Aceh, Irian and Maluku endorse Megawati speech

SEMARANG (JP): Delegates from Aceh, Maluku and Irian Jaya endorsed the accountability report by the outgoing leader of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) on Wednesday, but not before criticizing its failure in fighting for the interests of the three most volatile regions in the country.

The Irian Jaya delegation said they had considered rejecting the accountability report, presented by outgoing chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri on Tuesday, but thought better of it after feeling pressure from other delegates.

"We have no other alternative because the climate was not conducive," Komaruddin Waitubun, leader of the Irian Jaya delegation, told The Jakarta Post.

"Delegates who reject Megawati's nomination for the chairmanship will be considered betrayers," he said.

Komaruddin said the Irian Jaya delegation would gain nothing by rejecting the accountability report but would get a lot of criticism from other delegations.

By Wednesday evening, the third day of PDI Perjuangan's inaugural congress, none of 200 delegates who presented their opinions has rejected the accountability speech. Most declared their outright support for Megawati's candidacy although formal nomination is not due until closer to election day.

Komaruddin said the 12 delegates from Irian Jaya had threatened to boycott the congress in hope of drawing the party's attention to their regional aspirations.

Irian Jaya was particularly disappointed by PDI Perjuangan's ignorance about the escalating conflict in the province, he said.

"The party's leaders have been busy fighting for their own interests and have abandoned the Papuan people to deal with their own problems," he said.

If the majority of Papuans supported the Free Papua Movement -- which is fighting for a separate state -- it was primarily to gain greater bargaining clout against Jakarta, he said.

Papua is the name given by President Abdurrahman Wahid for the Irian Jaya province. The name change has not been formally endorsed by the House of Representatives.

Azhari, who leads the Aceh delegation, said he would rather not make public their position with regard to Megawati's accountability speech, because either way they would be criticized back home.

"I'm very sorry, we have no comments," he said.

While endorsing Megawati's candidacy for the chairmanship, Azhari hoped that she would recruit Eros Djarot in the next executive board to avoid a possible split in the party.

Eros, a senior journalist and an intellectual, plans to contest the election.

Another Acehnese delegate who requested anonymity criticized the leadership for doing nothing to help the plight of the Acehnese amidst the growing demand for a self-determination vote in the province.

"The party did nothing to fight for the Acehnese demands for a self-determination referendum. It also did nothing about human rights abuses and atrocities in our homeland," he said.

The Maluku delegation, while deploring the party leaders' minimal efforts to prevent the bloodshed in Ambon and North Maluku, eventually endorsed Megawati's accountability speech.

"We should recognize Megawati's role in helping to calm the tension in the province," John Mailoa, the chairman of the party's Maluku provincial chapter, said after presenting his delegation's views to the congress.

Megawati, in her capacity as vice president, has been entrusted by President Abdurrahman Wahid with the job of finding a solution to the Ambon/North Maluku crisis. Megawati has rejected accusations that she had done little in Maluku, saying that she has worked mostly behind the scene to try to restore peace.

Many delegates from Maluku and North Maluku criticized Megawati's accountability speech earlier, saying that they were disappointed by the party's silence throughout the year-long violence. (rms/swa/har)