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Aliran Media Statement

Malaysians Protest Against War on Aceh by Indonesia

Aceh A protest was held in front of the Indonesian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur on 23 May 2003 at 2.00pm to protest against the war and military agression on Aceh by the Indonesian government. The Indonesian embassy refused to send any representative to meet the delegation of the NGOs and political parties and to receive the joint memorandum. The embassy had earlier indicated that they would allow five representatives to enter the embassy and hand in the joint memorandum to the ambassador. After much negotiation, the security guards at the front door of the embassy told the delegation that the embassy had instructed him to tell the delegation that if the delegation wanted to hand in the memorandum, they could hand it in to the guards - a suggestion the delegation rejected outright. Instead, the delegation condemned strongly the arrogant and no-dialogue attitude of the Indonesian embassy, which it said was precisely the problem in the conflict over Aceh, where the Indonesian government has refused to engage in peaceful dialogue to resolve the problems in Aceh. About 50 protestors turned out today with banners and placards calling for peace in Aceh, with about 30 policemen guarding the embassy and the crowd. The protest lasted for one and a half hours.

Joint Memorandam on the war in Aceh,
23 May 2003

We, the undersigned non-governmental organizations, express our gravest concern and pledge our solidarity with the people of Aceh following the Indonesian government�s declaration of martial law in Aceh and its ongoing military operation against the Free Aceh Movement (GAM).

The situation in Aceh has deteriorated after both the Indonesian government and the GAM failed to uphold the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement (CoHA), which was signed on 9 December 2002. Under the CoHA, a committee called the Joint Security Committee (JSC) was established with representatives from GAM, the Indonesian government, the Henry Dunant Centre (HDC), and international observers from Thailand, the Philippines and Norway.

We believe this peace process and cease-fire brokered by Henry Dunant Centre (HDC) would have allowed all civilians to live their lives without fear.

However, human rights groups in Aceh have recorded numerous incidents where militiamen, said to be trained by the Indonesian military, had attacked civilians and international observers. The offices of the JSC have also been torched.

Other human rights violations include a series of rapes, murders and disappearances recently. Activists working for peace in Aceh have also been detained. On 9 May 2003, five of the negotiators from GAM were arrested as they were about to fly to the Tokyo talks.

Currently, it is estimated that around 35,000 Indonesian soldiers have been amassed in every corner of Aceh province. Rencong Sakti, the code name of this Indonesian military operation, is not just a military operation name but also a call for ethnic cleansing or genocide.

The present military offensive against GAM reminds us of the Daerah Operasi Militer (DOM) of 1987-1998, which claimed the lives of 12,000 civilians. Undoubtedly, once again, civilians will perish, with children and women being most affected. Thousands of people will be displaced from their homes and villages, and an overflow of desperate refugees from the war zone to neighboring countries in ASEAN is almost unavoidable.

Therefore, we urge the Indonesian government:

1. To withdraw the declaration of war and martial law in Aceh;
2. To stop all military operations in Aceh promptly and withdraw their battalion of militias to reduce tension in Aceh;
3. To return to the negotiation table and seek solutions to stop conflict in Aceh through peaceful means;
4. To allow international peace observers to monitor human rights and development programs without fear and harassment;
5. To create an independent commission to investigate the series of attacks and killings in JSC offices and bring the perpetrators to justice;
6. To release all political prisoners immediately and unconditionally;
7. To allow for freedom of speech and assembly for the people in Aceh to express their political aspirations.