PROMOTING HUMAN RIGHTS, PEACE AND DEMOCRACY IN INDONESIA

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Geneva talks did nothing to improve the situation in Aceh

Just a cover for Indonesia to continue its military operations

5 July 2001

The talks between the Indonesian government and GAM held last weekend in Geneva did absolutely nothing to improve the situation in Aceh where the daily death toll has reached unprecedented levels. ‘One would have hoped for an agreement to end the killings, with the death toll since the beginning of 2001 now exceeding 900,’ said Carmel Budiardjo.

At the insistence of the Indonesian side and against the wishes of GAM, the operations of the Joint Committee on Security Matters (JCSM) were suspended. This means that the Indonesian military can continue to wage their military operations with impunity and without being observed or condemned for the widespread human rights violations accompanying their actions.

Pleas from TAPOL that the talks should agree to a ceasefire and an end to military operations were ignored, as were demands from Amnesty International for specific measures to halt assaults on human rights defenders and to protect them against intimidation.

The Indonesian side had two motives in keeping the talks alive. One was to maintain the fiction that they support a solution to the question of Aceh by means of dialogue, while pursuing their policy of an all-out offensive. The other was to extract assurances from GAM with regard to the security of ExxonMobil. According to the final communique, the resumption of JCSM was conditional on GAM providing such a guarantee.

However, restoring a safe environment for the company does not only rest with GAM. The best way to provide conducive conditions would be for the military operations to be halted and for Indonesia to hold serious negotiations with GAM to end the violence by both sides.

The failure of the Indonesian military to persuade the oil giant to resume operations is having a devastating impact on the Indonesian economy with the loss of $100 million a month in revenue and a growing threat to Indonesia’s lucrative overseas LNG market.

As for the agreement to meet in September, this is likely to be a meaningless pledge. The Indonesian military are working to an agenda set by Vice President Megawati to ‘solve the Acehnese question’ by 17 August, Indonesia’s independence day. By that time, she may well have taken over from President Wahid who has been very reluctant to respond to the army’s wishes for an all-out offensive. The tragedy is that Aceh is being used by the military to show that they and not the political elite are the only ones capable of ‘solving’ the Aceh question.

The present situation of military terror and political impasse can only be ended if western governments exert pressure on Jakarta to halt the military operations so as to end the long-drawn-out sufferings of the Acehnese people. Both sides in the armed conflict should agree to a ceasefire and take steps to enter into meaningful, all-inclusive negotiations. This would mean including all sections of Acehnese civil society, with representatives chosen in accordance with democratic principles.

ENDS

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