The province of Aceh is certainly one of the most interesting and complex in Indonesia today, and in the lead-up to the elections of April 9, the internal complexity of the region is coming to the surface once again.
For too long Aceh was seen through the somewhat myopic lens of media headlines: It was thought to be one of the most dangerous parts of Indonesia due to the bitter and prolonged struggle between the Aceh Independence Movement (GAM) and the state’s security forces; and then the advent of the tsunami of 2004 cast the province in the light of a blighted zone where time had come to a standstill.

