Democratic struggle

Life on the run with Indonesia's democratic outlaws

Time Magazine - May 26, 1997

John Colmey, Surabaya -- On the day Dita Sari was to be sentenced, the 24-year-old student walked into court with a red ribbon in her hair and handed out 200 rosebuds to each member of the audience. With a big smile she placed garlands of flowers around the necks of her three stern-faced judges. Then they sent Sari to prison for six years for "incitement to violence." She had been arrested while leading 20,000 workers in the town of Surabaya in a strike last July to demand that they receive the government-mandated minimum wage of about $2 a day and that the army stop interfering in labor issues. Still, she is not bitter. "I never blame persons," she said from her prison cell last week, "persons in this kind of undemocratic system are only tools, robots, living instruments. The judges are just doing their job."

While Suharto has faced and extinguished opposition of all types in his 30-year rule, none has proven more difficult to stamp out than the 100 current and former students who make up the People's Democratic Party, or prd, the radical fringe of Indonesia's pro- democracy forces. Like Sari, most of the members are in their 20s, disarming in their innocence and disabling in the dedication to their cause--even though 12 members are currently serving prison terms ranging from 18 months to 13 years. Over a two-week period in April and May, prd leaders and rank-and-file members from eight cities talked to Time about their roots, strategies and hopes.

The head of the organization's student wing, who goes by the pseudonym "Johan," says the prd first came together in 1991 as an evening study group at Gadjah Madah University in Yogyakarta to debate issues professors avoid, like democracy, Marxism and the 1965 coup. Harmless talk over beers escalated into their own political classes and, in 1992, the launch of a nationwide student movement. Although government prosecutors have labeled them as communists for using terms like "comrade" and "the masses," Johan says their most important influences are the democracy movements in Thailand, the Philippines and South Korea. "Sure we like some parts of Marxism," Johan says. "But the Marxists failed in Indonesia, in the Soviet Union, almost everywhere. Democracy is the thing."

They learned quickly that a student organization would never bring down the state. So in 1995, says Johan, they moved off campus and launched a web of non-governmental organizations, or ngos--mostly funded by their parents and friends--to organize workers, artists, peasants and the urban poor. The most effective is the labor wing. As of last week it had infiltrated 50 to 60 factories in industrial estates across Java and Sumatra islands. Students move into workers' quarters, hold political classes at night and wait for their senior leaders' orders to launch strikes. So far they have called 24 walkouts and helped organize more than 100 others. "The most important thing is to create new organizers from among the workers," says labor wing leader Mohammad Sali, 26, the most wanted man in East Java. "It usually takes about two weeks to a month."

Two years ago prd leader Budiman Sudjatmiko, who was sentenced last month to 13 years in prison for "undermining the state ideology," decided to hook up with Megawati Sukarnoputri's Indonesian Democratic Party. "We saw the potential of Megawati," says Mahdilk, a 27-year-old political science graduate who has taken over for Sudjatmiko. "She had the grass roots support." Sudjatmiko was instrumental in setting up Indonesia's first independent election monitor. He also created a prd Web page to post daily reports to concerned parties in the West on torture, political trials and election violations. In 1995 Sudjatmiko held a key meeting with Edi Soerjadi--who later replaced Megawati in a government-backed coup in her party--and laid out the prd platform, calling for multiparty democracy, a repeal of laws restricting political parties and an end to the Army's role in government--all acts of treason. "Soerjadi supported our program," says Mahdilk. "He allowed us to meet the pdi masses and begin their political education."

None of them has any illusions that midnight graffiti raids, like one they mounted last week to paint walls in eight cities with the slogans "Hang Suharto" and "Democracy Now," will change Indonesia any time soon. For now they are content to live a life on the run with fake drivers' licenses (cost: $20) and passports ($200) and move from one slum boarding house to another every few weeks. "In the short time I have, there will be no change in the political configuration," says Sari. "So every moment and action must be taken to prepare the people and pro-democratic movement for a long, hard struggle." From her jail cell, as Sari begins to organize her fellow prisoners, she knows that the fight will be no bed of roses.

Timor rebel blocked from Indonesia activist's trial

Reuters - May 28, 1997

Jakarta -- Indonesian authorities blocked attempts by two activists on Wednesday to call jailed East Timorese rebel leader Xanana Gusmao as a witness in their trials on charges of subversion.

The attorney-general's office also intervened to stop the South Jakarta State Court calling outspoken sacked legislator Sri Bintang Pamungkas as a witness in the trials of the two members of the unrecognised People's Democratic Party (PRD).

"They had already received the letters which called them to come as witnesses but today it was suddenly changed because those in power were playing games," one of the defendants Wilson Bin Nurtias told reporters before his trial.

"Today (they) cannot come, not because (they) do not want to come," Wilson said from his holding cell flanked by his colleague I Gusti Agung Anom Astika who was being tried in a separate court.

Indonesians vote on Thursday in elections to the country's House of representatives after some of the worst political violence in three decades.

Supporters of the two defendants handed to journalists at the court a copy of a letter from the attorney-general's office dated Monday saying the Attorney-General's department opposed the presence of Gusmao and Bintang as witnesses.

"The calling of the witnesses Xanana Gusmao and Sri Bintang Pamungkas was irrelevant to the accusations put forward by the prosecutors," Dedi Pridasa from the South Jakarta office of the department said in the letter.

"The arguments of the accused had a connection with other cases involving (other PRD members) which have already been proved in previous trials," Pridasa said.

