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.