Banda Aceh – Security uncertainty in the NanggroeAceh Darussalam province has taken its victim again with anotherprovincial councillor of the United Development Party (PPP), Nasri Zamzam, 43, was shot to death on Thursday evening, a report said on Friday.
A resident in the neighborhood, who asked to remain anonymous, said Nasri was shot by two unidentified men in front of his house at Alue Glong village of Sukamakmur subdistrict in Aceh Besar regency, some 15 kilometers away from the provincial capital of Banda Aceh.
The witness, however, said it was obvious that Nasri knew his murderers as they had been involved in a brief talk before the two men shot him at about 6:15 p.m. Thursday.
Soon after the killing, Tengku Maksalmina, spokesman of the separatist Free Aceh Movement (GAM) for Aceh Besar region refused any responsibility, saying that "the series of killings had been set by the Indonesian security personnel in an attempt to stop the GAM's struggle for an independent nation."
But, local police spokesman Adj. Sr. Comr. Dade Ahmad defended the allegation that the killing was committed by GAM because many local councillors had rejected to support the separatist movement.
Nasri was the 11th Acehnese figure to be killed in the province during these past two years.
Earlier on Monday evening, Aceh provincial legislative councillor from the Crescent Star Party (PBB), Taslim A. Jalil,was killed at his residence at Meunasah village, Lhoknga regency,also in Aceh Besar regency.
Meanwhile, the situation in Lhokseumawe, North Aceh, heated on Friday following the burning of four schools by unidentified armed men at relatively the same hour, at 8 p.m. on Thursday. Witnesses said there were explosions prior to the burning of the schools.
The four schools were the 4th State Vocational High School(SMKN 4), the 2nd State Vocational High School (SMKN 2) and the3rd State High School (SMU 3), all located in Ulee Jalan area,some two kilometers away from the town center; and the 7th Junior High School (SLTP 7), which is located some 50 meters from the Medan-Banda Aceh-Lhokseumawe inter-city road.
Ilias, a security guard at SMKN 4, said he and his family members were cleaning the teachers' room while watching the World Cup 2002 game on TV at 8 p.m. when three armed masked men threatened them to get out of the room.
"We were moving out of the room when suddenly we heard broken glass windows and saw flames from the school's laboratory," Ilias said.
"And the firefighters, who arrived about an hour later, failed to put out the fire as several rooms had already been burned down," he added.