BRR-TNI reconstruction plan raises questions<\/p>\n
A'an Suryana and Tiarma Siboro, The Jakarta Post, Banda Aceh\/Jakarta<\/p>\n
The government has drawn strong criticism for its plan to deploy
\n15 battalions, or about 15,000 soldiers, to help speed up
\nreconstruction in Aceh.<\/p>\n
Critics said on Friday the deployment could endanger the peace
\nprocess in the tsunami-ravaged province, after former rebels
\ncompleted their disarmament and the Indonesian Military (TNI)
\npulled out most of its combat troops from Aceh.<\/p>\n
The critics accuse the Aceh-Nias Reconstruction and
\nRehabilitation Agency (BRR) of not promoting policies that
\nsupport long-lasting peace in the province.<\/p>\n
The agency is only interested in its own success by focusing
\non infrastructure development in Aceh, which has unfortunately
\nshown very little progress up to this point, said Agung Widjaja,
\na researcher at human rights and democracy watchdog Demos.<\/p>\n
"A massive redeployment of troops to Aceh will harm the
\nongoing peace process. Anyone who visits Aceh will see there is
\nno area so remote that is too difficult for civilian contractors
\nto reach," he said.<\/p>\n
TNI chief Gen. Endriartono Sutarto said on Thursday he would
\nrespond positively to a request by BRR chief Kuntoro
\nMangkusubroto to help the agency rebuild Aceh by deploying
\nthousands of soldiers to the province.<\/p>\n
Sutarto said the TNI was ready to lend a hand after Kuntoro
\ntold him the BRR needed the military's manpower.<\/p>\n
The idea was first raised two weeks ago after a meeting
\nbetween Kuntoro and President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in
\nJakarta. During the meeting, the President asked Kuntoro how the
\ngovernment could help speed up reconstruction.<\/p>\n
BRR spokesman Sudirman Said confirmed on Friday the agency was
\nconsidering asking the TNI for assistance in Aceh.<\/p>\n
"The issue is sensitive, so we are discussing it carefully.
\nWe are still looking into the costs and benefits of seeking help
\nfrom TNI," Sudirman told The Jakarta Post in Banda Aceh.<\/p>\n
Rusdi Marpaung from human rights watchdog Imparsial questioned
\nwhether the President had been informed of or approved the
\nplanned redeployment of troops to Aceh.<\/p>\n
"The Military Law states that the President is the only person
\nauthorized to decide on the use of military forces. The
\nlegislature must also endorse and monitor any troop
\nmobilizations. So it would be against the law if Kuntoro bypassed
\nthe President and directly asked the TNI chief to send troops to
\nhelp him rebuild Aceh," Rusdi said.<\/p>\n
Sudirman said the BRR faced a daunting task in rebuilding
\nAceh, given the vast area decimated by the Dec. 26 tsunami.
\nAccording to data from the agency, the tsunami wreaked havoc on
\nnearly 800 kilometers of coastline in Aceh, damaging nearly all
\nof the infrastructure in the path of the waves. The tsunami left
\n3,000 kilometers of roads impassable, 14 of 19 seaports badly
\ndamaged, eight of 10 airports damaged and 170 bridges destroyed,
\naccording to the data.<\/p>\n
"Reconstruction projects in remote areas have been progressing
\nat a slow pace because contractors lack the ability to penetrate
\nisolated areas hit by the tsunami. The damage was so severe that
\ncontractors, for example, gave up after they had already been
\nhired to rebuild roads between Lamno and Calang. As civilians
\nhave failed to accomplish the work, we are expecting help" from
\nthe military, said Sudirman.<\/p>\n
He said the BRR understood the gravity of the situation and
\nadded that if the redeployment materialized, the agency would
\nprefer to use soldiers from the Iskandar Muda Military Command in
\nAceh rather than pulling in troops from outside the province.<\/p>\n
The Aug. 15 peace deal signed by the government and the Free
\nAceh Movement (GAM) states that all non-local troops must be
\nwithdrawn from the province.<\/p>\n
GAM spokesman Bakhtiar Abdullah said on Thursday that if the
\ndeployment took place, it could have a devastating psychological
\nimpact on the Acehnese, many of whom were the victims of TNI
\natrocities in the years before the peace agreement was reached in
\nHelsinki, Finland.<\/p>\n
The deployment could also cause suspicion among former GAM
\nrebels, who have cooperated with international monitors to hand
\nover their weapons, as stipulated in the peace deal, he said.<\/p>",
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