Self-interests deprive Aceh people of peace<\/p>\n
Endy M. Bayuni, Deputy Chief Editor, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
For people who have almost always lived in a state of war over
\nthe last hundred years, living in peace is a luxury, perhaps even
\nan aberration. The people of Aceh obviously enjoyed the
\n\"abnormality\" they experienced, albeit briefly, early this year
\nwhen government troops and separatist rebels decided to cease
\ntheir fire.<\/p>\n
Traditional markets were bustling with shoppers and traders
\ngoing about their businesses, children were going to school
\nwithout hearing a single gunshot, and the road between Medan and
\nBanda Aceh in North Sumatra Aceh could be traveled in six or
\nseven hours instead of taking an entire day -- as was the case
\nwhen multiple check points and roadblocks stood, erected by both
\nthe military and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM).<\/p>\n
But the indicator that best reflected the Acehnese's
\nconfidence was the fact that small coffee stalls on the sidewalks
\nof Banda Aceh stayed open until late in the night or until the
\nwee hours, with men talking about peace, the last war, last
\nnight's European soccer matches, domestic problems and how hard
\nit was to find work.<\/p>\n
This \"abnormality\" continued from early December until the
\nsecond half of February, or in other words, for as long as the
\nIndonesian government and GAM allowed the peace to prevail.<\/p>\n
Now, the people of Aceh are being forced to revert to a
\nsituation with which they are very familiar -- to a life haunted
\nby multiple fears: Fear for their own lives, for their loved
\nones, for their livelihood, for their property and for their
\nuncertain future.<\/p>\n
The markets are not as crowded as they were only a few months
\nago -- the happy faces of shoppers and traders have been replaced
\nwith looks of anxiety and suspicion, fear and terror have
\nreplaced the smiles of children going to school, and checkpoints
\nalong major roads have been reerected.<\/p>\n
The roadside coffee stalls stand empty and close early.<\/p>\n
Conditions are bound to get worse. With Jakarta about to
\ndeclare war on GAM, Aceh will again be plunged into another war,
\nwith all the ugly consequences.<\/p>\n
There is no doubt that the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement,
\npopularly referred to by its acronym COHA, was the best thing
\nthat had ever happened to the people of Aceh for a long time.<\/p>\n
Signed on Dec. 9 in Geneva, it required both the government
\ntroops and GAM rebels to immediately desist from engaging in
\nfurther hostilities. The agreement created peace in Aceh, if only
\nfor a little over two months, even if it was only a shaky peace.<\/p>\n
Still, it gave Acehnese a sneak preview of what life could be
\nwithout a military conflict, of what a normal life could be. It
\nis a cruel act on the part of both Jakarta and GAM to take that
\npeace away from them now, after having raised their hopes and
\nexpectations.<\/p>\n
The brief lull showed that GAM and the government could stop
\nthe fighting given the political will. So therein, probably, lies
\nthe real problem: The lack of political will on either side.<\/p>\n
Rather than considering the interests of the people of Aceh,
\nwho are clearly yearning for peace, both the government and GAM
\nhave been indulging in their own self-interests. They used the
\nCOHA only so far as it benefited themselves, and are now
\nabandoning the agreement when it no longer suits their interests.<\/p>\n
The well-being of the Acehnese people has never been their
\nprime motive for engaging in this peace process. In fact, they
\nwere never sincere in their commitment to peace in the first
\nplace.<\/p>\n
GAM continues to campaign for independence; Jakarta is more
\nconcerned about territorial integrity and the future of the
\nunitary state of the republic. Both sides have treated the COHA
\nas a means to promote their respective political objectives.<\/p>\n
Each has its own interpretation of the condition, \"acceptance
\nof the Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam Law as a starting point\", that
\nforms the basis of the peace agreement.<\/p>\n
For Jakarta, \"starting point\" means GAM's acceptance of Aceh's
\nspecial autonomy under the sovereignty of the republic. For GAM,
\n\"starting point\" does not negate its final goal of independence.<\/p>\n
This contentious point would have, sooner or later, come to
\nthe fore as they tried to implement the terms of the agreement.<\/p>\n
This is exactly what is happening now.<\/p>\n
But rather than sit down and work out their differences, the
\ntwo camps have decided on the easiest way out: Abandon the
\nagreement and go back to their old, uncivilized ways and fight.<\/p>\n
As in any war, the first casualties will be the unarmed
\ncivilians.<\/p>\n
COHA, which was brokered by the Geneva-based Henry Dunant
\nCentre, was never intended to be a peace agreement or a panacea
\nfor the Aceh problem. It was just an agreement for a ceasefire --
\nbut it was an important agreement. Combined with the pledge by
\nforeign governments to assist in the reconstruction of Aceh, made
\nduring their meeting in Tokyo in December, the COHA is the road
\nmap to peace in Aceh.<\/p>\n
With the ceasefire -- with all armed organizations supposedly
\nneutralized -- civil society groups were to get together under an
\n\"all-inclusive Aceh dialog\" to talk about Aceh's future. Whether
\nto seek independence or to remain under the republic, this
\ndecision is theirs, and theirs alone, to decide, not GAM's and
\nnot the Jakarta government's.<\/p>\n
It is clear that neither GAM nor the government are willing to
\ntake the risk and let the Acehnese people determine their own
\nfate, for fear that the decision might not compliment their own
\npolitical goals.<\/p>\n
The government and GAM may be at war, but they have conspired
\nto deprive the people of Aceh their right to a chance for real
\npeace, and a chance to decide their own future.<\/p>\n
If the government and GAM had been genuinely sincere in their
\ndesire for peace, they would have continued dialog, no matter how
\nlong it took. They would not have abandoned it after only five
\nmonths.<\/p>\n
The government of Indonesia momentarily stood on high moral
\nground when it ceded to one GAM demand after another regarding
\nthe date and venue for dialog. It lost that position of advantage
\nthe moment it started to violate the COHA agreement itself,
\ndeploying its troops to Aceh and now, declaring war on GAM.<\/p>\n
At any rate, both sides are guilty of squandering a rare
\nopportunity to forge peace once and for all. They are also guilty
\nfor the deaths and destruction that will now ensue with the
\nreturn of armed conflicts to Aceh.<\/p>",
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