Banda Aceh/Jakarta – Police in Aceh on Monday were still investigating the latest violent incident ahead of the April elections, while a noted research group said the underlying problem – a "growing distrust" between former elements of Aceh's separatist group and the Indonesian Military – must be addressed.
Unless the "mutual fear and loathing" between the military (TNI) and former combatants of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) is addressed, tensions are likely to increase in the lead-up to and in the aftermath of the elections, the International Crisis Group (ICG) said in its report issued on Monday.
ICG reiterated observations that the military believes GAM is still aiming for an independent Aceh, even though its former members set up the local Aceh Party (Partai Aceh), which is contesting the April elections.
GAM members had laid down arms after signing an international agreement with the Indonesian government in Helsinki, Finland, in 2005.
However, critics have said GAM has yet to formally dissolve, with its leaders (and others) still using GAM letterhead for correspondence.
Since last year, cases of sporadic low level violence have increased – including abductions, murder and victimizing civilians – many of them linked to GAM and its new institutions.
However, ICG said the military's fears of a possible victory of the Aceh Party leading to a revival of the independence cause were "misplaced".
"Far from wanting to resume the conflict, [ex-combatants] are more interested in getting what they see as their fair share of post-conflict benefits, in some cases through extortion," the ICG report said.
Both parties believe the other "has reneged on commitments made in Helsinki or afterwards," the report said, "but existing channels for dialogue have been weakened by the nonparticipation of key parties".
Meanwhile, civilians continue to be victims of extortion both by TNI and former GAM members. Both the former GAM members and military should control their ranks against extortion, ICG says.
Civil society should demand accountability from both GAM and the TNI, "getting citizens to demand more from elected officials, and refusing intimidation from any party".
In 2006, for the first time Acehnese voted directly for their governor, regents, mayors and legislative councillors. Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam was the first Indonesian province to have independent candidates for local councils.
On April 9, 44 parties in Aceh will vie for legislative seats at the national, provincial and regency levels. Like other areas across Indonesia, Aceh also faces the possibility of disputes over election results, given the new and complicated system of voting.
"There is little danger in the short term of violence escalating out of control, let alone a return to armed conflicts," ICG said, "but the underlying causes of the tensions are not just election-related". Improving the skills of police, particularly in the investigation of serious crimes, is urgent, ICG said.
The inability of Aceh's police to solve recent cases of violence have led former combatants to continue to believe that preelection violence is linked to the TNI, which they believe is "determined to stop Partai Aceh at all cost," said Sidney Jones, ICG's senior advisor to its Asia program.
Apart from "patience, employment and targeted civil society efforts," the solution is better law enforcement," ICG says. The impression on the ground was that the TNI is again dominating security operations, ICG said.
[Hotli Simanjuntak contributed to this story from Banda Aceh.]