Aceh Governor Calls to Fight Against Terror and Intimidation

BY FAKHRURRADZIE GADE
BANDA ACEH, Feb 6 (TAG) – Aceh Governor Irwandi Yusuf on Monday called the Acehnese to fight against terror and intimidation ahead of the local elections to choose the governor, four mayors and 13 districts’ chief in the Indonesia’s northern most province that scheduled on April 9.

His calling came following two latest armed violence occurred Sunday night and early Monday in East Aceh district when unidentified gunmen fired on a former rebel’s house and the campaign post of a candidate who running for the district’s chief.

In the first incident, at least four gunmen fired on a house belongs to Asnawi Abdul Rahman, one of Irwandi’s campaign team in Peureulak sub-district of East Aceh, the local police chief Adj. Comr Ridwan Usman said, adding no one injured as the house was empty at the time.

According to local residents, Asnawi was a former spokesman of Aceh Transitional Committee (KPA) in Peureulak area. Locals told journalists that they heard some 20 shootings that caused residents’ afraid to go out as the incident took place at around 8:30 p.m.

“Police still investigating the case and hunt the penetrators who believed using rifles and pistol,” Ridwan said, adding police recovered bullet and projectiles on the scene.

While the second case, the gunmen who driving an Avanza minivan shot on on the post belongs to a East Aceh district's chief candidate Ridwansyah in Bukit Selamat village of Sungai Raya sub-district. There’s also no injured in the incident. Ridwansyah running for the district chief as an independent candidate.

Irwandi pointed that the terror and intimidation is happening door to door in some part of the province. “There is some intimidation house to house. They told the villagers if their part won’t win (in the coming local election), Aceh’s going to war again,” he told reporters here.

However, Irwandi didn’t mention who is behind the terror and intimidation. He just asked people no to be afraid to fight against terrors which believed done by some irresponsible groups.

“It’s a bullshit that must not to be followed. If there is an intimidation or even terror, people should report to security authorities,” Irwandi said.

He said that it’s time for the people of Aceh to fight against all kinds of terror and intimidation that they faced. “In the past we fought against the tyranny from outside, and now it's time for people to be bold fighting the oppression from the inside” Aceh, he said.

Irwandi who will end his governor term on Wednesday want to running for second term in the coming election that scheduled on April 9 as set by the Aceh Independent Election Commission (KIP). 

The polls, which will see voters choose a governor, 13 district heads and four mayors, had initially been scheduled for last November but were when the Aceh Party threatened a boycott in response to a Constitutional Court ruling allowing independent candidates to run.

At the time, the KIP went on to register candidates regardless of the boycott by the local party, which dominates the provincial legislature and derives its support from former members of the now-disbanded guerrilas Free Aceh Movement (GAM). Then, KIP rescheduled the polls on December 24, but after that changed to February 16.

The Aceh Party registered its governor candidates Zaini Abdullah on January, days after the Constitutional Court ordered the KIP for the second time the reopening of the registration window, finally ending its months-long standoff with the electoral authority.

The lead-up to the Aceh polls has also been marred by a spate of unresolved shootings and fire-bombings that the House of Representatives has warned are politically motivated and should not be treated as normal crimes. So far, police in Aceh still working hard to resolve the shootings that claimed six lives since last December.[]


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