The HDC in Aceh

What lessons can be learned from the experience of third-party mediation in a failed peace process? This study examines the unprecedented role played by a nongovernmental organization, the Henry Dunant Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue (HDC), in brokering negotiations and implementing an agreement reached between the Indonesian government and the armed Acehnese separatist movement GAM. The negotiations led in 2000 to a cease-fire, known as the “humanitarian pause,” that held fitfully into 2001. The major breakthrough, however, came in December 2002 when the parties signed the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement (COHA). This pact envisioned a cease-fire followed by demilitarization measures and an “all-inclusive dialogue” on autonomy provisions followed by provincial elections in Aceh. Within months, however, this agreement had broken down and Indonesian security forces had launched their largest-ever military operations in the restive province. Based on interviews and review of the literature on third-party facilitation and mediation roles in internal conflicts, this analysis tries to understand what caused the breakdown by looking at the strengths and weaknesses of a nongovernmental