Aceh elects ex-rebel as governor

April 17, 2012
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BANDA ACEH, Indonesia – Aceh Province has elected another former rebel as governor in its second election since a devastating 2004 tsunami and 30-year war, officials announced Tuesday (April 17th).

The powerful Aceh Party's Zaini Abdullah – the former "foreign minister" of the defunct rebel Free Aceh Movement (GAM) – beat four other candidates in a landslide victory, AFP reported.

"In the name of God, today we have a new governor and vice governor. This is official and legal," Aceh electoral commission deputy head Ilham Saputra said before a screen that displayed results from the April 9th vote.

Abdullah won with 1.3 million votes, more than 55%, while his main rival, incumbent and independent Irwandi Yusuf, came second with around 30%.

Abdullah won on a platform of strengthening Aceh's special autonomy status and allowing the practice of partial sharia laws, an anomaly in Indonesia where the majority practices a moderate form of Islam.

Abdullah, 71, was a key negotiator in a 2005 agreement with the central government that granted Aceh special autonomy and saw the rebels lay down arms after 30 years of bloody unrest in which more than 15,000 died.

Sporadic violence continues in the restive province, with more than a dozen fatal shootings in the six months before the election.

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