Survivors of the Sunda Strait tsunami take refuge on Thursday (12/27/2018) in a makeshift hut in the middle of a rice field at Kampung Paniis, Taman Jaya of Sumur district, Pandeglang, Banten. The residents left their coastal village in anticipation of another tsunami.
Ziah Husna, 6, was all smiles. She was laughing heartily when musician Jodhi Yudono, 55, played his ukulele and encouraged dozens of women and children who had survived the Sunda Strait tsunami to sing with him. Jodhi peppered his performance with jokes that made everybody laugh, including Ziah. He was entertaining disaster survivors on Thursday (12/27/2018) at a shelter in Sukarame village, Carita district, Pandeglang, Banten.
Pandeglang, where Jodhi played, was the region worst hit by the tsunami, which had allegedly been triggered on Saturday evening (22/12) by an undersea landslide at Mt. Anak Krakatau in the Sunda Strait. When the tsunami hit, the local people ran for their lives towards higher ground. However, even after the waves had receded, their trauma and fears remained.
Jodhi’s show helped the survivors deal with their trauma. When he sang, hints of cheer appeared on the survivors’ faces that had been absent since the disaster struck.
Ziah, for instance, was singing with her friends. For her courage, Ziah was given a teddy bear, notebooks, biscuits and boxes of milk. The smile of the first-grader at SDN 1 Sukarame state elementary school grew even more.
“I am your friend. Behind you, there are many Indonesian children. They are your friends, too. You must never be afraid that you will be hungry or lonely,” Jodhi said, reassuring the children.
Jodhi improvised the songs he sang. A kompas.com journalist, he had come to Pandeglang on his own, seeking nothing in return.
“When disasters strike, they seem to be calling for me to visit. It is like God is giving me the task to entertain those affected by disasters,” he said.
The joy of children was also seen at a shelter in Rancateureup village, Labuan district, Pandeglang, where a group of clowns from the I Am an Indonesian Clown (ABI) troupe had arrived to visit them. The children were laughing and jumping around the clowns.
One by one, the clowns showed off their acrobatic skills, juggling balls and spinning plates, as well as magic tricks. The clowns also cracked jokes that made the children laugh.
Nothing in return
The clowns’ act appeared to help the disaster survivors overcome their sorrow, especially the children. This was the goal of the Jakarta-based ABI troupe. They
came to the tsunami-affected area freely, wishing only to help the survivors, who may have lost loved ones, to get past their trauma.
“This [Thursday] is our first day in Banten. Nobody called us to make this visit, we just wanted to entertain the people here,” said ABI co-founder Dedi Delon, 50, who is also a clown.
At an indoor tennis court that was turned into a temporary shelter in Kalianda, South Lampung, Lampung, children found joy in a 15-square-meter tent filled with toys. Ratna, 8, and Putri, 5, laughed as they played in an inflatable pool filled with plastic balls. They threw the balls around and teased each other. Not far from them, Second Brig. Feni Yunita Sari sat and smiled. Feni was tasked with making sure that the child survivors of the recent tsunami were happy.
Mental health
Elis, 30, from Sebesi Island, said that she was grateful for the trauma healing efforts. She said that her two toddlers were again cheerful, thanks to the trauma healing post at the Lampung Police station. “They are entertained here. There are games that restore their cheer and divert their attention away from the disaster,” she said.
Lampung Police psychology unit head Adj. Sr. Comr. Isti Rahayu said that psychosocial first aid (PFA), also known as trauma healing, was extremely important for the mental health of children who had survived disasters.
Indonesian Child Protection Agency (LPAI) chair and child psychologist Seto Muyadi said that children were prone to trauma after living through disasters.
“They can experience difficulties sleeping and concentrating. They can develop aggressive behavior, which may include prolonged anger. This is why trauma healing is important to help calm them,” said Seto, or Kak (Brother) Seto, on his visit to the Labuan shelter.
It is hoped that disaster survivors are able to go on with their lives once they have healed from their trauma. (ILO/BAY/NIA/MTK/SPW/IGA/E10/E17)
