New directive may heighten tension in Aceh

Tiarma Siboro, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Tension may rise in Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam province following a directive issued by Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono that security operations against hard-line rebels be intensified.

But, the Indonesian Military (TNI) refused on Tuesday to be held accountable for the escalating tensions in the troubled province, contending that security in Aceh was the responsibility of the police.

"The government has maintained that it will continue to impose civilian rule, so the police hold the authority, as well as responsibility for the region.

"We did deploy troops there to assist the police, but we are not in charge," TNI chief of general affairs Lt. Gen. Djamari Chaniago told The Jakarta Post on the sidelines of a handover ceremony for the post of TNI chief from Adm. Widodo AS to Gen. Endriartono Sutarto on Tuesday.

Djamari said the police, along with the TNI, should evaluate the security situation in Aceh to determine whether they can still handle the situation, or they should ask the government to issue other policies."

But, he did not say whether the policy should include a plan to impose a state of emergency there.

Asked how the TNI could deny responsibility for the security situation in the region, while the actual number of its troops deployed there is higher than the police's, Djamari said: "The number of TNI troops may be more than the police, but as the government has yet to impose martial law there, we are not responsible for the situation."

Currently, there are more than 21,000 troops in Aceh, backing up thousands of policemen. The total number of troops is almost the equivalent of an entire regional military command.

Following the deployment of these troops, there has been no open clashes between the separatist Free Aceh Movement (GAM) and the troops in the past few months. But, fresh violence recently erupted in the province, resulting in the deaths not only of civilians, but also local councillors and community leaders.

All of these assassinations have been blamed on "unidentified group(s)" of gunmen.

Susilo asked the TNI and the National Police on Monday to carry out more focused operations against GAM saying that "the rebels' actions were already out of control."

His remarks came amid a planned visit by officials of the Henry Dunant Center -- a Switzerland-based non-governmental organization which has facilitated a series of peace talks between the Indonesian government and several GAM representatives -- to Indonesia, including Aceh.

At the latest peace talks in May, both the government and GAM agreed to stop violence as a starting point to resolve the problems in the region.

The agreement was made following the government's previous decision to run an operation to restore peace and security in Aceh by deploying thousands of troops in the middle of peace talks between the two parties.

Susilo said he was concerned with the continuing violence in Aceh including the recent burning of several schools. He was quick to add, however, that GAM was responsible for the violence.

"This condition has made it more difficult to believe that GAM will accept the (government-initiated) special autonomy status as a final solution," he said.