Govt reiterates limited agenda for Aceh peace talks
Govt reiterates limited agenda for Aceh peace talks
The head of the government delegation in negotiations with Aceh separatist rebels reiterated on Thursday that a second round of talks would go ahead if the rebels stick to the government's agenda.
A government team is due to sit down with rebels from the tsunami-shattered province in the Finnish capital Helsinki on Monday, but has repeatedly said only "special autonomy" is on the table for the province and not full independence.
"If that is going to be the direction of the dialogue, then we will go to the talks," said chief security minister Widodo Adisucipto, who heads the government delegation.
"Indonesia has two suggestions for a comprehensive and dignified solution to Aceh: firstly the acceptance of special autonomy and secondly the end of conflict," he told journalists.
He added that the government side would be represented by the same group of negotiators who flew from Jakarta for the first round of talks in January.
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Tuesday insisted that only "special autonomy" was on the agenda, noting that even the United Nations had expressed support for Indonesia's territorial integrity.
"I consider the talks can be continued if we have a concrete agenda that will still focus on the acceptance of special autonomy and other things related to that concept," Susilo said.
"We will continue the informal talks if the GAM (Free Aceh Movement) leadership fully commits to that agenda."
Negotiators from the two sides met in Helsinki last month for informal talks as pressure built to end the 29-year-long conflict in the wake of December's tsunami, which killed an estimated 230,000 people in Aceh province alone.
It was the first time the two parties had met face-to-face since May 2003, when the government declared martial law and launched a military offensive in the province after a cease-fire broke down.
GAM has been fighting for independence for the oil-rich Aceh province on Sumatra island since 1976. It says the Indonesian government plunders its resources and troops commit atrocities against the local population. --AFP