Banda Aceh - On February 25, 2014, ICAIOS Executive Director and other staff members welcomed a group of students from the Department of Malay Studies of the National University of Singapore (NUS). The students were led by Dr. Sher Banu A. L. Khan. Some key ICAIOS team members and several local scholars such as Prof. Amirul Hadi, Dr. Kamaruzzaman Bustaman Ahmad, Dr. Eka Srimulyani, Nurdin AR, and some other scholars who focus their research on the issues of Aceh attended the meeting. Here, the students want to discuss different issues about Aceh with the scholars.
In her introduction, Dr. Sher Banu A. L. Khan stated the students were encouraged to visit Aceh because Aceh is considered an important part of the Malay world and many issues on Aceh still need further research and scrutiny. This is particularly important because Aceh, in the past, had managed to lead one of the most advance civilizations in Southeast Asia. Prof. Amirul Hadi of the State Islamic University of (UIN) Ar-Raniry, briefly described past, present, and future Aceh. As a professor of Islamic Studies and history, Prof. Amirul Hadi contended that Acehnese people are actually more open and tolerant towards diversity and religious freedom, if compared with other ethnic groups in Indonesia.
The Executive Director of ICAIOS, Dr. Saiful Mahdi, in his welcoming remarks, stated that ICAIOS, as an international center, is happy to assist both national and international scholars who want to conduct research on various topics in Aceh. Dr. Saiful Mahdi also briefly talked about ICAIOS’ regular activities and some project-based programs ICAIOS had in the past.
While in Aceh, the students also visited major tsunami memorial sites in Banda Aceh and Aceh Besar as well as visited Aceh Museum, which hosts various types of manuscripts, and artifacts inherited by civilizations (kingdoms) once thrived in Aceh.