Susilo to make first visit as president to restive Aceh
Fabiola Desy Unidjaja and Nani Afrida, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta/Banda Aceh
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is scheduled to hold a one- hour dialog with non-governmental organizations, youth groups and religious leaders during his first visit as President to the troubled province of Aceh on Friday.
Security will be tight during his one-day visit, with the Civil Emergency Administration deploying around 3,000 military and police personnel.
A total of 400 invitations have been sent out, but non- governmental organizations critical of the government, including Aceh Anticorruption Solidarity (SORAK), complained on Thursday that they had not been invited to the dialog, to be held at the gubernatorial offices.
"We really want to meet the President. The meeting should be open to the public at large if Susilo really wants input," Akhiruddin of SORAK told The Jakarta Post.
Teungku Raihan Iskandar, deputy speaker of the Aceh provincial legislature, said that the time allotted for the meeting was too short.
"The time is very limited. But if I have the chance, I hope to talk about the government's seriousness in implementing the local autonomy law," he said.
After the dialog, Susilo, who has promised to resolve the Aceh issue based on justice and honest, would proceed to the Baiturrahman Mosque for Friday prayers.
Meanwhile in Jakarta, State Minister for Information and Communication Sofyan Djalil said after a three-hour Cabinet meeting that the Aceh issue would be settled with "dignity, justice and honesty," but did not further elaborate.
"The President will only visit Banda Aceh and hold a meeting with representatives of youth groups, Muslim clerics and other groupings at the governor's offices," Sofyan said on Thursday.
He also said that the government's policy was not limited to extending the state of civil emergency, but also encompassed accommodating the wishes of the Acehnesse people.
"The government will try to retrieve more weapons from the hands of the Aceh rebels and put a post-conflict reconstruction program in place, which will be further elaborated on after the dialog with the Acehnese," Sofyan said.
Aceh is currently under a state of civil emergency as part of the effort to militarily stamp out the Free Aceh Movement (GAM), which has been fighting for independence for the province since 1976. Over 10,000 people, mostly innocent, have been killed since then.
The one-day visit will be the first by Susilo to the province since he was inaugurated as President on Oct. 20.
Just like former presidents B.J. Habibie, Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid and Megawati Soekarnoputri, Susilo will hold a dialog with groups invited by the local administration.
Susilo has been widely criticized by Acehnese elders for his decision to extend the state of civil emergency for another six months, saying that he was no different from previous presidents.
When asked about the legal status of Aceh Governor Abdullah Puteh, who has been under investigation by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), Sofyan said: "The government cannot interfere with the legal process being undertaken by the KPK."
The minister also disclosed that the President planned to visit the earthquake-hit area of Alor in East Nusa Tenggara as soon as he returned from the Association of Southeast Asia Nations (ASEAN) summit in Laos next week.