SOME believes that Aceh Party (Partai Aceh/PA) will never take any of the seats in the Parliament. On the contrary, PA wins even in the areas known as the basis for national parties.

Anti PA rally was launched in Central Aceh prior to the past 2009 April 9 Election.

On March 27 2009, hundreds of people gathered in Musara field, Takengon, the capital city of Central Aceh. They declared any Indonesian citizens, particularly the Gayos and the Javanese people, who cast their votes to PA are traitors. They point their fingers to PA for spreading terror and intimidation to gather more and more votes. They claim PA to be the actor behind the distribution of leaflets obliging the Gayos and Javanese people in Aceh to vote for PA.

Leaflets posted all over the cities and kampongs promote PA as the fruit of Aceh heroes’ long struggles. Not voting for PA equals to violating Islamic Shariah. Those violates Shariah are non-believers. Non-believers have no place on earth.

PA representatives in Takengon however deny that PA produces such leaflets. Head of Central Aceh PA, Sakdan alias Sapu Arang, assumes anyone behind the leaflets do not wish Aceh to be a peaceful and secure region.

Central Aceh and Bener Meria are two districts popularly known as Gayo highland. It is mostly populated by the Gayos and by Javanese people. During the conflict, they regard Free Aceh Movement as conquistador of their own people and homeland. Other ethic groups in the area are Batak, Padang and Chinese. Aceh people are the minority there. In the conflict, Gayo was marked with inter-ethnic groups tensions.

An armed group comprising of Gayos and Javanese and supported by Indonesian military called themselves Homeland Defenders (Pembela Tanah Air/PETA). PETA considered most Acehnese as Free Aceh Movement members. As a result, the Acehnese have to take flight from Gayo and returned to their kampongs. Post-Helsinki Agreement, they returned to Gayo.

When Memorandum of Understanding between the Government of Indonesia and Free Aceh Movement was in place, it failed to bring peace to the Gayo highland. A number of people claiming as representatives of the Gayos and Javanese demanded the establishment of a new province of Aceh Leuser Antara or ALA and be separated from the province of Aceh. Aceh Governor Irwandi Yusuf refused this demand because it was against Helsinki Agreement’s mandates on the territory of Aceh province.

Those demanding for a new province persisted. Waves of demonstration were followed by political lobbies up to the national Parliament in Jakarta. Up to 200 Javanese village heads were brought to Jakarta by one of the founders of ALA Iwan Gayo and delivered speeches in Javanese language.

Past tensions erupt days before and after the Election.

Office of Central Aceh General Election Monitoring Body was ransacked by unknown group of people on Saturday, April 11 2009.

Head of Central Aceh General Election Monitoring Body Mariyeni said that accompanied by two police officers, he and his whole family visited a sub-district election committee (Panitia Pemilihan Kecamatan/PPK) on 12:30 local time that day to monitor the election. Secretary Edy Azhari is left in the office by himself to finish his paperwork. Around 14:00, he locked all the doors and left the office.

When Mariyeni and his entourage returned around 17:00, the office was badly damaged. Three motorbikes were smashed up and written with indecent graffiti. Computers were tossed in the bathroom. Nothing was missing though.

Since it was no burglary, Adjunct Police Commissioner Edwin Rachmat Adikusumo concluded that it was an Election-related incident. He works for Central Aceh Resort Police Office.

Moreover, 12 political parties in Central Aceh refused to sign the election report on the district parliament (Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat Kabupaten/DPRK) issued by Independent Commission for Election (Komite Independen Pemilu/KIP). They were Indonesian Party for Functional Struggle (Partai Karya Perjuangan Indonesia/PKPI), Renewal of  Democracy Party (Partai Demokrasi Pembaruan/PDP),  Prosperous Indonesia Party (Partai Indonesia Sejahtera/PIS), Aceh Sovereignty Party (Partai Daulat Aceh/PDA), National Lines Party (Partai Barisan Nasional/Barnas), Sovereignty Party (Partai Kedaulatan /PK),  Prosperous and Safe Aceh Party (Partai Aceh Aman Sejuatera/PAAS), Sun of the Nation Party (Partai Matahari Bangsa/PMB), National Party for the Concern of the People (Partai Peduli Rakyat Nasional/PPRN), Indonesian Youth Party (Partai Pemuda Indonesia/PPI), Indonesian National Marhaenism Party (Partai Nasional Indonesia  Marhaenisme/PNI Marhaenisme) and Star of the Reform Party (Partai Bintang Reformasi/PBR).

In a statement they called “Joint Statement of Central Aceh Political Parties,” they demanded a re-election.

What was their reason? According to them, Election Law no 10/2008 has been violated. Central Aceh District Civil Service Office documented 192.633 people lived in the area. Central Aceh KIP however showed a different number, 203.628 people. This proved an attempt to inflate votes took place. As a result, the total seat contested in Central Aceh Parliament was 30 instead of 25. This inaccuracy adds burden to the budget.

These twelve parties demanded the governor to examine their complaint, to postpone the issuance of governor decree on the appointment of elected member of Central Aceh Parliament as proposed by Central Aceh KIP. They also demanded Central Aceh KIP to be accountable regarding the accuracy of its data.

Inflation of votes issue was heard by many two months before Election day. Anti corruption non government organisatino, Jang-ko, suspected Central Aceh list of registered voters had been tampered. Idrus Saputra and Hamdani from Jang-ko was summoned and interrogated by Central Aceh Resort Police Office because of their statements.

Head of Central Aceh KIP, Hamidah, joined the bandwagon. He said demand raised by twelve political parties was absurd.

Not only in Central Aceh, political temperature also rised in Bener Meriah. Twenty shops and one house were burned down in Simpang Balek, Wih Pesam sub-district. No casualties were found, however material damage was estimated to reach hundreds of million rupiah.

Aceh Governor, Irwandi Yusuf, assumed that these acts of terror were orchestrated by those who did not want PA to win the Election. In his opinion, it was because PA comprises of former Free Aceh Movement activists.

Similar refusal on the Election result also occurred in Bener Meriah. People’s Conscience Party (Partai Hati Nurani Rakyat/Hanura) and PBR protested KIP Bener Meriah’s version of recapitulation and DRPK seats. They claimed that it contradicted with PPK’s version and as a result, some non-eligible parties sat in the 2009-20014 DPRK.

Justice and Prosperous Party (Partai Keadilan Sejahtera/PKS) also launched their protests to Bener Meriah KIP. A PKS witness Muhariadi observed that there has been an inflation of voters to favour a certain party in a number of places including Bukit, Wih Pesam, Bandar, Syiah Utama and Permata sub-districts. Vote inflation for PKPI reached 5.113 votes, for National Mandate Party 2.865 votes, for PBR 1.883 votes and for PKI 381 votes.

However, the heat waves stop at the canteen at the back of regional secretary office of Bener Meriah sub-district. A number of people, politicians from local and national parties, sip their Gayo coffee. Many of them are former Free Aceh Movement separatists and militia. Now they provide construction services in partnership. “This is politics,” one of them says and the rest respond in laughter.

“War? What for? It only create sufferings,” a former Bener Meriah PETA leader Radinal says. “It is better for us to improve our conflict-shattered economy,” he adds.***