Mission not so impossible : the AMM and the transition from conflict to peace in Aceh, 2005 - 2006

Abstract

This paper looks at the Aceh Monitoring Mission (AMM) and the role it played with respect to the decommissioning of GAM weapons and the redeployment of the Indonesian security forces, as well as monitoring the reintegration of former combatants, human rights and the legislation for the governance of Aceh. It will argue that the AMM was successful for five key reasons: First, the commitment to the peace process of GAM and the Indonesian government; second, the leadership and impartiality of its head of mission; third, the support of individual EU member states during the set-up phase; fourth, the quick amnesty and the Commission on Security Arrangements (COSA); and finally, its lack of focus on implementing the human rights elements at the beginning of the process, which made it possible for the AMM to ultimately complete its mission in the highly sensitive context of Indonesian domestic politics.