Military should not dominate operations

Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Religious leaders demanded on Saturday that the government avoid civilian fatalities in its war against the separatists in Aceh and boost humanitarian activities in the troubled province.

They emphasized that the main purpose of the integrated operations was "winning the hearts and minds of the Acehnese", and not a military takeover.

"The military operation should be used to force the rebels to surrender. Once they surrender, there is no reason (for the troops) to shoot them down," Yusuf Muhammad, a senior leader of the country's biggest Muslim organization, Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), told The Jakarta Post on Saturday.

Secretary of the country's second biggest Muslim organization, the Muhammadiyah, Goodwill Zubir, agreed with Yusuf, saying that the government troops should avoid civilian casualties during the operations.

He said that the integrated operations -- the humanitarian operation, law enforcement, local governance empowerment and the restoration of security -- should be carried out in proportion to each other. He did not elaborate further.

Yusuf said government troops should not use "excessive action" in the military operation in Aceh.

He added that the military operation was needed to restore security in the province and to facilitate humanitarian activities in the province.

The most important thing, he said, was a clear understanding that the integrated operation was an attempt to maintain the unitary republic of Indonesia.

A.A. Yewangoe, the chairman of the Indonesian Communion of Churches (PGI), concurred with Goodwill, saying that the government had to shift the focus of its operations in Aceh.

"Do not focus merely on the military operation," Yewangoe told the Post by phone.

The three religious leaders were commenting on the concerns of Ahmad Syafii Maarif, the chairman of the Muhammadiyah, who suggested earlier that an increasing number of casualties would spark antigovernment sentiment among the Acehnese even though they were not separatist rebels.

Syafii suggested that the government stop the war and look for alternative ways of resolving the Aceh issue peacefully.

According to one military estimate, the war had claimed 119 lives as of Friday, the eleventh day of the conflict in Aceh. At least 92 rebels have been killed since the war began on May 19. The death toll among civilians is still unknown.

Yewangoe suggested that the war in Aceh be stopped to prevent more casualties. "Innocent people will be the next victims if the war continues. We have to end the war to achieve peace," Yewangoe added.

He said that his office would invite some religious leaders grouped in the Moral Movement to discuss the Aceh issue. They are Hasyim Muzadi of the NU, Syafii Maarif of the Muhammadiyah, Cardinal Julius Darmaatmadja of the Bishops Council of Indonesia (KWI) and noted Muslim scholar Nurcholish Madjid.

Before the war broke out, these religious leaders had recommended the government avoid the conflict, but the government ignored their recommendation.

Moreover, Goodwill suggested that the government soon implement its humanitarian programs in the troubled province, including rebuilding the schools and constructing shelters for refugees.