While no two natural disasters are exactly the same, Indonesia's
experience in recovering from its 2004 tsunami may provide some
lessons for authorities and assistance organizations grappling
with the natural disaster that struck Japan. The tsunami that
hit Indonesia's Aceh province killed more than 160,000 people.
For Kuntoro Mangkusubroto, the dramatic footage of the
destruction caused by the March 11 tsunami that inundated the
coast of Japan brought back memories of the days following the
2004 Indian Ocean tsunami that killed more than 230,000 people
in 11 countries. Two thirds of those died in Indonesia's Aceh
province. "What happened after the tsunami hit is a total,
complete chaos. Nobody knows what to do. The local government is
not functioning well. Everyone [wants] to help, then you don't
know where to go," Mangkusubroto said. He was the head of
Indonesia's Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Agency that was
formed four months after the tsunami hit Indonesia. The nuclear
crisis in Japan makes humanitar