Lawmakers question arrival of EU observers in Aceh
The Jakarta Post Jakarta
Despite growing calls from legislators not to internationalize the conflict in Aceh, the government has said it will go ahead with talks with Aceh rebels in Finland.
The recent arrival of international observers in Aceh only adds insult to injury.
Lawmakers have demanded that the government stop the talks with the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) after the last round of negotiations failed to resolve crucial issues in the decades-long fighting in the resource-rich province.
Legislators also oppose the inclusion of foreign parties in the talks in Helsinki, which they say is an attempt to internationalize the problems in Aceh.
The state-sponsored think tank the National Resilience Institute also said the "internationalization" of the Aceh talks would give GAM the opportunity to strengthen its position in the eyes of the international community.
During the fourth round of talks that ended in May, the government and GAM agreed to allow representatives from the European Union (EU) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to observe the implementation of any peace agreement that might be achieved in the latest round of talks.
"But even when the Indonesian delegates were still in Helsinki and the President was abroad, there were already invitations to the European Union and ASEAN to visit Aceh," a member of House of Representatives Commission I on defense and foreign affairs, Djoko Susilo, said on Tuesday.
He said the invitations were signed on June 5 by the secretary to the Vice President, Asril Noer, at the order of Vice President Jusuf Kalla, when President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was on a 12- day visit to the United States, Vietnam and Japan. The President returned to Indonesia on June 6.
Djoko said 20 international observers arrived in Aceh on June 26.
"This is really a careless act. The fact that most legislators did not even know about this -- I found out about it from a source -- means the government once again bypassed the House in making a vital move," said Djoko.
Indonesian Military (TNI) chief Gen. Endriartono Sutarto confirmed on Tuesday the arrival of foreign observers in Aceh, adding they were in the province only to make preliminary observations.
"We are not taking any stance on this because it is government policy. But we ask (the foreigners) to request escorts by TNI or police personnel while doing their jobs because we do not want any harm to come to them," he said.
Vice President Kalla declined to answer questions on Tuesday about whether EU observers were in Aceh and if he invited them.
Speaking after a lunch with ambassadors from EU nations, Kalla said a monitoring system would be put into place if the government and GAM reached a peace deal, and that the possible shape of that system was now being discussed.
He said the Aceh issue was not discussed during the lunch with the EU ambassadors.
Netherlands Ambassador to Indonesia Ruud Treffers, who also holds the EU presidency here, said Aceh was not discussed during the lunch, but stressed that the EU was ready to be involved in resolving the separatist conflict.
Kalla said any decision on a cease-fire and the withdrawal of military personnel from the province would be made only after a peace deal was signed.
"If there is no longer a conflict, why would we deploy soldiers there? They could just go home, rest or train. But until an agreement is reached, they will not be withdrawn," he said.