Military pledges to support govt dialog with Acehnese
Military pledges to support govt dialog with Acehnese
JAKARTA (JP): Despite mounting clashes in Aceh, the Indonesian
Military (TNI) said it was giving room to the government to allow
it to find a peaceful outcome to the problems in the troubled
province.
"The military with a heavy heart has been forced to deploy a
persuasive approach in facing mounting tension in Aceh while
waiting for the results of the government's political efforts in
seeking the best solution to the Aceh conflict," TNI Commander
Adm. Widodo A.S. said on Thursday.
He was speaking after attending the handover ceremony of the
Army Chief of Staff from Gen. Subagyo Hadisiswoyo to Gen. Tyasno
Sudarto.
Widodo said the Aceh issue was serious and required the
complete attention of all components of the nation.
"The Aceh issue is a serious problem not only for the
government and the military, but, and mainly, for the nation," he
said.
During his address at the ceremony, Widodo warned that the
military was ready to take anticipatory action in facing any
situation threatening national unity.
"As the state's defender, TNI has to be ready to anticipate
every critical situation threatening the country's sovereignty,"
he said.
The admiral said the military accepted the persuasive approach
despite continued attacks by separatist rebels who intimidated
civilians while hoodlums in the province had taken advantage of
the tension by looting and robbing.
Widodo declined to answer what the military would do if the
dialog failed and the Acehnese remained steadfast in their demand
for a self-determination referendum.
Separately, military spokesman Maj. Gen. Sudrajat said TNI
would take repressive action in facing the Free Aceh Movement in
order to restore order and security in the province if all other
means proved ineffective.
"The people should not be allergic to repression. A military-
style solution will only be the last resort if a diplomatic way
out is not possible," he said.
"TNI as the state protector has no other alternative than the
repressive approach if all other means are ineffective," he
added.
Sudrajat maintained the military in Aceh would exercise
extreme patience as long as separatist rebels were committed to
the negotiating table.
"However, the military will not remain still if the tension
continues," he said, adding that the Aceh problem must be settled
in the context of Indonesia as a unitary state.
Gen. (ret) Abdul Harris Nasution, former Army chief, said
after the ceremony that the Aceh issue should be solved peaceful
ly, but the solution should be in the interest of the majority of
the people.
Meanwhile, new Army chief Tyasno said he was hopeful dialog
would help ease tension in Aceh.
"We do hope the ongoing dialog introduced by the government
and the international lobbies will be fruitful so that the
tension calms down and the situation in the province can be
controlled," he said.
Tyasno said he would meet with all Military Command chiefs in
the near future to evaluate the overall situation at home.
Separately, Amien Rais, Speaker of the People's Consultative
Assembly called on the separatist movement in Aceh to refrain
from pulling down the Indonesian red-and-white flag in
celebrations commemorating the 23rd anniversary of GAM on
Saturday.
"The Aceh Independence Movement (GAM) should celebrate its
anniversary in a simple ceremony and it should not pull down the
national flag to prevent unrest and bloodshed," he said after
receiving Singaporean Ambassador Edward Lie, Indian Ambassador
Venskha Rahma and Italian Ambassador Carlon Marsili at his
office.
Amien, who has expressed support for a federal state in
Indonesia to face the threat of disintegration, said the Acehnese
people should exercise patience until a peaceful solution to the
problem was found. (rms)