“I have submitted the letter to the president today,” Sutiyoso said in response to a question on granting amnesty to Din Minimi before he attended a cabinet meeting at the State Palace here on Monday.
The BIN chief expressed hope that with the submission of the letter to the president, the Ministry of Law and Human Rights would process it and write to the House of Representatives (DPR) regarding the matter.
“The Law and Human Rights Ministry will probably send a letter to the Commission III of the DPR seeking an agreement on granting amnesty to the Din Minimi group,” Sutiyoso noted.
Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPIs) security observer Jaleswari Pramowardhani remarked here on Monday that the dialog approach used by Sutiyoso was able to sensitize the Din Minimi-led armed rebel group in Aceh.
“I think the use of a repressive approach to solve problems that occur during this time is not always evident to reduce the escalation of violence,” Pramowardhani said via an electronic mail received here on Monday.
Earlier, the armed group rebel, commanded by Ismail alias Nurdin Din Minimi, surrendered themselves along with dozens of firearms and ammunition to BIN Head Sutiyoso in East Aceh district. They are seeking amnesty or pardon from President Joko Widodo.
According to Pramowardhani, a dialog approach adopted by Sutiyoso became the antithesis of the repressive approach used by security forces against insurgent groups in the country.
The former special staff at the Cabinet Secretariat noted that the dialog approach is in line with President Widodos appeal to always give priority to dialog in dealing with various problems.
Further, he added that the handling of Din Minimis case is an example of the strength and success of the dialog approach.
Therefore, Pramowardhani stated that the dialog method needs to be adopted in other conflict areas to solve the problems there.