DOCSLIB.ORG

Local Elections and Autonomy in Papua and Aceh: Mitigating Or Fueling Secessionism? Author(S): Marcus Mietzner Source: Indonesia , Oct., 2007, No

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Local Elections and Autonomy in Papua and Aceh: Mitigating Or Fueling Secessionism? Author(S): Marcus Mietzner Source: Indonesia , Oct., 2007, No Local Elections and Autonomy in Papua and Aceh: Mitigating or Fueling Secessionism? Author(s): Marcus Mietzner Source: Indonesia , Oct., 2007, No. 84 (Oct., 2007), pp. 1-39 Published by: Cornell University Press; Southeast Asia Program Publications at Cornell University Stable URL: http://www.jstor.com/stable/40376428 REFERENCES Linked references are available on JSTOR for this article: http://www.jstor.com/stable/40376428?seq=1&cid=pdf- reference#references_tab_contents You may need to log in to JSTOR to access the linked references. JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected]. Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at https://about.jstor.org/terms Cornell University Press and Southeast Asia Program Publications at Cornell University are collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Indonesia This content downloaded from 103.18.181.133 on Mon, 13 Jul 2020 07:00:00 UTC All use subject to https://about.jstor.org/terms Local Elections and Autonomy in Papua and Aceh: Mitigating or Fueling Secessionism? Marcus Mietzner' Since the 1960s, scholars of separatism have debated the impact of regional autonomy policies and general democratization measures on the strength of secessionist movements in conflict-prone areas. In this heated academic discussion, supporters and critics of political decentralization advanced highly divergent arguments and case studies. On the one hand, numerous authors have identified regional autonomy and expanded democratic rights as effective instruments to settle differences between regions with secessionist tendencies and their central governments.2 In their view, regional autonomy has the potential to address and ultimately eliminate anti-centralist sentiments in local communities by involving them more deeply in political decision-making and economic resource distribution. They point to cases such as Quebec in Canada, where the support for the separatist Parti Québécois dropped from almost 50 percent in 1981 to only 28.3 percent in the 2007 elections.3 Other examples of successful autonomy regimes frequently mentioned by pro-autonomy academics and policy-makers include Nagaland in India, the Miskito 1 The author would like to thank Edward Aspinall, Harold Crouch, Sidney Jones, Rodd McGibbon, and an anonymous reviewer for their useful comments on an earlier version of this paper. 2 See for instance George Tsebelis, "Elite Interaction and Constitution Building in Consociational Societies/' Journal of Theoretical Politics 2,1 (1990): 5-29; John McGarry and Brendan CLeary, "Introduction: The Macro-Political Regulation of Ethnic Conflict," in The Politics of Ethnic Conflict Regulation, ed. John McGarry and Brendan OTeary (London: Routledge, 1993); Ruth Lapidoth, Autonomy: Flexible Solutions to Ethnic Conflicts (Washington DC: United States Institute of Peace Press, 1997); and Ted Robert Gurr, Peoples Versus States: Minorities at Risk in the New Century (Washington, DC: United States Institute of Peace, 2000). 3 The decline of the Parti Québécois was accompanied by the meteoric rise of the populist right-wing Action Démocratique du Québec (ADQ), which supported a maximum degree of autonomy for Quebec within the Canadian state. Indonesia 84 (October 2007) This content downloaded from 103.18.181.133 on Mon, 13 Jul 2020 07:00:00 UTC All use subject to https://about.jstor.org/terms 2 Marcus Mietzner territories in Nicaragua, Galicia in Spain, South Tyrol in Italy, Gagauzia in Moldova, and Crimea in the Ukraine.4 However, an equally influential group of researchers has argued that granting regional autonomy and more democracy provides separatist movements with the resources they need to further their secessionist cause.5 According to these scholars, the implementation of policies offering greater regional autonomy allows separatist groups to gain experience in government, sharpen local identities, and prepare the infrastructure for the sought-after independent state. These authors can highlight examples like Scotland, where the separatist Scottish Nationalist Party used the Scotland Act of 1998, which gave the region increased autonomy, to grow into the largest party in the territory by 2007. Others again have introduced an analytical distinction between regional autonomy and democracy, maintaining that these two factors can influence the intensity of separatism in very different ways. Kathleen Gallagher Cunningham, for example, has concluded that while the implementation of autonomy provisions often reduces demands for secession, this is more likely to occur in states with low levels of democracy than in those that offer generous democratic rights and freedoms.6 Accordingly, Cunningham submits that "in order to curtail violence associated with autonomy or independence movements, governments must provide order and limit the opportunity and incentives for extra-systemic violence generally/'7 In Indonesia, the debate about the interrelation between autonomy and secessionism has been the subject of a major policy discourse. At the core of this dispute are disagreements over the most effective approach to the provinces of Papua and Aceh, where separatist rebellions launched under the New Order continued well into the post-authoritarian transition after 1998. Nationalist politicians typically argued that generous autonomy offers would lead to Indonesia's disintegration, insisting that only military force could quell the rebellions. More liberal figures, on the other hand, believed that the state needed to make substantial concessions to the two provinces if it wanted to reduce their levels of anti-centralist hostility.8 As a compromise between 4 These examples are highlighted in Svante E. Cornell, "Autonomy and Conflict: Ethnoterritoriality and Separatism in the South Caucasus- Cases in Georgia" (PhD dissertation, Uppsala University, 2002); Frans Schrijver, "Regionalism after Régionalisation: Regional Identities, Political Space, and Political Mobilisation," paper presented at the AAG Pre-Conference, University of Colorado at Boulder, CO, April 3-5, 2005; and Thomas Benedikter, "The Working Autonomies in Europe: Territorial Autonomy as a Means of Minority Protection and Conflict Solution in the European Experience- An Overview and Schematic Comparison," (Bolzano /Bozen: Gesellschaft für Bedrohte Völker, 2006). 