A draft law that guarantees the province partial self-government and allows rebels to form a political party was tabled in late January. But not everyone is in favour.

Jakarta (AsiaNews/Agencies) – Indonesia's parliament is discussing a draft law that would grant Aceh Province a certain degree of self-government and give the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) the right to participate in province-wide politics. Turning the bill into law is a necessary pre-condition for pursuing the peace process negotiated with the former rebels. However, not everyone in the Indonesian parliament agrees with the proposal.

According to the agreement signed in Helsinki in August 2005, the draft law presented by the home affairs minister granting Aceh wide-ranging autonomy must be passed by the end of March this year

"What we face in the next few months will not be an easy task because it might involve political and nationalist sentiment in Jakarta," warned Afrizal Tjoetra from the Aceh Society Taskforce, which helped draft the law. "If everyone can look at it from the perspective of a peaceful settlement in Aceh, there will be no meaningful problems," he said.

For this reason, many remain upbeat that the law, which must be passed by a simple majority, will get through.

The most likely candidate for scuttling the process appears to be former President Megawati Sukarnoputri, leader of nationalist-inspired Indonesian Democracy Party for Struggle, the country's largest opposition party.

"It is difficult for us to accept one of the clauses in the agreement which requires decisions of the government and parliament to get the approval of the Aceh executive and legislature," she said last week. "Even in federal states, things are not like that," she added.

Although Ms Megawati's party lacks the numbers to block the law, it might achieve that goal if it convinces minor parties to join its ranks.

The most controversial points of the draft law according to lawmaker Priyo Budi Santoso are the establishment of local political parties (banned by the constitution), management of the vast local oil and natural gas resources, and the partition of Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam into three own provinces (not welcomed by former rebels).

The recently concluded peace agreement brought to an end a 30-year-old separatist conflict that claimed about 15,000 lives. 

• indonesia
• aceh
• peace
• agreement
• rebels
• constitutional
• reform
• law
• autonomy