TEMPO.CO, Aceh - Aceh governor Zaini Abdullah guaranteed his province was safe for investments. He added many investors had entered the province for investments in the past two years.

Zaini said businessmen never had any problem while investing in Aceh and the provincial government has preserved sound communication with them.

Recent rumor has it the province is now in an unfavorable state in the wake of the sharia law implementation, a dissent between the provincial government and the central government on local policies, and alleged security obstructions in relation to legislative and presidential elections.

“These issues are baseless. Aceh is very secure, even much secure than other big cities in Indonesia,” Zaini said on Tuesday.

Zaini said the realization of foreign investment in Aceh during the last five years was showing an upward trend: foreign investment in 2011 was recorded at US22.5 billion, up from US$4.6 million in 2010.

He added the province's domestic investment also rose. In 2011, domestic investment reached Rp259.4 billion, up from Rp40.9 billion in 2010.

Commenting on the alleged security disruptions, Zaini said it was a common problem in any developing region, adding that the crime rate in Aceh was significantly lower compared to those of other cities. “It means that all cases are still under the control of the authorities and Aceh is open to anyone who wants to come,” he said.

AYU PRIMA SANDI