Banda Aceh - The Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam (NAD) provincial administration has urged the Foreign Ministry to help settle the cases of some 24,000 Acehnese in Malaysia currently facing the threat of deportation.
"Indeed, it is the Foreign Ministry`s duty to tackle the problem. We hope the central government will handle it soon," Muhammad Nazar, NAD`s vice governor, said here on Tuesday.
Nazar made the remarks in responding to reports that 24,000 Acehnese who had been living in the neighboring country carrying only "tsunami cards" were facing the prospect of being deported.
A devastating tsunami hit Aceh in December 2004 killing or causing the disappearance of more than 200,000 people in the most-western province and in Nias district in North Sumatra.
Reports said, after the tragedy, many of the survivors went to Malaysia to find jobs.
Although it was the central government`s duty to settle the matter, the Aceh administration would also help the former tsunami victims to overcome their problem, Nazar said.
Meanwhile, Nasir Djamil, a House of Representatives (DPR) member hailing from Aceh, said before the 24,000 Acehnese were actually deported by the Malaysian government, the Aceh administration should prepare job opportunities for them so that they would not become a social problem in Aceh.
Source: www.antara.co.id (06/10/08)
