGA(LawNo.
11/2006ontheGovernmentofAceh)andbytheAugust15,2005,MoUbetween
theGovernmentofIndonesiaandtheFreeAcehMovement.
(3).Ourresearchhasalsoshownthatplayerswithdiverseeconomicinterestsare
eagertowipeKualaBubonoffthemap,sothattheexistenceofthatvillagewill
nothinderseveralplanstobuildspecialharborsalongtheBubonBay,including
a ferry harbor to transport commuters and other passengers from the Aceh
mainland to the island of Simeulue, which may becoming a new economic
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June 2008 : daily activities, children and women enjoyed their neighbourhood in Kuala Bubon
growthcentreafterthediscoveryofhugehydrocarbonreservesnortheastofthe
island.
(4).Just likebaby turtleswhohavegrownupafter reaching thesea, theKuala
Bubonpeoplehaveshowntheirresiliencetofightagainstanyattempttorelocate
them away from their traditional waters. They have refuse tobe split by a
highwaypassingthroughtheircommunity,whichlikeaBerlinWallwillpolarize
villagers living onboth sides of the highway, and are eager to invite other
villagerstojointheirstruggle.
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RECOMMENDATIONS:
In response to those conclusions, the research teamoffers the following
recommendations:
(1). Obstruction of the national governments financial obligations to the
Government of Aceh should be eliminated to avoid overdependence of the
GovernmentofAcehtoUSAIDandotherinternationalaidagencies.
(2).Theconstructionof theBandaAcehMeulabohUSAIDfinancedhighway
shouldbe temporarilyput on hold,prior to apublicdebate regarding all the
social, environmental and cultural impacts of the highway, inviting all
stakeholders,andespeciallyvillagerslivingalong theroad,andhealthworkers
who have dealt with casualties that have happened alongside the increasing
speedand
recklessness
of
drivers
after
every
improvement
of
the
road.
(3).GovernmentauthoritiesinBandaAceh,aswellasotherpersonsinvolvedin
theroadconstruction,shouldcomeandlivewiththepeopleofKualaBubonfor
ashortperiodtobeabletodiscussandappreciatetheeffortstheyhavemadein
rebuilding their livelihood and living in refugeebarracks, andunderstand the
traumawhichtheywillexperienceifthecommunityisshatteredbytheUSAID
plannedhighway.
(4).
Reconstruction
of
any
war
torn
or
disaster
torn
country
or
region
does
not
absolve thegovernment fromhaving tobe transparentandaccountable toany
developmentproject.Hence, thenationalandprovincialgovernmentshouldbe
transparentonanyandallplanneddevelopmenteffortsintheBubonBay.Only
fulltransparencyinthisfieldandareamaypreventfurtherspeculationaboutthe
motivesbehindtheUSAIDsinsistenceonshortcuttingthesocalledhorseshoe
roadaroundtheBubonBay.
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Chatterjee, Pratap (2007).High-Tech Healthcare in Iraq, Minus the Healthcare. Specialto CorpWatch, January 8.
Majuddin, Akhiruddin (n.d.).Meneropong Bantuan Berbalut Konsesi di Aceh.
Mandel, Jenny (2006). Report details problems with contract for Iraq health centers,
govexec.com, May 1.
Moses,Greg(2004).LivefromPasadena:SilhouttesofNewOrder.CounterPunch,
March29.
PuthutEA(ed.)(2007a).MenyusunSerpihanCerminRetak:MelihatDariDekat
PenangananBencanaAlamdiAcehdanNias.Yogyakarta:YAKKUM
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KehidupanNelayandiAceh.BandaAceh:YayasanRumpunBambu.
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Address: Jalan Mampang Prapatan XI No.23 Jakarta 12790 IndonesiaPhone (6221) 79196721, 79196722, Fax (6221) 7941577
Email:[email protected],www.infid.org