Following a flood of complaints from people in Aceh about years of unrestricted abuses by the security forces and reports of the discovery of nearly a dozen mass graves, the armed forces commander, General Wiranto, made an unscheduled 12-hour visit to Aceh on Friday to accounce the ending of special military operations in the region and the withdrawal of "non-organic" troops from the region within one month.
The ABRI commander was clearly compelled to take speedy action as gruesome reports of the abuses perpetrated in Aceh since the beginning of the decade had begun to appear in the national and international media. With the reputation of ABRI already severely discredited because of the abductions of human rights activists in Java and calls for investigations into the mid-May riots in Jakarta in which army units were clearly implicated, Wiranto was under pressure to respond to persistent calls in Aceh for the region's designation as a "military operations region" to be lifted.
His announcement came after he had joined hundreds of Acehnese in Friday prayers, attended by ulamas and informal leaders.
He said that the abuses were the work of "elements" in the army who had acted "excessively" and apologised to the people of Aceh for the sufferings they had had to endure. He said that security would now be in the hands of the ulama, local leaders, teachers, local government officials and army and police forces based in the region.
He said he had instructed the regional military commander to withdraw all troops brought in from outside within one month and said that he would propose that amnesty be granted to political prisoners who had been convicted or were being held for their alleged involvement with the Free Aceh Movement. This would apply to those who had served two-thirds of their sentences. In actual fact, under normal procedures, prisoners who have served two-thirds of their sentences are eligible for release on parole anyway.
To add to the "good news" packet, he said that Acehnese who had fled abroad could return home. He guaranteed that they would not face prosecution unless they had been involved in "criminal activities". He also said that the term "GPK" – which stands for Gerakan Pengacau Keamanan or Security Disruptor Gangs – would no longer be used but would be replaced by "GPL" for "Gerakan Pengacau Liar" or Wild Disruptor Gangs.
While many who were present at the announcement were enthusiastic, even highly emotional, it is far from clear that the move will bring a dramatic change in the situation. Acehnese refugees in Malaysia are unlikely to flood home on the basis of a promise not to prosecute those not involved in criminal activities. Changing the label of the Free Aceh Movement from GPK to GPL is not even a cosmetic change.
The NGOs in Aceh have yet to respond to the ABRI commander's panic move and there will have to be an accounting for the thousands, perhaps tens of thousands, of Acehnese who have disappeared, and for the thousands of women who have been widowed, raped and otherwise maltreated.
Grievances in Aceh run deep because of the way in which the natural resources of the region have been exploited for the benefit of Java and the central government.
Wiranto may hope that by complying with the demands of the Acehnese, it will be possible to halt the exposures of the killings, disappearances and rapes that have gone on under the heel of the army. It remains to be seen whether the Acehnese will see things in this light.