Mega to visit war-torn Aceh

Mega to visit war-torn Aceh

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

President Megawati Soekarnoputri is slated to make her first
visit to the war-torn province of Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam on
Sunday since the implementation of martial law in the province
last year.

Scheduled to stay for around three hours in Banda Aceh,
Megawati will inaugurate a several development projects worth a
total of Rp 124.2 billion (US$14.6million).

Among the projects to be inaugurated are the Simpang Surabaya
bridge, a water dam, a low-cost housing complex for civil
servants and the reconstruction of the Malikul Saleh Islamic
college.

The ceremony will be held at the state-owned Syiah Kuala
University complex, which has been under tight security since
Saturday.

The President is also scheduled to hold talks with a number of
Muslim preachers at the governor's residence. She has also
squeezed in a private meeting with members of her Indonesian
Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P).

This will be Megawati's third visit to the province since she
was appointed president in July 2001.

On her first visit in 2001, Megawati held a dialog with
thousands of Acehnese at the Baiturrahman Grand Mosque, and
toured the province's capital, Banda Aceh.

During her second visit in 2002, the President did not even
leave the airport due to the worsening security situation as the
peace deal between the government and Free Aceh Movement (GAM)
tottered on the brink of failure.

Megawati agreed to the imposition of martial law on May 19
last year to crush the Aceh rebellion.

During her visit on Sunday, the President will be accompanied
by several ministers and her husband Taufik Kiemas.