Hera Diani, Jakarta – Six months after the government and Free Aceh Movement (GAM) signed a peace deal, the Acehnese say they are feeling more secure but many still worry the accord could break down at any time, a survey says.
The poll of 1,015 people in Aceh this month by the Indonesian Survey Institute (LSI) revealed that 76 percent of the sample rated the security situation in Aceh from good to excellent.
Nearly 90 percent of those surveyed also rated the performance of the Aceh Monitoring Mission (AMM) and the Indonesian government in keeping the peace from good and excellent.
But while security got top marks, the Acehnese were far more downbeat about their living standards. Around 76 percent said life had gotten tougher since the peace deal, blaming the government for the soaring prices of basic commodities and high unemployment.
Most Acehnese are also still afraid to talk about politics, especially those living in areas which were former GAM strongholds. And more than half said they were still afraid of being arrested for no reason by security forces, while around 50 percent were unsure if GAM had given up its secessionist ambitions.
Asked about the planned regional elections for the province, 43 percent of Acehnese said they were not aware of any direct elections, with the lack of knowledge highest in rural areas.
However, a clear majority of 67 percent of those surveyed supported the establishment of local political parties, and 64 percent backed the idea of fielding independent candidates for gubernatorial and regional posts. In traditional GAM areas, about half the population worried they would be coerced into voting for particular candidates.
LSI chief researcher Anis Baswedan said the survey showed peace in Aceh was currently about "the absence of conflict" rather than "the presence of freedom" or justice. "The Acehnese are still worried because several peace agreements signed before the one signed in Helsinki in August last year have failed," he said Tuesday.
Legislator Fery Mursyidan Baldan, who chaired the House of Representatives special committee that helped formulate the Aceh administration bill, said the survey showed the Acehnese wanted to be involved more in the political process, which was why they supported the establishment of local parties.
Regional elections in Aceh were initially scheduled for April but are likely to be delayed until after the Aceh governing bill is passed.
Fery blamed people's ignorance of the planned local elections on a sluggish Independent Election Monitoring Committee (KIPP). "What the KIPP has done so far is insignificant. Data on voters is not yet available. All this, when the upcoming elections are likely to be huge because they will involve 18 regencies; the whole province," he said.