Aceh, Irian and Maluku endorse Megawati speech

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)