After living abroad for decades, the self-exiled leaders of Aceh's rebel movement have returned to Indonesia to support the province's peace process, but a prominent American journalist remains banned from entering the country.
Nine leaders of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) touched down in the North Sumatra capital of Medan on April 19 and later took a connecting flight to Banda Aceh, the capital of Aceh. For most of them, it was their first visit since they fled abroad after GAM began its struggle for the independence of Aceh in 1976.
While the senior rebel leaders lived safely in Sweden, Malaysia and Singapore, fighting between Indonesian forces and GAM left about 15,000 people dead over 29 years. There seemed no end in sight to the war until the December 2004 tsunami that killed about 130,000 people in Aceh and brought massive international attention to the province. A peace agreement was signed in Helsinki in August 2005, with the rebels agreeing to disarm and drop their independence bid in return for greater autonomy and the right to form local political parties.
GAM has since surrendered its weapons and demobilized its fighters, while Indonesia has withdrawn most non-local security forces from Aceh. But the government has failed to meet a March 31 deadline for the passing of a law on local political parties and elections. Both sides have said the delay in the law, now being debated by parliament, will not derail the peace pact.
Some nationalist legislators have complained that allowing GAM to form a political party could lead to national disintegration.
Vice President Jusuf Kalla, a key architect of the peace deal, on Sunday (23/4/06) said local elections could be held in Aceh in August if parliament passes the law by May. Under the terms of the peace pact, Aceh's first direct gubernatorial election was to have held in April.
Kalla was speaking after a meeting in Jakarta with visiting European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana, who pledged ongoing EU support for the peace deal.
Among the rebel leaders returning to Aceh were prime minister Malik Mahmud, foreign minister Zaini Abdullah, spokesman Bakthiar Abdullah, Teuku Hadi and Zulfikar. They entered on short-stay visas and are yet to decide whether to give up their foreign citizenship and become Indonesian citizens. GAM's aging president Hassan Tiro was noticeably from the party due to his poor health.
Aceh military commander Major General Supiadin Adi Saputra told Reuters he was pleased the GAM leaders had returned as their presence should strengthen the peace process. He said they would not be accorded any special security as they had not requested such treatment.
The rebels said they would examine the economic and political developments in the province, as well as the post-tsunami reconstruction process.
Indonesia had only three years ago been demanding that GAM's exiled leaders in Sweden be extradited to face charges of terrorism and treason. But it was all smiles when the group arrived at Medan's Polonia Airport at 8.20am on board an Air Asia flight from the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur.
No Nessen
Joining the GAM leaders on the flight to Medan was US freelance journalist and filmmaker William 'Billy' Nessen, who in 2003 was jailed for 40 days and deported from Indonesia after spending time with rebel fighters.
Nessen, who was traveling with his Acehnese wife Shadia Marhaban, was detained at the airport and put on the next flight back to Malaysia. Authorities justified the move by accusing him of being a "danger" to Indonesia.
Under the guard of two immigration officials, Nessen held an impromptu press conference at the airport, complaining that he did not understand why he was denied entry, as he only wanted to visit relatives and friends in Aceh.
He said he expected the State Intelligence Agency (BIN) or the Indonesian Defense Forces (TNI) were behind the decision to expel him.
Immigration official Supriatna Anwar said the journalist from New York would be allowed to enter the country later this year. "Nessen is banned from coming into Indonesia until September this year. He is a danger to the country and not useful," he was quoted as saying by the Associated Press.
Anwar declined to explain why an unarmed reporter was considered dangerous. Nessen has written extensively on Aceh and recently released a documentary film, The Black Road: Inside Aceh's Struggle for Independence, which is not due to be screened any time soon in Indonesian cinemas.
Marhaban, who was allowed to enter the country, said she will send a complaint to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono because there was no reason for her husband to be banned.
Nessen fell out of favor with Indonesian authorities in 2003 when he spent three weeks with GAM members during the government's massive military campaign to destroy the rebel movement. During his time with the separatists he contacted foreign reporters and expressed fear the military wanted to kill him.
Despite his fears, Nessen eventually surrendered to TNI on June 24, 2003. Local authorities then charged him with immigration violations for failure to produce his passport and other documents, which had been lost during his time with the rebels. He was also accused of espionage, although these charges were later dropped. On August 2, 2003, he was sentenced to 40 days in jail. Having already served 39 days in jail, he was released on August 3, deported the following day and banned from entering the country for one year.
On January 2, 2005, Nessen returned to Indonesia and was issued a visa on arrival in Medan. Authorities later detained him in Aceh, claiming his visa had been erroneously issued due to an administrative oversight. He was then sent to Jakarta for questioning and deported on January 24.
International press freedom watchdog Reporters Without Borders voiced dismay at Nessen's latest entry ban and called on Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda to ensure he will be allowed to enter Indonesia freely in future.
"The press freedom situation has improved considerably in Aceh since the peace accords were signed last year, but now this arbitrary decision casts doubt on the readiness of the highest authorities to open the province to journalists who denounced the army's atrocities during the war," the organization said in a statement.
"It seems as though some people in the government have not yet turned the page on the terrible years," it said.