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PP RUEHCHI RUEHDT RUEHHM
DE RUEHJA #0369/01 0400819
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P 090819Z FEB 07
FM AMEMBASSY JAKARTA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 3239
INFO RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC
RUEHZS/ASSOCIATION OF SOUTHEAST ASIAN NATIONS
RUEHKO/AMEMBASSY TOKYO 0226
RUEHHE/AMEMBASSY HELSINKI 0887
RUEHBY/AMEMBASSY CANBERRA 0420
RUEHTC/AMEMBASSY THE HAGUE 3307
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS
RHHMUNA/USCINCPAC HONOLULU HI
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RHHJJAA/JICPAC HONOLULU HI
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHDC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 JAKARTA 000369 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
AIDAC 
 
DEPT FOR EAP/MTS 
NSC FOR MORROW 
USAID FOR ANE/EAA 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM ID
SUBJECT: The Two Faces of Irwandi, Governor and GAM Leader 
 
REF: JAKARTA 0313 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary: On Thursday, February 7, Irwandi Yusuf was sworn 
in as the Governor of Aceh by the Minister of Home Affairs, becoming 
the first directly elected Governor in Aceh's history and marking an 
important milestone in the Aceh peace process. Several hours later 
GAM staged a second, highly provocative, ceremony which opened with 
the Acehnese national anthem and which featured GAM "Prime 
-Minister" Malik Mahmud anointing Irwandi as the "Head of the 
Government of Aceh."  Ever since Irwandi won the election last 
December, the Indonesian leadership has pursued a sunshine strategy 
toward the governor-elect which demonstrated its commitment to the 
establishment of a healthy relationship between Jakarta and Aceh. 
Irwandi as well has been constructive, focusing on the needs of the 
people of Aceh without separatist overtones (reftel). Although a TNI 
official told us privately that Jakarta is treating the second 
ceremony as a "political party celebration", he also indicated that 
if they continue, antics such as this could weaken the cooperative 
spirit which has been established and undermine the position of 
those arguing that Irwandi and GAM should be taken at their word 
that they have abandoned their separatist ambitions. End summary. 
 
The Official Inauguration Ceremony 
---------------------------------- 
¶2. (U) On Thursday, February 7, Minister of Home Affairs Mohammad 
Ma'ruf swore in Irwandi Yusuf as Aceh's first directly elected 
governor in a ceremony chaired by the head of the provincial 
legislature and attended by approximately 1500 people. Several 
senior GAM officials, including Malik Mahmud, Lampoh Awe, and 
Muzakkir Manaf attended the ceremony as did members of the 
diplomatic corps, the provincial legislature (DPRD), and select 
representatives from civil society and the government. 
 
¶3. (U) In his opening speech, the head of the provincial legislature 
Fuad Said held out Aceh's local elections as a model for the rest of 
the country because they proved that direct elections with 
independent candidates could be held peacefully and result in a 
winner with a broad mandate.  At the same time, however, he reminded 
Irwandi that he had generated hope and optimism among the Acehnese 
but that the challenge would be making those hopes a reality. In a 
thinly veiled warning that the DPRD would not tolerate separatism, 
Fuad pledged his and the DPRD's support for all programs designed to 
develop Aceh within the context of the "Unitary Republic of 
Indonesia."  Unsurprisingly given that the audience was composed 
primarily of DPRD members and others with strong ties to Jakarta, 
the line which received the loudest applause was Fuad's comment that 
Irwandi was no longer the leader of an "outside party" but had 
become the leader of "Aceh Province." 
 
¶4. (U) In a speech filled with English phrases like "checks and 
balances", "transparency", and "good government", Home Affairs 
Minister Ma'ruf exhorted Irwandi to focus on promoting the welfare 
and prosperity of the people and pledged the support of the 
government in Jakarta. As in Fuad's speech, Ma'ruf's reminder that 
Irwandi was "government's representative in the province" generated 
enthusiastic applause.  Ma'ruf challenged Irwandi to unite all 
members of the province together to build the new peaceful, 
prosperous Aceh envisioned during the signing of the Helsinki MOU. 
 
¶5. (SBU) As the Minister of Home Affairs snapped on Irwandi's 
official governor epaulettes, Mirwan Amnir, a parliament member 
noted wryly that "the GAM is finished." 
 
¶6. (SBU) According to several of Irwandi's advisors and his 
speechwriter, Irwandi had mistakenly expected to speak at the 
ceremony and was disappointed that he was unable to do so. (Note: 
there is nothing unusual about this. In Indonesia, newly installed 
governors do not speak at their inauguration.) The speech he 
prepared event would have doubtlessly pleased the audience: it 
praised Jakarta for the positive steps it has taken to assist the 
province and implement the Helsinki MOU and acknowledged that "Aceh 
is an inseparable part of the Republic of Indonesia". 
 
 
JAKARTA 00000369  002 OF 002 
 
 
The GAM Ceremony, Inauguration or Party Building? 
--------------------------------------------- ---- 
¶7. (U) Several hours after the official inauguration ceremony, GAM 
staged a second inauguration in a large public park not far from the 
Governor's palace.  GAM officials had promised that more than 50,000 
Acehnese would attend the event; fewer than 10,000 showed up. 
Sofyan Dawood, former GAM spokesperson and Irwandi's campaign 
manager, organized and emceed the event. 
 
¶8. (U) Event organizers decked out the stage in ornate gold reds and 
yellow cloth, reminiscent of a sultan's palace.  Governor Irwandi 
Yusuf and Vice Governor Mohammad Nazar dressed in the Acehnese royal 
attire were seated beside their wives under colorful tents.  To 
their right sat GAM "Prime Minister" Malik Mahmud; GAM Ulama Abu 
Teungku Tanoh Mirah sat to their left. 
 
¶9. (U) A young boy opened the ceremony by singing the old Acehnese 
anthem that GAM members traditionally sang at flag raising 
ceremonies.  Keeping with Irwandi's promise that he would not fly 
the Acehnese flag after becoming governor, no Acehnese flags were 
displayed. 
 
¶10. (U) Ulama Tanoh Mirah began the ceremony by formally blessing 
Irwandi and Nazar and challenging them to revise the Law on the 
Government of Aceh (LOGA)to make it consistent with the will of the 
people. Then, Malik Mahmud, in his capacity as GAM "Prime Minister" 
and on behalf of "Head of State" Hasan Tiro, anointed Irwandi and 
Nazar with rice, water, and pronounced them the "Heads of the 
Government of Aceh".  The words "province", "Indonesia", and 
"governor" were never mentioned.  This process was repeated for the 
seven pairs of GAM-affiliated candidates who won positions during 
the local elections. 
 
¶11. (U) Once this process was finished, each of seven pairs of 
candidates plus GAM's seventeen regional commanders came forward one 
by one and sprinkled rice and water on Irwandi and Nazar, 
symbolically pledging to follow them as their leaders. 
 
¶12. (U) Following the formal ceremony, Malik, Irwandi, and Nazar 
each addressed the crowd in Acehnese. Although the speeches were 
filled with symbolism, none made any overt statement in favor of 
independence. 
 
¶13. (SBU) TNI contacts who were aware of the GAM ceremony told us 
that Jakarta has chosen to treat the ceremony as a "political party 
celebration" similar to those a formal political party might hold 
after winning an election.  At the same time, he acknowledged that 
some parties in Jakarta had attempted to cite the event as proof 
that GAM had not abandoned its commitment to independence. He 
expected that Jakarta's public reaction would be minimal but warned 
that tolerance of such public spectacles was not infinite. 
Pascoe