Aceh administration blamed partly for peace failure
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.