Tsunami and Sharia
Sunday Times: Tsunami survivors given the lash
Disaster donations help Islamic vigilante force impose punishments on women
As the man who managed the Stingy List, I can say without fear that this story is tripe, balderdash, hooey.
Readers of this blog have known for years that sharia is a growing menace in Indonesia. The formerly august Sunday Times of London conflates the growth of sharia with the donations for tsunami relief without producing one iota of evidence.
Indeed, buried in the story is the good news. The peace between the rebels and the national government is holding. The first free election in Aceh history was just held successfully. And… a former rebel has been elected Governor. It doesn’t get much better than this.
There is no evidence that any donations have been diverted to the religious police. At worst, tens of dollars have been freed up to pay these thugs. Other than a flat statement that local governments are paying them, however, no evidence is produced to support the claim.
Please also note the anonymous quote from the UN official. They’re well known for their honesty, right?
The area that the tsunami devastated is recovering slowly, for similar and for differing reasons.
Indonesia is a struggling democracy. Many of the planning functions we assume are part of a government do not exist or do not operate very well. Indonesian culture also does not operate at a 24/7 Western pace. Indonesia is attempting to comply with Western NGO and UN demands for city planning while dealing with hundreds of thousands of people who just want to move home and go back to work. The fly-in, fly-out NGOs and the UN have their noses out of joint because the Indonesians won’t do exactly what these foreigners want.
Sri Lank is an example of what could have happened in Aceh. The national government has refused to allow much of the aid to reach the rebel-held areas stricken by the tsunami. In non-rebel areas they are working quite well with the fly-ins, having insisted that fishing villages move well inland and making the beaches available for tourism.
Thailand has recovered the best, but the Islamic rebellion has grown in proportion to that recovery, harming the tourist business.
Burma has denied all along that they suffered any damage. The Chinese Communists have an extensive network of companies and even a base or two on that coast.
India has endured multiple claims of corruption concerning its management of the aid on their mainland. In the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, because of Indian military interests, the natives are being forced to abandon their homes and life styles.
Region-wide, the UN has stopped aid groups from providing fishing boats to the villages who lost their boats in the tsunami. The UN has determined that the region is over fished and so it is refusing to allow fishermen to have fishing boats.
I cannot stress enough that there are some very effective aid organizations. All of them have people on the ground 24/7, and nearly all of them are religion-based. You cannot provide aid from an office in London, Geneva or Jakarta. You have to be on site.
This story is typical of the attacks launched by the fly-ins and the UN. When the locals want a say in their future, or when they have different ideas, these stories pop up. The election in Aceh means that the “cooperative” government has been forced out and a truly local government elected. The UN and the fly-ins “just can’t work with these people”.
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