Acehnese flock in district offices to get new IDs
Acehnese flock in district offices to get new IDs
The Jakarta Post, Lhokseumawe, Aceh
People in Bireuen regency flocked to their respective district
offices on Wednesday and Thursday to apply for new ID cards, in
one of the first places in war-torn Aceh where the martial law
administration is attempting to separate separatist rebels from
civilians.
In Jeumpa district, more than a hundred residents from three
villages gathered at a makeshift district office to register
themselves for the new card on Wednesday. Some had been patiently
waiting for hours.
"I just do what authorities tell me to do, so I come here,"
said 51-year-old Tarmizi from Juli Cut Masjid village.
The new ID cards would replace the existing ones for as long
as the province is under martial law.
The military has said that its operation against the Free Aceh
Movement (GAM) should take six months.
The issuance of new ID cards is one of the military ruler's
efforts to control the Acehnese and separate GAM rebels from the
general population.
The other measures include the "evacuation" of villagers from
areas controlled or formerly controlled by GAM to prepared
refugee camps.
The military administration is also screening civil servants
in Aceh as the military suspects many are linked to GAM.
The idea to distribute new ID cards followed reports of GAM
collecting the ID cards from villagers to hamper government
security checks. Most GAM members have no identification.
Applicants for the new cards must have their credentials
checked by the local police office to ensure the applicant has no
ties to GAM. Authorities hope this will help them identify rebels
who try to pass themselves off as civilians.
Slightly bigger in size and printed in red and white, the new
card is signed by the village head, the district chief, and the
district police and military chief. Normal ID cards are signed
only by the district chief.
Ishak Teungku M.Z., a village chief from Meunanah Blang,
Peudada district, said he had signed the forms for 30 applicants
so far. These applicants would then go to the district offices to
get the ID cards.
The cards are free of charge and the process of acquiring one
takes about one to two days, said Jeumpa district chief Agus
Salim, who oversees 21 villages.
He said that between 10,000 to 15,000 people of age in his
district would be applying for the new cards. The registration
process is divided into seven days for three villages, starting
on Wednesday with the villages of Cut Juli Masjid, Juli Seuteuy,
and Juli Tambo Tanjung .
Agus said it may take about a month to replace all the cards.
Around 25 percent of the 10,000 to 15,000 people seeking cards
had lost theirs, Agus said. He would not say whether they were
taken away by GAM.