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welve years of signed peace accords have yet to bear fruit in the concrete settlement of past human rights abuse cases in Aceh, Indonesia’s westernmost province.

A truth and reconciliation commission, established nearly a year ago, is currently on a “road show” in search of support for the settlement of alleged human rights abuses inflicted by the authorities during the conflict period when the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) existed from 1976-2005.

As part of its attempt to uncover the truth, the Aceh Commission for Truth and Reconciliation (KKR Aceh) is working to gather testimony from 500 victims or their relatives.

“There is no exact figure on the total number of victims. We hope to get testimony from 500 victims this year while the real number of victims could be far higher,” KKR Aceh chairman Afridal Darmi told media outlets after a meeting with the National Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempuan) on Wednesday.

“None of the victims, however, have reported to us. But we will conduct a hearing in November to gather together all the victims and hear their stories,” Afridal said while adding that the commission would conduct seven or eight more hearings in the future.

The commission has been visiting a number of organizations and institutions over the past week with the aim of gaining support and input for a thorough resolution of the cases.

After visiting the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) and the Witness and Victim Protection Agency (LPSK) on Tuesday, members of the reconciliation commission visited Komnas Perempuan on Wednesday.

“The central government’s response to the establishment of KKR Aceh has been unclear so far. They have not encouraged or supported it,” Afridal said.

“Aceh witnessed so many violations. They have never been resolved. The ‘wounds’ may appear to have disappeared, but actually they are still there and could blow up into other conflicts in the future,” he added.

As part of the road show, the commission expects Komnas HAM, LPSK and Komnas Perempuan to send experts to help their cause in seeking the truth.

The establishment of KKR Aceh was mandated by the Helsinki Agreement in August 2005 between the Indonesian government and GAM.

The two parties agreed to end decades of armed conflict in Aceh following the agreement.

One of the recommendations in the agreement was for Jakarta to establish a truth and reconciliation commission tasked with formulating and determining reconciliation measures for the conflicting parties.

The recommendation for the establishment of the truth and reconciliation commission received a boost with the issuance of Law No. 11/2006 on Aceh governance, which mandated the establishment of the commission by 2007.

But KKR Aceh was only established on Oct. 26 last year upon the initiative of the Aceh administration. “We had to wait for more than 10 years,” Afridal said.

The commission is expected to reveal human right violations during the period from December 1976 — when GAM was established — until August 2005, when the conflict ended.

Indonesian Military (TNI) soldiers were deployed to the province. The TNI has been accused of committing human rights violations against civilians.

Komnas Perempuan chairwoman Azriana said her commission would assist KKR Aceh in gaining support from relevant parties at the national level, including the central government.

Komnas Perempuan will also help KKR Aceh arrange its work protocol and methods, especially when it comes to women who were allegedly the victims of sexual abuse.

“We need to generate complete awareness about Aceh’s problems at the national level so that KKR Aceh will receive support for its work,” Azriana said.

As part of their commitment to KKR Aceh, the members of Komnas Perempuan will help the commission by offering their knowledge, experience and expertise in dealing with rights cases.

“With the existence of KKR Aceh, we hope there will be a clear database on the victims. The data available so far is maze-like,” she said. (yon)