The country has been through an enormous political transformation in the last few weeks. On October 20, a new president was sworn in and, on October 1, a new batch of House members were installed. But rather than immediately buckling down to their jobs, House members quickly became embroiled in a power struggle that has paralyzed the House for weeks now.

As high-profile political events unfold, it would be easy to overlook the nation's pressing problems. But, that does not seem to be the case with the new government of Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, as it has sent a high-caliber delegation to Aceh to assess the six-month state of civil emergency in the province, which will end on November 19. The new government should be commended for its move to solve Aceh's long-standing problems, which shows that it has its priorities straight.

The Acehnese, whose province of 4.2 million people has been ravaged by intermittent clashes between government troops and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) for decades, have only one humble wish for their province: Peace.

There are ample reasons why violence in Aceh should be stopped. In 1989, the Soeharto government declared the province a Military Operation Area. When Soeharto was toppled in 1998, GAM's strength, which was estimated to be 500 at the beginning of the operation, had increased to 3,000 men and women. An estimated 10,000 Acehnese civilians were killed and thousands of others were displaced in that period. That is evidence that a military operation in Aceh will never be effective.

Following the collapse of peace talks sponsored by the Swiss-based Henri Dunant Centre, Megawati Soekarnoputri introduced martial law on May 19, 2003. Since then, daily killings have continued unabated. Initially, it was intended that martial law be imposed for a six-month period, but it was later extended to a year. In May of this year, Megawati lifted martial law and declared a state of civil emergency in Aceh – combining military operations with humanitarian assistance – but the killings have continued.

It is a sad reality, yet one that the public has become desensitized to, while deaths in the province are reported daily. Many people don't seem to care about what is happening in Aceh. Even the media appears to be fed up with the news, perhaps finding continuous coverage of the province taxing.

It is certainly unfair to expect the new government to turn Aceh into a peaceful province overnight. But we believe that Susilo and his team, including Vice President Jusuf Kalla, have a good track record in bringing peace to conflict areas. As a Cabinet minister during Megawati's tenure, Kalla was instrumental in cooling down sectarian conflicts between Christians and Muslims in Maluku and Poso.

We would like to emphasize the seriousness and the urgency of bringing peace to Aceh. In this context, it is worth repeating the words of some leading Acehnese ulemas in a discussion in Jakarta on Tuesday. Their message to the government is loud and clear: Abandon the security approach.

With the six-month state of civil emergency in Aceh drawing to a close, it is time to start anew in the province. It is time for the Acehnese, who have been fighting for an independent province since 1976, to look up and see the sun emerging from behind the clouds. It is time for the government to consider ceasing military operations, once and for all.