Last month, 12 PRD members were given jail terms of between 18 months and 13 years after trials in Jakarta and Surabaya when they were found guilty of subversion because their group did not take the state ideology as its founding priniciple.

Gusmao headed the guerrilla movement in the former Portuguese colony of East Timor, invaded and annexed by Indonesia a move not recognised by the United Nations, until his capture in 1992. He is serving a 20 year jail term. The PRD advocates a referendum for self determination in East Timor but Jakarta regards the territory as its 27th province.

Bintang, serving a 34-month term for insulting President Suharto, also faces fresh subversion charges for advocating an election boycott and end to Suharto's 30-year rule like the PRD.

Wilson walked out of the court after reading statements from Gusmao and Bintang which he said showed they had been blocked from attending.

Shouting that the court system was unfair, he left the courtroom telling journalists it was unlikely he would return for the remainder of the trial.

"I don't think so. I don't care about the court," he said.

PRD trials and Xanana Gusmao statement

ASIET - May 26, 1997

[The attendance in court of two defence witnesses (a de charge), namely Mr Kay Rala Xanana Gusmao and Mr Sri Bintang Pamungkas did not eventuate on May 26 as scheduled. They were intended to appear in the trials of Wilson bin Nurtias (PRD leader and Coordinator of SPRIM - Indonesian People in Solidarity Struggle with the Maubere People) and Gustin Anom Astika., Head, Department of Education and Propoganda, PRD. We publish below a translation of a statement issued by Xana Gusmao regarding his inability tio attend the trial - ASIET.]

Xanana Gusmao - Explanation of my inability to attend court as a witness

I greatly regret that I have been forcibly prevented by the bureaucracy from attending the South Jakarta Court as a defence witness as determined by the South Jakarta Judges Panel in the case of mr Anom Astika.

The letter of determination form the judges panel was delivered to the Prison Governor on Wednesday afternoon.

But the Prison Governor only applied to the District Office of the Department of Justice on Friday afternoon. This is information from the Prison Governor today at 9.00 am Monday, 26 May.

I am afraid I have to say that this problem has resulted from a lack of coordination among different sections of the Department of Justice, even though there has already been a determination from the Court. So I am afraid I have to state that there has been a disregard for the independence and authority of the judges and the court by elements in the bureaucracy.

I hope that these errors of the bureaucracy can be quickly corrected so that my concerns do not become public opinion in general. It is my hope that in the name of democracy and the independence of the judicial institutions, that I am able to appear before the court at the earliest possible opportunity.

May 29 elections

How Soeharto's victory bred an opposition tiger

Sydney Morning Herald - May 31, 1997

Louise Williams, Jakarta -- The Government-backed Golkar Party has won a sweeping victory in Indonesia's national elections, but it was overkill.

The cost has been to virtually destroy the carefully managed political balance which has channelled and diffused opposition during President Soeharto's three decades in power.

The small Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) has been virtually knocked out of the political picture as a result of Government manipulations, leaving a new and potentially destabilising political equation, pitting the secularist Soeharto Government against the Muslim-oriented opposition in a majority Muslim nation.

The result was "the worst Indonesia has ever had", one senior Western diplomat said. "The implications are the emergence of a two-party system which pits Islam against the State."

With three-quarters of the vote counted yesterday, the Golkar group held an overwhelming lead with 73.4 per cent of the valid vote, up from 68 per cent in 1992 and the highest tally since Mr Soeharto formally assumed power in 1967.

The Muslim-based United Development Party (PPP) also increased its vote - from 17 per cent in 1992 to 23.6 per cent.

The loser was the PDI, an amalgam of smaller nationalist and Christian parties from the pre-Soeharto period, which saw its vote slashed from 15 per cent to just 2.8 per cent. The PDI result is counterproductive for the Soeharto Government, which tried to reshape the PDI into a meek political ally last year by engineering the ouster of its popular chairman, Ms Megawati Soekarnoputri, daughter of Indonesia's founding President Soekarno.

Ms Megawati earlier announced that she would boycott yesterday's polls, instructing her supporters not to vote for the Government-approved PDI faction permitted to contest the polls, and a significant bloc of voters appears to have followed.

"It is a big moral victory for the [Megawati] PDI," the diplomat said. "It shows the Government failed to destroy her and to control the PDI votes."

No figures were immediately available on the percentage of spoiled ballots, which would show whether the so-calledGolongan Putih (Blank Group) protest vote against the highly-controlled electoral system had been significant.

The PPP claimed its scrutineers had been intimidated and harassed and were unable to observe counting.

On the eve of the poll the party had spoken out about threats it said were made to rural villagers to force them to vote Golkar. The PPP claimed that civil servants in the capital, who are obliged to support Golkar, were given two voting cards.

Troops were being deployed in PPP strongholds in the capital in anticipation of potential protests as more results were announced and overnight unrest was reported in East Java.

With the PDI savaged, the Soeharto Government's main opponent is a Muslim-oriented party with a significant and volatile grass roots following.

"Five years ago we the [Megawati] PDI confronting the Soeharto Government," said a leading sociologist, Professor Arief Budiman. "Now it is Islam confronting the Government and an increasing polarisation of the system.

"This is potentially dangerous because people will talk about emotive issues like Islam versus non-Islam in politics, instead of issues like development and the economy."

The prospect of an Muslim-oriented opposition is worrying both for the Government and many Indonesians in a nation which has worked hard to overcome splits along religious, ethnic and racial lines.

