Susilo calls for backing Aceh peace pact

Spurred on by last December's catastrophic tsunami, which battered the province on the northernmost tip of Sumatra island and killed 131,000 people, the deal paves the way for an end to three decades of unrest.

"I invite all layers of society to work together to safeguard a permanent peace in Aceh," Yudhoyono said in his first annual speech to the Regional Representatives' Council, a body set up after last October's elections to give the provinces a voice in development policy.

He said the pact is in line with the wishes of the Acehnese.