 Zaini, then 72, was the former Free Aceh Movement foreign minister in exile in Sweden before the signing of the 2005 Indonesian government-Free Aceh Movement peace agreement in Helsinki.Deputy Governor Muzakir Manaf, then 48, was the former commander of the Free Aceh Movement's Armed Wing.Despite a guarantee from incoming deputy governor Muzakir Manaf that Irwandi's safety would be guaranteed if he attended the inauguration of the new provincial government in June 2012, following the event Irwandi was surrounded and beaten about the face and head by uniformed Aceh Party supporters.