Govt, GAM get talking in Helsinki
Tiarma Siboro and Rendi A. Witular, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The government and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) are ready to resume peace talks in Helsinki later this week, with both sides planning to send high-level officials, according to people familiar with the talks.
A source said that the government was planning to offer amnesty to GAM rebels, but that it would maintain that Aceh remained a part of the unitary state of Indonesia.
The source said that the talks would be held from Jan. 28 to Jan. 30, and would be facilitated by the Finland-based Crisis Management Initiative (CMI), a mediation group led by former Finnish president Martti Ahtisaari, which has extensive experience in mediating conflicts.
Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs Widodo Adi Sucipto will lead the Indonesian delegation, which also includes Minister of Foreign Affairs Hassan Wirayuda, Minister of Justice and Human Rights Hamid Awaludin, State Minister of Communications and Information Sofyan Djalil and senior military officer Maj. Gen. Syarifuddin Tippe, who in the late 1990s was in charge of the military command in Aceh.
The source said that the delegation, the strongest delegation ever as previous talks were led by senior diplomats, would leave for Finland on Wednesday afternoon. The government has assigned Hamid as its chief negotiator.
Meanwhile, a source from GAM said that most of the top leaders of the movement, which has been struggling for independence since 1976, would be in attendance. They include self-styled Aceh Prime Minister Malik Machmood, its Minister of Foreign Affairs Zaini Abdullah, GAM spokesman Bakhtiar Abdullah and other GAM political leaders residing in Malaysia and Australia.
Details about the planned talks, however, remain sketchy. Cabinet Secretary Sudi Silalahi said earlier in the day that the government had not yet set a date nor place for talks with GAM.
It is also not completely clear what CMI would be tasked to do.
Meanwhile, a GAM official said that the group wanted the Helsinki meeting to focus only on reaching a cease-fire in Aceh, to ensure smooth humanitarian relief operation in the tsunami- devastated province, which has seen nearly 230,000 people killed or missing and presumed dead.
"Our concern now is how to revive the livelihoods of the Acehnese, who are suffering the most from the tsunami. Stop the violence. We are ready to go to the negotiation table to bring it into reality," he said, but quickly added that any talks concerning the Indonesian government's demands for GAM rebels to surrender their weapons and quit struggling for the separation of Aceh should be held in separate talks when the rehabilitation work was complete.
"The (last) issue can be discussed later as it will require more time," he said.
The government has said that it had instructed its military troops in Aceh to stop offensive attacks against GAM rebels and focus on protecting the ongoing humanitarian work in Aceh. The military claimed last week it had killed around 208 rebels since the tsunami because the rebels were said to be trying to disrupt the relief operation.
The tsunami disaster has actually provided the two sides with a chance for a peaceful solution to the decades-long conflict that has killed thousands of people.
Meanwhile, Chief of the Indonesian Military (TNI) Gen. Endriartono Sutarto was quoted by Antara as saying that the TNI could accept a peaceful solution to the Aceh conflict planned by the government.
"Since it's a political decision, the TNI will not interfere, although we provide input to the government in the decision- making process," he said, without elaborating.