Larry Thompson – A 28-year conflict between the Indonesian government and the separatist Free Aceh Movement (GAM) has killed thousands of civilians, displaced hundreds of thousands of people, and destroyed much of the infrastructure of Aceh. In May 2003, the Indonesian government launched a military offensive in Aceh, the government's largest military campaign since its invasion of East Timor in 1975.

Human rights groups report that the military campaign has resulted in an increase in murders, torture, arrest, and other human rights abuses of civilians. Both sides are responsible for human rights abuses.

As a small province on an island within the vast Indonesian archipelago, which is itself many thousands of miles away from major media centers in the United States and western Europe, Aceh is inherently difficult to raise to the level of a major pre-occupation of the international community. The Government of Indonesia is making a difficult situation worse by imposing a virtual ban on access to the region by foreign media and international aid workers.

The most recent government step in June 2004 was to expel two international staff members of the International Crisis Group from Indonesia and to crack down on other non-governmental organizations (NGOs) who have been critical of the government.

A US State Department spokesman described the ICG expulsion as "disappointing" because it contrasts with the "impressive progress made by Indonesia in recent years in developing a democratic civil society." The crackdown on NGOs in Indonesia will make monitoring the humanitarian and human rights situation in Aceh more difficult than ever.

The People and the land

Aceh province is on the northern tip of the Indonesian island of Sumatra. Aceh is rich in natural gas and petroleum, providing 15 percent of Indonesia's exports, but the people of Aceh receive little benefit from the exploitation of their natural resources and resent the economic and political domination of Java and the Javanese. Army and government authorities are also accused of being involved in illegal logging and export of timber The population of Aceh is 4.2 million. The language and culture of the Acehnese is distinct from other ethnic groups of Indonesia, and they have traditionally had a strong ethnic and religious identity. Aceh fought a long, bloody war against the Dutch colonizers in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries and the strongly nationalistic character of the Acehnese has continued since Indonesian independence.

While 87 percent of Indonesians are Muslim, the Islamic character of Aceh is most pronounced. Islam first came to Indonesia and possibly to all of Southeast Asia through Aceh in 700. Islamic Sharia law was adopted in Aceh in 2002, but the independence movement appears to be primarily nationalistic rather than Islamic.

Current conflict and political climate

In 1976, an armed independence group known as Free Aceh Movement (GAM) was established to push for independence. Throughout the 70's and 80's Acehnese attacks on police and military installations were common, and in the early 90's the Jakarta government began to respond with harsh counter-insurgency campaigns.

Talks between the government and GAM broke down in May 2003 because neither side complied with the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement. In response, the Jakarta government imposed martial law in Aceh and launched a military offensive, sending 40,000 troops to attack some 5,000 GAM rebels.

Foreign press and aid workers were effectively banned from the region at that time. On May 19, 2004, after one year under martial law, Aceh's status was changed to that of a "civil emergency." Under this new status, the province will be jointly overseen by military and civilian leaders, with the army staying in place for security reasons.

An important upcoming event is a national election on July 5 with a likely runoff between the top two vote-getters on September 20. This will be the first direct election of a President in Indonesian history, but the electorate seems disillusioned.

Humanitarian conditions

The conflict in Aceh has had harsh consequences for the civilian population. Since the imposition of martial law on May 19, 2003, according to the local media, more than 2,300 people have been killed, 122,000 displaced, and 600 schools and 32 health centers have been destroyed.

Fighting has also disrupted food supplies, electricity, and water, and caused unemployment and poverty to reach alarming levels. Reports of violence against civilians by both the army and GAM forces, including abduction, torture, rape, displacement, extrajudicial detainment and murder, have emerged from Aceh.

Violence has continued despite the partial lifting of martial law last month.

Most displaced persons in Aceh stay with relatives or in the forest rather than in one of 19 camps set up by the Indonesian government. These camps reportedly lack organized assistance and necessary resources such as potable water, proper sanitation, food and adequate medical supplies.

People fear the camps because of the lack of real protection and the frequent outbreaks of contagious diseases. Displacement has been used as a strategy of war by the army, forcibly relocating entire villages, placing people in camps with guards, looting their homes and accusing them of links to the GAM.

In addition to those displaced within Aceh, 120,000 people have fled to neighboring provinces and countries, especially to Malaysia. Water and sanitation in refugee camps in Malaysia have been below international standards.

Malaysia has taken a tough stance on refugees and considers Acehnese as illegal immigrants. Several hundred refugees forcibly returned to Indonesia since the 1990s have reportedly been killed or tortured.

Recommendations:

• The United Nations and its most powerful member states, including the United States, should push for a renewal of the ceasefire and a resumption of negotiations between Acehnese and the government. Some international observers have called for the Acehnese representation in negotiations to be broadened to include all sectors of the population and not just the GAM.
• The Indonesian government and GAM should publicly condemn the human rights abuses of their armed forces and supporters in Aceh, bring the perpetrators of these abuses to justice through independent and impartial investigations, and take immediate steps to curb abuses.
• The Indonesian government should facilitate, not hinder, full access by international organizations, NGOs, and the media to Aceh to provide for the basic humanitarian needs and protection of Acehnese civilians and to monitor and report human rights violations.
• Malaysia should refrain from forcibly returning refugees. The Indonesian government should ensure the safety of any refugees voluntarily returning from Malaysia, Thailand and other provinces of Indonesia, and allow for peaceful resettlement in Aceh.

[Larry Thompson is Senior Advocate with Refugees International. Intern Natalie Merrill assisted with the preparation of this report. Any views expressed in this article are those of the writer and not of Reuters.]