Stockholm – The Aceh Sumatra National Liberation Front (ASNLF) has already decided not to take part in the June 7 parliamentary elections this year. ASNLF believes that the Indonesian elections is nothing but jus a democratic farce, and that will not bring any good for the people of Aceh. Whatever political party wins and whoever leads Indonesia afterward, Aceh will remain exploited and the Acehnese remain an oppressed people.

The international community should understand that Indonesia is a continent or a geographic expression ruled by a bunch of technocrats, generals and their cronies that are closely connected with multinational companies. This group of people not only control the big companies but also possess the lands of the indigenous peoples in this huge archipelago. The ruling party, Golkar, along with the Armed Forces which has ruled Indonesia since the heyday of its creation is still in the very same system as in the old dictator regime of Suharto. Despite the much publicised promises of reforms by the Habibie regime, nothing significant has ever changed since Suharto was forced to step down in May last year.

Certainly, the elections will not change the current situation faced by the Acehnese, since we have no interest in that feast of democracy 'la Indonesia. The people have decided to boycott the elections, and they have right to do so. As they have right to vote, they have also every right not to vote. Now, even the most optimistic anthusiats for holding elections in Aceh have started to realise that it is impossible to do it . So let the Acehnese alone!

If we look back into the situations before the introduction of Operation Wibawa by the new regime early this year, the Armed Forces Commander, General Wiranto, had come to Aceh to apologise to the Acehnese for the excesses perpetrated by his soldiers during eight years DOM (Military Operational District) between 1990-1998, and to withdraw all military units from Aceh. And since then, tragedy after tragedy have taken place and a great number of innocent people have become victims of military brutalities, such as the massacres of Idi Cut and Dewantara – to name a few. Even President Habibie himself has recently come to Aceh and promised the Acehnese to bring to justice those accountable for the atrocities committed in the name of "security" and "restoring order".

And now, instead of fulfilling his promises, Habibie and Wiranto have dispatched thousands of troops to "secure" the coming elections, meaning threatening people to vote. The troops have now been dropped in the villages to see that everyone, under gun-points, be registered for balloting. As a matter of fact, the villagers who are still not yet recovered from the trauma caused by the eight years military operations are so scared to see the soldiers enter their villages, interrogate and intimidate them as well. As a result, for example, thousands of villagers, especially from Pidie and North Aceh provinces, have left their homes and become refugees in their own country. They are afraid to go back to their villages without any written guarantee from local governments. Many of them now, particularly the elderly, children and women, are getting weak and sick because of sleeping on the cement floor, of lack of medicine, shortage of food etc.

ASNLF appeals to all human rights organizations all over the world and even the UN bodies relating to refugee protection for a helping hand to help linger the terrible situation suffered by Acehnese civilians.