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Indonesia Says Aceh Independence Vote Possible Thursday, November 04, 1999 By Jonathan Thatcher JAKARTA, Indonesia (Reuters) - Indonesia's President Abdurrahman Wahid said Thursday he was open to a vote on independence in the rebellious province of Aceh, something many fear could trigger the disintegration of the huge archipelago. His comments came as the military, charged with years of human rights abuses in the fiercely independent province, said it would start pulling out troops from Aceh this month after conceding its hard-line approach had failed. ``I support a referendum as their right. If we can do that in East Timor, why not in Aceh?'' he told foreign reporters. ``But that is not the question. The question is, if there is a referendum, when? We will not be rushed on these things. ``The question of a referendum is up to the people themselves,'' he said, adding that such a move would not be easy. He said the biggest danger to the unity of the 17,000-island country was not doing anything, and that a solution had to be found. Since coming to power late last month, Wahid has made several conciliatory gestures to oil and gas-rich Aceh and has taken charge of trying to end the problems there that many analysts say pose the biggest threat to Indonesia's already fragile unity. Earlier this year, Jakarta allowed East Timorese to vote on independence, which almost 80 percent of the population chose, sparking widespread bloodshed and raising fears that other parts of the diverse country would follow suit. Thousands have died in Aceh, where a low-level guerrilla war to end Jakarta's rule has been waged since the 1970s. Demands for independence have mounted since East Timor voted to break away. RALLY IN ACEH DESPITE POLICY SHIFT Despite Jakarta's policy shift, about 100,000 people rallied in Aceh Thursday demanding their homeland be given a vote on independence. There were no initial reports of trouble, a police official told Reuters from the town of Sigli, where the rally was staged. The military also named an Acehnese as deputy armed forces chief in another apparently conciliatory gesture to Acehnese, who some analysts say have increasingly been driven into the separatist fold by the savage tactics of the Indonesian military. ``This month of November we will immediately start withdrawing (troops) in phases,'' armed forces spokesman Maj. Gen. Sudrajat told reporters. He also said Lt. Gen. Fahrul Razi of Aceh would be the country's new deputy military commander, succeeding Adm. A.S. Widodo, Indonesia's new armed forces chief. The rebel Free Aceh movement now faces a serious challenge to come up with a credible response to Wahid's new policy. Rebel leaders have not yet commented. But Wahid said he was consulting all groups in the province including rebel leaders, although he declined to detail his discussions. He said it was up the governor of Aceh to decide whether to propose a referendum after discussions with a cross-section of society. Even then the final say would be in the hands of the national assembly. SOLUTION IN AUTONOMY, ISLAMIC LAW Indonesia is much more likely to seek a solution by giving Aceh more control over its affairs and possibly allowing the introduction of Muslim Sharia law. Although predominantly Muslim, Indonesia has mostly secular laws and has always crushed attempts to set up an Islamic state. The security forces have been accused of widespread human rights abuses, including murder, torture and rape. Their actions have contributed to the growing anger against Jakarta's rule, Acehnese community leaders and human rights groups say. Widodo, the first non-army man to lead the politically powerful armed forces, said Wednesday the ``security approach'' could not solve the Aceh problem and that extra troops would be quickly withdrawn.
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