DATE=6/1/2000
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=ACEH CEASE-FIRE (L-ONLY)
NUMBER=2-263049
BYLINE=PATRICIA NUNAN
DATELINE=JAKARTA
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:
INTRO: A cease-fire is set to go into effect in
Indonesia's northern province of Aceh, but there are
still reports of violence between government forces
and separatist rebels in the area. In the latest
incident, at least one person was killed in an
exchange of gunfire between security forces and
gunmen. Patricia Nunan reports from Jakarta.
Text: Indonesian officials and separatist rebels are
blaming each other for outbreaks of violence that took
one day before a cease-fire is to go into effect. A
spokesman for the guerilla "Free Aceh Movement" says
police are trying to capture rebels in the north and
east of the province.
Indonesian officials, meanwhile, say the guerrillas
are continuing their attacks on police and civilians.
Representatives of Indonesia and the "Free Aceh
Movement" signed the cease-fire agreement at a meeting
in Switzerland May 12. The agreement calls for the
fighting to stop on Friday. But in the three weeks
since the signing, at least 32 people have been killed
in clashes between the rebels and security forces.
Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid has also
cancelled a planned visit to Aceh that was to have
taken place next week. Mr. Wahid said he was
concerned that the presence of extra security for a
presidential visit would send the wrong signal to the
Acehnese.
Indonesian officials hope the cease-fire will help
persuade the Acehnese to drop calls for independence.
The "Free Aceh Movement" has been fighting for
independence since the 1970s, but stepped up its
struggle in the eight months since Indonesia decided
to grant independence to East Timor.
Human rights groups say at least five-thousand people
have been killed or disappeared in the fighting
between the government and separatists over the past
10 years. An estimated 400 people have been killed in
the region so far this year.
Indonesian officials say they believe Aceh's demands
for independence will fade away if the government
follows through on its plans to hold Indonesian
soldiers accountable for alleged atrocities committed
in the province. (SIGNED)
NEB/PN/JP
01-Jun-2000 09:18 AM EDT (01-Jun-2000 1318 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
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