Group demands new province in Sulawesi
Group demands new province in Sulawesi
Andi Hajramurni, The Jakarta Post, Makassar, South Sulawesi
Some 500 members of the Mandar ethnic group, a dominant tribe in
western Sulawesi, gathered at the South Sulawesi governor's
office and legislative council on Wednesday to demand the
immediate establishment of a West Sulawesi province.
The demonstrators came from five regencies -- Mamuju, Mamuju
Utara, Majene, Mamasa and Polmas. They began their demonstration
at the South Sulawesi governor's office at 9:30 a.m.
After Governor Amin Syam declined to meet with the
demonstrators and security officials blocked their entrance to
the governor's office, the situation became tense.
One demonstrator broke a window and several others jumped onto
desks and demanding the governor and his deputy come out and meet
with them.
With the governor and his deputy were reportedly out of town,
the demonstrators were received by the chairman of the national
unity affairs division at the governor's office, Andi Baso
Makmur.
Those gathered demanded Andi Baso fax their petition for the
establishment of a West Sulawesi province to the House of
Representatives and the Ministry of Home Affairs in Jakarta.
They also told the official to make sure the petition reached
the governor as soon as he returned to his office.
The petition, which was read out by Ma'mun Hasanuddin, the
brother of former coordinating minister for people's welfare and
current ambassador to Iran Basri Hasanuddin, accuses the South
Sulawesi provincial administration of being behind a delay in the
endorsement of a proposal for the establishment of the West
Sulawesi province.
"Based on our own monitoring since the preparation stages for
the establishment of West Sulawesi province, we have concluded
that the South Sulawesi provincial authority has withdrawn its
support and has been seeking out possibilities to prevent the
establishment of the province," Ma'mun said.
Sutardji, a councillor with the Polmas regency legislative
council, said House Deputy Speaker AM Fatwa, who visited Majene
regency last week, hinted that the House had agreed in principle
to the establishment of the new province.
But the problem now rests with the government, which has yet
to give the green light to the proposal, Sutardji quoted Fatwa as
saying.
The petition also demands that the South Sulawesi
administration invite a team from the Directorate-General of
Regional Autonomy at the Ministry of Home Affairs to conduct
field observations to judge whether the people are prepared for a
new West Sulawesi province.
The petition demands the House immediately endorse the draft
law on the establishment of West Sulawesi province and
deliberate the draft at its next session in August.
"They (the House) have no other reasons to delay the
deliberations on the proposal to establish the West Sulawesi
province, as all of the requirements have been met," Rahmat
Hasanuddin, also a brother of Basri Hasanuddin, said.
Rahmat said should this demand be ignored, the Mandar people
would boycott the 2004 elections and carry out "social
disobedience".
Currently, the five regencies are a part of the South Sulawesi
province.