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The Conversation
Azifah Astrina, Ph.D. candidate in Political Science, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign; Universitas Gadjah Mada

21 years after disaster helped bring peace to Aceh – has botched Indonesian response to floods reignited calls for independence?

A Free Aceh Movement flag, right, flies alongside the Indonesian national flag during a rally outside the Baiturrahman Grand Mosque in Banda Aceh on Aug. 15, 2026. Reza Saifullah/AFP via Getty Images

Thousands gathered at Baiturrahman Grand Mosque in Banda Aceh on Aug. 15, 2026, to commemorate 21 years of peace between Indonesia and the separatist Free Aceh Movement, or GAM.

Some participants raised GAM’s red, black and white crescent-star flag and chanted “Free Aceh,” while others lowered Indonesia’s national flag and replaced it with the former separatist movement’s flag.

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