Asia Times: New Indonesian president grants special status to rebellious provinces



	October 30, 1999	atimes.com

Southeast Asia

Wahid empowers the provinces
By Richel Dursin and Kafil Yamin

JAKARTA - In a move to douse fires of pro-independence discontent in Aceh and Irian Jaya provinces, the Indonesian government of President Abdurrahman Wahid is granting them special autonomous status.

The grant comes under new rulings of the five-year State Policy Guidelines approved by the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR), the country's highest legislative body which elected Wahid as president and Megawati Sukarnoputri as vice-president, on October 20.

Wahid, whose decisions have been marked by a radical departure from Suharto-era policies, has decided to handle problems relating to Aceh himself. He has assigned Megawati to focus on problems relating to Irian Jaya and other riot-torn provinces, including Maluku and Riau, in the eastern part of the country.

The moves, along with Cabinet appointments from far-flung areas, recognize that action is needed to prevent the region's rumblings from pulling apart the archipelago - especially after East Timor's vote. Wahid and Megawati, known as strong nationalists, have ruled out federalism as such, but say they would like to promote regional autonomy for more equitable distribution of wealth and less centralized decision-making.

''The central government never considered Aceh and Irian Jaya. Of the 54 years that we tried to live within Indonesia, we lived in peace for 15 years and the rest is war and rebellion,'' said newly appointed State Minister for Human Rights Hasballah M Saad, the first Acehnese to get a Cabinet seat.

Before he got the post, Saad, a human rights activist from Pidie, pushed for special autonomy status for oil- and gas-rich Aceh in northern Sumatra, and mineral-rich Irian Jaya on the border with Papua New Guinea. The two regions saw massive extraction of minerals and natural resources, while receiving little in return. Since the '70s, both provinces have also suffered harsh military campaigns to quell separatist sentiment.

Given East Timor's path, Saad said, ''we have to learn from another event, another province, another country''. But ''if we come directly to independence like the East Timorese did, that would take a long time and we would lose so much. We don't want to add to the list of victims''.

Under the proposed special autonomy status, the central government will control foreign affairs, defense, currency and the high court. Other affairs will be handled by provincial governments.

''The special autonomy status will be arranged through a law,'' said MPR speaker Amien Rais. ''The MPR asked the House of Representatives to come up with the legislation soon, having looked at former President Habibie's model of wide-ranging autonomy offered to East Timor.''

''The majority of us Acehnese want independence from this republic because of accumulated disappointments,'' said Muchtar Aziz, former legislator from the United Development Party. ''Actually, we still want to be part of Indonesia, but how can we live with people who don't want to live with us? We are not the ones who want independence, but the Indonesian government is.''

Wahid has said he will meet with different groups in Aceh, not least because some groups there like the United Islamic Front Caring for Aceh prefer autonomy. A sore point remains Jakarta's failure to seek justice for atrocities against civilians during the military operation, launched in 1989, to crush the Free Aceh Movement. Though the operation officially ended on August 8, 1998, violence against civilians continues.

With its new government, Indonesia appears to have gained some time to listen to the demands of the regions, but the opportunity is not without its limits and challenges. ''If the military declares war, the people are already prepared and will fight back. Even if there were only two people left, the Acehnese will never give up. The Acehnese can all be killed, but they will never surrender,'' Aziz said.

Other regions without similar histories of restlessness have also been emboldened to seek self-rule.

After Sulawesi-born Habibie's ''accountability speech'' was rejected by the MPR, student protesters in Sulawesi called for an independent state. 'Our main goal is to establish an independent state, but if any of the eastern Indonesian provinces want to join in, we welcome them as brothers,'' said Iswari Alfarisy, coordinator of the Independent Makassar Students.

While some feel the Sulawesi protests were an expression of disappointment over the defeat of Habibie's presidential bid, others see them as yet another sign of regional discontent being aired in the post-Suharto era. ''The protest is part of the accumulated problems of the country,'' said Azyumard Azra, rector of the Syarif Hidayatullah State Institute of Islamic Studies. ''This is only the tip of the iceberg of problems and disappointments that have never been resolved by the central government.''

Many say it is time Jakarta acts on demands for greater distribution of wealth because some of its biggest revenue earners are found in these provinces. ''The central government profits from Freeport-McMoRan Copper and Gold Mine in Irian Jaya, but the Irianese get nothing,'' Saad said. As in Aceh, the wealth produced per inhabitant in Irian Jaya is among the highest in Indonesia, while per capita income among the lowest. ''If Aceh and Irian Jaya choose to separate from Indonesia, the country would have problems without resources such as Arun, the largest oil and gas reserve in Aceh, and Freeport-McMoRan,'' said Goenawan Mohamad, former chief editor of Tempo magazine.

Still, Saad says it is time to be pragmatic. Unlike East Timor, ''there is no clear support from the international community because they think Aceh is an internal problem of Indonesia. That's why we have to change the strategy. The objective here is not independence, but how to improve the lives of the Acehnese.''

(Inter Press Service)

back to the top

©1999 Asia Times Online Co., Ltd.