5 Authors who have presented this view indude Mitica Bookman, The Economics of Secession (New York, NY: St. Martin's Press, 1992); David J. Meyer, "A Place of Our Own: Does the Ethnicization of Territorial Control Create Incentives for Elites to Conduct Ethno-Political Mobilization? Cases from the Caucasus in Comparative Perspective," paper presented at the Fifth Annual Convention of the ASN, New York, NY, April 2000; Dimitry Gorenburg, "Nationalism for the Masses: Popular Support for Nationalism in Russia's Ethnic Republics," Europe-Asia Studies, 53,1 (2001): 73-104; and Dawn Brancata, "Decentralization: Fueling die Fire or Dampening the Flames of Ethnic Conflict and Secessionism," International Organization 60, 3 (2006): 651-685. Kathleen Gallagher Cunningham, "Evaluating the Success of Regional Autonomy Regimes," paper prepared for the Annual Meeting of the American Political Science Association, Philadelphia, PA, August 31-September 3, 2006. 7 Ibid., p. 18. Rodd McGibbon, Secessionist Challenges in Aceh and Papua: Is Special Autonomy the Solution?, Policy Studies 10 (Washington, DC: East West Center Washington, 2004). This content downloaded from 103.18.181.133 on Mon, 13 Jul 2020 07:00:00 UTC All use subject to https://about.jstor.org/terms Local Elections and Autonomy in Papua and Aceh 3 these two diametrically opposed policy approaches, both Papua and Aceh were given special autonomy status in 2001, but this neither included meaningful provisions for more democratic participation of their citizens nor a cessation of the military campaign against the rebels. International observers consequently maintained that despite Indonesia's generally successful process of democratization, Papua and Aceh were still subjected to continued military operations, restrictions on political activity, strong social control mechanisms, and widespread intimidation of voters during general elections. In his assessment for the Freedom House, for example, Edward Aspinall asserted that while "the political system [in Indonesia] is open and democratic in its basic structures, and multiple actors compete to assert influence/7 in Papua and Aceh "governance problems of all kinds have been amplified, and security forces have committed egregious human rights abuses/'9 The half-hearted implementation of special autonomy amidst continued repression between 2001 and 2005 not only failed to reduce separatist sentiments in both provinces, but arguably made them worse. Many Papuans and Acehnese viewed the failure of special autonomy to deliver any tangible benefits as final proof that the central government had never seriously intended to improve their living conditions. Given the lingering discontent in both territories, however, the Jakarta government began to introduce important changes from 2004 onwards. To begin with, in the last days of Megawati Sukarnoputri's presidency,
Load more

Recommended publications
  • INDO 84 0 1195498224 1 39.Pdf (756.2Kb)
    Local Elections and Autonomy in Papua and Aceh: M itigating or Fueling Secessionism? Marcus Mietzner1 Since the 1960s, scholars of separatism have debated the impact of regional autonomy policies and general democratization measures on the strength of secessionist movements in conflict-prone areas. In this heated academic discussion, supporters and critics of political decentralization advanced highly divergent arguments and case studies. On the one hand, numerous authors have identified regional autonomy and expanded democratic rights as effective instruments to settle differences between regions with secessionist tendencies and their central governments.2 In their view, regional autonomy has the potential to address and ultimately eliminate anti-centralist sentiments in local communities by involving them more deeply in political decision-making and economic resource distribution. They point to cases such as Quebec in Canada, where the support for the separatist Parti Quebecois dropped from almost 50 percent in 1981 to only 28.3 percent in the 2007 elections.3 Other examples of successful autonomy regimes frequently mentioned by pro-autonomy academics and policy-makers include Nagaland in India, the Miskito 1 The author would like to thank Edward Aspinall, Harold Crouch, Sidney Jones, Rodd McGibbon, and an anonymous reviewer for their useful comments on an earlier version of this paper. 2 See for instance George Tsebelis, "Elite Interaction and Constitution Building in Consociational Societies," Journal of Theoretical Politics 2,1 (1990): 5-29; John McGarry and Brendan O'Leary, "Introduction: The Macro-Political Regulation of Ethnic Conflict," in The Politics of Ethnic Conflict Regulation, ed. John McGarry and Brendan O'Leary (London: Routledge, 1993); Ruth Lapidoth, Autonomy: Flexible Solutions to Ethnic Conflicts (Washington DC: United States Institute of Peace Press, 1997); and Ted Robert Gurr, Peoples Versus States: Minorities at Risk in the New Century (Washington, DC: United States Institute of Peace, 2000).
