attatchment (multipart/alternative) ignored
X-Apparently-To: murni77@yahoo.com via 216.136.227.104; 11 Dec 2002 09:04:34 -0800 (PST)
X-Track: 0: 100
Return-Path: <djuli@pc.jaring.my>
Received: from 61.6.32.56 (EHLO smtp6.jaring.my) (61.6.32.56)
by mta193.mail.scd.yahoo.com with SMTP; 11 Dec 2002 09:04:15 -0800 (PST)
Received: from carii (j22.rwg20.jaring.my [161.142.74.216])
by smtp6.jaring.my (8.11.4/8.11.4) with SMTP id gBBH21Q20029;
Thu, 12 Dec 2002 01:02:03 +0800 (MYT)
Reply-To: "djuli" <djuli@pc.jaring.my>
From: "djuli" <djuli@pc.jaring.my>
To: <Undisclosed-Recipient:;>
Subject: Cot trieng "Siege" fiasco - Sydney Morning Herald.
Date: Thu, 12 Dec 2002 01:01:30 +0800
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: multipart/alternative;
boundary="----=_NextPart_000_0055_01C2A17A.01B64640"
X-Priority: 3
X-MSMail-Priority: Normal
X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook Express 5.50.4133.2400
X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V5.50.4133.2400
Content-Length: 7280
This is a multi-part message in MIME format.
------=_NextPart_000_0055_01C2A17A.01B64640
Content-Type: text/plain;
charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable
TITLE: Much pounding in the marsh as phantoms hoodwink army
SOURCE: Sydney Morning Herald - December 7, 2002
William Nessen, Cot Trieng, Aceh -- Inside a 20-kilometre circle
of marsh and shoulder-high grass dotted by thick patches of
rattan and palm trees, Indonesia's military, the TNI, has aimed
to end the nation's most persistent rebellion.
In its most concentrated attack against independence guerillas in
years, the TNI has sent tanks, helicopters, rockets and warplanes
to bombard a desolate swamp in the northern part of Aceh
province.
Soldiers said they had repeatedly used up the local stock of
mortar shells and deployed thousands of men to surround military
leaders and rank-and-file fighters of the Free Aceh Movement
(GAM) during the past month near the village of Cot Trieng.
Indonesian newspapers cover the drama daily, repeating the
military's claims to have trapped GAM leaders at a guerilla
headquarters or at least ensnared dozens of fighters.
However, the guerillas are probably long gone. Last week a local
TNI commander quietly told journalists he suspected there were no
guerillas there, but asked them not to say anything.
Like the siege, the apparent progress towards a political
solution in talks in Geneva overlooks why GAM will not surrender
its guns.
"We have absolutely no trust of the Indonesians," said Nasir
Djamin, 32, an MP who wants a referendum for the province. "We
will be at their mercy."
As if to punctuate these sentiments, a human rights activist,
Musliadi, 26, and an assistant lecturer at the local university,
Nasri, 27, were kidnapped by armed Indonesian men this week. The
security forces said they knew nothing about it. Musliadi's body
was found floating in the river on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, GAM's intelligence chief, Teungku Hanadeuh, this week
claimed that he and GAM's military leader, Muzakhir Manaf, had
tricked the Indonesians at Cot Trieng.
He said he wanted the story told because he feared the TNI would
withdraw soon, without admitting they had been deceived, and
claim to be supporting the peaceful spirit of the Geneva talks.
The swamp drama began as part of a broad TNI operation in
northern Aceh aimed at catching Manaf. As the TNI approached Cot
Trieng village on October 29 guerillas attacked. But with
hundreds of troops bearing down on them, the rebels withdrew into
the swamp.
Soldiers arrested two men, who told them dozens of male civilians
had fled with the guerillas. With rumours of top GAM men in the
area and the discovery of the mobile phone of the local GAM
commander, Syaridin, at the edge of the swamp, the TNI's number
two man in the area, Brigadier-General Bambang Darmono, said he
decided to bring in moremen. "Normally, we'll chase them for a
few days and then pull out, and GAM knows it. This time I wasn't
going to let them get away."
On October 31 GAM declared a ceasefire for the holy fasting month
of Ramadan in the hope that Indonesia would follow suit. Instead,
the military and media took it as further evidence that GAM
leaders were surrounded.
