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Disaster Risk Reduction in Indonesia pp 357–376Cite as

The Role of the Panglima Laot Customary Institution in the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami Recovery in Aceh

Part of the Disaster Risk Reduction book series (DRR)

Abstract

This chapter presents an examination of the role of the Panglima Laot (translation: sea commander) customary institution in the recovery of fisheries communities in Aceh following the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, as well as the roles and relationships of other actors from the perspective of the Panglima Laot local leaders and institution. The roles of the Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Agency (BRR) of Aceh-Nias, the local government and international and local non-governmental organizations (NGO) are also analyzed in order to understand the broader recovery process, the interactions between these different stakeholders, and the types of loss and damage systems relevant to coastal fishing communities affected by the tsunami.

Based on a review of the academic literature, an analysis of documents published by humanitarian and government organizations engaged in Aceh’s recovery and key informant interviews with representatives of Panglima Laot, local government agencies and international and local humanitarian organizations, our findings show that the Panglima Laot leaders and institution were instrumental in the recovery of Aceh’s coastal fishing communities. Importance lies in the trust people have in the institution and its community leaders; their role as mediators between communities, government and NGOs, and their leadership in implementing, monitoring and evaluating livelihood recovery programmes that address community needs. External agencies recognized these capacities and some provided financial and technical support to strengthen the institution further.

In conclusion, we argue that the case of the Panglima Laot, positioned within the context of wide-scale disaster recovery interventions, offers lessons for actors engaged in localized post-disaster operations that aim to build resilience. Lessons in particular are around the importance of leadership, community engagement and people-centered recovery approaches.

Keywords

  • Indian Ocean Tsunami 2004
  • Panglima Laot
  • Disaster recovery
  • Build back better
  • Loss and damage
  • Resilience

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Acknowledgements

This chapter presents a case study of a research project, Longer-term (5–10 years) recovery following major disasters in the Asia Pacific Region: Lessons for resilient development, led by the Stockholm Environment (SEI) with research partners in Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam and Indonesia, and funded by the Asia-Pacific Network for Global Change Research (APN). For more information about this project, please go to http://www.sei-international.org/projects?prid=2117. The authors wish to express sincere thanks APN and SEI, to all interviewees who agreed to take part in this research, Bilal R Pahlevie for his facilitation and support in Aceh, and members of the research project team who provided valuable comments and intellectual guidance to earlier drafts of this chapter.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Stockholm Environment Institute, Bangkok, Thailand

    Michael Boyland, Agus Nugroho & Frank Thomalla

Authors
  1. Michael Boyland
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  2. Agus Nugroho
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  3. Frank Thomalla
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Michael Boyland .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. United Nations University – Institute for Environment and Human Security (UNU-EHS), Bonn, Germany

    Riyanti Djalante

  2. United Nations University – Institute for Environment and Human Security (UNU-EHS), Bonn, Germany

    Matthias Garschagen

  3. Stockholm Environment Institute, Bangkok, Thailand

    Frank Thomalla

  4. Keio University, Fujisawa, Japan

    Rajib Shaw

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Boyland, M., Nugroho, A., Thomalla, F. (2017). The Role of the Panglima Laot Customary Institution in the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami Recovery in Aceh. In: Djalante, R., Garschagen, M., Thomalla, F., Shaw, R. (eds) Disaster Risk Reduction in Indonesia. Disaster Risk Reduction. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-54466-3_14

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