TNI asks for Rp 1.23t for Aceh

Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The Indonesian Military (TNI) has asked for Rp 1.23 trillion (US$143 million) to finance a six-month operation in Aceh.

"It will be used to finance the needs of soldiers, maintenance of military equipment and other facilities," TNI chief Gen. Endriartono Sutarto told House of Representative's Commission I overseeing defense affairs on Monday.

The funds excluded the TNI's state budget allocation of Rp 11.53 trillion for 2003 for routine spending and Rp 2.41 trillion for development expenses.

As of May, the TNI has used 39.6 percent of the budget set for routine expenses and 60.6 percent of the development budget.

The hearing was expected to focus on budget affairs but dozens of legislators inquired about the TNI's preparations for the operation in Aceh after the apparent collapse of a peace deal between the government and Free Aceh Movement (GAM) separatists.

TNI expects to deploy between 40,000 and 50,000 troops to the natural resource-rich province to quell the guerrilla fighters, whose number is estimated at 5,000.

Endriartono said the TNI was in a need of support from all parts of the nation, including humanitarian activists, to "win the hearts and the minds of the Acehnese people".

If the government failed to win the trust of the people of Aceh, the TNI would be unable to minimize civilian fatalities during the operation.

He said soldiers would not ask Acehnese civilians to leave their villages but would force GAM members to do so.

However, he admitted it would be difficult for the security troops to differentiate between rebels and civilians.

GAM has been waging a guerrilla war for independence since 1976. More than 10,000 people, mainly civilians, have been killed.