Syaridin and his men were in the swamp, but only for three days,
he said. On the night of November 3 the last fighters crawled to
safety through stands of sharp water rattan that ripped and
bloodied the men and took them within an arm's length of
Indonesian soldiers.
It was at that point, he said, that he called Manaf to suggest a
bit of old Acehnese trickery.
Pretending the guerillas were surrounded in the swamp, a GAM
radio operator began broadcasting an SOS. A second radioman
answered immediately. Other GAM units would try to help; be
careful and remain calm.
The night he escaped, Syaridin called his own phone and pretended
to be in the swamp. A TNI commander told him to surrender, that
he and the GAM fighters would be treated as POWs, rather than
criminals.
"You are our brothers," a TNI commander told them, according to
accounts of both sides.
Syaridin responded: "We don't have the word 'surrender' in our
vocabulary. Come on in and fight us." Within 10 minutes of his
call, about 11.30pm, the TNI began firing mortars into the area.
On and off during the next 2 days the shelling continued,
residents in the area said.
Brigadier-General Bambang said the TNI had not launched a final
attack because he feared civilian casualties. Rather than fleeing
willingly with the guerillas, the civilians were forced to act as
shields, the general said.
Despite the assertion of Indonesian authorities that the tens of
thousands of troops had made significant military inroads at
serious cost to GAM, the guerillas maintained that they remained
confident about their ability to fight, and, as they claimed at
Cot Trieng, to hoodwink their adversaries sometimes.
TITLE: After 26 years, Aceh takes shaky steps towards peace
SOURCE: Sydney Morning Herald - December 7, 2002
Matthew Moore, Jakarta -- With as many as 12,000 people killed in
Indonesia's Aceh province over the past 26 years, a ceasefire
agreement due for signing on Monday is long overdue.
Despite the years of bloodshed, it is hard to be confident that
the Indonesian Government and the Free Aceh Movement, or GAM,
will both turn up in Geneva and put their names on the line.
And if they do, it is harder still to believe any agreement will
stick, that the guns will be put down, and that life in this
remote province on Sumatra's northern tip will move towards a
peace that many of the 4.4 million inhabitants have never known.
That there is a document to be signed and a date for doing so is
remarkable enough, given the antipathy between GAM and the
Indonesian security forces.
The past few days give a fair insight into the distrust that has
been built up over years of attempts by the security forces to
crush GAM.
On Monday one of GAM's military commanders named Amirullah and
his companion were arrested by the notorious Brimob police, who
shot them both dead, claiming they had attempted to escape.
GAM's military field commander, Amri Adbul Wahab, rejected the
police version of events, insisting the two had been executed. He
then promised GAM would pursue the police and get square, a
threat history says should be taken seriously.
Two days later, on the 26th anniversary of GAM's fight for
independence, Indonesian soldiers were shinning up flagpoles and
tearing down banned GAM flags, which they burnt in front of
television cameras. At one flagpole though, GAM's booby trap
worked. It killed a policeman and injured an army officer.
It has been going on like this for years in Aceh, except that
many of those killed, abused and tortured are Acehnese civilians
caught up in the bitter struggle between GAM's guerilla army and
a security force that has swelled to nearly 30,000.
Trying to mediate in this environment has been a Swiss-based
humanitarian group called the Henry Dunant Centre. Over several
years it has managed to bring the parties closer together,
although not so close that they actually talk to each other.
Rather, the framework agreement due to be signed on Monday has
been put together in a type of shuttle diplomacy where drafts
have been taken to each side for modification and approval.
Just what the document now says is not publicly known, but
important points agreed include:
- Establishment of a free and fair election process; _Cessation
of acts of violence and intimidation, destruction of belongings,
illegal arrests, attacks and raids;
- Establishment of a Joint Security Committee to monitor
security, investigate violations and act as a point of reference
for all complaints related to police functions;
- Establishment of a Joint Demilitarising Committee to disarm
both sides; and _Both parties to immediately order their forces
to cease hostilities once the truce documents are signed.
These are all important points, and there are plenty more like
them, but numerous issues not yet finalised make the road ahead
look very difficult. They include the highly sensitive issue of
how and when both sides will be disarmed.
