Mennonite Central Committee

School uniforms for students in tsunami-ravaged area

Emily Will
April 18, 2005

When schools began to reopen here in early February, many students attended in their street clothes - oftentimes their only set of clothing - because their possessions had been buried under collapsed buildings or snatched by the sea in the December 26, 2004, earthquake and tsunami.

New Uniforms

Now the young teens pictured here - students at the MTsN Lhoknga Islamic junior high in the city's Lamlhom neighborhood - sport new uniforms and shoes and carry new backpacks filled with replacement texts and supplies.

They received the back-to-school products in mid-March, thanks to the efforts of an MCC partner organization, and with $64,440 Cdn./$53,100 U.S. in funding from MCC.

Needed back-to-school basics

The partner, known as the Center for Education and Development and representing faculty and staff of the State Institute of Islamic Studies Iain Ar-Raniry, surveyed 10 camps for displaced persons in the city and identified 1,240 elementary, junior- and senior-high students in need of back-to-school basics.

Many of the faculty members said they had lost spouses or children in the tsunami. This outreach to youngsters allowed them to grieve their losses while helping others who had also suffered.

As well, having school needs met "helps students regain enthusiasm to face their future," said Mujiburrahman, the group's director.

Mujiburrahman and other group members went to no small pains to gather the school items. They searched for the correct sizes of uniforms and shoes, as well as the correct textbooks, for each child.

Continuing Plans

The students responded to the supplies with such gratitude and happiness that the Center for Education and Development is preparing a repeat performance. They are now purchasing the same items for a number of other students.