Since Indonesian security forces began counter-insurgency operations against an armed resistance movement in Aceh, an estimated 2000 civilians, including children and the very elderly, have been unlawfully killed. At least 1000 people have been arbitrarily arrested and held incommunicado for over a year, often subject to torture and ill-treatment to extract confessions or political intelligence about the rebel group, Aceh Merdeka. Others have “disappeared”, and at least 50 have been sentenced to long prison sentences after unfair trials. The international community has failed to respond firmly to these allegations, some governments failing to offer adequate protection to those seeking asylum from Aceh. Human rights abuses by Aceh Merdeka are also described.