Without its weapons, GAM has no ability to bargain and it is
extremely dubious about surrendering its guns. Its leaders have
suggested a six-month moratorium before handing in weapons at
agreed storage points but the military says the guns must be
handed in immediately.
There is also a fundamental point of difference between GAM and
the Indonesian Government which is not addressed.
GAM wants an independent Aceh, in the same way East Timor is now
independent, and does not accept that a ceasefire extinguishes
that option. Although former president Abdurrahman Wahid talked
of allowing a referendum on this question, he was forced to back
down in the face of a major backlash. There are now virtually no
prospects of Indonesia's Government again changing its position.
With the Indonesian Government insistent no political party in
Aceh will be allowed to campaign on an independence platform, GAM
has no way of substituting a political campaign for the military
one it's supposed to abandon.
And while GAM and the Indonesian Government are critical players
in this dispute, the Acehnese people are not represented. Some
representatives have been to Geneva during the negotiations, but
they do not yet have the voice they need.
------=_NextPart_000_0055_01C2A17A.01B64640
Content-Type: text/html;
charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable
<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN">
<HTML><HEAD>
<META http-equiv=3DContent-Type content=3D"text/html; =
charset=3Diso-8859-1">
<META content=3D"MSHTML 5.50.4134.100" name=3DGENERATOR>
<STYLE></STYLE>
</HEAD>
<BODY bgColor=3D#ffffff><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2><FONT face=3D"Times =
New Roman"=20
size=3D3><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2></FONT>
<DIV><BR><BR>TITLE: Much pounding in the marsh as phantoms hoodwink=20
army<BR><BR>SOURCE: Sydney Morning Herald - December 7, =
2002<BR><BR>William=20
Nessen, Cot Trieng, Aceh -- Inside a 20-kilometre circle<BR>of marsh and =
shoulder-high grass dotted by thick patches of<BR>rattan and palm trees, =
Indonesia's military, the TNI, has aimed<BR>to end the nation's most =
persistent=20
rebellion.<BR><BR>In its most concentrated attack against independence =
guerillas=20
in<BR>years, the TNI has sent tanks, helicopters, rockets and =
warplanes<BR>to=20
bombard a desolate swamp in the northern part of=20
Aceh<BR>province.<BR><BR>Soldiers said they had repeatedly used up the =
local=20
stock of<BR>mortar shells and deployed thousands of men to surround=20
military<BR>leaders and rank-and-file fighters of the Free Aceh=20
Movement<BR>(GAM) during the past month near the village of Cot=20
Trieng.<BR><BR>Indonesian newspapers cover the drama daily, repeating=20
the<BR>military's claims to have trapped GAM leaders at a=20
guerilla<BR>headquarters or at least ensnared dozens of=20
fighters.<BR><BR>However, the guerillas are probably long gone. Last =
week a=20
local<BR>TNI commander quietly told journalists he suspected there were=20
no<BR>guerillas there, but asked them not to say anything.<BR><BR>Like =
the=20
siege, the apparent progress towards a political<BR>solution in talks in =
Geneva=20
overlooks why GAM will not surrender<BR>its guns.<BR><BR>"We have =
absolutely no=20
trust of the Indonesians," said Nasir<BR>Djamin, 32, an MP who wants a=20
referendum for the province. "We<BR>will be at their mercy."<BR><BR>As =
if to=20
punctuate these sentiments, a human rights activist,<BR>Musliadi, 26, =
and an=20
assistant lecturer at the local university,<BR>Nasri, 27, were kidnapped =
by=20
armed Indonesian men this week. The<BR>security forces said they knew =
nothing=20
about it. Musliadi's body<BR>was found floating in the river on=20
Tuesday.<BR><BR>Meanwhile, GAM's intelligence chief, Teungku Hanadeuh, =
this=20
week<BR>claimed that he and GAM's military leader, Muzakhir Manaf,=20
had<BR>tricked the Indonesians at Cot Trieng.<BR><BR>He said he wanted =
the story=20
told because he feared the TNI would<BR>withdraw soon, without admitting =
they=20
had been deceived, and<BR>claim to be supporting the peaceful spirit of =
