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Indonesian Government Asked to Review Cease-fire Accord with Acehnese Rebels
The Indonesian National Police (Polri) asked the government November 14 to review its cease-fire agreement with the Acehnese rebels and declared the Free Aceh Movement Group (GAM) as separatist gang that should be cracked down.
The police also accused the GAM of misusing the accord to "steal the chance" and mobilizing power to increase their attacks against the police there.
"Since August 1998 to November 2000, 198 police personnel have been killed, 316 injured and 25 are missing," Spokesman of the Polri Brig. Gen. Saleh Sa'af told a press briefing at the police headquarters.
"As many as 75 military personnel (mostly Army) were killed between August 1998 and November 2000, while 218 wounded and 18 missing," he added.
For the same period, Sa'af revealed, as many as 660 Acehnese civilians were also killed, 307 injured and 159 missing.
"Meanwhile, the police has arrested 582 members of the GAM. And they have been put under police custody for further legal action," he said.
The country's western most province of Aceh has been demanding for independence since 1976, and the leading rebels group in the predominantly Muslim province, the GAM, has been intensifying its rebellion movements over past two years in particular in the wake of the Soeharto's regime fall in May 1998.
Representatives from Jakarta and the rebel group have reached a cease-fire accord in May this year in Switzerland under which both sides agreed to reduce tension and violence. The accord then was extended in September and due to be extended again some time on Wednesday or Thursday this week in Switzerland.
Sa'af said that the number of dead since the signing of the accord has increased sharply." It means that the accord has not worked well, just we all expected. The GAM has intensified the attack against our men and at the same time our personnel could do nothing as we are abode to the accord," Sa'af said.
"It means that situation in Aceh is very serious as rebel groups has been stepping up their fighting against security personnel, but we can do nothing," he said.
Sa'af said that law enforcement should be taken as concrete measure to deal with the rebel. "Cease-fire agreement which backed by law enforcement, I think it is a good option that may be we can take," he said.
Sa'af indicated that police would seek help from the military to back its law enforcement operation in the troubled province. "We should not let the Aceh problem from being protracted," he added.
"It has to be dealt with very soon by the police which backed by the military," he stressed.
Jakarta has been preparing to implement a wide-ranging autonomy in Aceh which is expected to take effect in early next year, but it seems such an offer would be put aside by most of the Acehnese as they keep demanding a referendum to decide whether they stay to be apart of the unitary state or being independent.
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