Riots during the past year have seen Muslim mobs attack Christian and Chinese targets, reflecting widespread resentment over the economic dominance of the ethnic Chinese minority and their partners within the ruling political elite.

The leadership of the PPP has been careful to condemn violence and play within the rules of the tightly controlled Indonesian political system but the often violent rallies which characterised the election campaign pointed to a more aggressive grass roots following, united around Islam, and seeking a more aggressive confrontation with the Government.

The man who may be kingmaker

Time Magazine - May 26, 1997

Michael Shari, Kebumen -- Abdurrahman Wahid starts the day with "good morning" instead of "salam alaikum." He wears street clothes and doesn't bother with an Islamic prayer cap unless he's actually praying. He has only one wife instead of the permitted four and asks that she cover her head with a scarf only on rare formal occasions.

Despite these moderate tendencies, Wahid is a magnet for Muslim supplicants, who press forward to kiss his hand everywhere he goes. Since 1984 he has headed the 34-million-member Nahdlatul Ulama, or NU, the largest Islamic organization in the world's most populous Muslim country. Now he seems likely to emerge as a political kingmaker after President Suharto leaves the scene, if he can keep the upper hand over activists who hope to meld politics and religion. Wahid, a half-blind cleric, is the driving force behind Muslim "traditionalists" who believe government should be secular. "The advantage of taking Islam out of politics is that it leaves the political institutions free to deal with the challenge of developing a more democratic structure, without the interference of Islam," he says through half-closed eyes and thick glasses.

As the May 29 election approaches, Wahid has already stepped into the kingmaker's role, actively nurturing potential successors to Suharto. In late April, in the remote town of Kebumen in Central Java, 10,000 people crowded around a stage as Wahid said a prayer on the first anniversary of the death of Suharto's wife, Siti Hartinah. At Wahid's side were two ambitious pretenders to the throne: the President's daughter Siti Hardiyanti Rukmana (known as Tutut) and army chief Gen. Hartono. A week later, Wahid joined a midnight vigil at the Jakarta home of opposition leader Megawati Sukar-noputri.

Wahid also has his own political supporters. They tend to be fiercely loyal to this 57-year-old, 130-kg grandson of the NU's founder, who called him a "wild child." The group is backed by a network of elderly kyais (Indonesia's Muslim nobility) and their mosques and schools across this 85% Muslim nation. Says Franz Magnis-Suseno, professor at the Driyarkara School of Philosophy in Jakarta: "The NU is real people power."

Wahid's independent tactics are a major stumbling block for "modernists," who want the government to harness Islamic power. Wahid has alienated the faction's de facto leader, Minister of Research and Technology B.J. Habibie, a Suharto protege known to have designs on the presidency. Wahid has also shunned Habibie's seven-year-old Indonesian Muslim Intellectuals Association, a springboard for aspiring cabinet members and military top brass.

Wahid is a great survivor. He narrowly won reelection as NU chairman in 1995. A year later, witnesses say, military agents incited a riot in Situbondo, an NU stronghold in East Java, burning down churches and killing a Pentecostal priest and her family. The purpose was to make it look as if Wahid was a militant fundamentalist who had organized the attacks. Wahid responded with a public apology since thousands of NU members were involved, a humble gesture that drew praise from kyais nationwide. Suharto then had little choice but to shake Wahid's hand for the TV cameras. "Now every instrument that was used to replace Wahid is being used to support him," says Cornelis Lay, professor of political science at Gadjah Madah University in Yogyakarta. "Wahid is not just a political figure. He's a political institution."

All is not calm

Time Magazine - May 26, 1997

Anthony Spaeth -- No one doubts that Suharto will win big in next week's election, but volatile Indonesia already is starting to plan a political future without him

Every five years, Indonesia goes through a process the government has dubbed a "festival of democracy." Candidates speak, crowds rally, pop singers entertain and, at the end of it all, a parliament is voted in. The democracy part has always been a sham: the People's Consultative Assembly is largely unelected, only two opposition parties are allowed and these are kept on a short leash. But no one could deny the festive aspect. Election campaigns were a time of fun, dancing, free food and a day off from work.

Not this time around. Campaigning concludes this week for national elections in an Indonesia turned remarkably tense and disgruntled. Suharto, 75, the country's President since 1967, proscribed campaign rallies altogether in fear of protest against his rule. Across the island of Java, where 70% of Indonesia's 200 million people live, the campaign has sparked provincial mayhem, in which opposing party members have attacked each other and confronted the armed forces in almost daily clashes. In the populous province of Central Java, workers for Suharto's ruling Golkar have been commanded to cover everything in the party's official color. Tree trunks, traffic circles and town-square statues are doused in yellow paint. "Its message," says Cornelis Lay, a political scientist at Gadjah Madah University in Yogyakarta, "is that every government official from the provincial governor down to the village headman is a Golkar member. You should be afraid not to vote for Golkar."

Suharto and Golkar won't fail to win the May 29 vote--by law, it's illegal to boycott an election and the ruling party has already announced the 70.02% share of the vote it intends to receive. But the level of disquiet across Indonesia suggests that Suharto may be in serious trouble after the polls are finished. His era has been marked by impressive management of the country's economy and its key national resources--oil, minerals and timber--increasing financial comfort for millions. But that no longer seems enough for the country's traditionally acquiescent masses.

