Villagers in GAM stronghold face no-man's-land

Villagers in GAM stronghold face no-man's-land

Nani Afrida, Banda Aceh

"Free Aceh Sumatra!," shouted several guerrilla rebels of the
Aceh Free Movement (GAM), during a ceremony for the release of
155 hostages, including RCTI cameraman Ferry Santoro, in a
village in East Aceh regency recently.

Hundreds of rebels attended the ceremony, all carrying AK-47
and M-16 rifles along with their crescent-star red flags.

It was the first time since martial law was imposed on May 19
last year in Aceh that GAM openly held such a ceremony among
residents that was officially covered by the media.

Lhok Jok village in Peudawa Rayeuk district is located eight
kilometers east of the Medan-Banda Aceh highway.

It was not clear why GAM chose Lhok Jok village, but it has a
hilly terrain, most likely considered a strategic place for GAM
guerrilla fighters to hide out.

Lhok Jok itself is a poor, backward village. It has a small
populace dominated by women. The men have mostly migrated to
other towns or joined the guerrilla movement.

The women work as farmers or as oil palm plantation workers.
Their rice paddies only yield a harvest once a year.

There is no electricity even though electricity poles line the
road. According to a local resident, GAM had cut electricity to
the village for security reasons.

The roads are not paved, they are dirt roads which turn to mud
in the rainy season.

According to Lhok Jok residents, there are some 300 GAM
fighters who pass back and forth in the village. They live in the
hills on the fringe of the village. They only go down to the
village when supplies run out to demand food from local
villagers.

Life is not easy for villagers living in a GAM stronghold.
They are not only viewed with suspicion by security forces, but
are sometimes the target of TNI personnel' agitation if the
latter fail to locate GAM guerrillas.

Zainal (not his real name), 25, a Lhok Jok resident showed
bruises inflicted by TNI personnel when they entered the village
to hunt down rebels a few days ago.

"We are at a loss as to what to do. Whether we tell the truth
or not, we're still treated as guilty," he told The Jakarta Post.

According to him, nearly all residents have been roughly
treated by TNI personnel. They also frequently hit women and
sexually harass them.

"I was once slapped and my breasts fondled," said Ani, 17, a
village girl.

TNI generals have admitted that some of their troops in Aceh
had violated human fights, but they had been dealt with
accordingly.

As the TNI personnel know that there are many GAM rebels in
the village, TNI personnel are only brave enough to enter the
village in the hundreds using tanks. Usually, after armed contact
with GAM soldiers they would ransack residents houses and line
them up in front of the mosque to be questioned in search of GAM
members.

It used to be difficult for the TNI personnel to catch GAM
members, because they often mingled with local residents. At the
same time, local residents were afraid to reveal the identity of
the GAM members to the TNI, fearing that their families would be
abducted and killed by GAM members.

The years of fighting between GAM and the TNI, especially
during the martial law administration, has brought misery to
local residents. Many of their families or relatives have
disappeared or been killed in the conflict.

A mother who lived in Lhok Jok admitted to having lost her
child and husband during martial law in Aceh. "Up until now, we
don't know where they have been buried," she said.

And, the hostage-freeing ceremony by GAM in Lhok Jok in fact
made residents anxious. They have to think of excuses in case
they are asked by TNI personnel why they had not reported the
presence of GAM personnel in their village.