Antiviolence activists speak for justice in Aceh

Antiviolence activists speak for justice in Aceh

Tertiani ZB Simanjuntak, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

With the high-scale military operation in Aceh looming, national
campaigns against violence in the westernmost province have been
few compared to the number of protests against the United States-
led attack on Iraq.

Antiwar figures, either politicians and human rights
activists, who loudly condemned the coalition for the violence in
Iraq, have given lame arguments on their reluctance to support a
peaceful solution in Aceh, where more than 10,000 people, mainly
civilians, have been killed in the armed conflict since 1976.

Justice Party (PK) chairman Hidayat Nur Wahid, who organized
the biggest rally against the attack on Iraq last month, has
repeatedly said that a war in Aceh was inevitable as no
secessionist group in Indonesia could be tolerated.

Even noted human rights activist Asmara Nababan firmly said
that "legally, Jakarta has the right to quell rebels".

He said that was the reason why he and his friends could not
provide an immediate response to the government's plan to launch
a military crackdown on Free Aceh Movement (GAM) separatists
after talks in Geneva faltered on April 27.

It was only last Wednesday, a day before President Megawati
Soekarnoputri received the support of the House of
Representatives to impose martial law in Aceh, that activists
made their move.

Far from being organized, dozens of activists distributed
flowers to House members and Minister of Home Affairs Hari
Sabarno, asking the government cancel the military operation,
which would hurt Acehnese people the most.

When Megawati chaired a Cabinet meeting on Thursday, the
activists came back to the Presidential Palace to voice the same
demands.

They were ignored.

Human rights activist Todung Mulya Lubis said the glaring
ambiguity in positions adopted by state officials, politicians
and activists was derived from the sanctity of the unitary state
concept.

"As a result, we oversimplify the long-standing injustice in
Aceh only as the stand-off between the central government and
GAM, without looking back on the neglect of the promised all-
inclusive dialog and the fact that the administration of the
autonomous province of Aceh has yet to obtain the people's trust
and respect," Todung said.

But Todung admitted that he lacked time to rally support for
peace in Aceh. He was part of a group who collected signatures of
the country's prominent figures who opposed the war in Iraq.

New Indonesia Party (PIB) chairman Sjahrir gave a stronger
argument. In his recent statement, he said that rebel movements
in Aceh and Papua are "effects from politics of violence that had
been the character of the old Indonesia ... not a cause of
violence".

The party urged Jakarta to hold on to the Cessation of
Hostilities Agreement (COHA), signed by the Indonesian government
and GAM on Dec. 9, 2002, in finding solutions for Aceh.

"For the Acehnese people, the agreement is a long-awaited
recognition of their rights to live in peace, freedom, and safety
-- every human being's basic rights that must be protected at all
costs," he added.

On Sunday, Buddhists expressed hope for peace in Aceh and an
end to the conflicts without loss of life.

"We always pray for peace in Aceh," said Bhante Ariyamaitri,
the founder of the Congress of Indonesian Great Sangha (KASI),
during an event to celebrate Waisak holiday and 50 years of
Buddhism in Indonesia.

He said there were currently 5,000 Buddhists in the Aceh towns
of Banda Aceh, Lhokseumawe, Takengon, Meulaboh, Bieureun and
Langsa who had played a role in promoting peace in Aceh and
trying to persuade GAM to return to the unitary state of
Indonesia.