Govt to seal off Aceh if GAM rejects peace accord
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The government will seal off the troubled province of Aceh if the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) refuses to sign a peace agreement on Dec. 9 to end the bloody conflict there, Minister of Defense Matori Abdul Djalil said on Monday.
He also said the Indonesian Military (TNI) would launch all- out attacks on GAM's bases.
"If GAM breaks its promise for a second time, the province of Aceh will be closed to land, sea and air communications both from within and outside the area," Matori said during a hearing with House of Representatives Commission I for foreign affairs, defense and information.
According to Matori, exceptions would be made for necessary communications to and from Aceh for those serving the interests of the Aceh civil administration and for carrying out TNI's military operations.
A breakdown in the peace process, Matori said, would be considered a legitimate reason for the security authorities to take drastic measures against GAM rebels and their supporters, or those trying to exploit the situation for their own interests.
The government is scheduled to sign a peace agreement with GAM on Dec. 9. It is hoped the agreement will end a conflict that has claimed more than 10,000 lives since GAM began fighting for independence for the resource-rich province in 1976.
Meanwhile, Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said on Monday that if GAM attempted to commemorate its self-proclaimed independence day on Dec. 4 the authorities would act according to the law.
"Please, handle it as provided for in the existing laws and appropriate procedures," Susilo said after a Cabinet meeting.
He said the regional administration's leaders, including the governor, the regional police chief and the regional military commander, had already made a clear statement on the issue.
"There is only one Independence Day, namely on Aug. 17. Any commemoration outside that date, whatever it is called, is unconstitutional," he said.
Regarding the planned signing of the peace deal between the government and the GAM, Susilo said the negotiations were continuing.
"As I said last week, an intensive meeting with the Henry Dunant Centre was held in Jakarta," he said.
Those issues that have not yet been settled, including the role of the police following the signing of the agreement, have been reworked by the government and communicated to GAM representatives in Stockholm, Sweden.
Susilo said he hoped there would be a reply in the next two or three days.
He also thanked observers, politicians and others for exercising constraint and not engaging in unnecessary discussion about the Aceh problem.
However, he said he heard one observer say there was no need for the government to set a deadline of Dec. 9 for the signing of the peace deal.
"It was strange to hear that," he said because it was the Acehnese themselves who wanted an immediate signing of the deal.
The international community, he added, is also encouraging an immediate deal in order to restore peace to the province.