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)