38 rebel arrested in Lhokseumawe
38 rebel arrested in Lhokseumawe
JAKARTA (JP): At least 38 followers of separatist leader Ahmad
Kandang were arrested on Saturday morning in Lhokseumawe, Aceh,
the military said, while Ahmad himself remains at large.
The raid, part of the Wibawa '99 Operation led by North Aceh
Police chief Lt.Col. Iskandar Hasan, started around 5 a.m. in the
village of Kandang, where Ahmad was believed to be hiding, Antara
reported Saturday.
Later in the day, nearby Lhokseumawe was again gripped by
tension as hundreds of people from Kandang approached the town,
although they later dispersed after North Aceh officials
succeeded in persuading them to return to their village.
The agency said that residents planning to go shopping for the
Idul Fitri festival, which falls on Jan. 19, delayed their plans
and troops sealed off Jl. Hamzah Bendahara, where several
government offices are located.
A clash between villagers and troops last Sunday in which 11
civilians were killed and at least 32 injured led to a rampage in
which several government and police buildings were set on fire.
Troops sealed off Kandang on Thursday in the hope that
frustrated residents would then hand over the separatist leader.
Ahmad is alleged to have planned the murder of seven off-duty
soldiers and the kidnapping of two marines in Lhok Nibung, North
Aceh, last week.
The agency quoted Iskandar as saying the military were close
to capturing Ahmad but that he fled, leaving behind his clothing
and a wooden board with the flag of the Free Aceh movement pinned
to it.
Iskandar said that troops had been ordered to keep their
emotions under control to avoid clashes with the civilian
population.
Activists have called for an end to the raids, saying that
residents have been provoked into violence to justify a continued
military presence in the province. A military operation to crush
separatist rebels was launched in Aceh in 1989 and was only
brought to an end in the middle of last year.
Iskandar identified the 38 people arrested on Saturday as
residents of Kandang, Nisam, Bayu, Kuta Makmur, Krueng Mane and
Paloh.
He said that unidentified people had burned down Ahmad's
parents' Lhokseumawe home just as the raid began in Kandang on
Saturday morning. He added that the military was not responsible
for the arson.
"The house might have been burned by people outraged by
Ahmad's brutality," Iskandar said. Security personnel have
repeatedly alleged that Ahmad has been using women and children
as human shields during his attacks.
Separately in Jakarta on Saturday, a group of Acehnese
students and youths called on the government to honor its
commitment to investigate rights abuses during the military
operation in the province.
"We want the central government to act on its promises before
the general election in June," said Fuadri, the students leader.
The students also attended a meeting between Acehnese leaders
and President B.J. Habibie on Friday, during which the President
was asked to release all political prisoners in the province.
"If the government does not do anything, we will have to ask
the Acehnese people to boycott the election," Fuadri said. (prb)