Foreign supervisors needed for Aceh peace talks<\/p>\n
Indonesia and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) rebel group narrowed
\ntheir differences when they concluded on Tuesday their fourth
\nround of informal talks aimed at seeking enduring peace in Aceh.
\nBoth sides also agreed to resume negotiations in July, before a
\npeace deal, if there is to be one, is struck. The Jakarta Post's
\nTiarma Siboro and other journalists got a chance to talk to
\ngovernment negotiator Sofyan Djalil about the peace prospects.
\nThe following is an excerpt.<\/p>\n
Question: Lawmakers did not agree with the involvement of a
\nforeign monitoring team in the Aceh problems. What is your
\ncomment?<\/p>\n
Answer: There is no such intervention nor involvement of
\nforeign countries in the Aceh case. The truth is both the
\nIndonesian delegation and leadership of the Free Aceh Movement
\n(GAM) have agreed that a monitoring team involving a foreign
\ncountry will be necessary to supervise and observe whether or not
\neach party follows the agreement by carrying out their tasks
\nproperly. I don't think that the monitoring team is in any way a
\nform of foreign intervention.<\/p>\n
Is it true that nearly 90 percent of the crucial issues on
\nAceh have been worked out by both delegation teams?<\/p>\n
One could say so. There is a mutual understanding between the
\ntwo parties, and we (the Indonesian delegation) are now codifying
\na draft on common ground that has been reached at the negotiating
\ntable. Of course, such a draft isn't a final agreement.<\/p>\n
Can you elaborate?<\/p>\n
During the series of meetings, both the Indonesian delegation
\nand GAM leadership have discussed all the problems that have been
\nraised ever since the conflict began in Aceh. I must admit that
\nwe have yet to reach a common understanding over several crucial
\npoints, but, of course, there are more issues where we have
\nreached a mutual understanding. Take amnesty, for example. We
\nhave agreed to grant it to Aceh prisoners. Principally, we are
\nlooking for a comprehensive settlement for Aceh and it should be
\nbased on Indonesia's Constitution and existing laws. Hopefully
\nboth parties can reach an agreement to bridge the differences.<\/p>\n
How about the security arrangement?<\/p>\n
It is quite simple. Once the peace deal has been reached, it
\nwill not necessitate the presence of Acehnese armed forces. This,
\nof course, will mean that the government will not deploy troops
\noutside Aceh to the territory. The problem is, the government
\nneeds to deploy that many troops and police personnel to Aceh
\nbecause of the presence of the armed separatist movement in the
\nprovince. The withdrawal of the troops and police personnel must
\nbe done in tandem with GAM's decision to drop its arms. All
\nthings must be parallel, and, indeed, we need the monitoring team
\nto supervise the process. Of course, this is just an idea which
\nwe leave to the Indonesian government and the GAM leadership to
\ndecide.<\/p>\n
How about the idea of establishing a local political party?<\/p>\n
I wish both the Indonesian delegation and GAM leadership could
\naccommodate this issue. As part of the Indonesian government, we
\nare only authorized to continue the discussion on the issue
\nwithin the parameters of Indonesian law and we are now dealing
\nwith this matter; so is the GAM leadership.<\/p>\n
Why is the government so worried about allowing the Acehnese
\nto have their own political parties?<\/p>\n
Because our existing laws do not accommodate it. If GAM
\ninsists on establishing a local political party, then we must
\nreview our legislation. In the case of Aceh, the government has
\ngranted a special autonomy status. It is part of our existing
\nlaws. Whether we should revise it or not, we have yet to discuss
\nthis.<\/p>\n
We have to find a way that enables GAM members to channel
\ntheir political aspirations. It remains unclear whether we will
\ndecide that GAM members should channel their political aspiration
\nthrough other political parties that already exist. But, one
\nthing which is certain is we are seeking any means possible to
\ncreate peace in Aceh.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/foreign-supervisors-needed-for-aceh-peace-talks-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}