A'an Suryana, Takengon – Tens of thousands of Central Aceh residents thronged Gelanggang Musara Alun soccer field in Bebesen district on Thursday for a rally against the separatist movement in the province.
Farmers, civil servants, youth activists and militia group members were among the people who pledged loyalty to the state before Regent Mustafa M. Tamy and Aceh Besar military commander Lt. Col. Amrin.
Some of the crowd burned Free Aceh Movement (GAM) flags to mark the biggest pro-government rally since martial law was imposed in the province on May 19. During the ceremony, representatives of the residents read out a prepared statement, saying they were committed to maintaining the unitary state of Indonesia.
In his speech, Regent Mustafa asked the people to uphold their promise. "The promise must be kept, as it has been made before God Almighty. You will pay the price for betrayal," said Mustafa.
Some participants admitted they joined the rally upon orders from community leaders. Husni Kahan, a resident of Angkup district, said the head of his neighborhood unit urged him to attend the ceremony. "We were told of the rally on Wednesday. The neighborhood chief said we had to join the rally. Everybody in my kampong had to attend," Husni told The Jakarta Post.
However, Junawarman, an official at the regency administration said that the local residents attended the ceremony as a spontaneous expression of support for the government. "They came here to show their support for the Republic of Indonesia. They do not like GAM as it often incites riots in the regency," said Junawarman.
The presence of People's Resistance (Wanra) civilian militia drew the attention of the audience. Some 20 militia members, representing some 15,000 others across Central Aceh, attended the ceremony in red military fatigues. They wore red and white headbands and carried sharpened bamboo sticks, reminiscent of the country's independence struggle against the Dutch colonial administration between 1945 and 1948.
The Wanra militia group was founded in the regency in 1987, but had been active until it resumed activities a few months ago.
Musbira, a Wanra member, admitted that he was recruited three months ago. "I didn't have any choice. If I did not join the organization, I was afraid I would be accused of sympathizing with GAM," Musbira recalled.
Musbira said that as a member of Wanra, he was not paid. He had not undergone any martial arts training, but admitted that he was trained by the military to use assembled weapons. He said Wanra had also organized other activities over the past month, including soccer and volley ball training.
"Sometimes, we attend a roll-call ordered by the military," he said. Indonesian Military (TNI) Chief Gen. Endriartono Sutarto and other top military officers have denied the presence of military-trained militia.
Musbira said each village in Central Aceh, that is known as a GAM-free zone, has at least six members of Wanra. There are around 300 villages in the regency.
Meanwhile, a leader of Wanra in Central Aceh, Johan Gayo, complained about the militia label given to his organization. "We are not a militia group. We are here to help people maintain security," Johan told reporters. He said the Wanra members were not recruited by force, but had joined of their own volition.