TNI feared to hamper investigation into Aceh rights abuses
TNI feared to hamper investigation into Aceh rights abuses
Though thousands of internal refugees have returned home,
sporadic violence and disappearances continue in Aceh amid
mounting calls for a referendum. Saifuddin Bantasyam, executive
director of a non-governmental organization focusing on human
rights -- Forum Peduli HAM in Banda Aceh -- shared the hopes of
the Acehnese in a long-distance interview with The Jakarta Post.
Question: What is the response in Aceh to the appointment of a
new State Ministry of Human Rights under Hasballah M. Saad?
Answer: Some appreciate this measure, that the appointment by
Gus Dur (President Abdurrahman Wahid) reflects his special
attention to Aceh ... (However) the appointment of a minister
from Irian Jaya shows that Aceh is only one of several issues the
government is trying to accommodate.
Some say the appointment of Hasballah cannot possibly lead to
the settlements of human rights violations here, even if the
minister is an Acehnese. Hasballah is only one person; the
heaviest constraint is political will.
I agree with this latter view: that Acehnese should not expect
too much if the political system is not willing to place the
supremacy of the law above all else. There have been many
examples. (Former president B.J.) Habibie changed the attorney
general four times, but whoever becomes the person in charge,
it's no use if there is no intention to settle things.
The appointment of five military members is not only an
accommodation of their role in the Cabinet, it could extend to
their continued political role which could influence the
settlement of Aceh related cases.
So while Gus Dur may intend to move in the right direction,
the Indonesian Military (TNI) could still exert their influence
(against his efforts). The role of Gen. Wiranto as Coordinating
Minister for Political and Security Affairs remains strong, and
relates to the domestic and international sphere.
If TNI thinks the investigation of rights violations could
disturb its domestic and international interests it's possible
that investigations could be discontinued.
Therefore the appointment of the new ministry is good. It
shows the institutionalizing of the handling of human rights, but
politically it might not be so significant.
Military leaders have said they are willing to take action
against their men as long as we have evidence. We do have strong
leads, the problem is that there has been no political will.
The exception would be if there were some blessings in
disguise (in the new government); that Gus Dur doesn't care about
the TNI (being affected in investigations); that their being
affected would just be a consequence of the reformist government
being committed to democracy and human rights.
But we feel things won't go far enough to lead to significant
persecution of military members. Gus Dur has shown intention on
the investigation of cases, which really touches the public
demand, though it's a bit confusing as he's also told the
military to conduct their own investigation.
Q: Demands for a referendum have been voiced loudly again, such
as from the thousands turned out for rallies in Banda Aceh and
other areas. But the past and current governments have not seemed
to be responding seriously to this. There are signs that
federalism is not ruled out, but the new leaders seem adamant
that no other province should be allowed to be let go from the
country for the sake of "unity"...
A: I indeed fear that the government does not take the demands
seriously. That the government does not want to let Aceh go is an
old story to us; the issue should be how to avoid (provinces
which want to depart from the country). We want violations to be
taken to court and that social and economic injustices be ended.
But Acehnese have been made to wait and wait. The psychological
atmosphere now has reached the point of (them) wanting to see
instant action.
Initially, all that people demanded was that the law be
upheld, which was not done. Wiranto only came here to apologize;
hardly any legal action was taken. Demands then changed. Since
February, there have been calls for a referendum and the ulema
have also joined in, not just the students.
This week, demands for a referendum in rallies attended by
thousands of people in Central and South Aceh obtained support
from their respective legislatures.
Q: Can the new law on autonomy for Aceh be considered a good
start to redress the problems?
A: The aim is good but it should be noted that there are three
main points in relation to Aceh: rights violations have not been
legally processed; continued social and economic injustice; and
calls for independence from the Free Aceh Movement (GAM). Last
week's meeting among GAM leaders in Pidie asserted they only want
independence.
The injustice is beginning to be addressed by the new
government regulation on human rights courts, the law on the
national commission on human rights, the appointment of a human
rights minister, the law on regional autonomy, fiscal balance and
Aceh's autonomy. But the problems do not end there. How should
the calls for independence be addressed?
Answering problems with the law on autonomy for Aceh is only
simplifying matters. Distrust in the government in the last 10
years has become so heightened.
People are now opening history books regarding events in the
1950s and early 1960s when rebellions ended in various promises
from the central government which were never met... people are
becoming critical of how the government handles Aceh. This
attitude was not possible in the past as people were afraid (and)
information was not easy to obtain.
Calls for a referendum will be increasing. The rally last week
in Banda Aceh revealed a good sign from the government in the
sense that there was enough space for expression; the convoys
were escorted by police and there were no soldiers. If the
security personnel had reacted in a harsh way the public would
have become increasingly angry.