    [Show full text]
  • Rekonstruksi Sejarah Umat Islam Di Tanah Papua
    Rekonstruksi Sejarah Umat Islam Di Tanah Papua DISERTASI Diajukan untuk melengkapi persyaratan mencapai Gelar Doktor dalam Ilmu Agama Islam oleh : Toni Victor M. Wanggai 02.3.00.1.04.01.0070 Promotor : Prof. Dr. Azyumardi Azra, M.A. Dr. Uka Tjandrasasmita SEKOLAH PASCASARJANA UNIVERSITAS ISLAM NEGERI (UIN) SYARIF HIDAYATULLAH JAKARTA 2008 M/1429 H ii PERSETUJUAN Disertasi dengan judul : “Rekonstruksi Sejarah Umat Islam di Tanah Papua” yang ditulis oleh Toni Victor M. Wanggai, NIM. 02.3.00.1.04.01.0070, telah diperbaiki sesuai dengan saran dan komentar dari Tim Penguji pada Ujian Pendahuluan Disertasi tanggal 31 Agustus 2008, dapat disetujui untuk dibawa ke Sidang Promosi Doktor (Ujian Terbuka). Jakarta, November 2008 Ketua Sidang / merangkap Promotor, Prof. Dr. Azyumardi Azra, M.A. iii PERSETUJUAN Disertasi dengan judul : “Rekonstruksi Sejarah Umat Islam di Tanah Papua” yang ditulis oleh Toni Victor M. Wanggai, NIM. 02.3.00.1.04.01.0070, telah diperbaiki sesuai dengan saran dan komentar dari Tim Penguji pada Ujian Pendahuluan Disertasi tanggal 31 Agustus 2008, dapat disetujui untuk dibawa ke Sidang Promosi Doktor (Ujian Terbuka). Jakarta, November 2008 Promotor/ merangkap Penguji, Dr.Uka Tjandrasasmita iv PERSETUJUAN Disertasi dengan judul : “Rekonstruksi Sejarah Umat Islam di Tanah Papua” yang ditulis oleh Toni Victor M. Wanggai, NIM. 02.3.00.1.04.01.0070, telah diperbaiki sesuai dengan saran dan komentar dari Tim Penguji pada Ujian Pendahuluan Disertasi tanggal 31 Agustus 2008, dapat disetujui untuk dibawa ke Sidang Promosi Doktor (Ujian Terbuka). Jakarta, November 2008 Penguji, Prof. Dr. Badri Yatim, M.A. v PERSETUJUAN Disertasi dengan judul : “Rekonstruksi Sejarah Umat Islam di Tanah Papua” yang ditulis oleh Toni Victor M.