Never before has criticism of Suharto's regime been so open, with particular rage expressed at the suffocating grip of the country's military. The President's attempt to keep a political rival, Megawati Sukarnoputri, from contesting the elections has backfired, creating a national figure with ambitions far beyond this week's vote. "There is growing sympathy among the people for me," Megawati told Time. "They still want me to be their leader." Also telling is widespread speculation that the President has lost his long-held wahyu, the magic powers thought to accompany a just rule--a concept believed by millions in Indonesia. "Every week, every month Indonesia has instability," says Permadi, the country's leading mystic, whom Suharto attempted to imprison in 1995. "The people know the President has lost his wahyu. Suharto knows his days are finished." Warns Y.B. Mangunwijaya, a prominent Catholic priest and former anti-colonial freedom fighter: "This is a very dangerous period. The Javanese are like volcanoes, smooth and beautiful and laughing and smiling. Suddenly, in one moment, you see the other side--and you don't know when or how the eruption will come."

So it suddenly seems. Just ten months ago, the biggest threat to Suharto's rule were rumblings of a heart disorder, for which he went to a cardiac hospital in Germany for a checkup. Today, Southeast Asia's most alarming news in a decade comes from the 17,000-island Indonesian archipelago. There's an anti-government underground student movement that claims thousands of sympathizers, discernible splits in the military--which is Suharto's traditional power base--and a national opposition figure in Megawati, daughter of former president Sukarno, whom Suharto helped overthrow in 1965 and succeeded two years later. That change of leadership was the only one Indonesia has experienced in the 51 years since gaining independence from the Netherlands. In quelling a 1963 communist coup attempt, the military set off a bloodbath in which some 500,000 people died. For three decades, Suharto has avoided naming a successor, or devising any kind of credible succession mechanism, for fear he would create a challenger to his dominance.

Together, all of these factors imply that the fourth most populous country in the world (after China, India and the U.S.) is riled, unruly--and possibly on the brink of a major political change for which it is unprepared. "There are frightening parallels with the Sukarno period," says Ong Hakkam, professor of history at the University of Indonesia--namely, rising discontent, little evidence the President can defuse it except with a crackdown, and no precedent for him to step down smoothly. Says Trimoelja Soerjadi, a human rights lawyer in the city of Surabaya: "Suharto is riding a tiger and he can't get off. And he hasn't prepared the nation for what comes after him." Trimoelja doesn't hesitate to predict what would happen if Suharto was to suddenly disappear from the scene: "Chaos, certainly."

That's a threat that has been taken seriously in Indonesia for decades. The desire to avoid a replay of 1965's holocaust has long enhanced the public's acceptance of Suharto's tough ways--basic freedoms such as genuine elections and an unshackled press are absent--and of the dwifungsi, or dual function, of the politically active Indonesian military. But the recent torchings of churches and Chinese businesses across Java have coincided with unrest in the provinces of East Timor, Irian Jaya, Aceh and Kalimantan. An escalation of strikes in military-patrolled factories--the army controls the nation's only legal labor union--shows, too, that the status quo is not being accepted anymore, or very staunchly defended. "All this has happened in a situation when the state is very, very weak," says political scientist Lay. Sources in the military tell TIME that some officers have already devised strategies to replace the President if unrest deepens. "Practically speaking, a leader has to die in prison or in bed in our system,"says Hakkam. "Suharto will always be remembered for his exit, not for what he has done. It is sad."

Until recently, it appeared the President would go down in history with a formidable reputation: as the engineer of one of the 20th century's greatest economic success stories--and, considering his family's cut in just about every major business in the land, one of Asia's more corrupt patriarchs. The level of corruption has prompted comparisons with the Philippines' Ferdinand Marcos, who was forced to flee his country in 1986. But present-day Indonesia is a far cry from the Philippines of a decade ago. Marcos had torpedoed the local economy--half the population didn't have enough work--and anti-Marcos protesters had little to lose, and little else to do but wage street revolution. Suharto's citizens have enjoyed a better fate. When he assumed control of Indonesia, per capita income was $55 and food riots were common. Today, per capita income is $1,300, and nobody is starving. "We have looked at this as carefully as we can," says Dennis de Tray, director of the World Bank's Indonesia office. "You cannot tell me that the benefits of Indonesia's growth over the past 30 years haven't been widely spread. At least 199 million people here are living better than they were ten years ago, let alone 20 years ago."

If they're so much better off, why do so many Indonesians seem so restless? Next week's elections were intended to be as predictable, controlled and undemocratic as the last five polls under Suharto's rule. Instead, they have evolved into the greatest airing of grievances since the mid-'60s. "We can no longer lie to the people," says Subagio Anam, a regional head of the United Development Party, one of the two non-Golkar parties allowed to contest. "Their political awareness is too high now." The complaining is not about jobs, corruption at the top, or even the kind of clamor for democratic freedoms heard in the Philippines in the mid-'80s, or South Korea a few years later. The biggest grievance is about the hardness of Suharto's state, where army-run factories refuse to pay proper wages, journalists are murdered and dissidents tortured, and a built-in constitutional imbalance favors the military, whose families get preference in university admissions and cadge virtually all civil-service jobs. "When I was in the marines, I always felt that dwifungsi was very wrong," says a Brigadier General who recently retired after 35 years. "It has become a monopoly for the armed forces. They've taken away the right of civilians to get good civilian jobs." According to Mangunwijaya, the priest: "The crowd is thinking, 'I have nothing and I am working hard.' The bad guys become big guys. For them this is a world of injustice and corruption." Justice, or the lack of it, is a concept that has come up often in the campaign. Last month, 12 pro-Megawati activists were sentenced to between 18 months and 13 years in prison for "undermining the state ideology and inciting students and workers to demonstrate against the government." Those charges stemmed from anti-government riots that rocked Jakarta last summer. Their lawyer, R. Dwiyanto Prihartono, officially complained about blatant flaws in the legal procedures and about the torture of two defendants during interrogation. His appeal for a new trial was rejected. "The army," says Prihartono, "told me this was not a period for justice." Suharto has not had to confront such problems before. He faces few of the human rights pressures from the West that bedevil dictatorships in China and Burma. Historians will probably say the turn in his fortunes was inevitable with age and a calcified regime. The more sentimentally inclined say the key moment was the death of his wife, Siti Hartinah, in April 1996. Madame Tien, as she was known, had made herself the kindly face of the Suharto regime by building a hospital and a national library and running four philanthropic foundations. Since her passing, diplomats who have seen Suharto at public functions say he appears demoralized and no longer interested in his job.

