"WAN invites its members to consider sending financial aid, however modest, to our colleagues at the Serambi Indonesia Daily, who are continuing to do their job of informing the people in this devastated area, under the most appalling conditions," said Timothy Balding, Director General of the Paris-based WAN.

Half of the company’s 200 workers were killed, the printing plant was destroyed, and the newspaper offices were heavily damaged, said Sentrijanto, the Director of PT Indopersda Primamedia, a holding company for 10 Indonesian newspapers, including Serambi Indonesia. Many survivors lost family members, and most of their homes were destroyed.

Yet the newspaper, located in Banda Aceh, one of the hardest hit localities, was able to resume publication five days after the disaster, bringing essential information to local people on where to find food, medical help, and news of relatives, family and friends.

It did this by publishing from a small impromptu office and printing at a second plant in Lhokseumawe, a five-hour drive from Banda Aceh. The newspaper was distributed for free for nearly two weeks following the disaster and is now sold for 1,500 rupiah (16 US cents).

"Most of the reporters and workers lost their families, lost their houses, lost everything they had," said Sentrijanto. "The company spends money everyday without revenue as there are no advertisements and they were distributing the newspaper for free."

"How could they publish the newspaper five days after the disaster, with half the reporters and workers lost? The answer is, they feel it is their responsibility as the only local newspaper published in Aceh," he said.

Even in the best of times, the newspaper faces difficulties as it publishes in a region struggling with a violent independence movement. Circulation is generally between 25,000 and 30,000 daily and has fallen to 10,000 since the disaster.

For information on how to contribute to Serambi Indonesia, contact Sentrijanto at sentrijanto@persda.co.id.

The Alliance of Independent Journalists in Indonesia is also accepting donations for Indonesian journalists and families. For information on how to contribute, contact sekretariatnya_AJI@yahoo.com.

A list of organisations that are collecting donations for journalists and press worldwide can be found on the International Journalists Network, by clicking here.

The Paris-based WAN, the global organisation for the newspaper industry, defends and promotes press freedom world-wide. It represents 18,000 newspapers; its membership includes 72 national newspaper associations, individual newspaper executives in 102 countries, 10 news agencies and ten regional and world-wide press groups.

Inquiries to: Larry Kilman, Director of Communications, WAN, 7 rue Geoffroy St Hilaire, 75005 Paris France. Tel: +33 1 47 42 85 00. Fax: +33 1 47 42 49 48. Mobile: +33 6 10 28 97 36. E-mail: lkilman@wan.asso.fr.