Acehnese figures call for immediate peace<\/p>\n
Ibnu Mat Noor, The Jakarta Post, Lhokseumawe<\/p>\n
A number of Acehnese figures called on the Henry Dunant Centre
\n(DHC) to work hard to ensure that the two warring sides in the
\nprovince signed the proposed peace agreement as soon as
\npracticable.<\/p>\n
The Acehnese figures made the call during an introductory
\nmeeting with HDC officers in Bireuen, some 130 kilometers east of
\nBanda Aceh, the capital of Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam, on Monday.<\/p>\n
Sofyan Ali, a member of the Bireuen regency legislative
\ncouncil, said the Acehnese people, who had suffered greatly
\nduring the almost three-decade-long war, wanted the conflicting
\nsides to lay down their arms and make peace.<\/p>\n
\"The HDC should work harder to bring the two conflicting sides
\nto the negotiating table to sign the peace agreement. These three
\ndecades of hostilities must be halted to avoid any more victims
\namong the people. We need to be sure about the peace agreement
\nand law enforcement.<\/p>\n
\"We are now only living skeletons. We are awaiting for peace
\nto become real in Aceh. We need no more empty promises either
\nfrom GAM or the government. We need only concrete action to make
\npeace,\" he said during the gathering.<\/p>\n
Tengku Nuruzzahri, the director of an Islamic boarding school
\nin the town, questioned the HDC's presence in Aceh while the
\nkilling kept on going.<\/p>\n
He said he was skeptical that the HDC would be able to
\nfacilitate peace.<\/p>\n
\"The conflict may be only a ploy by each of the conflicting
\nsides to take political advantage and steal Aceh's resources,\" he
\nsaid cynically.<\/p>\n
Zulfikar, a local informal leader, regretted that the
\nprolonged conflict had destroyed freedom of expression among
\nlocal people.<\/p>\n
\"It's impossible now for people to say the truth as they would
\nbe risking their lives. Those who speak the truth die at the
\nhands of either the military or the rebels,\" he said, adding that
\nthe HDC should play a neutral role and provide protection for
\npeople telling the truth.<\/p>\n
Sean Paterson, the HDC's deputy project officer, said peace
\nwould only emerge in Aceh after the proposed peace agreement had
\nbeen signed by the conflicting sides.<\/p>\n
\"But, we are very optimistic that both sides will sign the
\npeace agreement as both Indonesia and GAM are serious about
\nending the conflict despite differences on certain minor
\nmatters,\" he said.<\/p>\n
William Dowell, the HDC spokesman, called on the Acehnese
\npeople to be patient as the two sides had made progress toward
\nbringing about permanent peace in the province.<\/p>\n
Separately, Maj. Gen. Djali M. Jusuf, chief of the Iskandar
\nMuda Military Command overseeing security in the province, warned
\nthat his troops would continue to besiege the GAM headquarters in
\nCot Trieng, North Aceh, until GAM signed the peace deal.<\/p>\n
GAM has delayed the signing of the peace deal for an
\nindefinite period, while the government is adamant that it must
\nbe signed on the 17th day of the Muslim month of Ramadhan (or
\nNov. 23 by the Gregorian calendar).<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/acehnese-figures-call-for-immediate-peace-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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