Separatists say no to Laskar Jihad in Aceh

Ibnu Mat Noor, The Jakarta Post, Banda Aceh

The Acehnese people, the local elite and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) have responded coldly to Laskar Jihad's plan to hold a mass gathering to mark its official entrance in the strife-torn province.

GAM spokesman Ayah Sofyan warned Laskar Jihad, a militant Muslim group, against holding the planned mass gathering that could raise further conflict in the restive province.

"The conflict in Aceh is between Acehnese people and the Indonesian government and it is political in nature and not sectarian. With the planned gathering, Lasjkar Jihad is trying to turn the current war into a horizontal conflict," he told The Jakarta Post by cellular phone on Friday.

Laskar Jihad made an announcement in daily newspaper Serambi Indonesia on Feb. 14, 2002, saying that the grand meeting would be held at the Baiturrahman Grand Mosque in the city on Feb. 18, 2002.

Sofyan said the Aceh conflict could not be solved with the new special autonomy laws, including the enforcement of the Islamic law, because what the Indonesian government offered was not true Islamic law.

GAM has also opposed the fund-raising conducted by certain Muslim groups, to be used to help troubled Muslims outside the province, saying Acehnese people are facing financial difficulties to pay the war for their independence.

"Instead of waging jihad in Ambon, it is better for Acehnese people to join GAM to drive the Indonesian ruler out of the province," said Sofyan.

Ammi bin Achmad Marzuki, a GAM negotiator, warned that the presence of Laskar Jihad commander Ja'far Umar Thalib in the city was dangerous because there was an indication that they (Laskar Jihad) were trying to turn the war into a sectarian conflict.

"We remain alert because non-Muslim people in the province have gained protection from GAM in accordance with the Islamic teaching," he said.

Ammi called on local clerics in the province not to allow Laskar Jihad to hold the grand gathering, saying GAM would not take responsibility for any possible incidents during the meeting.

Members of the Aceh provincial legislature gave a cold response to the planned grand meeting, saying they had no objections to the gathering as long as it did not disturb the situation in the provincial capital.

"We will ask local security authorities to disband the gathering if it is found to be inciting local people to exert violence or disrupt the political stability," Mustafa Abdullah, chairman of the legislature's Commission A on defense and security.

Muhammad Kasim, a road-side vendor, said Laskar Jihad could not force change.

"Acehnese people want peace to reign in the province. We are bored with the war. It's Laskar Jihad's right to come to the province but they have no authority to force locals to do things against their will," he said.

Muhammad Kasim, another road-side trader, said many people were unsettled after hearing of Laskar Jihad's plan to hold a mass gathering at the grand mosque.

"We do not want Aceh to become another Ambon or Poso," he said.

Laskar Jihad have previously deployed militia to wage an armed Jihad in support of Muslims in Poso in Central Sulawesi and Maluku. Recent peace treaties have been signed.