Aiming for deliverable pledges in Aceh

Aiming for deliverable pledges in Aceh

Thursday's shooting of a well-known rector in Aceh's capital
adds an even gloomier prospect to what the planned weekend
presidential visit to the province could achieve. Dr. Rizal
Sukma, Director of Studies at the Centre for Strategic
International Studies, Jakarta, writes about what could be done.

JAKARTA (JP): Many expect that the visit by President Megawati
Soekarnoputri to war-torn Aceh province will soon solve the
problems there. At the same time, many also doubt that such
expectations can be met. Of course, the visit will not bring an
immediate end to the protracted conflict in the region. However,
the visit should be seen and understood as an initial step by her
government to find a comprehensive solution to the conflict. As
such, the visit is critically important for the overall conflict-
resolution process. It will serve as a barometer with which
Jakarta's intention and ability to solve the problem will be
measured, by both the domestic and international community.

It is important, therefore, that President Megawati's visit to
Aceh should serve as the light at the end of the tunnel. This
should begin with recognition on her part that the situation in
Aceh is indeed critical and needs both serious attention and
immediate action to defuse the tension. Therefore, the visit
should be used not only to demonstrate a government-renewed
commitment to solve the problem. As the Acehnese are now fed up
with Jakarta's normative and deceptive rhetoric, such renewed
commitment must also be accompanied by a "policy package",
detailing concrete measures by which the problem will be solved.

President Megawati should not give the impression that her
visit is no different to those of two previous presidents, B.J.
Habibie and Abdurrahman Wahid. The visit should not be seen by
the Acehnese as another act of empty rhetoric by Jakarta. Nor
should she promise things that the government would not be able
to deliver.

For example, there is no need for the President to promise any
large, but irrelevant, development projects such as the
construction of railways, the development of the province's
Sabang resort island, or other mega projects. Those were offered
by both Habibie and Abdurrahman, and they both failed to deliver.
In this regard, the duration of the visit, whether several hours
or several days, is not important. What is important is how she
is going to use the visit as an event to unveil her government's
policies and programs that will regain Acehnese trust and
confidence.

There are a number of important issues that the President
needs to address. First, she should once again apologize to the
Acehnese on behalf of the government for past mistakes and
atrocities committed by Jakarta. Second, along those lines, she
should also announce that her government, one or two months after
the visit, will start processing cases of human rights violations
during the military operations period and beyond. Third, the
President should declare the government's commitment to find a
political settlement through dialog and negotiation.

The problem in Aceh, as demonstrated in the past, can no
longer be solved by military means alone. However, at the same
time, the President should also emphasize the need to maintain
law and order in a conflict-ridden area like Aceh. To minimize
possible abuses, she could also announce that the government
would provide security for non-government organizations to carry
out their humanitarian and non-violent advocacy activities in the
province. Fourth, she could also announce that the government
would, at a specific date, start the reconstruction and
rehabilitation program in Aceh. Fifth, and more importantly, she
could announce that she would evaluate Presidential Decree No.
4/2001 on the restoring of order in Aceh, with a view to revising
it.

The list is certainly indicative, but it does address key
concerns of both the domestic and international community. Within
that context, Indonesia should not be overly cautious in
welcoming the support of the regional and international
community. Concern about a possible internationalization of the
issue, especially in the sense that the problem becomes an issue
for the United Nations, is perfectly legitimate in this regard.
However, if the conflict drags on, with a significant amount of
violence and abuse, Indonesia cannot avoid internationalization
of the problem in the sense that it would become a major concern
of both state and non-state actors.

If that were to happen, it is not unlikely that an East Timor
scenario would develop in Aceh. The visit by President Megawati
to the province can, and should, be geared towards preventing
just that.