Aceh, one month after

One month has passed since the "integrated operations" under the auspices of a military emergency were launched to settle the Aceh conflict once and for all, and the question has become, are we moving closer to a solution? Judging by the latest events and most recent statements, it is anybody's guess.

Official military statements claim progress. In military terms, it probably means that the military has succeeded in occupying and controlling more territory previously occupied and controlled by the rebels. To substantiate those claims, the military has released more figures of alleged rebels arrested, killed, or who have surrendered. However, it is obviously becoming increasingly difficult to independently substantiate those claims.

The martial law administration late last week issued new regulations on press coverage, banning the press from publishing news items that compromised the position of the military. Even interviews with government soldiers in the field are now subject to strict censorship by the military command.

These new regulations are in addition to previously existing ones that include a ban on any press coverage involving verification or interviews with Free Aceh Movement (GAM) sources. Balanced reporting has therefore been eclipsed by what the government claims to be the highest priority, the national interest.

Measuring progress is even more difficult as the targets or goals of the so-called integrated operations have not been clearly defined and made public from the very beginning. Presidential Decree No. 28, dated May 18, 2003, which authorizes these operations does not explicitly set a clear target or specific goals, except that the martial law status has a renewable term of six months.

TNI Chief Gen. Endriartono Sutarto last week said during a press conference that the mission would be accomplished if GAM leaders and members surrendered. Army Chief of Staff, Gen. Ryamizard Ryacudu, however, said that the security operation in Aceh would be considered complete once civilians felt safe to move about freely, rather than when all the rebels had been subdued.

To add to the confusion, the Aceh martial law administration has moved to end the armed conflict by offering farmland to separatist rebels in exchange for unconditional surrender. Head of the provincial agriculture and horticulture office Samadi announced last Friday that the local government would provide each GAM member who surrendered with three hectares of land.

What is really going on in this conflict-ridden province? What actually are the targets and goals of the integrated operations, which comprise a military component, law and order restoration, consolidation of local government and a humanitarian component? Obviously again, it is anybody's guess.

It is still not too late to set clear, publicly disseminated targets and specific goals for these integrated operations. President Megawati, who authorized the operation, should immediately end the confusion about this matter. The House of Representatives, which previously provided carte blanche for the martial law administration, should withdraw this mandate and demand accountability based on clear targets and specific goals.

This newspaper strongly believes that the solution to the Aceh problem should put peace and justice for the people in Aceh as the top priority in setting those targets and goals.

Pursuing peace and justice in Aceh after decades of conflict that has killed more than 10,000 people, traumatized many more, and displaced more than 40,000 people, is of course not an easy job.

Military operations certainly are not an answer. First of all, by definition, the military are trained to occupy and control, not to pursue peace and justice. Secondly, concerning the Aceh problem, the Indonesian military has been part of the problem for decades, and it is hard to believe that a cause can also be the solution.

We clearly need something much more substantial than the above-mentioned Presidential Decree to end the suffering of the Acehnese people. Otherwise, the remaining five months of the martial law administration in Aceh will end up creating more problems than it solves.