Aceh peace talks in Finland clouded by TNI action

Aceh peace talks in Finland clouded by TNI action

Agencies, Helsinki/Jakarta

As a fourth day of Aceh peace talks got under way in Helsinki on
Friday, Aceh rebels called the negotiations "constructive" but
said they were unhappy about Indonesian troops continuing to pour
into the region.

"Yesterday (Thursday) we had direct talks with the Indonesian
delegation that were very constructive... We had an open,
friendly discussion and I think we can come to some
understanding," said the Free Aceh Movement (GAM)'s Stockholm-
based spokesman, Bakhtiar Abdullah.

"There is a mutual understanding of what is on the table (but)
a final agreement has yet to be reached," he told AFP before the
fourth day of talks began.

But Abdullah said the GAM delegation was troubled by the
Indonesian Military (TNI)'s decision on Thursday to send another
3,000 troops into the province.

"This will create more tension for the victims of the
tsunami," which killed more than 126,000 people in Aceh last
December, Abdullah said.

"The problem is that when the troops come they never leave,"
he added.

A TNI spokesman in Jakarta said three soldiers were wounded in
a GAM attack on Thursday in Pasiraja, South Aceh district.
Indonesian troops had killed five GAM members between April 10
and 13.

During the first day of talks on Tuesday, GAM asked Jakarta to
call a cease-fire, but Indonesian officials both at home and in
Helsinki merely shrugged off the suggestion.

"Our view is that the termination of the conflict should
really be permanent. A cease-fire is not permanent," chief
security minister Widodo Adisucipto said in Jakarta.

The Indonesian delegation said on Friday GAM's proposal for
self-government was reasonable, and was optimistic an agreement
could be reached on the enforcement of a future peace deal.

"Some of the proposals are reasonable, some need to be
discussed and some we might ... have to reject. Overall it's
great," Minister of Communications and Information Sofyan Djalil
told Reuters.

"The only problem is what they demand may not all be fulfilled
by the government, and I think they understand it," he added.

A smiling Sofyan gave reporters the thumbs up when leaving for
the fourth day of peace talks aiming to end the near-three decade
conflict, saying: "We are going to solve this problem."

He said the common ground the two sides have found in their
search for comprehensive settlement will make the next big hurdle
in the talks -- ensuring a future peace deal can be enforced --
easier to handle.

"I think that given the common ground that has been achieved
and the goodwill fulfilled ... the security issue can also be
handled," he said.

In Jakarta, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono insisted on
Friday that the government would never allow Aceh to separate
from the rest of Indonesia, but said a government plan to give
the province a greater say in running its affairs must be
implemented.

"The unitary state of the Indonesian republic must be
maintained and the Red and White flag must fly (in Aceh)," he
said in a speech to government security advisers.

Susilo, a retired Army general, said the government's policy
of "special autonomy" for Aceh must be enforced. Rebel
negotiators have said they prefer the term "self-government" to
"special autonomy".

While the details of both plans are not yet clear, Susilo's
use of the term indicates the government is unwilling to meet the
rebels' request, and the issue could be a sticking point in the
talks.

Vice President Jusuf Kalla said talks were concentrating on
the two terms, which he claimed meant "essentially the same
thing, the only difference being the words". Other areas of
discussion were future economic arrangements between Jakarta and
Aceh, he told reporters.

In January, the two sides met face-to-face for the first time
since the peace process collapsed in 2003, when the TNI launched
a major offensive against insurgents that has since killed about
3,000 people

A second round of talks was held in late February. Each have
been held in Helsinki.

The two sides were brought together by the Dec. 26 Indian
Ocean tsunami, which devastated Aceh and left nearly 130,000
Indonesians dead and more than 500,000 homeless in the province.