Free Aceh Movement rebels, who've fought a guerilla war for almost thirty years, will tomorrow begin handing over a quarter of their weapons as part of a landmark peace agreement reache

Jerry Norton, Krueng Raya – As he impales coconuts on a sharp blade and twists them to remove the husks, M. Nur Taib says things are looking up.

Tiarma Siboro, Jakarta – The Aceh Working Group (AWG) has urged authorities to disarm and dissolve civilian militias in Aceh province, for fear that they could disrupt the peace process

Nani Afrida, Pidie – Distrust and fear still runs deep among members of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) as the date for the decommissioning of weapons is drawing near.

Nani Afrida, Pidie – In line with the peace deal earlier signed by the Indonesian government and Free Aceh Movement (GAM), GAM members have begun gathering weapons and have said they ar

AK-42, Bireuen – The public flogging of nine convicted gamblers, which took place on the grounds of the Bireuen Grand Mosque on Friday September 9, failed to attract spectators.

Rendi A.

AK-38, Jakarta – TNI (armed forces) chief Endriartono Sutarto says that the TNI does not want to be blamed if the peace process in Aceh fails.

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, Jakarta – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono visited Indonesian Military (TNI) headquarters on Wednesday in order to convince the armed forces that the peace de

Dimas, Jakarta – The surrender of Free Aceh Movement (GAM) weapons that will begin on September 15 will be done in three stages.

Muhammad Nur Hayid, Jakarta – The Free Aceh Movement (GAM) is apparently made up of many factions.

Jakarta – The Indonesian National Defense Forces (TNI) has prepared a contingency plan for the eventuality that the peace agreement signed by the Indonesian government and GAM (Free Ace

Banda Aceh – Sofyan Dawod, military spokesman of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM), said he believed that the peace process in Aceh would run smoothly because both the Indonesian government

Jakarta – Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has said that the holding of human rights trials scheduled to try human rights violations in Aceh would not use retroactive princ

Nani Afrida, Banda Aceh – With his four-year-old son Salman al Farizi sitting on his lap, Teungku Syafiie bin Syamaun, a member of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) who was recently released

Tiarma Siboro, Jakarta – Two weeks after the Indonesian government and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) signed a peace deal in Helsinki, many continue to question its legitimacy, particular

Jakarta – Dozens of Acehnese rebel prisoners eligible for release under a historic peace agreement remain behind bars, separatists said Sunday, calling on the government to make sure th

Chris Brummitt, Banda Aceh – Developments in Aceh have been "very encouraging" since last month's peace accord, but political resistance to the deal could increase if rebels fail to beg

Muhammad Nur Hayid, Jakarta – TNI (armed forces) troops will not remain silent if the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) fails to comply with the substance of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU

Tony Hotland, Jakarta – The government brushed aside on Wednesday any possibility of the Aceh peace agreement faltering despite foreseeable political moves in the House of Representativ

Hundreds of Acehnese rebels walked free from Indonesian jails today, under a sweeping amnesty that forms a vital plank of a landmark agreement signed in Helsinki.

Banda Aceh – Hundreds of Acehnese rebels walked free from Indonesian jails on Wednesday under a sweeping amnesty that forms a vital plank of a landmark peace agreement signed in Helsink

Tiarma Siboro and Zakki P.

Chris Brummitt, Jantho – Imprisoned Aceh rebel Idris walks free on Wednesday as part of a peace deal with the government, but the scars he claims he sustained at the hands of his captor

Muhammad Nur Hayid, Jakarta – Ex-Free Aceh Movement (GAM) members who are granted amnesties but persist in seeking independence must be destroyed by the government immediately.

Nani Afrida, Banda Aceh – The first confirmed cross-fire involving Indonesian Military (TNI) soldiers and Free Aceh Movement (GAM) guerrillas broke out on Sunday, putting a peace deal i

Jakarta – Indonesian Vice President Yusuf Kalla has dismissed calls by parliamentarians for Aceh rebels to swear an oath of allegiance to the government as a precondition for an amnesty

Fabio Scarpello, Jakarta – As the historic Aceh peace deal, signed two weeks ago in Helsinki, enters the delicate, implementation phase analysts worry that the wording is vague and that

Veena Siddharth, New York – When the Indonesian government and the armed separatists of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) signed their peace agreement this week, they demonstrated that even

Nani Afrida, Banda Aceh – Criticism is gathering against the powerful Aceh Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Agency (BRR) two months after it began the massive project of rebuilding the

Desra Percaya, New York – Following seven months of talks mediated by former Finnish President Martti Ahtisaari, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed in Helsinki on Aug.

Jakarta – The military may be held accountable for alleged atrocities committed during a three-decade separatist war in Aceh province, Indonesia's justice minister said Wednesday, denyi

Banda Aceh – At least 60 separatist guerrillas have left their rebel stronghold in Indonesia's Aceh province after a peace pact was signed last week.

Miswar, Banda Aceh – Indonesian negotiator Sofyan Djalil who is also the minister of information and communication, has started to manipulate the text of the memorandum of understanding

Banda Aceh – Civilians who lost family and friends during a three-decade separatist war in Indonesia's Aceh province deserve justice, rebels said Sunday, days after an agreement was sig

Salim Osman, Banda Aceh – All hopes for peace in the troubled Aceh province now rest on about 200 monitors who will oversee the implementation of the accord, with mistrust still prevail

AK-34, Jakarta – Responding to a plan by the Aceh regional house of representatives (DPRD) to issue a new by-law soon, an activist from the Acehnese Popular Democratic Resistance Front

Hera Diani, Jakarta – The government and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) have agreed to only bring human rights violations cases in Aceh to court that occur after the signing of Memorandum

Jakarta – Criticism about the contents of the peace accord between the government and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) continued on Friday, with legislators questioning the role of the fore

Jakarta – The Free Aceh Movement (GAM) has criticized the number of Indonesian Military (TNI) organic personnel, which exceeds the number of TNI personnel in other regions.

Jakarta – Commander in Chief of the TNI, General Endriartono Sutarto said he hoped that all sides in Aceh, incluuding the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) would not bring up mistakes that occur

Jakarta – Indonesia's military, often accused of human rights violations, is likely to stick to a fresh peace pact in Aceh province despite frustrations over concessions to separatist r

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Tony Hotland, Jakarta – The government and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) signed an historic peace agreement, though not the first, on Monday in Helsinki, Finland.

Rendi A.

Tiarma Siboro and Nani Afrida, Banda Aceh – The peace agreement between the Indonesian government and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) faced its first test on Wednesday when plainclothes po

Tony Hotland, Jakarta – A number of politicians have voiced strong criticism of the Aceh peace deal Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), with opposition bloc the Indonesian Democratic Par

Allan Nairn – The TNI/POLRI is now saying that they have about 35,000 men in Aceh, which, if true, would mean that under the Helsinki deal with GAM signed yesterday they will be tempora

Allan Nairn – In Central Aceh, the TNI has an ethnic Javanese and Gayo militia force that is estimated to be larger than the Aceh-wide GAM.

Dan Eaton, Banda Aceh – Indonesia's military and Acehnese rebels on Tuesday cautiously welcomed a peace pact but each expressed doubts the other would stick to the deal.