T

he Aceh provincial administration (DPRA) will form a committee wrestle with the issue of the Aceh flag and symbol.

Although the two-week deadline by the Home Ministry to clarify the issue has ended, no decision has been made regarding the flag and emblem.

'€œBased on our observation, no substantive problems have arisen through differences of opinion on the Aceh flag and symbol at the regional level, such as regencies and mayoralties. Everyone seems to be calm and patient, waiting for a decision,'€ said Edrian, head of the Aceh secretary'€™s legal bureau.

Aceh administration is lobbying the central government to fully approve the new flag and symbol, which have already been approved through a provincial qanun (bylaw) by the Aceh legislative council.

'€œThe emblem is just a symbol and the flag is just a flag of the province, no more than that, because the red and white flag remains the flag of the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia,'€ said Edrian.

The Aceh administration has based its position on the Helsinki Memorandum of Understanding which states that the province may have its own flag and coat-of-arms due to its special status.

Banda Aceh resident Rahmi Fadila said that Aceh had the right to decide on its own flag, coat-of-arms and anthem following the peace accord.

Aceh'€™s right to have its own flag, anthem and symbol was clearly stated in the peace accord which stipulates that the chosen instruments had to accommodate the interests of all groups in Aceh, in line with an agreement between the central government and the separatist Free Aceh Movement (GAM) to mutually respect the dignity of each party.

'€œShould the GAM flag be raised again, it is basically the same as trampling on the dignity of the military and the Indonesian government psychologically,'€ said Rahmi.

Although the GAM flag is not regarded as a sovereign flag, Article 4.2 of the Helsinki Peace Accord clearly stipulates that GAM members should no longer wear uniforms or display the emblem or military symbol in public, she added.

'€œIt is very clear for both parties, especially GAM, or in this case the Aceh provincial administration,'€ said Rahmi.

The Aceh provincial administration has approved the use of the GAM separatist flag and coat-of-arms as the flag and symbol of the province.

The crescent-and-star flag and the Bouraq symbol was endorsed by the DPRA through Qanun No. 3/2013 and went into force on March 25.

The central government reacted by sending a letter to the provincial administration which gave two weeks for clarification of the ordinance.

Several regencies, especially in the south, rejected the GAM flag and symbol, threatening to form a new province should Aceh administration insist on using them.