Peace zone marks start of long-term harmony in Aceh<\/p>\n
Kornelius Purba
\nThe Jakarta Post
\nBanda Aceh, Aceh<\/p>\n
Being a war zone for almost three decades, Aceh on Saturday
\ntook a small step, but in some ways it could be a giant leap
\ntoward peace, by declaring a small district near the provincial
\ncapital of Banda Aceh, the first demilitarized zone.<\/p>\n
Barring any unforeseen obstacles, Aceh will have seven more
\npeace zones within two weeks.<\/p>\n
The first zone of peace is Indrapuri district in Aceh Besar
\nregency. It lies 24 kilometers south of Banda Aceh. The district
\nwas chosen due to its close distance to the provincial capital
\nand because conflict there was so intense at times that it now
\nrequires immediate humanitarian assistance.<\/p>\n
The declaration ceremony took place near a traditional market
\nin Indrapuri and was attended by about 2,000 local people and the
\nrepresentatives of the Aceh Besar local administration. Also
\npresent was Maj. Gen. Tanongsuk Tuvinun from Thailand, who heads
\nthe Joint Security Committee (JSC), and representatives of the
\nHenry Dunant Centre (HDC), which brokered the peace deal.<\/p>\n
Indrapuri is the first demilitarized area in the province
\nfollowing the signing of a peace agreement between the Indonesian
\ngovernment and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) in Geneva on Dec. 9.<\/p>\n
Pamphlets containing peace messages were displayed near the
\nvenue. There was also a small poster containing 15 prohibited
\nacts, including rape and sexual harassment, especially by the
\nIndonesian Military (TNI) and Police who have been deployed to
\nAceh.<\/p>\n
"Both parties have come together to create this weapons-free
\nplace and to pave the way for economic development," Tuvinun said
\nin his speech.<\/p>\n
The ceremony only lasted about 30 minutes, with Tuvinun the
\nonly one addressing the crowd. There was no dialog between the
\nlocal people and the tripartite JSC, which comprises
\nrepresentatives of Indonesia, GAM and the HDC, many of whom are
\nfrom the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) member
\ncountries.<\/p>\n
Despite the absence of a dialog, local people looked
\nenthusiastic and were especially happy with the warm attitude of
\nthe Thai general, as many of them approached him just to shake
\nhands with him.<\/p>\n
"Together, we can all help the Acehnese begin to live a normal
\nlife," Tuvinun told the audience.<\/p>\n
"I hope peace will last long here. We have suffered too much.
\nNow we feel safer, and we can go to our paddy fields with less
\nfear," said a 35-year-old housewife when asked about the
\nprospects for peace.<\/p>\n
Most other local people seemed very suspicious when queried
\nabout peace in their region. Some of them spoke only in Acehnese
\n(most of the security personnel deployed by Jakarta cannot
\nunderstand it) and quickly left if any other Indonesians tried to
\napproach them.<\/p>\n
In a media briefing, the preceded the ceremony, Tuvinun
\nannounced an ambitious plan to extend the peace zone areas to
\neight other regencies in Aceh before Feb. 8. He declined to
\nidentify the regencies.<\/p>\n
However a government official, who asked not to be identified,
\nand GAM official T. Kamaruzzaman revealed that Banda Aceh, Aceh
\nBesar, South Aceh, Bireun, North Aceh, East Aceh, Central Aceh
\nand Pidie would be demilitarized within two weeks. The eight
\npeace centers will cover all 19 regencies and mayoralties before
\nthe whole of Aceh is eventually declared as a peace area.<\/p>\n
"For the time being, nine places will be a good start.
\nHowever, we hope that Aceh will soon be declared a complete zone
\nof peace," said Kamaruzzaman, a JSC member representing GAM.<\/p>\n
According to the Geneva agreement, GAM members and Indonesian
\nsoldiers are prohibited from carrying weapons outside their
\nrespective bases within peace zones. Military outposts must also
\nbe vacated.<\/p>\n
Despite the Geneva agreement and stronger international
\npresence to monitor the truce, the long-standing question about
\ntrials for perpetrators of human rights abuses during the war era
\nremains unanswered. Human rights activists here have complained
\nthat the Dec. 9 agreement hardly dealt with human rights issues
\nor the punishment of the perpetrators.<\/p>\n
During a public discussion, organized by the Foundation for
\nCare of Human Rights (YPHAM) here, most speakers, including noted
\nhuman rights activist Sidney Jones and the foundation executive
\ndirector Saifuddin Bantasyam, raised their doubts about the
\ngovernment's ability to punish human rights violators during the
\nconflict in Aceh.<\/p>\n
According to them, an everlasting peace in Aceh would remain a
\nconcept on paper, unless people saw that justice was being upheld
\nand the those who committed crimes against humanity, were
\nproperly punished.<\/p>\n
Budi, a police officer participating in the discussion, could
\nnot hide his anger when a student quoted an officer in Aceh as
\ntelling students that for police here the problem was only "to
\nkill or to be killed."<\/p>\n
Acehnese participants during the discussion could only
\nbitterly smirk when Yuwaldi, a government-appointed member of the
\nNational Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM), asked Acehnese
\npeople to just pray, because only God could end human rights
\nviolations and punish the perpetrators.<\/p>\n
"We can only depend on God," Yuwaldi said, arguing that human
\nrights issues were just too complicated for human beings.<\/p>",
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