Peace in Aceh, how soon?<\/p>\n
President Abdurrahman Wahid's assurance that the unrest in
\nAceh, this country's westernmost province, will before long
\nbelong in the past cannot have failed to hearten many
\nIndonesians, not in the least those tens of thousands, security
\nofficers and ordinary people alike, whose lives have in one way
\nor another been sadly affected by the decade-long strife in the
\nterritory.<\/p>\n
\"I can now see a process to end the continuing conflict,
\nalthough in most parts of Aceh there are still armed conflicts,\"
\nthe President said on Tuesday in an address in Sabang during his
\nfirst visit to Aceh as President of Indonesia. On an earlier
\noccasion, Abdurrahman even mentioned April as the time when he
\nexpected the violence in the province to be over, thus appearing
\nto have a definite timetable for solving the problem.<\/p>\n
Unfortunately, events of the last few days have watered down
\nmuch of whatever optimism the public may have shared with the
\nPresident. In one of the most glaring of recent incidents -- one
\nthat shocked even many Indonesians sympathizing with the Free
\nAceh Movement (GAM) rebels -- unidentified gunmen threw grenades
\nand sprayed a village mosque in the Bireun regency of the
\nprovince with bullets. Mondays' incident killed six marines and
\nleft others seriously wounded.<\/p>\n
At the same time, the death toll on both sides of the conflict
\nkept rising as clashes between Free Aceh Movement insurgents and
\ngovernment troops continued throughout the province during the
\nweek. To further dim the hopes of a speedy settlement, government
\nreports that 310 people claiming to be GAM members had
\nsurrendered were offset by growing demands among the population
\nfor an independence referendum -- an absolute prerequisite to
\ndialog for many Acehnese, but a possibility that President
\nAbdurrahman's government has already ruled out. Wide-ranging
\nautonomy and imposition in the province of syariah (Islamic law)
\nis as far as the government is willing to go.<\/p>\n
Considering those circumstances, a dialogue toward peace in
\nAceh may be much further away from being realized than the
\nPresident seems to expect. During his visit to the province this
\nweek, security considerations forced Abdurrahman to skip the Aceh
\nmainland (and a planned face-to-face exchange with religious and
\ncommunity leaders in Banda Aceh, the provincial capital).<\/p>\n
For certain, whatever the circumstances, it is of vital
\nimportance that a speedy solution to the Aceh problem be found,
\nsince it is only through a genuine meeting of minds that a
\nlasting solution can be found. Continued dallying can only
\nfurther complicate the situation, with potentially dangerous
\nconsequences for the nation's unity and cohesion.<\/p>\n
Given all this, and because Indonesians deserve to know where
\nprecisely they stand on the Aceh issue, it is essential that the
\nPresident makes clear his statement of an expected speedy
\nsolution of the conflict. Does Abdurrahman's stated timetable
\nmean he has a solid plan to settle the problem? Or is it a hope
\nexpressed aloud?<\/p>\n
He wouldn't be Abdurrahman Wahid if he didn't keep his
\noptimism under whatever circumstances. Indonesians certainly can
\ncall themselves fortunate in this crucial era of democratic
\nreform to be led by a modest, populist President who is not only
\ncapable, but has a good sense of optimism and humor. In this
\ncase, though, President Abdurrahman owes it to the people to be
\nserious and to tell them exactly what their country's current
\nposition is on Aceh, what is being planned, what has been done
\nand what the expectations are for the immediate future.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/peace-in-aceh-how-soon-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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