'Wise Men' made Aceh peace possible

'Wise Men' made Aceh peace possible

Slobodan Lekic, Associated Press, Geneva

When faced with the intransigence of the warring sides in
Aceh, a conflict that has spanned 132 years, negotiators of the
Henri Dunant Center looked for a novel approach to the
peacemaking process.

Their solution was to create a "fourth entity" in the talks,
separate from the Indonesian government, the separatist rebels
and the mediators themselves. A committee of "Wise Men"
consisting of a retired U.S. general and the former foreign
ministers of Thailand and Yugoslavia, was set up to consult with
all the sides in the talks.

The choice by the Geneva-based non-governmental group proved
to be a fortunate one. On Monday, less than a year after the
three were first engaged in negotiations, the warring sides
concluded a landmark peace accord to end hostilities and grant
wide-ranging autonomy to the province of 4.1 million people on
the tip of Sumatra island.

"We are especially grateful to the group of Wise Men for their
wisdom and role in making today's agreement possible," said
Martin Griffiths, the Center's director.

Anthony Zinni, 59, a former four-star Marine Corps general and
President George W. Bush's envoy to the Middle East, said he was
first approached last year by the State Department to participate
in the diplomatic effort.
"W hen the concept of a special group of elders to advise either
party was created, I at first wondered how effective this could
be," Zinni told The Associated Press. "It turned out to be a very
interesting and successful concept that may be applicable
elsewhere."

Many analysts say the talks were energized in August when
Zinni toured Aceh and urged both sides to be prepared to make
concessions if they wanted a peace agreement. The burley, no-
nonsense general found that because of his military background he
could easily relate to hardline commanders on both warring sides.
In contrast, Budimir Loncar, who joined Zinni at Monday's signing
ceremony in the Henri Dunant Center's elegant villa on the banks
of Lake Geneva, brought to the talks a diplomatic engagement with
Indonesia dating back to the 1960s.

Loncar, 75, was Yugoslav ambassador to the administration of
President Sukarno, the father of Indonesia's current head-of-
state Megawati Soekarnoputri.

He later was ambassador to Germany and the United States, and
in 1987 became foreign minister of Yugoslavia. But he left the
country in 1991, when the federation disintegrated amid bloody
ethnic warfare.

Loncar was sent to Jakarta by the United Nations as a special
representative to the Nonaligned Movement, which Indonesia was
then chairing.

He praised the accord as the first step in ending a conflict
that has been going on since 1870, when Dutch colonialists
occupied the staunchly independent sultanate.

"This solution will also be an impulse for wider changes in
Indonesia, transforming it from a unitary state to one where the
regions enjoy significant autonomy, and thus encouraging further
democratization and reforms," Loncar said.

The last member of the diplomatic troika, former Thai Foreign
Minister Surin Pitsuwan, is credited with much of the preparatory
work.

Surin, 53, a Muslim from southern Thailand, gained the trust
of all parties in Aceh, a staunchly Islamic province located
across the Malacca Straits. The eldest of 11 children born to
poor religion teachers, Surin has earned diplomatic and academic
distinction for his grip on the Islamic and Middle Eastern
issues.

Surin was unable to attend Monday's signing ceremony, but the
Henri Dunant Center said it is counting on his continued support
for the peace monitoring mission.

Surin entered politics in 1986 and served as foreign minister
under Premier Chuan Leekpai from November 1997 to February 2001.