JP/20/AZHAR

JP/20/AZHAR

Al Azhar, 'president' of Free Riau

Puji Santoso
The Jakarta Post/Pekanbaru, Riau

This thickly bearded gentleman, who is also a chain smoker and a
cultural activist, is always restless. Very often he feels angry
with the central government, which, in his opinion, is arrogant.
This arrogance is why freeing Riau from Jakarta's control often
crosses his mind.

He nurtures an extreme idea of turning Riau into a sovereign
territory, a "Free Riau" that has seceded from Indonesia; an even
more extreme idea is to turn Riau into the tenth state of
Malaysia.

Is the man really serious, or is it merely an ideal?

Al Azhar, more intimately addressed with the honorific meaning
elder brother, Bang, as in Bang Al, is usually referred to as the
"president of Free Riau", a nickname the central Jakarta abhors
but which is used by the Riau people to address him fondly.

Jakarta does not want to see its control over Riau reduced, as
it would mean less or, perhaps, no control over the province's
natural resources like oil, forest products, coconut palms, tin
and many others.

For the Riau people, on the other hand, Al is a symbol of
change.

Ironically, the majority of Riau's population live in poverty,
despite the richness of their province; some have even been
forced to give up ancestral land inherited from their ancestors
to survive.

Only God knows whether Al really wants to be a president;
nevertheless, he has the makings of one. Smartly dressed, Al
commands respect, and like a real president, he is difficult to
reach -- not because of bureaucratic reasons, but because he
frequently runs out of credit on his cell phone.

The beginnings of a movement toward a Free Riau were initiated
in 1994, under an acacia tree fronting Riau University. About 20
students, assigned a research trip to Leiden University, had
gathered and were discussing the future of Riau province.

Born 43 years ago in Pasirpangaraian, Al said the idea of
establishing a Free Riau had first come to him in 1987. Although
he went to Holland for his studies in 1989 -- after completing
elementary school in Dalu, junior high school in Pasirpangaraian
and graduating with a diploma from a Pekanbaru senior high school
with a diploma -- the discussion on this subject continued
intensively.

Aside from talking about establishing a Free Riau, the
discussion also touched a variety of topics such as Riau's
resistance to Batam, which, according to Al and his friends, was
a "state within a state", and also caused the marginalization of
the indigenous people on Batam island. All of these issues
indicated how the central government ignored the local people.

"We think Indonesia has left the economic tradition which, in
the 1920s, was known as economic dualism, namely socialism versus
capitalism. Unfortunately, in the case of Riau, the socialist
aspect is entirely negated. Batam has been turned into an
authority, which means that the power-holder there must be an
authoritarian," Al told The Jakarta Post in a meeting at his
office in Bandar Serai, Pekanbaru.

He continued that, following the establishment of the Batam
authority, the indigenous Batam people rights were wrested.
"Local people suddenly became strangers on their own island, with
the reasons given based entirely on capitalism."

Al said he was not alone, and was fighting for a Free Riau
with other societal elements. Riau writers, for example, write
stories about the idea; while community elders are also
participating in the movement, setting up their own organization,
the Communication Forum of Riau Community Elders (FKPMR).

"In this forum, we discuss and fight for the future of the
Riau people, who are becoming increasingly impoverished," said
Al.

Before "Free Riau" became the popular catchword it is today
among the Riau people, Al and his friends openly voiced his
protest against the central government, even when the repressive
New Order regime was still in power.

In those dark days, Al and his buddies, though never jailed,
were often blacklisted by state security apparatuses: "As our
protests failed to bring about any changes, we have no other way
but to try and fight for our own freedom," he said.

It was this situation that became the backdrop for the Riau
People's Congress in 2000. The congress confirmed the wish of the
majority of its people: a Free Riau.

Will this movement be like the Free Aceh Movement? Not
necessarily, said Al. "We do not want to resort to an armed
struggle to win our freedom. The cost will be too high and such a
movement will certainly claim lives. We want our movement to be
peaceful and sympathetic."

Implicitly, much dissatisfaction has accumulated behind the
movement, especially regarding the redistribution of the
province's assets.

Al Azhar, an indigenous son of Riau, nurtures many ambitions,
including wanting to see a prosperous Riau. Personally, however,
he loves art: literature, drama and classical music.

Is he really ready to become the president of Riau if the
province becomes independent some day?

"A day after being sworn in as president, I will issue a
decree to confirm my resignation. For me, to be an artist is
nobler than being the president of a Free Riau."

He appears to have no presidential ambitions at all.