Jakarta – Indonesian presidential front-runner Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Wednesday called for a peaceful end to Indonesia's bloodiest internal conflict, the 28-year separatist war in Aceh province.

The former general and security chief in President Megawati Soekarnoputri's administration negotiated a short-lived peace deal with the Free Aceh Movement in 2003. The deal collapsed when Megawati sided with hardline generals who launched an offensive in May last year that has left at least 2,200 people dead but has done little to end the insurgency.

Susilo has publicly rejected any possibility of allowing the oil and gas-rich province to secede from the sprawling archipelago nation. But on Wednesday, he told a group of teachers visiting his home on the outskirts of Jakarta that he would work to settle the conflict by peaceful means.

"Let us not just go ahead with the military operation," Susilo said. "Our country must remain united and on that there is no compromise. But [the conflict] must be resolved in a fair manner and as peacefully as possibly."

With 93 million of the estimated 125 million votes counted on Wednesday, Susilo was leading with 61 percent while Megawati had 39 percent, a ccording to the General Election Commission. Final results are expected in the next few days.

On Tuesday, leaders of the Free Aceh Movement said they expected the war to continue regardless of who wins the Indonesian elections. "Whatever happens in Jakarta is irrelevant to the people of Aceh because they are still getting killed, tortured and oppressed every day," rebel spokesman Bakhtiar Abdullah said.