Aceh administration blamed partly for failure in Aceh

Aceh administration blamed partly for failure in Aceh

Nani Farida and
Blontank Poer
The Jakarta Post
Banda Aceh/Surakarta

A number of Aceh councillors blamed the escalating situation in
the restive but resource-rich province partly on the provincial
administration, which they said had played no role in
implementing the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement (COHA) to
help build peace.

Nasir Djamil, a councillor from the Justice Party (PK), spelt
out three main failures of the provincial and regency
administrations in COHA's implementation over the last four
months.

"First of all, the provincial and regency administrations have
looked not serious about implementing the special autonomy
package, the main solution that the government has been offering
to bring the 26-year-old conflict to an end. Secondly, none of
the administrations in the province have been proactive in
disseminating all information on COHA to help reduce tension to
the minimum.

"And lastly, the administrations have done nothing in the five
districts that have been declared peace zones. The government has
a lot of money and received a lot of aid from donor countries but
locals in the peace zones have seen no changes," he said, adding
that the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) has made use of the four months
to campaign for Acehnese independence.

He claimed that COHA's implementation over the last four
months had failed, and all sides shared the blame for the
failure.

According to Nasir, the governor occupies the top position in
the province and should have taken the initiative to allocate a
bigger portion of the province's budget to help intensify
development programs in strategic fields to improve the people's
welfare. "He could also have set up a special desk to disseminate
information on COHA so that the people know about the province's
future," he said.

He added that if the five peace zones were physically
reconstructed, they would be good models for other districts so
that more regions would follow suit.

Muklis Muktar, a councillor from the Indonesian Democratic
Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan), concurred and said the
provincial administration and the central government had been
trading accusations over the absence of concrete action to follow
up on COHA's implementation.

"COHA is the best solution for ending the conflict and in this
case, all administrations in the province should take concrete
action so as to turn the peace agreement into reality," he said,
citing that the administrations and the local military were part
of the government which signed COHA with GAM in Geneva on Dec. 9,
2002.

Sayed Muksin, a councillor of the United Development Party
(PPP) -- a major faction in the provincial legislature -- said
the provincial administration had done much but it had not been
optimal.

"We cannot say the governor has done nothing but what he has
done could have been better. He has to work harder to win the
people's support," he said.

The three legislators appreciated the government's decision to
give more time to GAM and the HDC to change their minds in
seeking a peaceful solution to the conflict.

People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) chairman Amien Rais has
strongly urged the central government to replace the Aceh
governor in an attempt to minimize tension in the province.

"The central government should be brave enough to make such a
decision and appoint a powerful but clean governor to help
minimize the tension," he said in Surakarta, Central Java, on
Sunday.

Rumors have been making the rounds in Aceh that Governor
Abdullah Puteh would be dismissed for his failure to implement
the peace agreement.

Under the COHA, the provincial administration is supposed to
play an important role in implementing special autonomy,
including preparations for the formation of a democratic
administration to improve the people's social welfare.

After the conflict finally comes to an end, the government is
also supposed to play an important role in gathering the Acehnese
people from all sides, including GAM, to hold an all-inclusive
dialog to seek a comprehensive solution to the Aceh issue.