Amnesty for 500 Aceh separatists

Amnesty for 500 Aceh separatists

Muninggar Sri Saraswati and Yuli Tri Suwarni, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta/Bandung

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Tuesday signed a decree
granting amnesty and unconditional release to members of the Free
Aceh Movement (GAM), clearing the way for an immediate release of
those now being detained at various prisons across the country.

The amnesty is a key component of the peace deal signed by the
government and GAM on Aug. 15, which is expected to end the 30-
year armed conflict in Aceh that has killed some 15,000 people.

State Secretary Yusril Ihza Mahendra told a press conference
that the general amnesty and unconditional release would be
granted to people who were involved with GAM, be it Indonesian
nationals, foreign nationals or those who are currently
stateless.

This means that some 500 GAM members, and leaders including
Hasan Tiro, Malik Mahmud, Zaini Abdullah and Bakhtiar Abdullah
who are now living in exile and assumed foreign citizenship,
would also be eligible for the amnesty.

"With the issuance of the general amnesty and unconditional
release, their social, political, economic and other citizenship
rights are revived," Yusril said.

According to the Presidential Decree No. 22/2005, GAM members
who have assumed foreign citizenships or who are stateless could
regain their Indonesian citizenship within six months after the
issuance of the decree, conditional upon them withdrawing their
foreign or stateless status, and pledging allegiance to the
Unitary Republic of Indonesia, Pancasila and the Constitution in
front of the minister of justice and human rights.

But the decree stipulates that the amnesty would be
automatically annulled if the GAM members committed treason in
the future.

The decree states that GAM members being detained in prison
for ordinary crimes are not eligible to obtain the amnesty or
unconditional release.

The amnesty takes effect immediately. A total of 1,424 GAM
prisoners and detainees are expected to be released on Wednesday,
which is in accordance with the Aug. 15 peace deal, which
stipulates that GAM prisoners must be set free within 15 days of
the signing of the peace deal.

Some nationalist lawmakers have attacked the agreement with
GAM as being too soft on the former rebels.

They have called on the government to give amnesty only to
those willing to pledge allegiance to Indonesia.

Meanwhile, some 74 GAM members being detained at the
Sukamiskin Penitentiary in Bandung, West Java, were scheduled to
be released starting 6 a.m. on Wednesday. Since Monday, the
prisoners had been preparing themselves and had put their bags
and luggage outside their cells.

A brief ceremony will be held before their release.

The prisoners said that they were excited to be finally
reunited with their families.

Kardiman, a GAM member at the Jantho Prison in Aceh Besar
regency, said he was ready to return to society after being
detained for more than 32 months.

But he was concerned for his safety when returning to his
village, and called on the Aceh Monitoring Mission to provide
security for released GAM members.