Word: aceh
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...cross-country flight with Nancy and the kids MIDDLE EAST DETAINEES: Has the U.S. been rewriting its rules on torture? LATIN AMERICA COLOMBIA: Paramilitaries are taking over the cocaine trade EUROPE SOCCER: Football stars and fans gather in Portugal for Euro 2004 ASIA INDONESIA: Martial law ends in Aceh, but the killing goes on SOUTH PACIFIC CRIME: A drugs bust in Fiji reinforces fears that the region is at risk SCIENCE CANCER: New targeted therapies help patients to live with their disease SPORT OLYMPICS: Kiwi sailboarder Barbara Kendall gets ready for Athens THE ARTS MUSIC: China?s Spice Girls...
...even by Aceh's standards, the past year has been grim, and there is scant promise of relief. Last May, after the collapse of peace talks, Jakarta launched a massive military campaign against G.A.M.?a move that many saw as politically expedient for President Megawati Sukarnoputri, bestowing upon her an image of toughness that would belie her reputation as a remote and indecisive leader. The campaign was also popular with senior army brass, still smarting at their loss of prestige and power after dictator Suharto's toppling in 1998. But the quick success the generals predicted...
...Others counter that G.A.M.?with its classic guerrilla tactics and extensive local support?is far from being a spent force. Matt Davies, a former Indonesia analyst for Australia's Department of Defence who is working on a book about Aceh, says the military may have killed as few as 600-700 separatists. He adds that the security forces may have reported only 10% of their own casualties, which would mean that the two sides have suffered similar losses. As evidence of G.A.M.'s resilience, Davies and others note that none of its senior officials have been captured and that...
...Ominously, the past year of bloodshed, dislocation and military law has only intensified the sense of alienation among ordinary Acehnese. "It's totally polarized what was left of civil society in Aceh so that there is effectively no third way between Jakarta and G.A.M.," warns Damien Kingsbury, an Indonesia specialist at Melbourne's Deakin University. Some hope the situation will improve after Indonesia's July 5 presidential election. Retired military chief Wiranto, one of the three leading candidates, told TIME that "the use of force" in Aceh is a mistake, noting: "the problem of Aceh is not a security problem...
...part, G.A.M. says its fighters can outlast anything the government throws at them. "It costs a lot of money to run a big campaign, and Indonesia's economy is weak," says a slight, soft-spoken G.A.M. representative who calls himself Tengku, a common honorific in Aceh. "We can wait until the money runs out. We have fought them for 27 years. We can fight on for three times that long until the Indonesians finally get tired and go home." But given the rate at which people are dying or fleeing the province, there will be far fewer Acehnese left...