Reports from Indonesia say rogue elements of the Free Aceh Movement GAM are illegally hoarding weapons, two years after a peace agreement was signed with the government. The surrender of weapons and re-integration of former GAM rebels into the Acehnese community were part of a peace deal struck in August 2005 between the separatist group and the Indonesian government.

Presenter – Sen Lam Speaker – Edward Aspinall, Indonesia specialist and fellow at the Australian National University

Aspinall: The peace agreement which was signed two years ago in Helsinki required the movement to surrender 800 weapons. It surrendered a number more than that although many of those weren't considered to fulfill the kind of technical requirements insisted upon by the Indonesian side. But in any case it was widely understood at the time that in fact the movement had a much larger number of weapons, and indeed, they had a certain capacity to make their own weapons in kind of jungle plants using machine lathes and the like.

Lam: And so this weapons issue is not enough to jeopardise the peace process, is it?

Aspinall: No I don't think so. Moreover, there's no suggestion or there's been no suggestion so far that there's any organised movement amongst the former Free Aceh movement rebels to hold on to these weapons for purposes of re-starting an armed struggle. To the extent that weapons are still circulating and being used, these are mostly being used for criminal activities; armed robberies in people's houses, on some of the main roads and so on, in an unorganised way by people who are possibly disgruntled former rebels. There're no signs so far of any kind of sentiment for a return to armed struggle by any of the leaders or at least any significant leaders of the movement.

Lam: And Ed, the reintegration, rehabilitation of former GAM rebels back into the community was part of the peace agreement. From your observation is that happening?

Aspinall: Well yes and no. Many of the leaders of the movement in particular are of course being reintegrated very successfully. Many of them have in last December's elections won important positions in the executive government, at the regional and district level. So many of the most important government leaders in the province now are former rebels. Moreover many if you go slightly down the hierarchy, many leaders of the movement at the district level and so on are also becoming quite successful in business, often by accessing contracts, projects and so on being provided by the government. If you get right down to the grassroots however, although many ordinary fighters are benefitting from this privileged economic access being gained by their former commanders, many are not are benefitting quite as much. So do you get a sense of resentment at the grassroots amongst some former rebels, and indeed, a sense of an economic gap opening up between them and their former leaders.

LAM: Nonetheless though, do you see dreams of independence receding as the ordinary Acehnese see their lives improving?

Aspinall: I think certainly the independence goal as an explicit aim of any organised section of Acehnese society now has definitely receded. It's not on the agenda at the present time. To a large extent it's still, if I can mix metaphors, hovers just beneath the surface. You can talk to many former rebels and they say that well of course we understand now that we couldn't achieve independence by force of arms; however independence remains our dream or remains our goal. So there's no one actively working towards independence, but it would be premature to say that talk of independence has completely faded.