Internet Outage and Flood in Aceh

Posted on September 8, 2007
Filed Under Indonesia, News

There is nothing worse for Indonesian bloggers in particular around the new year eve but to see the sudden temporary “demise” of internet connection.

The cause as reported by Budi Putra, Sani Asy’ari and Enda Nasution is “the strong quake off Taiwan’s coast on December 26 damaged submarine cables and severely disrupted telecom links in the East, Southeast and South Asia.”

That makes almost 90 percent of Indonesia’s internet connection disfunctional or very slow. According to Yulian Firdaus, quoting from a portal media, the recovery could take “as long as as one month” during which Indonesian online activities will witness the lowest traffic ever. Certainly one month, if it’s true, a way too much for an internet addicts like Enda Nasution who wonders whether this is “what end of days feel like.”

Some Indonesian bloggers who are fortunate enough to still have internet connection like Willy Sudiarto Raharjo, still complains over how slow the connection is. Not to say how low the traffic to his blog could be.

Flood in Aceh

Exactly two years after the Tsunami, one of the biggest natural disaster ever happened, Aceh again has to face another natural calamity. Although it’s not as big as Tsunami, the loss and severe it afflicts to the Acehnese is unbearable.

70,000 people has been evacuated or are fleeing home taking refuge in neighboring area. About 60 people dead.

So much to “celebrate” a New Year 2007 for Indonesian in general and Indonesian bloggers in particular.

Originally posted in Global Voices Online