It would be difficult to overstate the importance of history in “the Aceh problem.” This volume, which features a range of essays accessible to a nonspecialist audience, is a welcome addition to the English–language consideration of Aceh and its fraught relationship with Indonesia. In his introduction, Anthony Reid states that the book is “dedicated to arguing that Aceh needs and deserves [international] attention” (p. 2). The collection places “the Aceh problem” in perspective for international actors involved in assisting the Acehnese to design their own future.
The first half of the book comprises historical analyses intended to demonstrate Aceh's distinction from other areas of Indonesia, examining archaeological evidence that Aceh had more extensive connections to the Malay peninsula and Indian Ocean ports than to the archipelago (E. Edwards McKinnon); Aceh's identification with the Islamic world (Peter G. Riddell); and the treaties negotiated independently with European powers (Reid). Lee Kam Hing's...
