Acehnese indifferent to general elections<\/p>\n
Nani Farida, The Jakarta Post, Banda Aceh, Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam<\/p>\n
The situation in Aceh Nanggroe Darussalam at present is calmer
\nthan it has been in recent months, but it is not really very
\ndifferent from other days aside from the thousands of party flags
\nfluttering in Banda Aceh during the political campaign period.<\/p>\n
Only a handful of people have attended campaign rallies and
\nnot many parties are capable, or willing, to stage major rallies
\nhere. Representatives of several parties have opted to campaign
\n\"door-to-door\", citing reasons of safety and lack of funds.<\/p>\n
Campaigns are usually livened up by teenage boys hoping to get
\nfree T-shirts. Around 100 or so party sympathizers were seen
\nlazing around at a \"campaign event\".<\/p>\n
\"No matter who gets elected, our fate will remain unchanged,\"
\nAmri, a roadside vendor at the market here, bemoaned.<\/p>\n
He admitted that he had no interest in the campaign. He
\ncarries on with his daily business until the evening, says his
\nevening prayers at the Baiturrahman Grand mosque and returns home
\nto Darussalam district, 12 kilometers from the market.<\/p>\n
He still has not decided whether he will even vote this year.
\n\"But if they make me vote, I'll just follow along, rather than
\nrunning into problems because of it,\" said the father of two.<\/p>\n
Rosni, 24, a student at Abulyatama University in Banda Aceh,
\nfeels the same. \"To be honest I haven't even paid attention to
\nthe voting procedures,\" she said.<\/p>\n
She lives outside of the capital in an area considered to be a
\nstronghold of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM). Although she says she
\ndoes not support GAM, she said none of the national parties
\nmatched her aspirations either.<\/p>\n
\"But we still have to go to the polls as we have been
\nregistered as voters. We'll just punch the ballot papers. We'll
\nbe considered GAM supporters if we don't vote,\" she explained.<\/p>\n
Like Amri and Rosni, most people in Aceh generally just want
\nto be on the safe side.<\/p>\n
Based on data from the Provincial Statistics Agency (BPS), the
\nnumber of eligible voters in Aceh is 2,476,533 people. The total
\npopulation is approximately 4 million. The eligible voter figure
\nobtained was not based on house-to-house surveys as it was in
\nother provinces, but based on family registration cards kept on
\nfile in subdistrict offices in Aceh.<\/p>\n
BPS officials admitted that it was too risky to conduct
\nsurveys in many areas after several of its surveyors had been
\nphysically abused by armed groups.<\/p>\n
Many people say they do not even know whether they are
\neligible to vote.<\/p>\n
As far as civic education, district heads, district police and
\nmilitary commanders have been directly involved in election
\neducation sessions in most villages. However, the education
\ngenerally consists of simply encouraging villagers to go to the
\npolls.<\/p>\n
As the election nears, rumor has it that anyone found not
\nvoting will have to deal directly with Indonesian Military (TNI)
\nsoldiers, and be branded a GAM sympathizer.<\/p>\n
In areas where GAM's influence is particularly strong, the
\nimpression is that people are even more \"squeezed\" between GAM
\nand the TNI.<\/p>\n
In those areas, GAM intimidation is said to be strong. For
\ninstance, in North Aceh Sawang district, mockingly dubbed \"GAM's
\nCilangkap\" (TNI's headquarters is in Cilangkap, East Jakarta),
\nsubdistrict leaders complained of intimidation after they tried
\nto recruit residents to become election security volunteers.<\/p>\n
\"Village heads were forced to stay in district offices as they
\nwere afraid to return to their villages,\" said Sawang district
\nhead, Abdul Bari.<\/p>\n
The situation ahead of the April 5 legislative election is
\nworsened by the fact that violations by political parties seem to
\ngo undetected by the Elections Supervisory Committee (Panwaslu).<\/p>\n
There was no action taken after there were reports of a TNI
\nmember who allegedly forced village heads in the Aceh Jaya area
\nto support a specific party.<\/p>\n
Then there was the case of how former refugees from Pusong
\nKapai village in East Aceh, who were not known to be members of
\nany party suddenly, en masse, acquired new Golkar Party
\nmembership cards -- long before the other parties began
\nelucidating their platforms to woo members during the campaign
\nperiod, which started on March 11.<\/p>\n
The Committee officials claimed they had not received reports
\non irregularities.<\/p>\n
\"We'll just see on April 5 whether forceful means were used or
\nnot,\" Syamsul, a North Aceh Panwaslu member, told The Jakarta
\nPost.<\/p>",
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