UN warns against fighting in Tsunami-struck Areas by Reuters / SBS News / The Age / UN News 10:24pm 9th Jan, 2005   January 15, 2005.    Indonesia seeks peace talks with Aceh rebels. (ABC News)    Indonesia's Vice-President says the Government is working towards holding peace talks with separatist rebels in the disaster affected Aceh province.    The Indonesian Government this week restricted the movements of foreigners and foreign aid organisations because of the threat posed by rebel insurgents from the Free Aceh Movement (GAM).    Vice President Yusuf Kalla says the Government is seeking reconciliation with the rebels and is working towards holding talks to ensure a permanent peace deal. A fragile peace deal was struck three years ago, but the Indonesian military launched a major offensive against them 18 months ago when the agreement faltered..    13.1.2005.    JAKARTA ASSERTS ACEH CONTROL. (SBS World News)    Indonesia has asserted its military control over tsunami-hit Aceh province, requiring all foreigners to register and seek official escorts to avoid what it said was a danger of rebel attacks. The government will also post officers on foreign ships and planes, and has given foreign troops helping with the aid effort three months to leave. "We are trying to safeguard the safety of all of you. We don't want any of you to be hurt by irresponsible GAM members," Welfare Minister Alwi Shihab told reporters, referring the Free Aceh Movement. Before the devastating tsunamis hit the province killing more than 100,000 people, Jakarta had sealed off Aceh to outsiders while it conducted a military offensive to crush separatists engaged in a long-running independence struggle.    But the rebels say they have not, and will not, attack aid workers. "We need these foreign aid workers to be able to carry out their duties and we are committed to this humanitarian aid and we have issued a unilateral ceasefire already", a GAM spokesman said. Rest assured that we welcome the brilliant contribution and aid workers from abroad to help the tsunami survivors and those in need.    United Nations coordinator for Aceh Joel Boutroue said he did not believe there was a threat from the rebels, adding that although his organisation had no objection to the restrictions, it was clear security was not the only goal. "They want to have the situation under control for political reasons as well as security reasons. That's understandable," he said. UN humanitarian envoy Margareta Wahlstrom met Indonesian military chief General Endriartono Sutarto in Banda Aceh on Wednesday and played down the impact of the restrictions. "I don't see these as restrictions. They are not saying you cannot go. They are saying, let us know when you go," she said.    But Pete Sweetnam, team leader for non-governmental group Mercy Corps in Meulaboh, said the restrictions may have an effect on efforts, adding "complete humanitarian access is the ideal".    Mr Shihab rejected accusations that Jakarta was seeking to reassert control of Aceh at the expense of the humanitarian effort. "There is no politics in this, we want you to be safe," he said. Australia, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore and the US have all rushed troops to Aceh, boosting efforts to bring aid to areas only accessible by sea or air..    January 10, 2005    "Military bans a blow to aid", by Matthew Moore, Banda Aceh and Farah Farouque, Colombo. (The Age with agencies)    Indonesia has banned foreign soldiers and aid workers from most of tsunami-devastated Aceh province, claiming the security risks are too great to allow free movement without specific military approval.    The restrictions are an early sign of the tension in the Government and the military caused by the sudden influx of thousands of foreigners in what has long been one of Indonesia's most closely guarded areas, torn by decades of separatist struggle.    The bans were imposed at the weekend despite recent government assurances that foreign troops and aid workers would be unhindered in their relief operations, and threaten to sour the unprecedented spirit of co-operation between Indonesia and Australia following the tsunamis that flattened the region on Boxing Day.    Tensions were also emerging in Sri Lanka where UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan urged the Government to use the support it was receiving from around the world to heal the country's ethnic divisions and end a civil war with Tamil rebels. His words came after he reluctantly agreed to a government request not to visit tsunami-stricken areas under rebel control, a move that prompted protests by hundreds of people in Tamil-majority Jaffna.    The move by the Indonesian Government to restrict access came as gunfire erupted in the regional capital of Banda Aceh early yesterday and follows several reports of government clashes with suspected Aceh separatists, including a report that soldiers on Friday shot dead seven people in Lamlhom, a village about 40 kilometres from Banda Aceh.    In other developments:    Australian Prime Minister John Howard said Australian troops and aid workers would remain in Indonesia and other tsunami-hit areas as long as they were needed. He told the nation in a televised address last night. "A tragedy of this magnitude . . . requires a long-term commitment of resources if shattered communities are to be rebuilt and survivors provided with some hope for the future."    · The death toll from the disaster was at least 156,000. But aid groups and Indonesian officials now fear the toll in Aceh alone could climb as high as 300,000, with surveillance flights over the west coast of Sumatra failing to sight large numbers of survivors among the shattered villages.    · Rich nations pledged to suspend debt repayments by tsunami-hit nations. World Bank president James Wolfensohn, visiting Sri Lanka, said the bank would also consider debt relief and could hand out up to $US1.5 billion ($A2 billion) in aid.    With tensions mounting across Aceh, Indonesia Vice-President Jusuf Kalla in Jakarta told a televised meeting of top government officials working on the crisis that foreigners were being restricted to Banda Aceh and the capital of the West Aceh region, Meulaboh.    This was despite assurances last Thursday by the Government's co-ordinating minister for social welfare, Alwi Shihab, who told The Age that no restrictions would apply. "Foreigners are free to go anywhere where aid is required," he said.    But the head of Mr Kalla's National Disaster Co-ordination Board, Budi Adiputo, said that was wrong. Aid organisations and defence force personnel had been told that specific permission was needed from Indonesia's military commander in Aceh, General Endang Suwarya, to go anywhere in Aceh apart from Banda Aceh and Meulaboh.    "Only Banda Aceh and Meulaboh are fully controlled by the TNI (army), so that's why we allow foreigners to those two cities . . . The policy is foreigners only in Banda Aceh and Meulaboh," he said.    General Suwarya also confirmed the ban, adding that if a US helicopter wanted to take relief stores to Aceh's second biggest town of Lhokseumawe, it would need his permission.    Mr Aditputo said the Government had imposed the restrictions to avoid adverse reaction to the death of a foreigner caught up in a clash with separatists.    "My position is that now there are thousands and thousands of people, not only nationals but internationals who have come here to support us," he said. "If something happens and, say, one foreigner with white skin is killed, how will the international community react?"    The restrictions now on foreigners using the road to Lhokseumawe and towns on the way are even tighter than the rules that applied after martial law was declared in May 2003. For much of that time foreigners were free to travel to Lhokseumawe provided they reported to the military posts in towns they visited.    Monday, January 10, 2005    "Civil strife mars effort in Aceh and Sri Lanka". (The New York Times, The Associated Press, Reuters)    GALLE, Sri Lanka: Long-running civil strife cast a shadow over relief efforts on Sunday in Indonesia and Sri Lanka, the nations hit hardest by the tsunami two weeks ago.    Indonesia's military bolstered security in Aceh, the region worst hit by the Dec. 26 earthquake and tsunamis, after gunfire erupted in the provincial capital, Banda Aceh.    There was confusion over the shooting. Some officials blamed separatist rebels, and others said a disturbed government soldier had fired the shots. No one was hurt.    In Sri Lanka, about 400 demonstrators gathered in peaceful protest Sunday opposite the office of the UN refugee agency in Jaffna, in the northern region controlled by the Tamil rebels, after Secretary General Kofi Annan agreed to a government request not to visit areas affected by the tsunami that were under rebel control.    Adding to the misery of destitute survivors in Indonesia, tropical downpours complicated relief efforts already hamstrung by impassable roads and destroyed bridges. The deluge compounded the plight of tens of thousands of survivors living in little more than tents and underscored the need to quickly build more permanent shelters.    Officials made clear Sunday that the region would need outside assistance long into the future. Colin Powell, the U.S. secretary of state, said the response to the tsunami should be considered a long-term project that could extend far beyond the current efforts.Interviewed on a series of news shows in the United States, Powell said from Nairobi that he would meet with President George W. Bush on Monday to review his recent tour of several of the hardest-hit nations. Asked what his recommendations to the president would be, Powell said: "That we stay engaged. That this is a long-term prospect." In Nairobi, Powell attended the signing of a peace agreement to end a long-running conflict in southern Sudan.    In Sri Lanka, Annan said the government should use the world's support to heal the country's ethnic divisions and end a civil war with Tamil rebels. Annan said he hoped that his failure to visit all parts of the country would not strain relations between the United Nations and the rebel group. "I'm hoping to come back and be able to visit all areas of the country, not only those repaired, but also to celebrate peace," he said.    At a news conference before a meeting planned for Sunday with the Sri Lankan president, Annan said: "The UN is not here to take sides. We are here to help all people in the country. This is a tragedy that has affected all people, that has transcended divisions that wrack your country."    The long-running tension between the government in Colombo and the Tamil rebels appears to have only been sharpened after the tsunami, which killed more than 30,000 people in Sri Lanka. The government said Annan's itinerary was planned in consultation with UN agencies in Colombo, "taking into account the security, programming and time consideration involved."    The government's two-decade war with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam has left more than 64,000 people dead but is on hold thanks to a three-year cease-fire. Meanwhile, two hand grenades hurled in a rare clash between Christians and Hindus killed at least three people and wounded 37 in a part of eastern Sri Lanka where international aid workers were helping tsunami victims, the police said. No aid workers were near the explosions at the time, officials said..    January 9, 2005.    "Indonesian officer blamed for Aceh shooting incident", by John Taylor in Banda Aceh. (ABC News Online)    A single Indonesian officer and not a firefight with insurgents is being blamed for a series of gunshots near a top police official's home in the tsunami devastated Indonesian city of Banda Aceh. Indonesian military officials have blamed the incident on Free Aceh Movement rebels fighting for the Aceh's independence.    A United Nations base of operations is nearby and a security guard observed the incident. A UN official, speaking on condition of anonymity, says the gunshots came from one person, either a soldier or police officer. The gunfire sparked suspicions that rebel insurgents who have previously clashed with the military in the area were causing trouble. No UN aid agencies have encountered incidents of insurgent violence..    Jan 9, 2005    "Indonesia reassures Aid Workers after Gunfire", by Achmad Sukarsono and Dan Eaton.    BANDA ACEH, Indonesia (Reuters) - Indonesia sought to reassure Western aid workers after a gunfire incident Sunday in the major tsunami aid base of Banda Aceh raised safety fears.    "The security operation conducted by Indonesia's military and police will protect, secure the humanitarian efforts," President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono told reporters to allay any concern among hundreds of Western relief workers pouring in.    Indonesia's military beefed up security in Banda Aceh amid confusion over who was behind the brief burst of shooting. Some officials blamed separatist rebels, while others said a disturbed government soldier fired the shots. No one was hurt. The incident took place outside a deputy police chief's house and near the main U.N. aid office in the capital of Aceh province on the island of Sumatra where almost all of Indonesia's 104,000 deaths from the tsunami occurred.    The tsunami -- the most widespread natural disaster in living memory -- killed at least 156,000 people in 13 countries around the Indian Ocean two weeks ago, drawing emergency relief from throughout the world.    "You have to proceed with due caution. This has been and is a zone of conflict," Aly-Kahn Rajami, program manager of CARE International, said after the shooting. But the U.N. coordinator for Sumatra, Joel Boutroue, said: "We don't believe relief workers are targets. I don't see at this stage any hampering of our movement."    Indonesia's chief social welfare minister Alwi Shihab said the government was investigating. The military had ordered a high alert because of possible infiltration by people wary of the foreigners' presence, he said. There have been reports of militant Islamic groups moving into the province aiming to counter any use of the disaster by Western aid groups to push a Christian agenda..    January 6, 2005.    UN warns against fighting in Tsunami-struck Areas. (Reuters)    The United Nations has warned governments and rebel groups in Sumatra, Sri Lanka and Somalia to keep the peace or risk being cut-off from aid to the victims of the Indian Ocean tsunami. "We have a message to the parties to the conflicts: Suspend your conflict and work together with us to help your own people," UN emergency relief coordinator Jan Egeland said.    Peace now prevailed in areas of northern Sumatra's Aceh province torn by a separatist rebellion; a cease-fire prevailed in the parts of Sri Lanka controlled by the Tamil Tigers separatist movement, and feuding warlords were not fighting in "the better part of Somalia," Mr Egeland told reporters. "We need that cease-fire, that peace, to hold because if new conflict breaks out, we cannot help the people," he said.    While the three countries had been roiled by conflict, relief groups have praised all sides in recent days for providing full access to humanitarian workers so they can deliver aid shipments.    For three decades Aceh, the isolated Indonesian province that accounts for more than half of the known deaths from the devastating tsunamis and earthquake that triggered it, has been the site of a simmering separatist rebellion that has left at least 12,000 dead, most of them civilians.    Somalia has been a patchwork of fiefdoms, with little or no central authority, since the 1991 overthrow of military ruler Mohammed Siad Barre.    The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, while agreeing to a cease-fire with the Government three years ago after waging a bloody two-decade war for autonomy, still have de facto rule over north-east Sri Lanka.    In his latest news briefing on the global response to the tsunami catastrophe Mr Egeland said the world continued to respond generously to appeals for help. Governments and aid agencies had so far pledged well over $US3 billion in cash and in-kind assistance, he said. "It is indeed the world coming together in a manner never seen before." He also praised Indonesia for agreeing to a UN request that it host a central operations centre coordinating all civilian and military aid operations, "to ensure the response is effective."    Jan 9, 2005    The Universal Rights Network calls for a suspension of the armed struggles in Sri Lanka and the Aceh Province of Indonesia during the Tsunami relief operations currently underway. Many people in these countries desperately need help. And help is being offerred to assist those desperately in need. This is not the time for armed struggle, rather it is the well being of the many that is of the most importance. Whatever the injustices or legitimate causes of your struggles now is not the time to disrupt the international help that is being offerred. As this help is critical to the well being of the vast majorities of your people. Similarly, relevant national government's should refrain from actions that may provoke unrest at this time.    Kim Gleeson.    (Editor / Publisher, Creator. Universal Rights Network).
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