Indonesian couple reunited with children 10 years after tsunami
In June, this Indonesian couple reunited with their daughter 10 years after a tsunami snatched her from their arms.
On Tuesday, they said they have also found their son, who was also swept away in the disaster.
Jamaliah and her husband Septi Rangkuti had an emotional reunion Monday with the teenager they believe is their long-lost son, bringing their whole family together for the first time in 10 years.
The teenager has lived homeless for years, sleeping in outdoor markets and abandoned shops.
Arif Pratama Rangkuti, now 17, was carried off with his younger sister when the devastating 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami slammed into Indonesia’s westernmost Aceh province, killing more than 170,000 people there and tens of thousands in other countries.
Arif’s sister Raudhatul Jannah was reunited with the parents in June after a relative spotted a girl in an Aceh village who bore a striking resemblance to her.
On Tuesday the couple said their son had now also been returned, thanks to this month’s huge media coverage of their “miracle” reunion with their daughter.
“It’s true, he’s our son. We’re now preparing to take him home,” Rangkuti told AFP, explaining that the boy had lived for years as a street kid on the island of Sumatra.
Jamaliah, speaking in the town of Payakumbuh in West Sumatra province, wept as she clutched the teenager, who seemed shy and overwhelmed.
“I prayed every night, because inside I believed that my child was still alive,” she told reporters.
“My husband has always been restless at home because of this. He would say that our son is still alive.”
The family were reunited at the home of a couple who found the boy one night asleep outside the Internet cafe they run in Payakumbuh.
Source: AFP
Get The New Paper on your phone with the free TNP app. Download from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store now