Referendum in Aceh 'within seven months'

TOKYO (JP): President Abdurrahman Wahid said here on Tuesday he planned to hold a referendum in Aceh in seven months.

The President's comment has led to new controversy over his handling of the Aceh issue. Abdurrahman earlier sparked a debate by expressing support for a referendum in the restive province.

Abdurrahman's statement has led to more questions than answers as it was unclear whether the referendum would include a choice of separating from Indonesia. The President said the move was conditional on final approval by the "parliament".

"In general, the plan now is to have the referendum in Aceh six months after the ending of the current situation, and that will take one month," Abdurrahman said on Tuesday during his stopover in Tokyo on his way home from the United States.

"So, all in all (the referendum will be held) seven months from now," the President said, adding that it was important to allow the people of Aceh to express their own beliefs.

Demands for self-determination in Aceh have mounted since the fall of former president Soeharto in May 1998.

It was unclear whether Abdurrahman's plan for a referendum would refer to independence or a form of autonomy.

"As for the referendum of Aceh, I think that you know the decision on the type of referendum will have to wait for the people themselves, not the government," said Abdurrahman at the end of his two-day visit to Japan.

Abdurrahman, however, dismissed the strength of separatist sentiments saying they were "a minority, a very small minority".

Gimmick

Separately, the secretary-general of the Free Aceh movement (GAM) Teuku Don Zulfahri said on Tuesday that Abdurrahman's statement was "just another gimmick to sell the government to the world".

"Wahid knows what Indonesia needs right now -- that is the full support from the international community. That is his target and he will say anything to get that support," Zulfahri, who resides in Malaysia, told The Jakarta Post by phone.

"The question is, does he really mean it? If he does, then let's sit down and talk so at least we can come up with an understanding or something to calm the people of Aceh," Zulfahri said.

He said he was "fed up" with the Indonesian government's attitude toward the Acehnese.

"Honestly, I would never trust any of them unless an agreement is sealed in front of a United Nations representative."

In the provincial capital of Banda Aceh, activist Muhammad Nazar of the Center for Information on the Aceh Referendum welcomed Abdurrahman's statement, but demanded that an option for independence be included in the referendum.

"We also call on the People's Consultative Assembly to immediately announce its support for a referendum in Aceh," Nazar told the Post.

Leaders from the Assembly and the House of Representatives have been reluctant to support the move. They fear a possible domino effect which would eventually break up the country.

Meanwhile, thousands of people continued to flee Aceh on Tuesday amid fears of fresh violence ahead of GAM's 23rd anniversary celebrations in early December.

Transport out of the province is fully booked for the next two weeks and people have withdrawn savings from banks as many non- Acehnese leave, residents said.

Rumors are sweeping the province that separatist rebels will step up their campaign against Jakarta's rule early next month if Abdurrahman does not agree to allow a referendum on independence.

Zulfahri however said "these non-Acehnese have been receiving orders from Jakarta to leave Aceh" and that the move was aimed at scapegoating the separatist members.

Analysts said that mounting calls for a referendum in Aceh were triggered by Jakarta's failure to resolve human rights abuses during a decade of anti-rebel operations in the province.

In Surabaya, East Java, Army Chief of Staff Gen. Subagyo Hadisiswoyo promised that the Army would take firm measures against military personnel found guilty of violating human rights in Aceh.

He however rejected demands that suspected military personnel be tried in civil, rather than military courts.

"We have our own mechanism and procedures to investigate these violations," Subagyo said, adding that military police were already questioning several officers allegedly involved in the Aceh violence.

Subagyo was speaking on Tuesday after installing Maj. Gen. Sudi Silalahi, who will replace Maj. Gen. Ryamizard Ryacudu as chief of the Brawijaya Military Command overseeing East Java.

In Jakarta, House Speaker Akbar Tandjung said that a special team offered by the United States to help Indonesia settle the Aceh crisis was unnecessary.

"We don't have to invite anyone into our internal affairs," Akbar said. (02/50/prb/byg/nur/edt)