| ||
| ||
| ||
 |
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Peace monitors pull out of Aceh
JAKARTA, Indonesia -- One of Asia's longest-running separatist wars appeared on the verge of re-igniting Wednesday, as international monitors began evacuating from the Indonesian province of Aceh. Indonesian government troops are already geared up for action in the restive province, in what could be its biggest military assault since the 1975 invasion of East Timor. The move came after a deadline for rebels in Aceh to agree to new peace talks expired. Hopes of reviving the ailing peace pact appear forlorn following the decision by 53 mainly Thai and Filipino monitors overseeing the agreement to pull out of Indonesia. The Geneva-based Henry Dunant Centre (HDC), which brokered the December peace deal and insisted the safety of the team was paramount, said it had now been decided that the monitors should return to their respective countries. "Some will be leaving today and some will leave tomorrow. They will come back if there is some development in the resumption of talks," David Gorman, who heads the HDC operations in Aceh, told Reuters news agency without elaborating. He said the HDC's own 13 international staff would remain in Indonesia. The government is due to consult parliamentary leaders Thursday over launching a military offensive. In the local capital Banda Aceh -- 1,700 km (1,060 miles) northwest of Jakarta -- truckloads of troops and police patrolled the streets as Acehnese went about their daily business, Reuters reported. Markets were crowded but there was no sign of panic buying. Many residents seemed resigned to a resumption of the long-running conflict which has killed more than 10,000 people. Just five months ago, the rebels agreed to lay down arms in exchange for a promise of autonomy.
That deal has since unraveled and international mediators have now withdrawn from the province. The government has warned a military operation to crush the separatist Free Aceh movement may only be days away. But there were some signs the government had not commited fully to conflict. Indonesia's Foreign Ministry spokesman on Wednesday refused to rule out the possibility of an eleventh-hour agreement with GAM. On Monday, the Free Aceh rebels ignored the government's deadline to disarm and return to peace talks. Cabinet officials plan to seek final approval from Indonesian parliament on Thursday. More than 6,000 Indonesian government troops are being mobilized for impending military action on top of an estimated 30,000 troops already stationed in the province. Indonesia's police spokesman in Aceh, Sayed Hoesainy, said the rebels had used the time since the pact was signed to build up its strength. War is nothing new for Acehnese. Rebels have been fighting for independence since the 1970's. Many in Aceh now fear a return to the days of military rule, when brutal anti-separatist operations led to mass human rights abuses and thousands of civilian victims. Acehnese had hoped the December ceasefire accord would lead them out of war. Now, peace seems a very distant ideal.
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
