Govt not transparent on Maluku, Aceh issue

Govt not transparent on Maluku, Aceh issue

Tertiani ZB Simanjuntak, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

An alliance of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) criticized
the government on Friday for its lack of transparency in
implementing policies to end regional conflicts, especially those
in Aceh and Maluku.

The NGOs said Jakarta had taken additional measures in the
troubled provinces without giving an explanation to the public as
to whether it had made any progress or not.

"Government policies on Aceh and Maluku are not based on a
comprehensive analysis of the real condition in the provinces,"
said Ori Rachman, the coordinator of the Commission for Missing
Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras).

"The government always takes a security approach and never
listens to the people," he said.

The NGOs, including Kontras, the Advocacy Team for the
Resolution of the Ambon Case (Tapak Ambon), the Institute for
Policy Research and Advocacy (Elsam) and the International Non-
governmental Forum on Indonesia's Development (Infid) assessed on
Friday the two-year-old state of civil emergency in Maluku.

The results of the evaluation will soon be released to the
public.

Jakarta is considering imposing civil emergency status in Aceh
to quell the separatist movement. It has also set up an
independent team to investigate all violations of human rights
and the law during the three-year Maluku conflict.

The conflict, which has claimed thousands of lives since
clashes first broke out on Jan. 19, 1999, has been complicated by
the presence of Java-based Laskar Jihad and the resurgence of the
South Maluku Republic (RMS).

There are a total of 12 battalions of the Indonesian Military
(TNI) and National Police deployed on the islands of Ambon, Seram
and Buru.

Maj. Gen. Djoko Santoso, the chief of the Pattimura Military
Command overseeing Maluku and North Maluku, said on Friday that
although the situation in Maluku was calm, none of the troops
would be withdrawn until the situation was fully under control.

Ori said the measures taken by the government in Maluku and
North Maluku to end the conflict were incompatible with what the
public urgently needed.

"The people of Maluku have stopped the communal clashes and
are aware of the presence of outsiders who worsen the situation.
They have also been able to maintain security and order by
themselves."