As Suharto heads toward his political eclipse, analysts are paying close attention to the fortunes of Megawati. As the eldest daughter of Sukarno--the legendary founder of Indonesia, who is credited with instilling the archipelago's hundreds of ethnic groups with a sense of national identity--she has one of the most recognizable names in the country, though for two decades she was content to be a housewife and florist. That changed in 1987, when she ran for the National Assembly as a member of the Indonesian Democratic Party, or PDI, the other legally recognized party. She became PDI chairman in 1993 and intended to run her own candidates in this election on a platform demanding term limits for future presidents and a dismantling of the business empires of the six Suharto children. Whether she could have made an impact in the tightly controlled legislature--57.5% of the People's Consultative Assembly and House of Representatives members are appointed by Suharto--is now moot, for Suharto wanted neither challenges in parliament nor a contentious campaign. Says Amien Rais, chairman of Muhammadiyah, Indonesia's second largest Islamic organization: "Absolute consensus is the name of the game. You cannot expect anyone to give a dissenting voice."

So last June, a group of PDI members met in the city of Medan on Sumatra island in a government-sanctioned effort to vote Megawati out of her chairmanship. Megawati wasn't invited, but Suharto's home affairs minister looked on, even though he isn't a party member. Hundreds of troops and armored cars guarded the meeting. Once ejected from the top job, Megawati had no chance to run for president in 1998, as she had been expected to do. (The president is selected every five years by an electoral college, which combines the People's Consultative Assembly and the House of Representatives.) In reaction, her loyalists laid siege to the PDI headquarters in Jakarta and for several weeks held an impromptu democracy movement outside the building. Anti-Suharto speeches rang out from bullhorns for the first time ever. On July 27, hired thugs dressed in PDI's trademark red T-shirts, but evidently not party members, attacked the building and tried to flush out Megawati's supporters. For three hours, a battle ensued with rocks, sticks and Molotov cocktails. Finally, riot troops had to drag out the dissidents, bloodied and unconscious, dumping them in the street. Some 10,000 onlookers went on a rampage that lasted for almost two days. During that mayhem, the police beat and arrested many, including civil servants who worked at a nearby Ministry of Agriculture building. Their children and neighbors marched into the street and burned it down in protest.

The ultimate victor of that battle was Megawati, who became an instant symbol of oppression under Suharto. During the four-week siege in Jakarta, and afterwards, disparate groups seized on Megawati as a rallying point against the state. They included intellectuals, civil rights lawyers and an underground student group known as the People's Democratic Party, or prd. Those young, often naive, activists, fanned out across Java to preach democracy, and they targeted Indonesians left behind in the economic upsurge: in particular, 19-to-24-year-old uneducated men. (The unemployment rate for young Indonesian males is one of the highest in Asia, partly because factories prefer to employ women, who are more willing to work long hours for low wages.)

Meanwhile, Megawati's lawyers, including 70 volunteers from the Jakarta-based Legal Aid Foundation, filed at least 200 lawsuits protesting her ouster from the PDI chairmanship. They knew they had little chance in court: in case after case, judges issued exactly the same ruling, often using the same words, rejecting the petitions. "I knew I would lose," says lawyer Budi Santosa, who handled one of the cases. "But I thought I must go to court to show the public we have the spirit to fight the government and build democracy."

Megawati is unsure of her future role, but she is still a rallying force in the campaign. (Last week the government banned the display of posters and banners bearing her photo.) Golkar is clearly going to win: all civil servants are required to vote for it, election fraud is historically rampant, and the official body that screened candidate lists last year carefully expunged Megawati's supporters from both the PDI and the PPP lists. But the campaign is nonetheless far less sterile than any in the past. The PPP, a Suharto-forced union of four pre-1965 Muslim- based parties, has actually endorsed her and seen a jump in its popularity. "Megawati's supporters don't know what to do," says James Agus Pattiwael, vice secretary-general of the PDI in Surakarta. "So they support the PPP."

That support has come with a hostile edge. In Central Java's Pekalongan town, crowds rioted in March, destroying the platform from which one of Suharto's daughters was scheduled to speak. Two similar incidents occurred in April. Motorists passing through the town's old quarter now drive under a green banner reading: "You are entering the Path of the Star," a reference to the PPP's star-shaped logo. On either side of the street are scorchmarks, shattered windowpanes--and graffiti accusing "corrupt dogs and warthogs" of ruining the country.

How the post-election scenario plays out is anyone's guess, but there are visible signs--astonishing for a country so tightly controlled--that Indonesia is going to change dramatically during the next five-year Suharto term. Two weeks ago, at a seminar on election reforms, three respected academics announced 25 ways of making the system more democratic. In attendance were high ranking generals and other leading Jakarta figures. When one professor was pressed by the audience on how the system could possibly be improved, he hesitated and then shocked the crowd: "Suharto," he said, "must step down." Recently, the President himself told a group of school children visiting his Cendana palace: "Many people want to see me ill."

