President Gus Dur to delay Aceh visit until Dec. 19<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The government announced on Tuesday that
\nPresident Abdurrahman Wahid's planned visit to the volatile
\nprovince of Aceh would be delayed by four days to Dec. 19.<\/p>\n
Abdurrahman was initially scheduled to travel to the western
\ntip of Sumatra on his way back from Bangkok on Dec. 15.<\/p>\n
\"I told the President that it would be better if he makes a
\nspecial trip to Aceh directly from Jakarta rather than stopping
\nthere on his way back from Bangkok,\" Minister of Defense Mahfud
\nMD said after meeting the President at Merdeka Palace.<\/p>\n
\"It (the initial schedule) would create an impression that the
\nPresident was not serious and only stopping by in Aceh. That's
\nwhy it has been agreed that the President will visit Aceh on
\nDecember 19,\" he added.<\/p>\n
Presidential spokesman Wimar Witoelar said earlier that the
\nAceh visit would be made on Abdurrahman's return to Jakarta from
\nBangkok, where he is scheduled to receive an honorary doctorate
\nfrom the ASEAN Institute of Technology.<\/p>\n
Aceh Governor Abdullah Puteh said on Monday that during the
\nvisit, Abdurrahman was scheduled to impose Islamic law in the
\nprovince.<\/p>\n
The President is also scheduled to witness a ceremony to mark
\nthe handover of government funds worth Rp 100 billion (US$10.6
\nmillion) for the Aceh economic recovery program.<\/p>\n
The program for Aceh was announced by Jakarta two days before
\nthe 24th anniversary of the separatist Free Aceh Movement (GAM)
\non Monday.<\/p>\n
GAM has been fighting for independence in the restive province
\nsince 1976.<\/p>\n
Mahfud said on Monday that he could not explain the strength
\nof the GAM forces but \"if the government is willing to take tough
\nmeasures, they (GAM members) could be easily overcome in a short
\ntime\".<\/p>\n
The government was not intent on taking stern measures, and
\nsolutions to the Aceh problem will still be sought through
\npolitical dialog, he said.<\/p>\n
He added, however, that \"there is a limit to dialogs and the
\ngovernment has set a January 15 deadline\" for it to consider a
\nnew policy.<\/p>\n
When pressed whether military operations would be launched to
\ncrack down on the separatist rebels in Aceh if the government and
\nrebels fail to meet the deadline, Mahfud said: \"Military action
\nwill be our last resort. There are still steps that can be taken
\nafter the deadline.\"<\/p>\n
Truce<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, a reliable source close to the Cabinet told The
\nJakarta Post that the government had decided to stop the
\nhumanitarian pause in Aceh during a Cabinet meeting on Nov. 23.
\nHe said the government \"has been frustrated\" by GAM's lack of
\ndetermination to negotiate.<\/p>\n
\"In the meeting, which was also attended by military
\nrepresentatives, the government requested to allow a military
\noperation and it should immediately be conducted,\" the source
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
\"If the government and GAM fail to meet for further talks by
\nJan. 15, we might impose a state of civil emergency on Aceh.<\/p>\n
\"It would be increased to a state of military emergency two
\ndays after that,\" he said.<\/p>\n
He said non-governmental organization activists, students and
\nulemas would be the first to be controlled before the military
\nwould overpower GAM's office. (02)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/president-gus-dur-to-delay-aceh-visit-until-dec-19-1447893297",
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