ISLAMIC RELIEF’S OFFICES IN ACEH BURNED.

25^th December 2006. Islamic Relief’s offices in Meulaboh, West Aceh, Indonesia have been burned by local people. Motives for the attack appear to be accusations that Islamic Relief has been collaborating too closely with the Indonesian government in its aid programmes in Aceh. Islamic Relief’s largest operations in Meulaboh were in partnership with the Indonesian government’s Education and Health Ministries: Three new schools with the former and a clinic with the latter. . Islamic Relief’s other partners in numerous large scale projects in Aceh are CAFOD (a Catholic Charity) and the DEC (British government coordinated collective of British based Agencies, of which Islamic relief is the only “Islamic” one).

In Achinese eyes the Indonesian government is more closely associated to robbery, graft and corruption in Aceh than it is with reconstruction or in any way providing humanitarian aid to the Achinese. For decades the Achinese people’s experience of the Indonesian government has been from the receiving end of a military iron fist.

Local Achinese claim that this ostensibly Islamic organization has not sought to understand the particular problems and circumstances of their brothers in faith, when designing its Aid and reconstruction projects but instead chose to collaborate with Aceh’s oppressors. Other grievances are than very few Achinese have been employed by Islamic relief’s considerable operation. Their offices in Meulaboh are mainly staffed by Javanese.

Coming on the second anniversary of the tsunami disaster of Dec 26^th 2004, those that perpetrated the burning appear to have sought to voice their grievances against the Agency in as clear and public way as possible. Feelings are running increasingly high against the Jakarta Government and the Javanese since the Peace Agreement between GAM and the Central government in August 2005, as people are freer to voice their opinions and the brutal treatment of the Achinese by the TNI (Indonesian Army). Are viewed in retrospect. Local feelings are that Islamic Relief has betrayed their best interests and have contributed less to their gain than to their loss and disadvantage. In any case it looks as if Islamic Relief will have to re-examine its Aid policies in Aceh.