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)