Serious about unity?<\/p>\n
On Dec. 12 I read in The Jakarta Post an article titled Govt
\nto get tough on Aceh rebels, with mixed feelings. Is our
\ngovernment serious, or is this another statement just for
\npropaganda purposes.<\/p>\n
It is only logical that I cannot yet accept this statement as
\nthe sincere and serious will of the government. Already, several
\nstatements from the President himself have confirmed the decisive
\nwill of the government to implement the reform era's goal of
\nimplementing the principle of supremacy of law, however what we
\nhave seen so far is only what is popularly known as NATO (No
\nAction Talk Only).<\/p>\n
The President once said that one day, as a president, he would
\ngovern according to the Constitution, and yet he promised to
\nattend the Irian Jaya Congress fighting for independence, and on
\ntop of that promised to donate one billion rupiah, to allow those
\npeople to hoist their Bintang Kejora (Morning Star) flag. Now he
\nasks the police to free from detention the Irian leader, and will
\nprobably fire the Police Chief if he does not obey his order.
\nWhat a situation.<\/p>\n
When he was in America, the President said that he would talk
\nwith people who are prepared to talk, but stern action would be
\ntaken with those who didn't. The President further said that the
\nintegrity of the unitary Republic of Indonesia must be defended
\nat all cost. The President also said, according to the Post of
\nAug. 8, 2000, that there were no possibilities of a compromise
\nwith law violators.<\/p>\n
On March 14, 2000 in a televised interview President
\nAbdurrahman Wahid said, among other things: \"I told the Minister
\nof Home Affairs and Coordinating Minister for Political Affairs
\nand Security, that if they prepare themselves, organize power and
\narm themselves, then they must be arrested. The government is
\nvery serious about this.\"<\/p>\n
The Post, in its editorial, was critical of the government for
\narresting leaders of the independence movement in Aceh and Irian
\nJaya, as they were preaching nonviolent means in their struggle
\nfor freedom. This statement by the Post implies that the daily
\nagrees with the independence movement's calls for separation from
\nthe Republic, which is against the Constitution. In my opinion,
\nas somebody who has participated in the freedom struggle, the
\nunity of the Indonesian unitary republic cannot be bargained
\nwith. That is why the government of Soekarno, without the
\nslightest hesitation, fought the PRRI, PERMESTA and the DI\/TII
\nrebellion. Even in a democratic government like Indonesia there
\nare limits about what we can talk about, and the deciding limit
\nis the Constitution.<\/p>\n
I personally don't believe that a majority of the people
\nsupport the rebels. When I was fighting the Tentara Islam
\nIndonesia (Indonesian Islamic Army), of the Darul Islam in West
\nJava, I had the chance to talk with people living in fear and
\nuncertainty. They said: \"There is no choice. We have to support
\nthe TII, because if we don't they will kill us. But if we don't
\nsupport the TNI then we are only tortured. We prefer being
\ntortured to being killed.\"<\/p>\n
I sincerely hope that the government will show a strong will
\nand seriously try to find a solution in the shortest possible
\ntime. The people in those areas have suffered long enough and it
\nis time they enjoyed a normal, happy life. Let us pray that the
\ngovernment will take the right step and once decided, they stick
\nto it.<\/p>\n
SOEGIH ARTO<\/p>\n
Jakarta<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/serious-about-unity-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }