Hamzah to visit Aceh next month

Hamzah to visit Aceh next month

JAKARTA: Vice President Hamzah Haz will visit strife-torn Aceh province early in November in a bid to continue dialog with the Acehnese community, reports said on Friday.

Acehnese figure Ismail Hasan Metareum, a former chairman of the Islamic-based United Development Party (PPP), told the media after meeting Hamzah at the vice presidential residence on Jl. Widya Chandra in South Jakarta on Friday that Hamzah would lead efforts to speed up economic and education recovery in Aceh.

"The steps taken by the government to rebuild the lives of the Acehnese people are very good since they are tired of violence and the militaristic approach," Ismail said.

Some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, have been killed in Aceh this year.

President Megawati Soekarnoputri led a peace mission to Aceh this September while firmly rejecting demands for independence in the resource-rich province. -- Antara