TNI to send troops to Aceh for rebuilding

TNI to send troops to Aceh for rebuilding

Tiarma Siboro, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The Indonesian Military (TNI) is preparing to deploy 15
battalions of troops to speed up reconstruction efforts in
tsunami-hit Aceh.

TNI chief Gen. Endriartono Sutarto said on Thursday the head
of the Aceh and Nias Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Agency
(BRR), Kuntoro Mangkusubroto, had requested assistance from the
military.

Soldiers will focus on reconstruction work in remote areas
that civilian contractors cannot reach, according to Endriartono.

"If the agency has no other choice but to ask for military
help to carry out reconstruction then we will help, on the
condition that (the BRR) provide the funds to mobilize the
troops," Endriartono said.

This announcement comes as the TNI completes a major
withdrawal of combat troops from the province, in line with a
peace deal signed in August. The Free Aceh Movement (GAM)
recently completed its disarmament, which was also a key part of
the peace agreement.

The Aceh Monitoring Mission (AMM) announced on Wednesday the
completion of GAM's disarmament, with 1,042 weapons surrendered
by the former rebels. The TNI has so far withdrawn nearly 20,000
troops from Aceh, with a final 4,000 soldiers scheduled to depart
the province before the end of the month.

Endriartono said the battalions to be deployed to Aceh as part
of the reconstruction effort would come from the Army's logistics
division. One battalion consists of between 700 and 1,000
personnel.

"TNI Headquarters is now defining the framework for the
project, while the Army will prepare the human resources and the
necessary equipment to assist the BRR," Endriartono said.

He was speaking following a coordination meeting on the TNI's
planned non-military missions next year in areas across the
country, including Aceh.

In 2005, the TNI took part in the construction of bridges in
Aceh that were damaged or destroyed by the Dec. 26, 2004,
tsunami. The military also reconstructed the main road linking
the provincial capital Banda Aceh and Meulaboh.

Army Chief of Staff Gen. Djoko Santoso said the deployment of
troops to Aceh for reconstruction work was just waiting for the
official green light.

"Of course we will coordinate with the BRR, especially in
determining what work we will undertake. We are ready to carry
out the work," Djoko said.

However, GAM spokesman Bakhtiar Abdullah questioned the
deployment, saying there were lots of Acehnese and former
guerrillas ready to help the BRR carry out construction in the
province.

"In this post-conflict situation, it would be better to avoid
any policy that could rekindle the trauma of the Aceh people.
This redeployment, if it materializes, will remind the Acehnese
of their past traumas.

The peace accord signed by both the Indonesian government and
GAM requires the military to reduce the number of its troops (in
the province) to 14,700.

"The planned mobilization goes against the peace agreement,"
Bakhtiar told The Jakarta Post.

He said he would file a complaint with the AMM over the plan.

Several non-governmental organizations grouped under the Aceh
Working Group also criticized the plan.

"Why doesn't the BRR ask professionals to carry out the work?
Any project involving the military should be seen as the
disbursement of large amounts of funds without transparency,"
Choirul Anam of Indonesian Human Rights Watch (Imparsial) said.