GAM welcomes govt's proposed for peace talks

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The Free Aceh Movement (GAM), which is fighting for the war-torn territory's independence, accepted the government's tentative plan for further dialogs in Geneva, Switzerland, by the end of September or early in October, to end the prolonged conflict that has claimed more than 900 civilian lives this year alone.

However, both sides are still at odds over the main agenda, with the government sticking firmly to the concept of keeping Aceh part of Indonesia and that the special autonomy offer must be accepted if there is to be any further dialog.

Teuku Kamaruzzaman, a GAM negotiator, said in Banda Aceh, capital of Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam, that GAM welcomed the further dialog proposed by the Indonesian government and, simultaneously, proposed two key issues to be discussed.

"The meeting should focus on mechanisms to end the hostility and an all-inclusive Aceh dialog which was proposed in the May 10 meeting," Antara quoted him as saying.

Kamaruzzaman was responding to Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's statement on Monday that the government was offering further dialog to end the conflict.

Susilo made the offer a few days after his trip to Rome where he spoke with members of the Henry Dunant Center (HDC), an international mediator based in Geneva.

The government's initiative appears to be a softening of its stance, perhaps in response to the Acehnese people's rejection to the proposed martial law which they made quite clear during Susilo's two consecutive visits to the province in July and August. Two top U.S. leaders, Secretary of State Colin Powell and Gen. (ret.) Anthony Zinni also spoke within the last month to the government on the Aceh issue, although it was not clear what advice was given.

Instead of martial law, Susilo, immediately after his August trip delivered to GAM an ultimatum to drop its demand for freedom by December or face a military onslaught, before any further negotiations could take place.

Kamaruzzaman said he just wanted the killing to stop.

"We hope the scheduled dialog will not be postponed because any postponement will mean more people dead," he said.

Meanwhile, an HDC official told The Jakarta Post that the peace agreement draft needed to be signed without further delay.

"The document has gone back and forth between the Indonesian government and GAM, but it will not be official until both sides agreed to sign it," the official said.

The official underlined that if the agreement was reached it would be a step forward for both sides and a clear commitment to move ahead from the May 10 agreement.

However, the official said that the process still a had a long way to go, just like other conflicts in the world, the Aceh issue could not be solved immediately.

When asked whether there were any threats that Jakarta would intensify military operations if GAM refused to agree to Susilo's demands, the official said: "I certainly hope not, but I assure you the peace process is continuing."