Aceh craves justice

Aceh craves justice

Aceh, and Lhokseumawe in particular, which enjoyed a period of
peace after the Military Operations Region (DOM) status was
lifted from the province, is once again in the grip of tension.
The region resembles a land at war. Roads are closed, helicopters
buzz overhead and soldiers with suspicion in their eyes stand on
guard at road corners.

It had looked as if the reconciliation between the people of
Aceh and the Armed Forces (ABRI) would go smoothly after the
lifting of the DOM status and the withdrawal of nonindigenous
troops. It also seemed that the exposure of the heinous human
rights abuses that had been committed during that period of
military operations was being received (by the military) in a
spirit of apology after ABRI chose not to deny the incidents.

As it turned out, however, the horrific aspects of the DOM
period that had been so dramatically exposed -- including the
discovery of mass graves, orphaned children and widowed women --
continued to fester as humanitarian problems that could explode
at any time. Sadly, these dark aspects are up to the present
still being kept from full view.

The kidnapping and killing of a number of off-duty military
personnel is, in our view, an expression of the frustration with
the fact that these humanitarian issues are not being addressed.
We all tend to bury our problems. In this era of reform, these
problems have been breaking open like ripened blisters, and
practically none of the problems have been earnestly resolved.

The people of Aceh are an integral part of our struggle to
build a unified Republic of Indonesia. The past New Order regime
never responded adequately and honestly to the wishes of the
people of Aceh. Instead, they responded with guns.

-- Media Indonesia, Jakarta