Akbar says House rejects security approach in Aceh<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Within a space of less than one month, the House of
\nRepresentatives has changed its tune about the government's
\ndecision to apply tough new security measures to deal with
\nsecurity problems in restive Aceh.<\/p>\n
House Speaker Akbar Tandjung said on Tuesday the legislature
\nwould not support the security approach for fear that it would
\nbackfire and derail peace talks designed to resolve decades of
\nconflict in the country's westernmost province.<\/p>\n
\"The House rejects both a civilian emergency and a military
\nemergency for Aceh as these will not solve the problems being
\nfaced. We must step up the dialog so as to reach a solution,\"
\nAkbar told the press after a consultation meeting with President
\nMegawati Soekarnoputri at the House building here.<\/p>\n
He suggested that the government follow up on the 10
\nrecommendations proposed by the House, which position law
\nenforcement and dialog as the top priorities.<\/p>\n
His statement came less than one month after House Commission
\nI for foreign and defense affairs threw its weight behind
\nIndonesian Military (TNI) chief Gen. Endriartono Sutarto's plan
\nto crack down on the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) separatist rebels.<\/p>\n
Akbar, however, was quick to add that the military should be
\ngiven the powers it needed to deal with the separatist movement.
\nHe refused to elaborate.<\/p>\n
Endriartono, who also attended the meeting, said that the
\ngovernment was waiting for a recommendation from the House before
\nadopting a new policy on Aceh.<\/p>\n
\"The TNI will back up any policy as long as it is approved by
\nboth the government and the House,\" he said.<\/p>\n
He further said that a request had been made to deploy four
\nmore battalions to Aceh and not 8,000 troops as was stated by
\nVice President Hamzah Haz on Monday.<\/p>\n
The government has been considering stepping up the military
\napproach in Aceh as Presidential Instruction No. 1\/2002 is due to
\nexpire this month.<\/p>\n
The Instruction, which makes dialog the top priority, had
\nalready been beefed up as the government considered it
\nineffective for coping with the Aceh issue.<\/p>\n
Objections have been mounting to the imposition of any kind of
\nemergency in the province, with many fearing it would only lead
\nto a repetition of the decade of military oppression that ended
\nin 1999.<\/p>\n
Separately, Hamzah said that the government would decide on a
\nnew policy for Aceh on Aug. 5, after receiving the House
\nrecommendations.<\/p>\n
Responding to the latest developments regarding Aceh, human
\nrights activist Munir urged the government to pull its troops out
\nof the province as their presence violated Law No. 3\/2002 on
\ndefense, which states that a military deployment must be approved
\nby the House.<\/p>\n
Munir, a founder of the Commission for Missing Persons and
\nVictims of Violence (Kontras), estimated that the number of
\ncombat troops in Aceh was at least 22,000, excluding police
\npersonnel.<\/p>\n
He appealed to the government to intensify dialog with the
\nAcehnese people and give the province a fair share of the revenue
\nfrom its natural resource. The government should also have the
\ncourage to bring human rights criminals to court, he added.<\/p>\n
Separately, TNI spokesman Maj. Gen. Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin said
\nthat the deployment of reinforcement troops to Aceh was aimed at
\nsafeguarding the West Aceh regency, which had been left
\nunprotected by the Iskandar Muda Military Command.<\/p>\n
\"Some of these troops will mingle with civilians and be
\nresponsible for protecting the people, while the remaining troops
\nare combatants,\" Sjafrie told The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
Sjafrie said the date of dispatch of the reinforcements had
\nnot yet been decided.<\/p>",
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