Astrid Amalia, Jakarta – A top army official in Indonesia's troubled Aceh said on Wednesday that separatists were in control of the province amid intense pressure from the military for martial law.

"The situation in Aceh now is not safe as the rebels have already taken control of Aceh," Colonel Syafnil Armen told Reuters by telephone.

"They are present in every corner in Aceh. This is their way to show the government what they want, as they demand a referendum to be independent," said Armen, one of two military commanders in the province.

Military chiefs have been lobbying hard for martial law in Aceh, ahead of Saturday's anniversary of the rebel Free Aceh Movement's founding. Many people expect it to turn violent.

President Abdurrahman Wahid, who alone as supreme military chief has the power to declare martial law, has firmly ruled it out.

Hundreds have been killed this year in violence in the province. One policeman was killed on Tuesday in West Aceh district, said a military spokesman. He blamed the attack on rebels.

Aceh's military commanders complain that curbs on military activities to reduce tension and prevent human rights abuses are playing into the rebels' hands.

Thousands of people were killed, tortured or raped during a nine-year military crackdown in Aceh, the northern tip of Sumatra, where the military is now hated.

But Armen said the military would resist any attempts to fly the banned Free Aceh flag on Saturday, and would permit only Indonesia's red-and-white flag to be raised.

"The military will take down other flags than the red-and-white flag in peace. But if the rebels attack the military, we will attack back," said Armen.

Calls for a referendum on independence in Aceh have grown this year, and have reached fever pitch since a similar ballot in East Timor led to its separation from Indonesia.

Wahid has suggested a referendum on the application of Islamic Sharia law in the staunchly Muslim region, but has ruled out the option of independence.

Armen, based in Aceh's second city Lhokseumawe, accused the rebels of intimidation, taking people's money and forcing them to buy the rebel flag. He also said many Acehnese feared the rebels.

"The rebels' actions have weakened the situation and all sectors in Aceh as they do not want to operate in a peaceful way and they keep using terror to frighten the community. And as you see, the Acehnese people are afraid of the rebels," said Armen.

"Being forbidden to counter-attack the rebels from the government made the military feel mad and stressed. How can we do our job best if there's an order like that?" he added.