the=20
Geneva talks.<BR><BR>The swamp drama began as part of a broad TNI =
operation=20
in<BR>northern Aceh aimed at catching Manaf. As the TNI approached =
Cot<BR>Trieng=20
village on October 29 guerillas attacked. But with<BR>hundreds of troops =
bearing=20
down on them, the rebels withdrew into<BR>the swamp.<BR><BR>Soldiers =
arrested=20
two men, who told them dozens of male civilians<BR>had fled with the =
guerillas.=20
With rumours of top GAM men in the<BR>area and the discovery of the =
mobile phone=20
of the local GAM<BR>commander, Syaridin, at the edge of the swamp, the =
TNI's=20
number<BR>two man in the area, Brigadier-General Bambang Darmono, said=20
he<BR>decided to bring in moremen. "Normally, we'll chase them for =
a<BR>few days=20
and then pull out, and GAM knows it. This time I wasn't<BR>going to let =
them get=20
away."<BR><BR>On October 31 GAM declared a ceasefire for the holy =
fasting=20
month<BR>of Ramadan in the hope that Indonesia would follow suit.=20
Instead,<BR>the military and media took it as further evidence that=20
GAM<BR>leaders were surrounded.<BR><BR>Syaridin and his men were in the =
swamp,=20
but only for three days,<BR>he said. On the night of November 3 the last =
fighters crawled to<BR>safety through stands of sharp water rattan that =
ripped=20
and<BR>bloodied the men and took them within an arm's length =
of<BR>Indonesian=20
soldiers.<BR><BR>It was at that point, he said, that he called Manaf to =
suggest=20
a<BR>bit of old Acehnese trickery.<BR><BR>Pretending the guerillas were=20
surrounded in the swamp, a GAM<BR>radio operator began broadcasting an =
SOS. A=20
second radioman<BR>answered immediately. Other GAM units would try to =
help;=20
be<BR>careful and remain calm.<BR><BR>The night he escaped, Syaridin =
called his=20
own phone and pretended<BR>to be in the swamp. A TNI commander told him =
to=20
surrender, that<BR>he and the GAM fighters would be treated as POWs, =
rather=20
than<BR>criminals.<BR><BR>"You are our brothers," a TNI commander told =
them,=20
according to<BR>accounts of both sides.<BR><BR>Syaridin responded: "We =
don't=20
have the word 'surrender' in our<BR>vocabulary. Come on in and fight =
us." Within=20
10 minutes of his<BR>call, about 11.30pm, the TNI began firing mortars =
into the=20
area.<BR>On and off during the next 2 days the shelling =
continued,<BR>residents=20
in the area said.<BR><BR>Brigadier-General Bambang said the TNI had not =
launched=20
a final<BR>attack because he feared civilian casualties. Rather than=20
fleeing<BR>willingly with the guerillas, the civilians were forced to =
act=20
as<BR>shields, the general said.<BR><BR>Despite the assertion of =
Indonesian=20
authorities that the tens of<BR>thousands of troops had made significant =
military inroads at<BR>serious cost to GAM, the guerillas maintained =
that they=20
remained<BR>confident about their ability to fight, and, as they claimed =
at<BR>Cot Trieng, to hoodwink their adversaries sometimes.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>TITLE: After 26 years, Aceh takes shaky steps towards =
peace<BR><BR>SOURCE:=20
Sydney Morning Herald - December 7, 2002<BR><BR>Matthew Moore, Jakarta =
-- With=20
as many as 12,000 people killed in<BR>Indonesia's Aceh province over the =
past 26=20
years, a ceasefire<BR>agreement due for signing on Monday is long=20
overdue.<BR><BR>Despite the years of bloodshed, it is hard to be =
confident=20
that<BR>the Indonesian Government and the Free Aceh Movement, or =
GAM,<BR>will=20
both turn up in Geneva and put their names on the line.<BR><BR>And if =
they do,=20
it is harder still to believe any agreement will<BR>stick, that the guns =
will be=20
put down, and that life in this<BR>remote province on Sumatra's northern =
tip=20
will move towards a<BR>peace that many of the 4.4 million inhabitants =
have never=20
known.<BR><BR>That there is a document to be signed and a date for doing =
so=20
is<BR>remarkable enough, given the antipathy between GAM and =
the<BR>Indonesian=20
security forces.<BR><BR>The past few days give a fair insight into the =
