VP rejects conditions for GAM amnesties
VP rejects conditions for GAM amnesties
Muninggar Sri Saraswati and Suherdjoko, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta/Semarang
Vice President Jusuf Kalla has dismissed calls by lawmakers for
Aceh rebels to be compelled to swear an oath of loyalty to the
Unitary Republic of Indonesia as a precondition for being
amnestied.
Such an oath would not guarantee that Free Aceh Movement (GAM)
members would really become loyal citizens, he argued.
He said that what mattered more was obedience to Indonesia's
laws rather than simply swearing a meaningless oath of
allegiance.
"What's more important is (for GAM) to abide by our national
laws in an effective and consistent manner rather than
proclaiming oaths or vows of loyalty to Indonesia," Kalla was
quoted by Antara as saying over the weekend.
He was speaking on board a flight from Surabaya to Jakarta
after attending a meeting with Golkar Party supporters and
opening a training course for party members in East Java.
Kalla is the leader of Golkar, which holds the most seats in
the House of Representatives.
To back up his point, the Vice President cited as an example
the public servants who swore to eschew corruption before taking
up their post. However, vast numbers of them then went on to
break their oaths at the first available opportunity.
"So, it's more about abiding by Indonesian laws and imposing
proper sanctions on violators," said Kalla.
House Commission III on legal affairs and security last week
urged the government to withhold amnesty from GAM members who
refused to proclaim their loyalty to the Unitary Republic of
Indonesia, the 1945 Constitution and the state ideology,
Pancasila.
Rebels with foreign citizenship, such as the peace
negotiators currently living in Sweden, would have to regain
their Indonesian citizenship before being amnestied, the
Commission added.
It argued that such a declaration was necessary to make sure
that all those who received amnesties had abandoned their dreams
of Acehnese independence.
The Commission said it was insisting on the precondition as
the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), signed on Aug. 15 by the
government and GAM to end nearly 30 years of armed conflict, did
not explicitly state that GAM had to cease its campaign for an
independent Aceh.
Indonesia has no specific amnesty legislation, but the 1945
Constitution stipulates that the President has the prerogative to
grant amnesty upon listening to the advice of the House.
State Secretary Yusril Ihza Mahendra said the government could
grant amnesties to foreign nationals based on the fact that they
had committed crimes within the territory of Indonesia.
"(But if the President agrees with the House), they (foreign
GAM members) could be granted Indonesian citizenship directly
without going through the normal procedures as this is a special
case," he said.
House Commission III deputy chairman Akil Mochtar said that
the government's failure to take all the House's recommendations
on board would not result in any legal repercussions, but it
could trigger political consequences.
A total of 1,424 GAM prisoners and detainees will make up the
first batch to receive amnesty before Aug. 30. More were likely
follow suit later.
In a related development, 71 GAM prisoners in penitentiaries
in Pekalongan, Kendal, Pati and Ambarawa -- all in Central Java
-- underwent medical examinations on Saturday.
"They're going to be released after being amnestied by the
President. But I don't know yet when that will be. We're still
waiting for the order," Ambarawa prison warden Soemaryono said.
Besides being examined, the prisoners were also asked about their
families and their future plans upon returning to Aceh.