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BANDA ACEH - A former separatist leader was sworn in as governor of Indonesia's once-rebellious Aceh province yesterday, further cementing a peace deal that ended almost three decades of war.
Irwandi Yusuf, 46, who escaped jail when the 2004 tsunami struck his prison, was sworn in with a copy of Islam's holy Koran above his head, pledging to be loyal to Indonesia's state ideology and constitution. Hundreds of Acehnese who came to the Parliament building in the provincial capital of Banda Aceh to witness the ceremony applauded after the swearing-in.
Yusuf won with 38 per cent of the vote, defeating seven other candidates including two former generals.
- REUTERS
