UN, U.S. hope for peace in Aceh after tsunami

UN, U.S. hope for peace in Aceh after tsunami

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The United Nations and the United States have expressed hopes
that the disaster that has devastated Aceh could put an end to
the prolonged armed conflict in the province.

UN Secretary General Kofi Annan said after meeting U.S.
Secretary of State Colin Powell at UN Headquarters in New York on
Saturday that the two warring sides could start working together
to help those in need following the tsunami that killed tens of
thousands of people in Aceh.

"We hope that this (disaster) offers an opportunity both in
Aceh and in Sri Lanka, and that the protagonists are now working
together to bring support to those in need. And I hope that
collaboration is not going to end with the crisis and that they
will be able to build on that and use these new dynamics to
resolve their own differences; and we will be encouraging that,"
Annan told a post-meeting media conference.

Powell agreed, saying: "Let's see this as an opportunity to
resolve these two long-running crises."

Indonesia and Sri Lanka, both bearing the brunt of the tsunami
that has taken at least 126,000 lives across Asia, have for years
seen armed conflict between government troops and separatist
groups. Thousands have been killed in the fighting.

Annan and Powell met to discuss coordination of world-wide
relief for countries hit by last Sunday's tsunami.

Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono had earlier
called on the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) to lay down their arms and
help rebuild the ravaged province as part of the unitary state of
Indonesia.

"On behalf of the government, I call on those who take up arms
to leave their groups. Let's take the tragedy as a historic
moment to unite and rebuild Aceh together," Susilo said after a
Cabinet meeting on Thursday.

The government, however, has never officially lifted the state
of civil emergency in Aceh, which was extended for another six
months in November. Under the civil emergency status the military
operation to crush the rebels, who have been fighting for
independence since 1976, has continued unabated.

The death toll in the disaster has climbed to 80,000, but the
UN estimates the number will reach 100,000.

In an interview with Reuters, GAM prime minister-in-exile
Malik Mahmud said the tsunami might eventually help peace
prospects in Aceh.

"While we talk about the natural disaster in Aceh, human
tragedies, things like that, we should also talk about the
political aspects of Aceh and the problem that we have with the
Indonesian government ... this is an opportunity," he said on
Friday.

Mahmud, who lives in exile in Sweden, said although GAM was
still waiting for a reply from Jakarta to its Dec. 27 offer of a
unilateral cease fire, he remained hopeful that peace had a
chance.

"We will survive, and especially with the help of the
international community ... whatever aid or attention we get from
the international community will help Aceh to survive," he said.