VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

People's Consultative Assembly (MPR RI) Deputy Speaker Ahmad Muzani. (ANTARA/Khalis) - 

People's Consultative Assembly (MPR RI) Deputy Speaker Ahmad Muzani lauded the infrastructure development in Aceh in the aftermath of the devastating earthquake and tsunami that hit the province on December 26, 2004.

“I am quite amazed, and surprised that various types of infrastructure have been constructed here (in Aceh). This shows that Aceh continues to inspire other provinces,” he said in an event held to mark the 17th anniversary of the Aceh tsunami, here, on Sunday.

Muzani assessed that since the beginning of Indonesia's independence, Aceh has been giving Indonesia precious lessons with the various events, conflicts, and disasters that the people have gone through.

The catastrophe that rattled the province in 2004 was the Boxing Day tsunami that took the lives of more than 200 thousand Aceh residents.

The MPR deputy speaker said that at the time of the disaster, it felt like the future of Aceh was dark as children lost their parents, and parents lost their children, while houses, schools, and markets were destroyed. Aceh, however, could rise again.

“The people of Aceh have the ability to stand strong for the future. That is what they have been proving up until now, 17 years after (the tsunami). Aceh always inspire and strengthen our beloved country,” he remarked.

He assessed that the Acehnese people get power from the knowledge taught by the ulama. The strength of that faith has also made the residents accept the tsunami as a disaster while also keep moving towards a better future.

“The lesson from all of this is that Aceh has become a safe and united province; no more conflicts, no more problems. Aceh's residents have faced a wide range of difficulties, and finally, Aceh has become the province that is quite developed like now," he remarked.

To this end, he expressed hope that people in Aceh and all provinces across Indonesia would keep moving forward and stay united//ANT

A resident attends a photo exhibition held by the Indonesian Photojournalist Association (PFI) of Aceh Chapter to commemorate 17 years of Aceh's deadly earthquake and tsunami. (ANTARA/HO/PFI Aceh) - 

The Indonesian Photojournalist Association (PFI)-Aceh Chapter held a photo exhibition on December 25-26 to commemorate 17 years of deadly earthquake and tsunami that rattled Aceh Province on December 26, 2004.

“This exhibition is aimed at reminding us of not forgetting the events that had devastated Aceh. It is aimed to remind us of the dangers of COVID-19," Chairperson of PFI-Aceh Chapter Bedu Saini said here Saturday.

The photo exhibition-related activities are centered at the Lampulo Floating Boat and Ulee Lheue Port, Banda Aceh.

Saini said the exhibition is an annual event that the association holds to exhibit the works, shot by photojournalists from various parts of Aceh, Indonesia's westernmost province which is situated on the northern tip of Sumatra Island. 

He revealed that the theme chosen for this year's exhibition was 'Pandemic Tsunami,' which was intended to remind people of the fact that the COVID-19 pandemic has not ended yet. Thus, the public is still demanded to comply with the health protocols.

Head of the exhibition’s organizing committee, Eko Deni Saputra, said that the event exhibits a total of 71 journalistic photos, 17 of which are post-tsunami works of Bedu Saini and M Anshar.

"Specifically, the 17 journalistic photos displayed at Ulee Lheue Port are related to the 2004 earthquake and tsunami. We purposely chose to exhibit 17 photographs (there) because we are commemorating the 17th anniversary of the tsunami this year," he explained.

Meanwhile, at the Lampulo Floating Boat, the association exhibits as many as 54 photographs related to the handling and prevention of COVID-19 in Aceh.

"The journalistic photos are the works of Aceh PFI members who work for local and international media outlets," Saputra remarked//ANT

Photo archive. A student being vaccinated in Kulon Progo, Yogyakarta. (ANTARA PHOTOS/Sutarmi/my) - 

A total of 12,235 or 34.5 percent of 35,457 children aged six to 11 in Kulon Progo District, Yogyakarta, had received the first dose of COVID-19 vaccine, Head of the district's health office, Sri Budi Utami, said.

"As of December 24, 2021, the COVID-19 vaccination rate for children in age bracket of 6-11 years old has reached 12,235 targets. We are optimistic that the vaccination rate can be higher because the cumulative from December 25-26 has yet to be included in (the manual report)," Utami, said in Kulon Progo on Sunday.

For the next five days, the Health Office, assisted by the Military, Police, regional State Intelligence Agency, and other related institutions such as the Muhammadiyah COVID-19 Command Center, would collaborate to vaccinate the targeted children, she said.

"We are optimistic that by the end of this year, the vaccination rate for children 6-11 years old can reach 100 percent of the total 35,457 targets," Utami remarked.

To this end, the Health Office had prepared a special team that would monitor adverse event following immunization among these children, she said, adding that the monitoring team would provide a telephone number that could be contacted immediately should there by any of these children who experience adverse event after COVID-19 immunization.

"The team personnel will take action quickly if needed, so that the (adverse event) of child vaccination can be minimized as much as possible," he said.

Spokesperson of Kulon Progo COVID-19 Task Force Baning Rahayujati said that overall, the first dose of vaccination had been administered to 311,224 people, or 82.3 percent of the total 378,177 targeted residents. As for the second dose, it had been jabbed to 264,646 people, or almost 70 percent of the vaccination target.

"We are trying to expedite the first and second doses of vaccine. Both are going on at the same time. We are also expediting COVID-19 vaccination for children aged 6-11 years old," Rahayujati added//ANT

Seger Beach in Mandalika Special Economic Zone - 

A picturesque beach in the Mandalika Special Economic Zone of Kuta Village in Pujut Sub-district, Central Lombok District, West Nusa Tenggara Province, has started to garner some crowds during this year's Christmas holiday.

Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, local tourists from various parts of Lombok Island were seen mingling at Kuta Beach on Sunday. They came to the tourist destination by motorcycles and cars.

Traffic from Praya City to Mandalika SEZ was, however, running well. There  was no traffic congestion, and the sky also looked good as it was sunny and cloudy.

Several tourists were seen taking selfies with the sign of 'Kuta Mandalika' as the background while many others were bathing on the white-sand beach.

One of the visitors, Eny from Praya City, said that she and her friends had come on vacation to the SEZ to see the beauty of Kuta Beach.

"We want to take a vacation as it is Sunday,"she said.

Eny and her friends chose Kuta Beach as destination for their vacation because of its short distance to their home. It only took them 30 minutes to come and see the panoramic beauty of Kuta beach firsthand.

"Besides (the destination) being close, it's also fun to go on vacation to the beach, and (we) can play in the water, and see the Mandalika Circuit," they said.

The Central Lombok Police Chief Adjunct Senior Commissioner Hery Indra Cahyono stated that all tourist attractions in the area would be monitored and secured by the police during the year end holidays in order to anticipate the emergence of the Omicron variant of coronavirus.

"The security is (meant) to oversee the adherence to COVID-19 health protocol," Cahyono added.

In addition to guarding tourist attractions, his administrations and some more officers would also be dispatched to regulate the traffic and guard churches in Praya.

During the Christmas and New Year holidays, there would be a possible increase of travel, particularly to tourist attractions. To prevent crowds, surveillance would still be imposed, he said, adding that some 150 personnel would be deployed to secure the places.

They would be assisted by the personnel of national defense force, public order officer, and the Transportation Office, he said.

He also expected that the public will continue to comply with the COVID-19 health protocols by wearing masks, washing their hands, and keeping themselves at proper distance. Those measures were to anticipate a spike in new cases of COVID-19 in Central Lombok.

"We urge the residents not to visit tourist attractions during the Christmas and New Year holiday season," he said//ANT