Jakarta – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said Friday the new Aceh governance law would help speed up the recovery of the province from the devastating December 2004 tsunami.
Yudhoyono said the law should be accepted for its goals of realizing a secure future for the people of Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam, whose abundant natural resources have long been funneled to the central government.
"What we must do now is, with peace in our heart, develop Aceh sincerely and faithfully so prosperity and security will emerge soon," he was quoted as saying by Antara newswire in Bireuen, Aceh.
It was Yudhoyono's first visit since the law was passed by the House of Representatives on Tuesday.
The law has been condemned by some elements in Aceh, including members of the former separatist Free Aceh Movement (GAM), for failing to live up to the spirit of the peace agreement signed by the government and the GAM last August in Helsinki. They contend it allows too much interference by Jakarta in the regional administration's affairs.
They are planning to file a protest with the Aceh Monitoring Mission (AMM), which is mandated to hear grievances about violations of the Helsinki agreement, although AMM chief Pieter Feith said Wednesday that AMM would stay out of the dispute.
Yudhoyono said the passing of the law was not the final aim of the government, but rather it was the complete rehabilitation of the province. He added that Aceh must remain an integral part of the country.
Communication and Information Minister Sofyan A. Djalil, who accompanied the President, said the Aceh administration would need to immediately enact the bylaws, locally known as qanun, to implement the law.
There are 94 qanun, two government regulations and three presidential decrees expected to result from the law. Two of the regulations, said Sofyan, were focused on creating local political parties and cooperating with international interests.
Aceh's rich oil and gas reserves were exploited for decades for the benefit of Jakarta. The discrimination led to the emergence of separatist movements, notably the GAM, with the violence causing the imposition of military emergency status in the province for varying periods in the past 30 years.
After several failed peace talks, negotiations took place in Helsinki last year and, with considerable international attention, produced an accord designed to grant Aceh more powers and flexibility in governing itself.
Yudhoyono said the government would continue rebuilding Aceh from the tsunami, which left hundreds of thousands dead and over half a million homeless.
Despite criticism the Aceh-Nias Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Agency is taking too long in providing suitable accommodation for the Acehnese, Yudhoyono praised its efforts.
"The government has worked hard although we're often considered sluggish. Thus, we must be proactive to say what we have accomplished and what our targets are."