Violence in Aceh is becoming political, according to a human rights NGO.

â??We are facing violence in relation to local political issues such as the regional elections and harsh competition between political parties,â? Harris Azhar, coordinator of the Missing Persons and Violence Victims Commission (Kontras), told a press conference on Sunday as quoted by kompas.com.

The latest incident of politically related violence was the murder of Saiful Cage, a former Aceh Freedom Movement (GAM) combatant, who was shot dead in a drive-by shooting on July 22. Saiful was working for Aceh Governor Irwandi Yusufâ??s controversial re-election campaign when he was killed.

Kontras recorded 16 cases of violence Aceh in 2010, down from 26 cases in 2009, he said.

Aceh was classified as a military operations area for years due to the violent, decades-long insurgency led the GAM.