'RCTI' driver held by GAM reunited with family
Teuku Agam Muzakkir and Nani Farida, The Jakarta Post, Lhokseumawe/Banda Aceh
After about six months held by the Free Aceh Movement (GAM), a driver of the RCTI television crew was rescued by marine troops in an ambush in East Aceh on Wednesday.
Following exchange of gunfire in Simpang Ulin, Rahmatsyah, 20, the driver of Ersa Siregar and Ferry Santoro who are still being held hostage, was whisked away to the Aceh Military Operation command headquarters in Lhokseumawe, North Aceh.
Rahmatsyah looked gaunt and tired, but appeared to be healthy.
"I miss my father and mother ... I miss my brothers and sisters," said Rahmatsyah, the sixth of seven siblings.
"GAM members treated me well ... But I'm so tired because they constantly moved us from one place to another. I sometimes had to sleep in tents in remote forests," Rahmatsyah told journalists Thursday at the headquarters.
A tearful reunion followed when his parents, who were picked up by a military helicopter, arrived from their village in Samalanga subdistrict, Bireuen regency.
On Wednesday marines ambushed an area believed to be GAM's camp in Pantee Bayam, Simpang Ulim which is under the supervision a GAM leader, Ishak Daud. In the crossfire Rahmatsyah and nine GAM members crawled for shelter. As the nine fled, Rahmatsyah remained crouching, shouting to the troops: "My name is Rahmat. I'm Pak Ersa's driver, I'm the driver of the RCTI journalists."
Journalist Ersa and cameraman Ferry and several other Acehnese, including the wives of two TNI officers have been held hostage since June 29. The fighters had suspected the women of espionage.
"The last time I met Pak Ersa and Pak Ferry was about three months ago. They looked healthy," Rahmatsyah said, adding that GAM rebels placed groups of hostages in different locations.
Aceh Military Commander Brig. Gen. George Toisutta apologized to the public for not yet rescuing the journalists as well as other civilian hostages.
Also on Thursday, the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) said "the government's delay in facilitating these journalists' release is inexcusable and inexplicable."
IFJ President Christopher Warren said in a letter to the President that the government order the TNI "to allow the IFJ and the International Red Cross free movement in Aceh so that they may safely receive the two journalists from the GAM."
The Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) also delivered a letter on Thursday to President Megawati Soekarnoputri concerning the release of Ersa and Ferry.
Separately Antara quoted the military saying that an 11-year- old girl was killed in Nisam, North Aceh late Tuesday during a crossfire also injuring two other civilians. Rebels also shot dead two civilians in South and North Aceh on Wednesday, said a military spokesman, Ahmad Yani Basuki.
Also on Thursday Minister of Foreign Affairs Hassan Wirayuda criticized a scathing report on Aceh by the international organization, Human Rights Watch. The report issued on Wednesday was baseless among others, he claimed, because its sources included 85 Acehnese refugees interviewed in Malaysia.
Hassan also dismissed the report's view of that the operations in Aceh were secret. "There's nothing secret about it," he said, referring to the government's announcement of the beginning of the "integrated operations" on May 19 which were said to include a humanitarian operation in conjunction with the military offensive under martial law.