“It was cancelled because of the disaster situation. I will only send a video message to Turkey. The event runs from December 5–8, and I am monitoring gas distribution in Banda Aceh,” Illiza told ANTARA on Tuesday.
Illiza had been invited by Turkey’s AK Party, a conservative center-right political party, to attend the “Women in Local Government Summit” in Istanbul, which gathers female leaders, mayors and city councillors from around the world.
She said her travel request had been forwarded by Aceh Governor Muzakir Manaf to the Home Affairs Minister, who approved it since Banda Aceh had no major issues at the time.
However, Illiza said she felt uneasy about leaving during a crisis, even though the flood situation in Banda Aceh was largely under control. The city still depends heavily on Medan for food supplies, she noted, which requires continued oversight.
“I kept thinking about it — leaving just didn’t feel right. Even if the floods in Banda Aceh are under control, there are still problems because we rely on Medan for food and other supplies,” she said.
“This is our challenge. May Allah guide Aceh through this very difficult disaster,” Illiza added.
Earlier, the head of South Aceh District, Mirwan, left for the Umrah pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia amid ongoing flooding and disaster response efforts in his region.
On Tuesday, the Minister of Home Affairs, Tito Karnavian, temporarily suspended Mirwan from his position for three months.
Aceh Governor Muzakir Manaf had previously rejected Mirwan’s request for an overseas travel permit.
The request was denied because Aceh is under a hydrometeorological disaster emergency response status, including South Aceh District, which had declared its own emergency response status for flood and landslide management based on a decree issued by Mirwan.
Translator: Resinta Sulistiyandari
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
Copyright © ANTARA 2025
