GAM preparing gun handover

BANDA ACEH, Aceh: The Free Aceh Movement (GAM) has named five locations where it will turn over a third batch of weapons to foreign monitors as part of the peace agreement signed in August.

The Aceh Monitoring Mission (AMM) expects to receive and destroy 210 arms from the former rebels in Aceh Jaya, West Aceh, Nagan Raya, Southwest Aceh and South Aceh regencies between Nov. 14 and Nov. 18, AMM head Pieter Feith said after a regular meeting between representatives of GAM and the Indonesian government on Tuesday.

One day after the disarmament process is completed, the Indonesian government is slated to withdraw 5,596 troops and 1,350 police personnel from Aceh in three stages.

Feith said both sides had shown a strong commitment to the peace deal, which marked an end to three decades of armed conflict in the natural resource-rich province.

GAM has so far surrendered 424 weapons, with 52 others being disputed as the Indonesian Military has refused to consider them part of the 840 firearms the group has to submit by the end of the year. -- Antara