Q: Following public demand, most troops have been withdrawn. The
military says only a few troops are still guarding "vital
projects", while others are left to guard against violence toward
the public. The President has said a military command will not be
set up. Has this satisfied demands regarding a military presence?
A: Gus Dur's statement has met positive response here, it brings
some relief. Regarding withdrawal of troops, this is different
from an end to military operations. Withdrawal should mean no
more setting up of military camps in villages, the withdrawal of
troops to their posts in the regions and an end to offensive
actions in districts. There are still troops in the regions, but
offensive actions have been reduced. Troops no longer enter
villages each day seeking suspected rebels or people suspected of
attacking their members.
But rights violations continue each time they conduct
inspections against residents and we have raised protests.
There is a need for troops in reasonable numbers but ... they
should stop being a frightening thing to people. Despite police
taking over security since August, people are still traumatized
by soldiers because of their actions in inspections of civilians.
In a number of cases soldiers have failed to control
themselves, detaining people before handing them over to police
after abusing them. We're not against detention but they should
follow procedures.
Q: Apart from the statement on the alleged slaughter in Beutong
Ateuh, do you know of other progress by the independent fact-
finding team on rights violations in Aceh? Do they get support
from the public?
A: We have been informed that so far six cases may be ready to be
filed at courts this month. They include cases during the
military operations period and after that. The latter include the
mass killings in Beutong Ateuh (the attack on a suspected rebel
hide out in West Aceh in July) and the clash in Simpang KKA
(Lhokseumawe, North Aceh, in May). The public willingly gives the
team information.
So the only problem which remains is the government's
political will. There could be interventions to stop the trials.
Some members of the fact-finding team have said they will
withdraw if there are such interventions from government people.
I only respect the set up of the team for the sake of upholding
the law and to show that maybe a few cases can actually come to
light. But they have such a difficult task. Their mandate is six
months and this is already the third month... Trial and error
will be involved; maybe TNI also wants to test public reaction.
Q: Hundreds of village heads have stepped down in Pidie and
government offices remain closed. Could you describe the current
sense of security?
A: Mysterious killings continue although clashes among security
personnel and armed rebels have declined in the last few months.
This leads to questions regarding the results of the thousands of
troops which were sent here. Only this week have reports of
missing people in various areas reduced from the former average
frequency of one in two days. Of course in documenting cases, we
try to distinguish between political cases and criminal cases. We
are still receiving reports of missing people that date back to
1996... There are also people being released from arbitrary
detention who, fearing they could get into even more trouble,
refuse to press charges.
Regarding Pidie, we have statements from the Free Aceh
Movement urging that except for vital facilities like hospitals,
government people stay away from their offices. Officials are
coming in without their uniforms and leaving as quickly as
possible.
Q: How do you think the Free Aceh Movement should be placed in
the settlement of Aceh problems? There are now signs of a dialog
with the government; while Acehnese themselves aren't sure of the
strength of the movement...
A: The government must work hard to identify the GAM forces and
try to reach out to them ...It's not clear yet to which GAM
people the President claimed he spoke to...The atmosphere became
more problematic with Gus Dur's statement that it is not TNI
which has carried out the killings but people in TNI uniforms.
There has hardly been due legal process.
The Free Aceh Movement is a political reality in Aceh. People
are not sure of its strength but clashes have clearly led to
deaths among police and military.
But what is important here is that because there has been no
upholding of the law, GAM has received public sympathy, more so
among people whose parents or relatives have become victims of
the military operations.
People have turned to GAM for a sense of security.
The new policies must immediately be implemented, such as the
upholding of syariah (Islamic law) and the laws on Aceh
autonomy, regional autonomy and fiscal balance. People can no
longer wait. But if public reactions are not as the government
expected that's a different thing.
Political settlement to calls for a referendum should also be
addressed. If the calls eventually come from Aceh's four million
people will the government still ignore this?
It would be impossible to restore trust in the government if
the government ignores the people.
A simple small step to restore trust would be to have people
informed if military or police members are sanctioned by their
superiors for having violated rules. The police and military may
say they are avoiding anything untoward by not exposing those
sanctions, but mistrust will continue if the public does not know
of such unexposed sanctions.
People here are still very enthusiastic in reporting matters;
they're coming to us just as usual. If this enthusiasm is not
responded to adequately then there will be more trouble.
We know the principal of humanity is universal but the fact is
that the international community applies this discriminately;
politics remains the decisive factor in the selection of cases.
It is between these small spaces of universality and political
discrimination that we continue to work on awareness of human
rights and hope for their settlement. The United Kingdom has said
it would pay attention to Aceh now the problem of East Timor is
over. (anr)