Military operations

Military operations
the only solution

I'm referring to the article published in The Jakarta Post on
May 9, titled Military operations never achieve results.

I don't know for sure whether this is about military
operations in Aceh or military operations in general in
Indonesia. The military operations conducted in Indonesia are to
crush law violators.

In the same newspaper, human rights campaigner Todung Mulya
Lubis said separatism could not be tolerated in any country in
the world, including Indonesia. Todung Mulya Lubis, what is your
concrete suggestion in annihilating this separatism that cannot
be tolerated?

An Acehnese legislator, Mawardi Abdullah, suggested that the
government stick to the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement
(CoHA), because it is still valid and military actions violated
People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) decree No. VI/2002, which
mandates -- not orders -- the government to maintain talks with
the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) and other elements of Aceh's
society. Mawardi Abdullah did not mention on purpose that the
1945 Constitution is also still valid, whose value is higher than
any law or MPR decree, let alone the CoHA. Why do we have to
maintain the CoHA but let the 1945 Constitution be violated?

The situation in Aceh is getting more and more serious and GAM
becomes more and more arrogant while it grows stronger every day
in the sense of manpower and weaponry. According to intelligence
reports, GAM has more than 5,000 fighters with about 1,900
weapons.

The present planned operation is called Comprehensive
Operations, because it is not a military operation only but
combined with other activities, such as improving human welfare,
the stabilization of local government and law enforcement. The
military operation will probably be used to protect and ensure
that the other activities will go undisturbed by GAM.

It should be noted that in the past the military had succeeded
in crushing all rebellious movements, such as the Communist
rebellion in 1948, popularly known as the Madiun Affair,
the South Maluku Separatism movement early in the 1950s, Darul
Islam/Indonesian Islamic Military (DI/TII), PRRI/PERMESTA
rebellions and the Communist Sept. 30, 1965 attempted coup.

All of these are evidence that military operations are needed
to stop rebellious movements.

SOEGIH ARTO
Jakarta