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| Southeast Asia |
| Indonesia Aceh rebels they're gonna get it... |
| 2002-08-19 |
| The Indonesian government today told separatist rebels in Aceh province to accept a compromise deal on autonomy by December, or face a government offensive. Indonesia's chief security minister struck an unexpectedly conciliatory tone, saying the government hoped the rebels of the Free Aceh Movement would agree to discuss an offer of autonomy by the end of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, which ends this year on December 7. Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said: "If by then they have not shown a positive attitude ... and conditions become uncertain and dangerous, the government will take stern action, including intensifying military operations, in order to maintain Indonesia's sovereignty and integrity." Yup. They're gonna get it... The offer, which the rebels have so far rejected, includes separatist control over part of the revenues from the region's oil and gas resources. The insurgents say that the central government in Jakarta siphons off most of the revenues from the province's oil and natural gas reserves, while most Acehnese remain desperately poor. So the center offers to quit taking the entire rakeoff for itself, and to cut in the locals, as long as they're armed and dangerous... The government announcement came as a surprise to many observers, as authorities had been hinting for weeks that they would adopt a harsher policy against the insurgents. Plans included sending in additional troops and imposing a state of emergency in the province of 4 million people. |
| Posted by:Fred Pruitt |