Scholar renews independence proposal for Riau<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): A scholar rejected on Monday a federal proposal
\nfor Riau and insisted that the oil-rich province separate from
\nthe Republic of Indonesia instead.<\/p>\n
Tabrani Rab, a professor of medicine and a community figure
\nwho canceled the declaration of independence of Riau in March due
\nto a fear of clashes with security personnel, claimed that the
\nfederal proposal was not popular in Riau.<\/p>\n
"The demand for a federal state is only supported by the Riau
\npeople in Jakarta. Syarwan has communicated this idea to us but
\nwe choose to disagree," Tabrani told The Jakarta Post by phone
\nfrom the provincial capital of Pekanbaru.<\/p>\n
He said "students and intellectuals" in Riau were in favor of
\nindependence while bureaucrats were pushing for greater autonomy
\nwithin Indonesia.<\/p>\n
Tabrani was responding to former home affairs minister Syarwan
\nHamid, who said on Saturday that provincial legislators and
\ncommunity leaders in Riau would propose the establishment of a
\nfederal state of Indonesia this week.<\/p>\n
"To be realistic, relations between the central (government)
\nand regions must be improved. Federalism has been successful in
\npromoting people's welfare while still retaining unity," Syarwan
\nwas quoted by the Kompas daily as saying.<\/p>\n
"We're not thinking of asking for independence. Federalism is
\nenough because it is still in the context of unity," said
\nSyarwan, who represented Riau at the People's Consultative
\nAssembly.<\/p>\n
Syarwan, who is also a former deputy speaker of the
\nlegislature and a retired general, cited the United States and
\nAustralia as successful examples of federal systems of
\ngovernment.<\/p>\n
Indonesia briefly adopted a federal system between 1949 and
\n1950. No such provision currently exists now, although there are
\nspecial regions such as Aceh and Yogyakarta which were accorded
\ntheir status due to their role in the fight against Dutch
\ncolonial rule. But leaders of the two provinces have said the
\nterritories had not benefited from the status.<\/p>\n
President Abdurrahman Wahid said he would not oppose a federal
\nsystem, but suggested that it would take time for the idea to win
\nnational acceptance.<\/p>\n
Syarwan blamed centralized management of natural resources in
\nIndonesia's provinces for the unfair distribution of income among
\npeople, saying that of Rp 59 trillion (US$8.4 billion) in revenue
\nfrom Riau in 1999, only one trillion was funneled back to the
\nprovince.<\/p>\n
Tabrani said community leaders in Riau were planning to hold a
\ncongress next month to determine the future of the province.<\/p>\n
Muhammad Dun, the chairman of the Riau Community Communication
\nForum, was quoted by Antara as saying the planned congress would
\nseek to forge a common vision among people there.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, people grouped in the Riau Students Forum for
\nFederation met with legislators of the Indonesian Democratic
\nParty of Struggle here on Monday demanding that Riau become a
\nfederal state of Indonesia before August next year. (byg\/rms)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/scholar-renews-independence-proposal-for-riau-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}