Of his possible successors, the Jakarta elite has long kept a running list, which changes each time Suharto promotes or demotes a top general. Some sources say a likely candidate is Vice President Tri Sutrisno, 61, a retired general who keeps as low a profile as his office allows, considering his constitutional status as the President's replacement should Suharto be deemed no longer fit to rule. A senior diplomat says the most likely probability is that a weak transitional figure will take power while rival claimants mobilize their support. Five other personalities, or power combines, are considered as potential replacements:

• Siti Hardiyanti Rukmana, 49, Suharto's eldest daughter. Nicknamed Tutut, she is bright, ambitious and respected by the ruling party. In order to succeed, however, she needs military support, which she has garnered in an alliance with Army commander Gen. Hartono, 55. Tutut needs Hartono's support because "she will not be automatically accepted by key elements of society," says a senior diplomat in Jakarta. "There is a special relationship between her and Hartono," says a Golkar legislator. "He hopes Tutut will tell Suharto he's the right man for the job."
• Brig. Gen. Prabowo Subianto, 46, commander of the Special Forces. Prabowo, one of the fastest rising military men in the country, comes from a moneyed family and is married to Suharto's second oldest daughter, Siti Hedijati Hariyadi. But Suharto is said to have lost faith in him since July, when his forces were reportedly moving toward the President's residence as backup during the Jakarta riots, and Suharto suspected a possible coup attempt.
• B.J. Habibie, 50, Suharto confidant. Habibie has led Suharto's ambitious attempt to create an Indonesian aircraft industry and is said to be maneuvering for the vice presidency. He has hitched his wagon to Armed Forces commander-in-chief Gen. Feisal Tandjung, 57, who lacks the support of military rank-and-file and hopes to grow in power through Habibie.
• Megawati. She has the support of the underground movement and lots of public sympathy, but no military champions, with the possible exception of the Marines, former Sukarno loyalists who feel estranged from Suharto. Megawati's five siblings are prepared to take up her mantle if something happens to her. "There's an understanding in the family," she said in an interview with Time in early May.

Other powerful generals might get the nod, perhaps as transition figures. They include Gen. Wiranto, 50, commander of the Strategic Reserve; and Brig. Gen. Bambang Yudoyono, 46, another fast riser.

Shortly after his wife died, Suharto told Habibie he wouldn't run for president in 1998, preferring to spend his final years with his family. He was persuaded otherwise. But three months ago, the president received news that must have made him reconsider. His spiritual advisers informed him that the nail that anchored the island of Java to earth had come unstuck, a sign of impending calamity. By all accounts, Suharto puts great stock in such portents, and in February, he sent a trusted confidant to Yogyakarta, a traditionally mystical site in Java, to perform a ritual designed to repair the damage. It's not known if the President was fully assuaged--or whether he still feels the tremors of a land unstuck.

[Reported by John Colmey and Michael Shari/Java.]

How to rig a national election

Time Magazine - May 26, 1997

Michael Shari, Jakarta -- Two indonesian election officials were paddling down a river in Borneo's Central Kalimantan province during the 1992 general election. Their old wooden fishing boat was loaded with empty ballot boxes, blank ballots emblazoned with the logos of the three political parties, and a spike for voters to punch a hole through the symbol of their chosen party--an aid to the illiterate. "You're all voting for Golkar, right?" the officials shouted to peasants on the river bank, referring to the ruling party. Then they spiked the flimsy ballots several stacks at a time--right through Golkar's banyan tree logo--and stuffed the boxes. The peasants just laughed, says a member of parliament who heard the story from colleagues who were there. But after 30 years under President Suharto, many concerned Indonesians are no longer laughing. Instead, they are spearheading the country's first attempt to monitor an election independently. Funded indirectly by the U.S. Congress through the National Endowment for Democracy and trained by the Philippine watchdog Namfrel, hundreds of Indonesian volunteers who call themselves the Independent Election Monitoring Committee (KIPP) plan to watch for violations at the polling sites as they spike their own ballots May 29. "We know we cannot accomplish much in just one day," says Gunawan Mohamad, KIPP chairman and former editor of the banned magazine Tempo. "It may take several elections before we make a difference."

An even-handed election is clearly not on the government's agenda. In addition to the usual tricks that can be expected when it comes time to cast ballots, the campaign rules were tilted in Golkar's favor this year. Popular opposition leader Megawati Sukarnoputri is not allowed to run. Public gatherings are banned. Speeches are screened by election officials. No two parties are allowed to campaign on the same day, and the streets are cleared of opposition figures when Golkar cadres come out to lobby for votes. On the final day of the campaign, Golkar will have Indonesia's TV and radio stations to itself. KIPP has been told to stay away from the nation's 300,000 polling places. "Don't stick your nose in our kitchen," Abdul Gafur, a senior Golkar official, publicly warned in April.

So deeply embedded is Indonesia's tradition of trickery that few can imagine a fair election in the archipelago. In 1992, the vote count from remote South Sulawesi reached Jakarta suspiciously fast: just one day after the election. Months later, however, eyewitnesses reported seeing the discarded contents of ballot boxes floating down a river.

