Government taking Aceh partition demand seriously
Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The government and lawmakers are listening to demands for the partition of Aceh into three provinces, even though it may infringe on the peace agreement that has put an end to three decades of armed conflict there.
House of Representatives Speaker Agung Laksono said on Wednesday the government would not prevent people from demanding the establishment of new provinces in Aceh, citing the regional autonomy law which allows such aspirations.
"The government will comply with the existing procedures, and there will be no privileges given to the new provinces such as Aceh is now enjoying," Agung told reporters after a meeting with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Vice President Jusuf Kalla, People's Consultative Assembly Speaker and Regional Representatives Council Speaker Ginandjar Kartasasmita at the State Palace.
Minister of Home Affairs M. Ma'ruf said the government took the demand into consideration, but would not give it a priority.
"We are still devoting our energy to the post-tsunami recovery program and implementation of the MOU," he told reporters, referring to the peace deal signed by the government and Free Aceh Movement (GAM) in Helsinki in August.
Ma'ruf said it would require a lengthy and complicated procedure to create a new province, therefore those who support the partition of Aceh would have to think twice whether to go ahead with their proposal.
Calls for the formation of Aceh Leuser Antara (ALA) and Southwest Aceh (ABS) provinces separate from the resource-rich Aceh mounted soon after the signing of the truce. Demands for the establishment of Aceh Leuser Antara, however, started several years ago.
On Tuesday, a group of Aceh figures rallied in Jakarta to push for the establishment of the two new provinces at the House of Representatives building in Central Jakarta.
One of the figures, speaker of the Bener Meriah legislative council Tagore Abubakar, said the partition was necessary to improve people's welfare that the current Aceh administration had failed to do.
If formed, Aceh Leuser Antara would comprise Central Aceh, Southeast Aceh, Aceh Singkil, Gayo Lues and Bener Meriah regencies, while Southwest Aceh would consist of South Aceh, Northwest Aceh, Aceh Jaya, Semeulue and Nagan Raya regencies. Currently Aceh is divided into 20 regencies and mayoralties.
In Banda Aceh, Aceh provincial legislature speaker Sayed Fuad Zakaria supported the partition move, saying it was legitimate.
"We councillors welcome it. If it is the people's voice, the central government must consider it wisely," he was quoted by Antara.
Sayed said that the Aceh council would not attempt to prohibit the demands even though it had previously rejected such moves in July.
He said the council was focusing on debating the draft bill on Aceh governance in line with the peace agreement.
Under the deal, both the government and GAM recognize Aceh's territory as has been in place since 1956, which is exactly the same as it is now. The province covers 55,390 square kilometers of the northern tip of the island of Sumatra.