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Army Sends Four Battalions Into Aceh
by Kazi Mahmood for IslamOnline
KUALA LUMPUR, March 18 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - The Indonesian army on Sunday confirmed it had beefed up existing troops in restive province of Aceh to protect Exxon Mobil Oil Indonesia (EMOI) oil fields.
The Free Aceh Movement (GAM) has stepped up attacks against economic objectives in the province in a bid to spoil Jakarta's plans for exploitation of the territories resources.
Part of the GAM strategy is to attack and paralyze EMOI, seemingly succeeding in the effort.
EMOI has closed plants citing fears of GAM backlash, prompting several other foreign and local companies to close down their operations in the province as well.
To counter the GAM's objectives, President Abdurahman Wahid's administration, in close collaboration with the Armed forces of Indonesia (TNI), has approved light military operations in the breakaway territory.
The military announced it has sent four additional battalions to guard EMOI fields and several other vital economic sites in Aceh.
EMOI produces LNG, or Liquefied Natural Gas, from which the Java-based administration reaps several million dollars, and is one of the most vital Indonesian export products.
The four battalions joined an existing battalion in order to protect EMOI workers and families against possible GAM attacks. The TNI said the military would be useless if it could not protect such vital projects in Aceh, as its aim is to ensure peace and security.
Indonesia's chief security minister pressed Exxon Mobil Indonesia to reopen key gas fields closed a week ago due to security fears.
He said the closures threatened one of the ravaged country's most valuable exports. If closures continued, the Indonesian government could suffer to the point that it might not be able to deal with pressures from students and other activists calling for Wahid to resign, and handling conflicts in other provinces of the country, sources told IslamOnline.
The closure of three gas fields in Aceh has forced the PT Arun NGL liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant there to stop production, sending major utilities in Japan and South Korea in search of alternative suppliers.
Panic is growing in Jakarta as Wahid advisers state they want production in Arun to be restored as soon as possible. They said beefing up Exxon gas sites proved they did not want the security of LNG supply to be disturbed.
There were indications that LNG supplies could be covered by Bontang LNG centers, but the restoration of Arun was most important to the Indonesian government.
Newspaper reports in Jakarta say the Bontang LNG plant in East Kalimantan is already producing close to capacity. Officials at the state oil and gas company Pertamina, however, insist there is still enough spare LNG to cover any Arun shortfall for a limited period.
Pertamina is also scouting neighboring countries, notably Malaysia and Australia, to help it in meet contracted sales because of the Arun stoppage.
The closure could seriously effect the struggling Indonesian economy that relies heavily on oil and gas exports to stay afloat.
Currently, three battalions of about 2000 security personnel surround Arun guarding the gas fields, most of them onshore, and the LNG plant.
These are the largest security forces guarding such a vital project in Indonesia.
There have been reported clashes between the TNI and armed GAM groups in several locations in Aceh on Friday. Sources said the clashes lasted the entire day and caused the death of three persons.
This is the first real encounter between the TNI and the GAM in the field since the withdrawal of troops under former President B.J. Habibie, the same source said.
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