Special status final for Papua and Aceh: Susilo

Tiarma Siboro, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The government told the provinces of Papua and Aceh on Monday that the special autonomy status accorded to them in January 2002 would be final and any move to secede from the country would not be tolerated.

Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said in his year-end news briefing that there was no room for the two provinces to hold a vote of self- determination like East Timor.

Papua, the country's easternmost province, has been fighting for separation from Indonesia since the 1960s, while Aceh, Indonesia's westernmost province, has been struggling for independence since 1976. Thousands of innocent civilians have been killed in both conflicts.

To appease the rebels, the central government introduced in January 2002 a special status for the two provinces, under which they can, among other things, retain up to 70 percent of the revenue derived from natural resources.

The special status, however, has been outrightly rejected by rebels in both provinces, who insist that they would not settle for anything less than independence.

The government signed on Dec. 9 an agreement with the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) to end all hostilities in the troubled province. GAM, however, has not dropped its demand for independence.

Susilo stressed on Monday that the government was determined to maintain the country's territorial integrity.

"There are three major points that have become top priorities for next year and those are maintaining the existence of Indonesia as a state, keeping national integration and rebuilding Indonesia," Susilo said.

He also said that the government would closely monitor the implementation of special autonomy in Papua and Aceh.

"Together, we also have to monitor local administrations in these two provinces to make sure that the special autonomy is able to raise the standard of living for both Papuan and Acehnese," Susilo said.

He also warned the political elite not to exploit people at the grassroots level in conflict-torn areas, such as Maluku, Poso in Central Sulawesi, and the border area of Atambua in West Nusa Tenggara, for the sake of their political interests ahead of the 2004 general election.

"The elite's maturity in democracy is needed so that possible political conflicts at the top level will not affect the grassroots," he said.