Muzakir Manaf Also Refuses to Discuss 4 Islands Belonging to Aceh with Bobby Nasution
Author: Jacob Ereste
Freelance Journalist
The four islands belonging to Aceh Province that are to be taken by the North Sumatra Province command are located in the waters of West Sumatra, near the border between Aceh Singkil Regency and Central Tapanuli Regency, North Sumatra. Geographically, the four islands — Pulau Mangkir Besar, Pulau Mangkir Kecil, Pulau Lipan and Pulau Panjang — are indeed closer to the mainland of North Sumatra, around 1.2 to 2.4 kilometers from the coast of Central Tapanuli, while from the mainland of Aceh Singkil it is around 30 kilometers. Even so, administratively the four islands are recorded as belonging to Aceh Province which is administratively included in the territory of the North Sumatra Provincial government since the Decree of the Minister of Home Affairs No. 050-245 of 2022. In fact, since several years ago in the 1978 TNI-AD topographic map and the 1992 boundary agreement, they are now being contested, because they are known to have abundant natural resource mineral content.
So the geographical and administrative conflicts are related to the four islands in Aceh, because of the abundant economic potential in the area.
When the tension between Aceh and North Sumatra was getting worse, the Governor of North Sumatra Bobby Nasution took the initiative to invite the Aceh Provincial Government to work together to manage the four islands. He dared to visit Muzakir Manaf in Tanah Rencong to cooperate in managing the four islands. Bobby Nasution also expressed his desire in Meuligoe, the Governor of Aceh, on Wednesday, June 10, 2025. Although the visit of Joko Widodo’s son-in-law was welcomed by Muzakir Manaf, he refused to discuss the problem of the four islands by inviting him to speak with his staff.
This means that Muzakir Manaf’s capacity is indeed not a tin can governor as the term popularly used by young people in Medan. Because Muzakir Manaf’s toughness in fighting has been proven since he joined the Free Aceh Movement until he took full control since the fall of Abdullah Syafi’i. And he held the position of Commander of the GAM Guerrillas without the slightest knowledge. This means that the instinct to fight or fight truly reflects the toughness of a number of heroes from the Land of Rencong. In fact, now as a result of the efforts to seize the four islands, the Inong Bale troops are ready to put their bodies on the front lines.
Therefore, Muzakir Manaf, who is now the Governor of Aceh, will not retreat even a step, as a former Commander of the GAM (Free Aceh Movement) War who has been trained, never doubted his courage to replace Abdullah Syafi’i who died on February 22, 2002. After that, Muzakir Manaf’s activities continued to establish the Aceh Party in 2007.
Muzakir Manaf, better known as Mualem, is truly an activist, politician and experienced in leading GAM guerrillas, having been Deputy Governor of Aceh in 2012-2017 and the current Governor of Aceh, 2025-2030. But what is really worrying is that the result of this cunning and ridiculous administrative and geographical conflict could have a social impact on kinship relations between the people of Aceh and the people of North Sumatra.
Meanwhile, in essence, Muzakir Manaf’s firm message before Bobby Nasution died at the meeting was that Muzakir Manaf did not want to talk at length unnecessarily about the four islands that were to be seized. Because in reality, on various previous occasions Muzakir Manaf had also emphasized that the four islands were Aceh’s authority in terms of geography and territorial boundaries. Because Muzakir Manaf was reluctant to debate it. If there is a proposal from the Governor of North Sumatra that the four islands be managed together, it is not a problem, as long as the Aceh Provincial Government, which is now led by the former GAM Guerrilla Commander, is willing, or rejects it as part of Aceh’s right to independence.***
Monday, June 16, 2025
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