The medal was bestowed by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to Brigadier General Lukmansyah, a special staff of Indonesia's National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB), in a ceremony held in Turkey on April 24-25.
According to a press statement of the Indonesian Embassy in Ankara received here on Thursday, the Government of Turkey awarded the medals to the representatives of countries that had assisted the quake victims.
The State Superior Sacrifice Medal Award Ceremony held by the Turkish Government was attended by the representatives of 90 diplomatic missions in Turkey, the Indonesian Embassy revealed.
"On behalf of the Indonesian Government, we thank you for the medal given," Lukmansyah was quoted as saying.
On February 6, 2023, a 7.8-magnitude earthquake jolted southern and central Turkey and northern and western Syria, reportedly killing 50,783 people in Turkey and 8,476 others in Syria.
In his speech, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he highly lauded all countries that had sent their SAR and humanitarian workers for sincerely assisting his people in the disaster zones.
Speaking in connection with Turkey's medal, Indonesian Ambassador to Turkey Lalu Muhamad Iqbal said it was a pleasure for Indonesians to be with their Turkish brothers and sisters when they needed help last February.
The people of Turkey always arrive early anytime Indonesia needs help since its pre-independence era until the eras of catastrophes in Aceh and Palu, Central Sulawesi, and the strike of the Delta variant of COVID-19, he stated.
Ambassador Lalu Muhamad Iqbal said Indonesia sent SAR and emergency medical teams, built a field hospital in Hatay Province, transported humanitarian aid, including 59 containers of food, and deployed Indonesian Air Force's C-130 Hercules' logistics mission for more than a month.
For Indonesia, its humanitarian mission in Turkey was recorded as the "biggest" in its history, he added.
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Translator: Yashinta DP, Rahmad Nasution
Editor: Tia Mutiasari
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