Search continues for victims of Aceh violence

JAKARTA (JP): The authorities confirmed seven bodies have been discovered following a bloody clash in the village of Meusanah Blang Idi Cut in Idi Rayeuk, East Aceh. A human rights group, however, said the death toll has risen to 21.

"The total number of dead bodies discovered so far is 21," Hamzah Yakob of the Legal Aid Institute was quoted by Reuters on Sunday.

The dead bodies were pulled out of a local river and all had gunshot wounds. Yakob said at least eight of the bodies had been weighed down in sacks with stones.

On Thursday, the Iskandar Muda Legal Aid Office in Banda Aceh claimed 12 deaths had occurred during the violence.

Colonel Johnny Wahab, the military commander for Lhokseumawe in East Aceh, said the death toll from the shootings currently stood at seven but the number may rise.

"We are currently verifying the numbers," he said also on Sunday.

He also said a team comprising police and military police has been set up to investigate the shootings and whether members of the Armed Forces were involved in the violence.

On Wednesday, police opened fire as they tried to disperse a crowd of around 5,000 people listening to a separatist speech in Idi Cut.

Meanwhile, hundreds of villagers in East Aceh continued their search in the Arakondo River for missing relatives following the clash.

The search along the river is being led by the chief of Blang Nie village, Razali Muhammad, and involves residents of four nearby villages in several boats. Razali said he had received daily reports of missing people, Antara reported from Banda Aceh, the provincial capital.

"No less than 100 villagers participate in the search each day," Razali said.

The search has focused on the river after villagers said they saw a truck parked on a bridge spanning the river, later discovering blood where the truck had been parked.

The news agency also said that police had detained three locals and two people were being treated at the Idi Cut hospital.

Meanwhile, a correspondent in North Aceh capital of Lhokseumawe said a resident of Blang Raleu, Kuta Makmur district, was shot twice from the back when he was watching television on Friday. Sugiharto alias Anto, 36, was known as a former cuak, the much-hated informant working for the military.

Commander of the 0103 military district, Lt. Col. Giono confirmed the shooting by two unidentified men, and the finding of two projectiles.

Separately, Aceh Governor Syamsuddin Mahmud's suggestion of a federal state has drawn comments from several quarters. Minister of Justice Muladi reacted harshly to the idea, saying on Sunday in the Central Java capital of Semarang that Syamsuddin was acting in an undisciplined manner if he really supported the idea of a federal state.

"That's wrong. What is constitutional is the unitary state," (We will) defend every inch of this country, excluding East Timor, with the last drop of our blood," he said as quoted by Antara.

Legal expert Soehardjo S. agreed, saying that it was not fitting for a government official to remarks about a federal state. "If it was someone else, such as (politician) Amien Rais, making the remark, it would be all right."

"But Syamsuddin took his oath as an official of the unitary state of Indonesia," he said on Sunday in Semarang.

Students in Aceh responded positively to Syamsuddin's suggestion, adding that a total separation from Indonesia would be even better.

However, politician Yusril Ihza Mahendra said that justice was what Aceh really sought.

Aceh was subjected to a military operation aimed at quashing a separatist movement in the province from 1989 to 1998. After the operation ended, reports of human rights abuses committed by the military in the province began to surface.

Yusril, who is also a legal expert, said in Mataram on Saturday that justice would include a more balanced allocation of the state budget.

The governor told Antara on Thursday that a federal state would be the best way to maintain the integrity of the highly diverse country. He also mentioned the possibility of applying Islamic law in Aceh because of the province's devout Muslim population.

Yusril said he was of the opinion that a unitary state was still the best option, but with wide autonomy given to provinces. "It would be the best way to solve local problems," he said.

Yusril said the idea of a federal state would be further discussed by the new Aceh council which will be formed after the general election in June. (rms/anr/swe)