AGAM chief calls for world attention on Aceh
Jakarta Post
04 August 1999
SIGLI, Aceh (JP): Tengku Abdulah Syafi'i, the commander of Angkatan Gerakan
Aceh Merdeka (AGAM), the armed wing of the separatist Free Aceh Movement
(GAM), has said all Acehnese support a separate state and it is therefore
not
important which group they join to further the cause.
In an interview with The Jakarta Post on Monday at his hideout in a forest
in
Pidie regency, Syafi'i said there was a diverse range of people involved in
self-determination efforts, despite the reported deployment of 32,000
security personnel so far, including the 7,000 reinforcement, to hunt down
an
estimated 200 rebel leaders.
"With the prayers of the people willing to be martyrs and the whole Acehnese
people, they (the security personnel) will become phang po (local dialect
which means 'to flee in confusion')," he said.
The following is an excerpt of the interview.
Question: Indonesian Military (TNI) Chief General Wiranto has vowed not to
let civilians take up arms in Aceh. What do you think?
Answer: We do not have anything to do with the colonialists. Why did they
threaten us? It's them who should leave Aceh.
The military has been sending troop reinforcements here.
We know there are not only tens of thousands (of personnel), but the Aceh
soil has never been free from the TNI. They want to slaughter the Acehnese.
They said they wanted to eliminate armed civilians. But in reality many
civilians have been massacred, the last incident being (the July 23 military
shooting) in Beutong Ateuh (where 52 people were killed).
With this glaring evidence (of violence), would the international world
still
trust TNI? They are the criminals of war.
With the prayers of those (willing to be) martyrs and the whole Acehnese,
they will become phang po.
How do we wage our war? That is up to us. What's important is that TNI must
pull out of Aceh. No matter what, the Acehnese want to be free. Whatever the
risks are, we are willing to face them and we will never retreat.
In our fight, we are not looking for fame. If we die, we become syahid
(martyrs). Remember that!
Syafi'i also described the atrocities allegedly committed by military
personnel not only during the military operations between 1989 to 1998, but
up to the present day. "They rape, they kill... they plunder the belongings
of the Acehnese," he said. "They have been running from the realities (of
the
atrocities) and refused to take responsibility.
"The TNI are like the devils (and yet) we pray that they be given (divine)
guidance."
Wiranto had earlier insisted that only atrocities allegedly committed by the
military after President B.J. Habibie took over the presidency in May 1998
can be investigated. Habibie, however, recently issued a decree to establish
an independent team on Aceh. He however, did not specify the period of time
to be investigated.
"Why is the international world still so silent? Do they see Acehnese as
subhuman? Please do not abandon us," Syafi'i said.
What is the relation between AGAM and Tengku Bantaqiah (a former political
prisoner and Muslim cleric shot dead together with his students in Beutong
Ateuh)?
We did not have any ties whatsoever. But he was a respected and influential
ulema.
Did he fight for AGAM too?
All Acehnese want liberation and it's not necessary that they be placed in
groups (of separatists). All Acehnese have the obligation to fight for
freedom.
We in AGAM wish to convey our deepest condolence over the passing of an
influential Aceh ulema. Especially because dozens of innocent people were
also massacred ... the international world should not turn a blind eye to
this tragedy.
What government measures do you hope for the Aceh question?
We do not have any ties whatsoever with war criminals. We just hope that the
international world, especially the Netherlands which surrendered Aceh (in
the past) to the colonial powers of Indonesia, will solve the situation and
be responsible for the suffering of the Acehnese. (Tarmilin Usman)
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