Aceh's Tiro district declared second peace zone

Nani Farida, The Jakarta Post, Banda Aceh

Thirty-year-old Mardiah and her son Fauzan ran to an empty field to witness the declaration on Saturday of Tiro, a remote district in Pidie regency, as a second peace zone in Aceh.

Mardiah was excited to witness the event, which brought with it hope for an end to the violence and killing that has plagued the area.

"All of the villagers are happy about the declaration of the district as a peace zone because we want to live in peace, without terror and intimidation. That's why we are here," she told The Jakarta Post moments before the ceremony, held near the office of the Tiro district chief.

Most of those attending the ceremony were women and children. Mardiah is one of hundreds of widows in the area whose husbands were killed either by security personnel or rebels from the Free Aceh Movement (GAM).

Despite the peace accord recently signed by the Indonesian government and GAM, several villagers have been killed in gunfights with security personnel and many other have fled because of terror and intimidation.

More than 150 adult men in the district's 19 villages were killed as the tension between the military and GAM escalated in the two years before the signing of the peace pact.

Members of the Joint Security Committee (JSC), which is monitoring the peace process in Aceh, on hand to declare the new peace zone were greeted with cries of "Aceh merdeka" (Aceh independence) and GAM flags raised along the eight-kilometer path to the remote district.

Many of the women attending the ceremony cried in joy and children raised GAM flags during the ceremony, which was guarded by dozens of police officers.

Tiro, some 120 kilometers east of Banda Aceh, is the second district to be declared a peace zone, following Indrapuri in Aceh Besar regency. The declaration of peace zones, which is part of the demilitarization process agreed to in the cessation of hostilities agreement, began on Feb. 9.

During the five-month demilitarization, which will last until July 9, GAM is required to lay down its arms and put them in storage areas overseen by the Henry Dunant Centre (HDC), which is facilitating the peace process.

At the same time, military personnel are required to withdraw to defensive positions and Mobile Brigade personnel are to return to normal police duties.

The demilitarization process, aimed at ending the bloody conflict in the process, is a prerequirement before the Acehnese can begin to seek a comprehensive solution to the Aceh issue through an all-inclusive dialog.

JSC deputy chief Brig. Gen. Nagamora Lamodag said that with the declaration of Tiro as a peace zone, the Indonesian Military (TNI) would not be allowed to deploy personnel to the district and GAM could not conduct activities in the district.

"We hope Tiro will be a second Indrapuri," he said, alluding to the fact that Indrapuri had been peaceful since it was declared a peace zone last month.

During the ceremony, David Gorman, the HDC project manager, said: "Peace needs brave men. It's so easy to make war, but creating peace needs brave men."

A local resident, Nyak Maneh, 60, said residents of the district would now be free to leave their house without fear.

He also called on security forces and GAM to comply with the declaration and help create a permanent peace in the district and eventually in the entire province.

Mardiah said most residents in the district wanted Aceh to separate from Indonesia, because the Indonesian government had oppressed the Acehnese for too long.