Aceh independence call triggers fears of renewed conflict in Indonesia’s restive province

Powerful political figure Mualem issued a call for a referendum in the once war-torn region, saying the country is no longer clear on the question of democracy

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Military officials inspect weapons confiscated from ex-Aceh rebels in Banda Aceh. Photo: AFP

Published: 7:18pm, 1 Jun 2019Updated: 11:09pm, 1 Jun 2019

For 29 years between 1976 and 2005, Indonesia’s province of Aceh waged an armed insurgency against Jakarta rule, a conflict which claimed more than 15,000 lives.

Following a concerted push by the Indonesian government, combined with the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami that killed 170,000 people, the separatist Free Aceh Movement (GAM) laid down its arms under the 2005 Helsinki peace accord. Unrest could be stirred anew, however, by GAM’s former leader’s call for a referendum on Acehnese independence.

Muzakir Manaf, the former leader of GAM who is known as Mualem, warned foreigners would “colonise” Indonesia, and Aceh should therefore be ready to stand alone.

“Our country Indonesia is no longer clear on the question of justice and democracy … going forward, Aceh asks for a referendum,” he said on Monday, according to local press.

“What’s more, Indonesia will be colonised by foreigners in the future – this is what we are worried about. Because of that, it is much better for Aceh to follow in the footsteps of East Timor … to stand on our own,” Mualem said, referring to the UN-organised referendum in 1999, where the majority of East Timorese voted to secede from Indonesia and become the independent state of Timor Leste.

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