SIRA chairman demands case against him proceeds

BANDA ACEH, Aceh (JP): Detained chief of Aceh Referendum Information Center (SIRA) Muhammad Nazar demanded on Friday that the case against him be brought to court "to reveal the truth behind all the conflict in Aceh".

Nazar talked to local journalists after a closed-door meeting with Aceh Governor Abdullah Puteh at the Banda Aceh penitentiary on Jl. Cut Meutia, about 100 meters away from the Aceh Police Headquarters on Friday afternoon.

Nazar is currently a detainee of the Banda Aceh prosecutor's office, pending the trial on his case.

"I do not want my case to be dismissed.

"I want to go on with the trial as I believe my case is related to the political situation here and that through the trial I can reveal the truth," he said, while adding that some of his personnel notes and diary had been taken away by the authorities during his detention.

Nazar was responding to several calls from activists for his case to be dropped.

He is being charged under Articles 154 and 155 of the criminal code for showing hostile intentions/treason against the state and for expressing hatred against the government, respectively. The articles carry a maximum sentence of seven years and four and a half years in jail, respectively.

SIRA is an influential non-governmental organization in Aceh that has been actively fighting for a referendum in the province.

Governor Puteh only smiled and refused to talk to journalists after ending his one-hour visit at 2:30 p.m. local time.

Meanwhile, Nazar said that the governor visited him to learn about his condition and exchange information about the latest situation in Aceh.

"As SIRA coordinator, I'm also glad to hear that GAM (Free Aceh Movement) have decided to remain committed to independence through diplomatic efforts instead of armed struggle," he said.

M. Nazir Djamil, a provincial legislator who also attended the meeting, said the event was "merely a meeting between the Aceh governor as the people's leader and the SIRA chairman as a local figure."

"We hope to maintain peace and togetherness in facing this difficult period for Aceh," Djamil said.

Violence, however, continued to rock the province.

In the town of Langsa, East Aceh, two policemen were reportedly injured in an incident on Friday.

Three people, including two soldiers, were killed in Aceh in a drive-by shooting on Wednesday.

"Two soldiers, identified as Col. Rustam and Col. P. Hutasoit were shot dead when gunmen opened fire from a passing vehicle in Juli Kedai Dua, Bireun regency on Wednesday," chief of Infantry Battalion 113/Jayasakti Lt. Col. Erda Bachtiar said on Thursday.

A resident named Umar Sidi was also killed during the pursuit of the gunmen.

Not long after the shooting, some 100 houses and shops in the area were set on fire.

North Aceh police chief Adj. Comr. Wanto Sumardi blamed GAM rebels for the shooting.

But North Aceh GAM commander, Teungku Darwis Djeunib, denied his men were to blame.

"All (our) troops have been back at our base since Jan.16. I think the attack was the result of an internal dispute between the police and the military," Darwis said. (50/edt)