Historically, complaints of violations have fallen on deaf ears. In the 1992 election, several government-appointed monitors refused to sign a document approving the ballot count in the city of Yogyakarta because they had not been allowed to watch the voting. Their protest was ignored. "No one opened their mouths," says Angerjati Wijaja, one of the monitors. "We had no frame of reference of what had happened in other countries like the Philippines."

That's where KIPP comes in--to raise awareness of how elections can be rigged. Golkar appears ready for the challenge. At a high school on Java in April, modified ballots were drawn up for an election rehearsal for 17-year-olds who will be voting for the first time. The mock ballots showed only Golkar's banyan tree. The Indonesian Democratic Party's buffalo head and the United Development Party's five-pointed star had been erased.

Campaign violence: 'suppressed rage' and calls for reform

USIS Foreign Media Reaction Report - 28 May, 1997

The widespread violence that has marked the campaign leading up to tomorrow's parliamentary elections in Indonesia moved editors there and elsewhere in East and South Asia to speculate on the underlying causes of the unrest. Editorial voices in Indonesia and in neighboring Thailand spoke of the "pent-up" opposition and "rage" funneling the people's energies into the streets, since, as one Jakarta daily put it, voters had little reason to believe that "sovereignty is in their hands." Stating that "never has (Indonesia's) stability under Soeharto been challenged as severely as now," paper after paper--both in Indonesia and elsewhere--cited the "systemic" problems they viewed as the root causes of the rioting. "Corruption," "lack of transparency" and "rising social and economic discontent" ranked highest on the list, prompting most analysts to call for major political and economic reforms in order to preserve the stability and economic dynamism that has characterized Indonesia in the Soeharto era. Melbourne's liberal Age, for example, pointed out, "President Soeharto's economic miracles, backed by massive financial aid from other nations, have not been matched by an extension of democratic rights." Noting that "Indonesians have not been blind to the widening gap between rich and poor," the Age called on the Indonesian president to "take his country on a faster transition to democracy and reject any tendencies towards further repression."

The Indonesia media, usually very hesitant to criticize the status quo, were particularly outspoken on the issues of corruption and the lack of "true" democracy and dialogue. The leading, independent Jakarta Post stated uncompromisingly: "In Indonesia...the basic foundation of democracy, namely the culture of tolerance, is not only absent, it is being hindered by the government itself." In separate editorials, that same paper also chastised those who practiced "corruption"--once a taboo word in Indonesian journalistic circles--and lamented "the dearth of truly great politicians to represent the people for the next five years." Calling for "transparency and responsiveness" on the part of the Indonesian "elite," Jakarta's leading, independent Kompas was also outspoken in its conclusion that "ineffective control in the free market era has caused people, especially those in power, to become corrupt and insensitive." Even the Armed Forces' official Angkatan Bersenjata lamented: "Corruption and collusion are increasing rather than declining." Independent Media Indonesia, reflecting on the death toll in Banjarmasin, Kalimantan--where over 100 people died in a shopping mall fire following clashes between supporters of the ruling Golkar Party and the Muslim-dominated United Development Party--declared starkly, "What stays in mind is only the unrest.... Is something going wrong in our society?"

'After the cooling-off week'

Kathleen J. Brahney - April 18-May 28, 1997

Independent Media Indonesia opined (5/28): "During this cooling- off week, as we ponder programs and campaigners, it is difficult to draw logical conclusions. What stays in mind is only the unrest. However, there is nothing we can do. As bad as the political parties may be...we must vote for one as better than the others."

"Golkar's Evaluation Of The Election Campaign"

Ruling Golkar Party's Suara Karya determined (5/28): "It is inevitable that the next election campaign be refined so that the people can have a greater appreciation of political platforms. As society becomes more informed, public enthusiasm to vote will be determined by each party's program. Without improvement, it could be difficult to maintain a 90 percent voter turnout."

"We Are All Concerned Over Riots In Banjarmasin"

Leading independent Kompas analyzed the riots in Banjarmasin, Kalimantan, as follows (5/27): "If the riots in Banjarmasin really did claim 133 lives, this incident will have taken the greatest toll of the succession of riots. The death toll and damaged buildings have raised grave concerns.... The riots were prompted by numerous issues...including social, political, economic, and sociological gaps. Ineffective control in the free market era has caused people, especially those in power, to become corrupt and insensitive.... Not all problems can be solved by practical means. Many social issues can also be settled by humanitarian concern and affection.... Unity within the elite is necessary, along with transparency and responsiveness."

"Banjarmasin Tragedy"

The leading, independent Jakarta Post asserted (5/27): "In the present rigid political system, the campaign period has become a time to let off steam. Campaign time is the only chance people have every five years to air their grievances. Tightening the campaign rules, as the government tried to do this year, only deprived the people of that opportunity. From what we saw of this year's campaign, there is a lot of pent-up rage that, under the present system, could only be channeled through violence. The Banjarmasin tragedy has given the nation plenty to reflect on, as well as plenty of homework. But the nation's biggest task now is to find a more appropriate political system that is democratic and less prone to violence."

"Banjarmasin Disaster"

An assessment of Muslim intellectual Republika held (5/27): "The parties used issues of corruption, nepotism, and mismanagement to attract voters. However, they did not take responsibility for the exploration of these issues. The parties did not provide political education for the masses. On the contrary, they maintained the people's political ignorance."

"Grief In Banjarmasin"

Independent Media Indonesia wondered (5/26): "Are the recent incidents the result of a conspiracy or is it that something is going wrong in our society?"

