Speaking during a visit to Japan on Tuesday, Mr Wahid did not make clear whether the referendum would allow the Acehnese to separate completely from Indonesia or to opt only for autonomy.

The BBC's correspondent in Indonesia, Jonathan Head, says the new government is still struggling to come up with a strategy over Aceh. Many ministers are insisting that they do not want Aceh to break away, and military spokesmen have also expressed their opposition to a referendum.

The BBC's Jonathan Head reports: "The government can't rely on armed force to hold the country together"

Mr Wahid seems to believe he can persuade the Acehnese to abandon their dreams of an independent state, despite the almost unanimous calls in the province for an end to rule by Jakarta, our correspondent says.

The president surprised many earlier this month when he suggested the province, on the island of Sumatra, might be able to hold a vote on its ties with Jakarta.

"The plan now is to have the referendum on Aceh six months after the ending of the current situation," he said on Tuesday. "And that is in one month, so all in all, seven months."

Mr Wahid did not explain what he meant by ''the current situation''.

Acehnese separatists have recently stepped up their two-decade-old struggle for independence.

Up to one million people attended a rally in the province this month to demand a referendum similar to that held in East Timor which voted to split from Jakarta in August.

Fears of disintegration

Several politicians have said if Aceh secedes from Indonesia, the country of 210 million people spread across thousands of islands will break apart.

But Mr Wahid brushed aside fears that Indonesia could disintegrate.

"I don't believe those separatists in the islands voice the majority view - they are the minority, a very small minority," he said.

"I believe the Indonesian people will not take independent action."

Rebel fighters in Aceh, which is rich in oil and gas, have been struggling for independence since 1976.