distrust=20
that has<BR>been built up over years of attempts by the security forces=20
to<BR>crush GAM.<BR><BR>On Monday one of GAM's military commanders named =
Amirullah and<BR>his companion were arrested by the notorious Brimob =
police,=20
who<BR>shot them both dead, claiming they had attempted to =
escape.<BR><BR>GAM's=20
military field commander, Amri Adbul Wahab, rejected the<BR>police =
version of=20
events, insisting the two had been executed. He<BR>then promised GAM =
would=20
pursue the police and get square, a<BR>threat history says should be =
taken=20
seriously.<BR><BR>Two days later, on the 26th anniversary of GAM's fight =
for<BR>independence, Indonesian soldiers were shinning up flagpoles=20
and<BR>tearing down banned GAM flags, which they burnt in front =
of<BR>television=20
cameras. At one flagpole though, GAM's booby trap<BR>worked. It killed a =
policeman and injured an army officer.<BR><BR>It has been going on like =
this for=20
years in Aceh, except that<BR>many of those killed, abused and tortured =
are=20
Acehnese civilians<BR>caught up in the bitter struggle between GAM's =
guerilla=20
army and<BR>a security force that has swelled to nearly =
30,000.<BR><BR>Trying to=20
mediate in this environment has been a Swiss-based<BR>humanitarian group =
called=20
the Henry Dunant Centre. Over several<BR>years it has managed to bring =
the=20
parties closer together,<BR>although not so close that they actually =
talk to=20
each other.<BR><BR>Rather, the framework agreement due to be signed on =
Monday=20
has<BR>been put together in a type of shuttle diplomacy where =
drafts<BR>have=20
been taken to each side for modification and approval.<BR><BR>Just what =
the=20
document now says is not publicly known, but<BR>important points agreed=20
include:<BR><BR>- Establishment of a free and fair election process;=20
_Cessation<BR>of acts of violence and intimidation, destruction of=20
belongings,<BR>illegal arrests, attacks and raids;<BR><BR>- =
Establishment of a=20
Joint Security Committee to monitor<BR>security, investigate violations =
and act=20
as a point of reference<BR>for all complaints related to police=20
functions;<BR><BR>- Establishment of a Joint Demilitarising Committee to =
disarm<BR>both sides; and _Both parties to immediately order their =
forces<BR>to=20
cease hostilities once the truce documents are signed.<BR><BR>These are =
all=20
important points, and there are plenty more like<BR>them, but numerous =
issues=20
not yet finalised make the road ahead<BR>look very difficult. They =
include the=20
highly sensitive issue of<BR>how and when both sides will be=20
disarmed.<BR><BR>Without its weapons, GAM has no ability to bargain and =
it=20
is<BR>extremely dubious about surrendering its guns. Its leaders=20
have<BR>suggested a six-month moratorium before handing in weapons =
at<BR>agreed=20
storage points but the military says the guns must be<BR>handed in=20
immediately.<BR><BR>There is also a fundamental point of difference =
between GAM=20
and<BR>the Indonesian Government which is not addressed.<BR><BR>GAM =
wants an=20
independent Aceh, in the same way East Timor is now<BR>independent, and =
does not=20
accept that a ceasefire extinguishes<BR>that option. Although former =
president=20
Abdurrahman Wahid talked<BR>of allowing a referendum on this question, =
he was=20
forced to back<BR>down in the face of a major backlash. There are now =
virtually=20
no<BR>prospects of Indonesia's Government again changing its=20
position.<BR><BR>With the Indonesian Government insistent no political =
party=20
in<BR>Aceh will be allowed to campaign on an independence platform, =
GAM<BR>has=20
no way of substituting a political campaign for the military<BR>one it's =
supposed to abandon.<BR><BR>And while GAM and the Indonesian Government =
are=20
critical players<BR>in this dispute, the Acehnese people are not =
represented.=20
Some<BR>representatives have been to Geneva during the negotiations, =
but<BR>they=20
do not yet have the voice they =
need.</FONT><BR></DIV></FONT></BODY></HTML>
------=_NextPart_000_0055_01C2A17A.01B64640--