Ex-rebels to rejoin Aceh bureaucracy

Ex-rebels to rejoin Aceh bureaucracy

BANDA ACEH, Aceh: The Aceh provincial civil service
administration board is collecting data on civil servants who
joined the rebel movement, so it can begin the process of
rehiring them as part the recently signed Helsinki peace deal.

Head of the board M. Yusuf Sulaiman said his office was
working with the national civil service administration board and
the regional governments in Aceh in registering the civil
servants who joined the Free Aceh Movement (GAM).

"We do not know how many of them there are. Neither have we
determined the rehiring procedure," Yusuf said.

The government has granted amnesty to all persons who
participated in GAM activities as part of the peace agreement
signed on Aug. 15. The former rebels will also be reintegrated
into the society to ensure a lasting peace. -- Antara