House asks for amnesty guidelines
Tony Hotland, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
House of Representatives lawmakers urged the government on Wednesday to award amnesty to Aceh separatist rebels in a transparent manner and in accordance with the law.
In a meeting with the government, members of House Commission III on security and legal affairs said many details needed to be laid out on the criteria of those eligible for amnesty, which is part of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on the peace agreement signed by the government and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) earlier this month.
The government has collected data on 1,424 prisoners and detainees who will be the first batch of GAM members to be granted amnesty before the Aug. 30 deadline. They are now in a number of penitentiaries in Aceh, Bengkulu, and across Java island.
"Will GAM members who committed ordinary crimes be entitled to the amnesty too? If so, how is the government going to screen them because many criminals may claim to be GAM members," said Trimedya Panjaitan from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P).
His concern was shared by Imam Anshori Saleh from the National Awakening Party (PKB), who questioned the status of many GAM members who had served their sentence and been released before the MOU was signed.
"Do they get amnesty? If not, do their political rights then get restored? Do they get rehabilitated as well?" Imam asked.
The House members were also curious whether the amnesty would be awarded to GAM members who remained at large across the hills and jungles.
"Is a deadline going to be set for these people to register? Whom do they register with? It must be cross-checked and carefully examined to avoid anyone simply claiming to be a GAM member," said Lukman Hakim Saifuddin from the United Development Party (PPP).
Besides exemption from criminal charges, the MOU also states that former GAM members will also get an allocation of suitable farming land, employment or, in the case of incapacity to work, adequate social security from the authorities of Aceh.
Golkar legislator Akil Mochtar suggested that all GAM members declare their loyalty to Indonesia and willingness to relinquish their aspirations for independence before being granted amnesty.
The legislators said these issues should be addressed by both the government and GAM to avoid disputes, particularly with the intervention from the Aceh Monitoring Mission (AMM) that can rule on the disputes and make binding decisions.
"If necessary, I suggest we bring the GAM negotiators here to hear what they have to say and their own perception of the MOU to avoid various interpretations in the future," said PDI-P legislator Panda Nababan.
The House members also asked the government to draw up a complete action plan to reintegrate former GAM members into society, including preventing them from being labeled and ostracized by others.
The government's chief negotiator Hamid Awaluddin said that amnesty would be granted to all who had participated in GAM activities as agreed to in the MOU.
"Of the current 1,424, only eight of them are charged with both treason and common crimes. This kind of situation is what we're still trying to arrange, whether or not they get amnesty," said Hamid, who is also the justice and human rights minister.
On a statement of loyalty, Hamid said GAM had embraced, albeit implicit in the MOU preamble, the concept of the unitary state of Indonesia.
Asked about the disbanding of GAM, Hamid said it would eventually and automatically take place after "everything is settled", without providing a specific time limit.
The House will submit the results of its discussions for consideration to the government on Thursday, which must be taken into account by the President in granting amnesty in line with the amended 1945 Constitution.