Nani Farida, Banda Aceh – A visiting director of the Geneva-based Henry Dunant Center (HDC), a mediator of peace talks between the Indonesian government and the secessionist Free Aceh Movement (GAM), criticized the government's decision to set a deadline for a dialog with the movement. "It's not a good idea to set a deadline for a dialog," Martin Griffiths said at the end of his three-day visit to the strife-torn province here on Saturday.
Griffiths was apparently referring to the statement from the government, that demanded GAM accept the autonomy law for Aceh by December as a prerequisite for dialog.
Some representatives of GAM in Aceh, nevertheless, have said that GAM would accept the law provided that there were some revisions made to it, especially on direct ballots to elect local leaders. According to Griffiths, negotiation needed passion and it should not be bound by time limits. He noted that HDC's two-and-a-half year role in facilitating peace talks between the government and GAM was not a long period.
"Compared to our activities in other countries, our time here is still short," he said. Nevertheless, Griffiths commended the commitment of both the government and GAM to reach an agreement, and to do so with all speed. "But it needs courage. Let's pray together for both sides," he said.
Griffiths emphasized that the most important thing for the opposing camps would be how they could reach an agreement to stop violence before the Islamic fasting month of Ramadhan, which would begin early November.
He said that the next dialog should focus on a peace agreement and determine sanctions for those who committed violations. According to him, one effective punishment would be in the form of publication in the mass media.
He said there should be an independent monitoring team to assess the result of any agreement reached between GAM and Jakarta.
He said that during his three-day visit in Aceh he met representatives of GAM, government officials, and local community leaders. After meeting leaders in Aceh, Griffiths flew to Jakarta on Saturday to see government officials and then would go to Stockholm on Monday to meet with GAM leaders.
"I want to tell you that in the past eight weeks there has been intensive negotiation between the government of Indonesia and GAM on details of the peace agreement, based on a cessation of hostilities," Griffiths said.
In fact, the government and GAM have signed a number of agreements to end violence in Aceh. Nevertheless, fatalities remain a common sight in Aceh. The latest was the finding of six bodies by Indonesian red cross volunteers in separate locations in the province.