The government's completed Aceh administration bill will allow the Acehnese to set up local political parties, as mandated in the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the government and the now-defunct Free Aceh Movement (GAM).

The MOU requires that preparation for establishing local parties should be held within 18 months from the signing of the peace agreement in mid August last year.

The draft bill states that local political parties can take part in the 2009 general election. "From the very beginning, we have agreed that the Acehnese should be able to set up local political parties because it has been mandated in the MOU...," Djohermansyah Djohan, a member of the government's expert team, said.

The bill is expected to be submitted to the House of Representatives on Tuesday.