'Aceh operation to go beyond six months'

'Aceh operation to go beyond six months'

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The military operation in Aceh is likely to drag on beyond the
initial time limit of six months, with the military chief saying
that the operation will continue with or without an extension of
martial law in the province.

Speaking to reporters after a Cabinet meeting chaired by
President Megawati Soekarnoputri, Indonesian Military (TNI) chief
Gen. Endriartono Sutarto said that the military operation may
take more than a year before it could root out the separatist
Free Aceh Movement (GAM).

"It the may take more than a year, and the military operation
is likely to continue even if martial law is lifted," Endriartono
said.

He said the decision on whether to extend martial law in the
province would be taken later when the six-month period was
approaching its end.

"However, that is for martial law, but maybe not for the
military operation," the four-star general remarked.

President Megawati has said that martial law in Aceh would be
extended if the military needed extra time to root out separatist
rebels, and that she would consult the House of Representatives
before extending the period.

It is not clear as yet what Endriartono aims to do with the
extra time as he said earlier that the military had gained 100
percent control over Aceh's territory -- although this was later
disputed by GAM commanders.

The military clearly stated before the military operation
began that the aim of the operation was to regain territorial
control and disarm as many rebels as possible.

The National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM), however,
has labeled the military operation a failure as it had only
increased the number of civilian casualties.

The 40,000-strong military and police operation to crush the
separatists entered its eighth week on Monday. More than 48,000
people have been driven from their homes by the conflict.

The military is apparently trying to avoid a repeat of the
rampant rights abuses in Aceh in the 1990s when the province was
designated a military operation area.

In an ostensible effort to curb civilian casualties and human
rights abuses, the military has disciplined or court-martialed a
number of low-ranking soldiers suspected of having committed
crimes.

Five of these have been sentenced to a few months in jail for
beating villagers.

Three soldiers have also gone on trial for raping four
Acehnese women in North Aceh. The trial started on Monday in
Lhokseumawe.

Meanwhile, Lt, Col. Achmad Yani Basuki, the spokesman for the
TNI's Operation Command in Lhokseumawe revealed on Wednesday that
the TNI had killed a GAM deputy commander for the Pasai region,
Tengku Halim bin Yasin.

Tengku Halim, according to Achmad Yani, was a deputy to Sofyan
Dawood, the GAM Pasai commander and the organization's chief
spokesman.

Halim was killed after a clash with TNI forces at Alue Putong
village, Dewantara district, North Aceh, on Saturday morning.

The TNI seized one gun, 30 rounds of ammunition and a cell
phone from his body.

"It was finally confirmed today that he was Tengku Halim bin
Yasin," said Yani.