    [Show full text]
  • Papers Presented at the Seminar on the Act of Free Choice
    Papers presented at the Seminar on the Act of Free Choice Papers presented at the Seminar on the Act of Free Choice Held in The Hague 15 November 2005 on the occasion of the book launch of P.J. Drooglever, Een Daad van Vrije Keuze. De Papoea’s van westelijk Nieuw-Guinea en de grenzen van het zelfbeschikkingsrecht (An Act of Free Choice. The Papuans of western New Guinea and the limits of the right of self determination) Edited by P.J. Drooglever Institute of Netherlands History The Hague 2008 Het Instituut voor Nederlandse Geschiedenis maakt deel uit van de Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek. Andere publicaties in de ing-Congresreeks: K. Kooijmans e.a. (red.), Bron en publikatie. Voordrachten en opstellen over de ontsluiting van geschiedkundige bronnen (Den Haag 1985) Bob de Graaff en Joost Jonker (red.), The Optimum Formula for a Foreign Policy Document Series. Proceedings of the second conference of editors of diplomatic documents, The Hague 16 and 17 Jan. 1992 (Den Haag 1992) Augustus J. Veenendaal Jr. en Johanna Roelevink (red.), Unlocking government archives of the early modern period (Den Haag 1995) P.J. Drooglever en M.J.B. Schouten (red.), De leeuw en de banteng. Bijdragen aan het congres over de Nederlands-Indonesische betrekkingen 1945-1950, gehouden in Den Haag van 27-29 maart 1996 (Den Haag 1997) D.E.H. de Boer, J.W. Marsilje en J.G. Smit (red.), Vander Rekeninghe. Bijdragen aan het symposium over onderzoek en editie-problematiek van middeleeuws rekeningenmateriaal, gehouden in Utrecht op 27 en 28 februari 1997 (Den Haag 1998) Jan A.F.
    [Show full text]
  • Constructing Papuan Nationalism: History, Ethnicity, and Adaptation
    Policy Studies 14 Constructing Papuan Nationalism: History, Ethnicity, and Adaptation Richard Chauvel East-West Center Washington East-West Center The East-West Center is an internationally recognized education and research organization established by the US Congress in 1960 to strengthen understanding and relations between the United States and the countries of the Asia Pacific. Through its programs of cooperative study, training, seminars, and research, the Center works to promote a stable, peaceful and prosperous Asia Pacific community in which the United States is a leading and valued partner. Funding for the Center comes from the US government, private foundations, individuals, corporations, and a number of Asia Pacific governments. East-West Center Washington Established on September 1, 2001, the primary function of the East-West Center Washington is to further the East-West Center mission and the institutional objective of building a peaceful and prosperous Asia Pacific community through substantive pro- gramming activities focused on the theme of conflict reduction in the Asia Pacific region and promoting American understand- ing of and engagement in Asia Pacific affairs. Constructing Papuan Nationalism: History, Ethnicity, and Adaption Policy Studies 14 Constructing Papuan Nationalism: History, Ethnicity, and Adaption Richard Chauvel Copyright © 2005 by the East-West Center Washington Constructing Papuan Nationalism: History, Ethnicity, and Adaptation by Richard Chauvel ISBN 1-932728-27-9 (online version) ISSN 1547-1330 (online version) Online at: www.eastwestcenterwashington.org/publications East-West Center Washington 1819 L Street, NW, Suite 200 Washington, D.C. 20036 Tel: (202) 293-3995 Fax: (202) 293-1402 E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.eastwestcenterwashington.org The Policy Studies series contributes to the Center’s role as a forum for dis- cussion of key contemporary domestic and international political, eco- nomic, and strategic issues affecting Asia.
    [Show full text]
  • West Irian and the Suharto Presidency: a Perspective Bilveer Singh
    73 West Irian and the Suharto Presidency: a perspective Bilveer Singh Introduction For Suharto, like many others, the struggle over West Irian1 was regarded as part of the unfinished business of Indonesian nationalism to end the much detested Dutch colonialism in the then Dutch East Indies. The fact that the Dutch surrendered all of its colonial territories at the Round Table Conference except West Irian only emboldened nationalists such as Su- harto that the struggle was worth pursuing, was winnable and that it was only a matter of time before the Dutch would capitulate. That the Dutch would hold on to West Irian for another twelve years was something un- foreseen and every passing year represented defeat and humiliation, this more than anything else was responsible for the unanimous decision that if West Irian could not be recovered through diplomacy, just as was the rest of Indonesia, then perjuangan or military struggle should be pur- sued. This directly involved Suharto in the West Irian issue, where just as in the struggle against Dutch colonialism prior to this, he was among those in the forefront leading the military struggle to win independence for Indonesia. In this context, Suharto’s involvement in the West Irian issue can be un- derstood from two different strategic positions he held, namely, first as the Commander of the Mandala Command tasked to militarily defeat the Dutch in West Irian and second, as Indonesia’s President, where his policies had a direct bearing on the future of the territory and the peo- ple therein. For the convenience of discussion, the role of Suharto and the West Irian issue can be examined through a number of phases.
    [Show full text]