A fatal misunderstanding

A fatal misunderstanding

The Indonesian Military (TNI) has too easily, if not
conveniently, dismissed the latest bloody clashes in the troubled
northern province of Aceh as a "misunderstanding" on the part of
villagers regarding the military's intentions. That must go down
as a very costly, if not ridiculous, misunderstanding. According
to one account, at least 28 civilian lives were lost, and dozens
were injured in Monday's shooting of civilians at Cot Murong near
the industrial town of Lhokseumawe.

That explanation, provided by TNI chief spokesman Maj. Gen.
Syamsul Ma'arif, reflects the military's absolute insensitivity
to the feelings of people in Aceh. The killing has been treated
as simply another operation in the name of security and order.
For TNI to dismiss this incident as a misunderstanding is
tantamount to saying "what's another 28 lives or so?" Disturbing
as it is, it fits the pattern of the military's long record of
human rights abuses in the province dating back to 1989.

Killing in Aceh, it appears, is still the order of the day for
security forces some 10 months after a military operation was
formally terminated. We have seen this happen time and again in
recent months, even as TNI leaders and the government in Jakarta,
including President B.J. Habibie himself, took pains to apologize
for past atrocities committed against the people of Aceh.

To the nation, and especially to the people of Aceh, the
killing is simply unacceptable, on whatever pretext, whether as a
"misunderstanding" as claimed by the military in Jakarta, or as
"self-defense" as claimed by the local military. If the shooting
was in self-defense against an armed mob, it begs the question
why were there no casualties among soldiers? And why were women
and children among the casualties? Did the villagers
misunderstand the soldiers, or was it the other way round?

The promise of a full investigation from TNI chief/Minister of
Defense and Security Gen. Wiranto somehow rings hollow, since
previous fatal incidents have never been explained
satisfactorily. One would be tempted to call on the National
Commission of Human Rights (Komnas Ham) to launch an
investigation, but the commission is overstretched with its
limited resources. Already, it has a huge backlog of unresolved
cases from Aceh and other provinces, and with its power limited
to conducting investigations, little can be expected from another
Komnas Ham mission to Aceh. While the commission has come up with
some credible reports in the past, the government has rarely
acted on these findings, raising questions about the commission's
political clout.

With all due respect to Komnas-Ham, the latest killing in Aceh
is too large and too important for it to handle by itself. A
separate independent commission should be established, at the
behest of President B.J. Habibie, to investigate the incident.
This commission should comprise people of high integrity who can
confront the military and recommend the dismissal of top military
leaders responsible for the incident.

Anything less than this could undermine all the goodwill
gestures, including apologies made by Wiranto and Habibie, to
placate the angry people in Aceh. This is assuming that these
gestures were indeed genuine and honest in the first place.
Acehnese have every right to doubt the seriousness of the
government and the military if the killings continue.

Before this incident, Aceh university students and youths were
campaigning for a referendum to review the province's status in
the republic. Some Aceh leaders, including the province's
governor, even proposed the idea of federalism for Indonesia.
They said federalism could appease Aceh and other provinces
discontented with the concentration of power in the hands of
people in Jakarta.

Until the killing on Monday, few people in Aceh endorsed the
idea of a total independent state; a referendum was the more
popular option. But one should not take the Acehnese for granted.
Their patience and perseverance have limits too. The killing has
already given more ground for the separatists' cause. The
government's failure to resolve this incident quickly and
satisfactorily will make full separation with Indonesia an
increasingly attractive option for many Acehnese.