Referendum without options
After his recent visit to Aceh, People's Consultative Assembly Speaker Amien Rais said: "If the autonomy law is unsatisfactory and the security situation in Aceh is not improved and the people's suffering continues to worsen, anyone with a healthy brain can predict there will be a referendum. Therefore it's not now, but later." (The Indonesian Observer, Nov. 16, 2000). This statement raises some questions.
A referendum requires at least two clear options, but so far neither the government nor the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) leaders seem to be in a position to formulate their respective offers to the people of Aceh.
First, whether the special autonomy status will meet the expectations of the Acehnese will only be known after the respective law has been introduced to them. Once the law has been formulated, the government must make sure that every single voter is given the chance to understand the implications of the special autonomy status.
Second, the separatist rebels have been fighting for decades for independence, but have failed to provide their fellow Acehnese with a clear political program. The separatist leaders want to establish an Islamic state ruled by the supremacy of syariah (Islamic law), but they did not make any commitment concerning fundamental human rights and the concept of democracy, including freedom of the press, freedom of expression, freedom of science and teaching, equal rights for women and the right to free and democratic elections. How can the Acehnese voters be sure that the impact of independence will serve their interests and welfare? As Aceh is rich in natural resources, how can the Acehnese be sure that certain elements are not using religion as a tool for their own political and economic interests? President Abdurrahman Wahid once said "... to become a good Muslim one need not set up an Islamic state".
If Amien Rais' prophecy should ever come true and a referendum prove unavoidable, one can only hope that by that time the government and the separatist movement will have already revealed their respective proposals in order to give the Acehnese the opportunity to chose between two clear and credible options.
MRS. HILDE MAY
Jakarta