We, the Civil Society Coalition for Disaster Concern, consisting of the Legal Aid Institute of Banda Aceh (LBH Banda Aceh), Aceh Transparent Society (MATA), the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) Banda Aceh, Indonesian Justice and Peace Foundation/Yayasan Keadilan dan Perdamaian Indonesia (YKPI), and the International Conference on Aceh and Indian Ocean Studies (ICAIOS) urge the President of the Republic of Indonesia to immediately declare a National Disaster Emergency Status in response to the major floods devastating the provinces of Aceh, North Sumatra, and West Sumatra.
Severe flooding that occurred from 26–28 November 2025 across these three provinces has caused extraordinary impacts, including loss of life, extensive infrastructure damage, destruction of property, and the paralysis of community economic and social activities. Thousands of residents remain isolated, tens of thousands of homes are submerged, and numerous public facilities such as schools, hospitals, bridges, and national roads connecting provinces and districts/cities have suffered heavy damage.
In several areas, transportation access has been completely cut off, preventing the delivery of logistical aid. This situation is worsened by shortages of essential goods, leaving communities in hunger, along with power outages and collapsed communication networks, which further hinder emergency response efforts.
These conditions demonstrate that local government capacities are no longer sufficient to manage this widespread disaster, especially given severe fiscal limitations at the provincial level particularly in Aceh making sustained disaster management efforts impossible for an event of this scale.
Declaring a National Disaster Emergency is strongly supported by existing legal frameworks, including Law No. 24/2007 on Disaster Management; Government Regulation No. 21/2008 on the Implementation of Disaster Management; Presidential Regulation No. 17/2018 on Disaster Management in Certain Conditions; and other relevant guidelines for establishing emergency status.
These regulations outline several indicators for declaring a National Disaster Emergency, including:
- large numbers of casualties or displaced people,
- significant material losses,
- widespread impacted areas, and
- disruption of public services and government functions.
In addition, National Disaster Emergency Status must be declared when affected provinces can no longer mobilize adequate human resources and logistical support for disaster response, including evacuation, rescue, and fulfilment of basic needs.
In Aceh, several districts/municipalities have officially declared that they are unable to manage the disaster. Field conditions further show inadequate evacuation efforts and logistical distribution due to damaged transportation routes and disrupted telecommunications. The situation in North Sumatra and West Sumatra is similarly critical, as reflected in widespread media reports.
Based on these conditions, we call on the President of the Republic of Indonesia to immediately declare the major floods affecting Aceh, North Sumatra, and West Sumatra as a National Disaster Emergency, as a concrete form of state presence in fulfilling the basic rights of victims and affected communities. We also urge the Governors of Aceh, North Sumatra, and West Sumatra to jointly request President Prabowo Subianto to enact this status.
Banda Aceh, 29 November 2025.
Contact Person:
- Alfian +62 812 6563 2151 – Aceh Transparent Society (MATA)
- Rahmad Maulidin +62 8227 2616 881 – Legal Aid Institute of Banda Aceh (LBH Banda Aceh)
- Reza Munawir +62 8216 3966 634 – Alliance of Independent Journalist (AJI) Banda Aceh
- Syahrul +62 8539 8692 548 – Yayasan Keadilan dan Perdamaian Indonesia (YKPI)
- Reza Idria +62 8116 827 717 – International Conference on Aceh and Indian Ocean Studies