GAM accuses Jakarta of declaring war
GAM accuses Jakarta of declaring war
Agence France-Presse, Jakarta
Separatist rebels in Aceh have criticized Indonesia's decision to extend military operations there as a "declaration of war," further clouding the prospects for peace in the troubled province.
Top security minister Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Thursday announced the extension of military operations for six months in the energy-rich province on the north of Sumatra island.
It is part of a five-point presidential decree authorizing continued operations by the army -- among other measures -- that will take effect for six months after the old decree expires next Monday.
The decision is "undeniable proof that the government has once again surrendered to military (armed forces) pressure", said Sofyan Daud, the military spokesman of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM), in a written statement received Friday.
"Just as the public breathes a sigh of relief following signs of decreasing violence after dialogues in Geneva, the Indonesian government has once again enforced its bloodthirsty lust."
On Thursday Yudhoyono said "armed disturbances" by GAM rebels must be "annihilated" but added that "appropriate treatment" would be given to those who surrender.
GAM has waged a war for independence since 1976.
Daud said officials in Jakarta had "mistakenly calculated their adversary because of false reports from military commanders in Aceh suggesting that they are highly successful".
He added: "It is ironic that while the public is hoping that violence would cease in Aceh ... the government declares war on the Acehnese people."
Indonesian government representatives and the exiled leadership of GAM met last weekend in Switzerland and "agreed to a period of confidence-building in which they will cease hostilities and then move towards democratic elections in Aceh in 2004".
But in what rights activists labeled a setback to the peace process, Jakarta on Tuesday officially inaugurated a separate military command for Aceh, a unit which was disbanded 17 years ago.
Activists say the revived command will only worsen violence in Aceh, where more than 1,700 people were killed last year alone. Almost 200 people have already died this year.
Separatist sentiment in Aceh has been strengthened by years of human rights abuses by the military and the draining of Aceh's natural resources.
Last year Jakarta granted Aceh greater self-rule and a larger share of the revenue from its substantial oil and gas reserves but ruled out independence.
In the latest violence soldiers killed a suspected rebel at Sungai Keruk village in eastern Aceh on Thursday, Aceh military spokesman Major Zaenal Muttaqin said, quoted by the state Antara news agency.