Give peace in Aceh a chance

Give peace in Aceh a chance

With just three days before representatives of the Indonesian
government and the Gerakan Aceh Merdeka or the Aceh Free Movement
(GAM) meet, it would be best for both parties to build a
condition that is most conducive for negotiations. If peace in
Aceh is the ultimate goal of these talks, slated to take place in
Tokyo on Friday, then both parties should show goodwill. That
means creating an atmosphere conducive for peace, and that means
refraining from making statements that increase tensions.

In this sense, we welcome the change in rhetoric from the
government over the weekend. President Megawati Soekarnoputri,
speaking in Bucharest, Rumania, categorically dismissed all
speculations about an imminent military operation in Aceh.
Placing her hopes on the Tokyo meeting, she stressed that the
military option was only a contingency plan, and that the
government was still looking at other options besides war to
resolve the Aceh problem.

Her stance is in strong contrast to the constant beating of
the war drums by the Indonesian Military (TNI) these past few
weeks. The TNI's hardline position, supported at times by some
hawks in Megawati's Cabinet, gave the impression that the
decision to launch the military operation had already been made.
The TNI has even began reinforcing its presence in Aceh, further
lending credence to the rumors that a military operation was
inevitable.

Megawati's statement on Sunday, made during her foreign trip,
has assured us about who is really in charge here, and that even
when she is not in the country, the President, and nobody else,
makes the crucial decisions for this country.

For what it is worth, the TNI's tough posture has forced GAM
to agree to return to the negotiating table to discuss the future
of the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement it signed with the
Indonesian government in December.

GAM had initially rejected Jakarta's call for a meeting of the
Joint Security Council, which is made up of the representatives
of the two parties and the Henry Dunant Centre, the Geneva-based
organization that helped broker the December agreement.

The Indonesian government was acting within its right in
requesting the council meeting. And given that the implementation
of the Geneva agreement appears to have grounded to a halt, such
a meeting is certainly merited, to salvage the entire peace
process. Having come this far since the December agreement, it
would be wrong for both parties to squander the progress.

Gone is the mutual trust between the government/TNI and GAM
that had been painfully built in the first two months of the
Geneva agreement. The tough words exchanged between leaders of
the government and GAM since then suggest that the will to work
towards peace appear to be waning. The rising number of armed
clashes between the two forces, and the inevitable casualty among
civilians, also suggest that the Indonesian government and GAM
are drifting further apart.

Given the escalation of tension, is war then inevitable? No,
unless leaders in the two camps, the government of Indonesia and
GAM, have lost all their common sense.

War is never a solution, and this is especially true for Aceh.

The military option has been tried before, in the 1990s, with
devastating effect, to the point that the military itself became
part of the problem because of the massive human rights
atrocities it committed against the people of Aceh. With the
wounds from that dark episode barely healed, launching another
military operation in Aceh today would be disastrous.

Now that both parties have agreed to give negotiations another
chance, they should go to Tokyo with a commitment to resolve
their differences in a peaceful manner. They should bear in mind
that this meeting is not about nursing their bruised egos, or
about their political goals -- an independent state or keeping
Aceh as part of Indonesia.

This meeting should really be about the people of Aceh, about
what is best for them, and who know better about what is best
for the Aceh people, but the people of Aceh themselves. Let them
decide their own future at the All-Inclusive Dialog that is
supposed to be held once the hostilities in Aceh cease.

The task of GAM and TNI is therefore clear. They have to work
to bring the hostilities to an end once and for all. The road map
for this has already been provided by the Geneva agreement. They
have even started the process, but certain parties now appear to
be having second thoughts.

If the welfare of the people of Aceh is their true concern,
all it really requires is for the government of Indonesia and GAM
to fulfill by their promises made in the Geneva agreement. Now,
is that so difficult to do?