Posted on 01/06/2005 6:07:28 PM PST by Fitzcarraldo
Bireuen, Acehkita.
Five villages that were hit by the tsunmai in Kecamatan Samalanga Kabupaten Bireun, are going to hold a ritual feast (kenduri) today (6/1). The ceremony will be done as way of marking their return to the sea, one week after the natural disaster.
The ceremony will be held at the edge of the shore in Ulee Kareung Village, a place that was swept clean by the tsunami. Several other villages, including Tamboe, Ara, Peuneulet Baroh, Cureh Baroh, dan Cureng Tunong will also participate in the event.
Muhammad (30) a resident of Cureh Baroh who was interviewed by acehkita, Wednesday (5/1) said, he is going to come back to his village to organize the kenduri feast. He says that fishermen gained courage to return to the sea came as the after hearing a ulama from the pesantren Syuhada gave a sermon and advice to the refugees.
Muhammad said that in his sermon the ulama urged that all residents return to the sea without fear, because the calamity did not originate with humankind.
"The almighty God can implement His will whenever and wherever. Our hope is that there will be no more ordeals like this one," the ulama said, according to Muhammad.
After having a ritual meal with special foods such as iee bu and apam, all members of the community will sit and pray together. They are convinced; the decision to return to sea has been agreed upon, and they have decided that this ceremony will be held each year.
"We pray to God to help us earn a living and to keep us safe from danger, because our livelihood is in the sea," said Fatimah, whose husband is also a fisherman.
Not yet Returned to Sea
Meanwhile, in Krueng Mane, Aceh Utara, one of the areas hardest hit by the tsunami, fishermen in the villages of Tanoh Anoe and Ie Rop, have not yet decided to return to the sea. Tana Anoe and Ie Rop have lost hundreds of residents to the tsunami.
In Meuraksa, Lhokseumawe City, and Pusong, until Wednesday (5/1) there were also no signs that the fishermen were ready to return to the sea. In this coastal area, many homes were covered in water. This is different from the coast of Ujong Blang Lhokseumawe, which escaped the tsunami. However during high tides caused by the full moon, hundreds of villagers homes in this region have been submerged. Yet at the time of tsunami, this coastal area was safe.[dan]
(English version by: Janet Steele)
Clearly they have not gotten the message from Greenpeace that George W. Bush caused this earthquake by his causing "global warming".
Gotta keep on keepin' on ....
Blessing of the fleet? I know, that's a Christian thing.
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