Power struggle erupts in violence
In early March, a 100-strong mob torched an office of the Aceh Transitional Commission, the body created to succeed GAM.
The attack, which took place in the remote Atu Lintang area, left six people dead and was the deadliest since the 2005 peace deal brought an end to decades of fighting between separatists and government troops.
The incident was the latest in a series that highlighted the volatile security situation in the province, where former rebels had gained political power and were competing for the spoils of the peace.
Aceh has been flooded with post-tsunami reconstruction money. The province's coffers have also benefited from Indonesia's decentralisation programme and Aceh's status as a province with special autonomy. District and sub-district administrators have a big say over how money is spent.
Governor Irwandi Yusuf said the attack was 'probably rooted in the power struggle that followed the plans to form two breakaway provinces in Aceh'.
Ibrahim Syamsuddin, a spokesman for the former separatists, said the incident was related to a dispute between them and a local union over control of revenues from a local bus station.
Besides the politically motivated violence, a marked increase in robberies and extortions has also made life difficult for the population and for those trying to implement the post-tsunami reconstruction projects.
Local analysts attributed the robberies and extortions mostly - but not exclusively - to low-ranking former GAM combatants who were unable to partake in the financial windfall through political channels.
The World Bank's Aceh Conflict Monitoring Programme said that last December local-level violence rose to its highest level since January 2005.
The programme, which is yet to release figures for this year, said more than half of the incidents in December involved serious, potentially lethal forms of violence, including three murders and one murder attempt.
One casualty was Teungku Badruddin, a former GAM commander, killed in Sawang, Aceh Utara, on December 27. Also prominent were shootings and terror attacks, including the explosion of a grenade in front of the mayor of Bireuen's residence.
The programme called the incidents 'reminiscent of the conflict' and 'a reminder that some groups remain resolved to use violence as a means to pursue their goals or voice their grievances'.
The violence started to rise seriously in the first quarter of last year. No one has been arrested for the attacks, and no witnesses have come forward.