"The Golput Phenomenon"

The leading, independent Jakarta Post concluded (5/26): "It is unfortunate that some campaigners have, knowingly or not, resorted to intimidation to get people to vote. Several campaigners have branded those who do not vote as opponents of the Pancasila (the official state philosophy) political system, or as 'free riders' in national development. Others have said those who vote are 'good citizens' and those who don't are 'bad citizens.' One could counter-argue that good citizens are those who abide by the law, pay taxes and refrain from any form of corruption, which all parties, judging by their campaign slogans, agree is a malady in our country." "Understanding The Background And Causes Of Unrest"

Leading, independent Kompas put forth this analysis (5/23) in an editorial: "Though intolerable, it is understandable that the feelings about sovereignty and freedom that emerge once every five years have kindled the courage to express long-suppressed dissatisfaction. Such circumstances raise the potential for riots and violence. If we follow this theory, then, preventing riots and violence would necessitate greater room for the people to believe that sovereignty is in their hands."

"Taking A Lesson From The 1997 Campaign"

Under the above headline, Armed Forces' Angkatan Bersenjata maintained (5/23): "The three parties were required to compete to raise the public's political awareness. It is a shame that that never happened. What stood out were the promises made only to buy votes.... The same themes were used as in campaigns past, with no action plans to support them. Thus, the campaigns were not able to placate the public. Contestants have promised to eradicate corruption and collusion, but corruption and collusion are increasing rather than declining."

"What Dialogues Are For"

The leading, independent Jakarta Post took this position (5/23): "If anything good has come out of the political dialogues that have characterized this year's campaign, it is this: we know this country has a dearth of truly great politicians to represent the people for the next five years. Whether at indoor meetings or on television, most of these dialogues have been flat, which to a large extent is a reflection of the quality of the candidates for the House of Representatives.... To make future campaign dialogues a more effective and meaningful political communication and education process, the entire electoral system must be reviewed.... In the meantime, it looks like we have to contend with untested second-rate politicians to represent us for the next five years. That is hardly comforting as we move into the 21st century, but we are stuck with them because the system says so."

"Taking A Lesson From Critical Foreign Newscasts"

The government-oriented Indonesian Observer published this op-ed piece (5/23) by former Foreign Minister Roeslan Abdulgani: "In the midst of the thundering general election campaign this year, we have...heard repeated complaints from the people at large about the behavior, arrogance (and) dishonesty...from forces that are eager to win the general elections through coercion and intimidation...especially from the established forces. We see this also as a reflection of the decline of morality in the social intercourse of a nation that has the Pancasila as its ideology. No wonder that there was a subsequent reaction."

"Liberal Democracy"

The government-oriented Indonesian Observer ran these observations (5/15) in an op-ed piece by Desi Anwar: "It is a curious thing that the more democratic a country is...the more rules there are around and the more disciplined an individual has to be.... For those unused to this concept of real democracy, particularly liberal democracy, the tendency is to view...democracy as undesirable because it allows people to do what they want without regarding other people's wishes or the consequences of one's actions; in other words, the overemphasis on individual rights that can undermine the collective rights. This of course, is nonsense.... Liberal democracy, far from being what authoritarian governments consider as excessive and irresponsible freedom, is actually the curbing of individual freedom for the sake of social responsibility and the common good. Democracy is about rules, regulations, the law, discipline and limits. If anything, democracy is not about freedom but about control, including the control of oneself. In a truly democratic society every individual is responsible for regulating his/her own actions while at the same time being limited by the confines of the law and the codes of social behavior."

"Violence Highlights The Campaign"

In an op-ed piece in the leading, independent Jakarta Post, Arief Budiman asserted (5/15): "We can identify two characteristics of the present campaign: no tolerance for others and violence as the language of present politics.... Let me contrast this situation with one that exists in the West.... People in the United States are used to having different opinions on any issue.... Different opinions are not only tolerated but are always sought after. It has become a basic need of people, just like food....[whereas in Indonesia], people have learned that if you want to play politics, you have to use power and violence, not intellectual arguments. This is surely not good news for the future of Indonesia's democracy. The basic foundation of democracy, namely the culture of tolerance, is not only absent, but is being hindered by the government itself. The July 27 drama, the sentencing of Mochtar Pakpahan, Sri Bintang Pamungkas and PRD [People's Democratic Party] leaders, and the treatment of Megawati and her PDI party are all good examples for people that, if you have power and can use violence, you can do anything."

"The 'Mega-Bintang' Phenomenon"

Leading, independent Kompas judged (5/14): "High-level officials campaigning for Golkar now have the opportunity to give speeches that arouse the emotions. Without such campaigns no one would listen to them. The crowd actually prefers to dance to live singers.... There have been no true dialogues, debates, or anything that excites thought.... Without the strict regulations, the dialogues could have become a tool for political education. It is strange that we have such strict regulations and discourage campaigners from initiating interesting dialogues."

"Orderly Campaigning"

Readers of Muslim, intellectual Republika saw this (5/14): "The latest interesting phenomenon in the campaign is Megawati supporters marching for the PPP. Under the regulations, 'Mega- Bintang' posters are inappropriate since there is no party of that name."

"Political Education Significant" According to nationalistic Merdeka (5/14): "During a Golkar campaign in Ujung Pandang, South Sulawesi, an attractive singer invited a member of the crowd onto the stage, and asked him why he was at the rally. He answered that he was going to vote for the singer. Finding his answer ridiculous, the singer repeated her question, only to receive the same answer. The singer then amended the person's statement to say that he was there to choose Golkar....

"This demonstrates that we must prioritize political education, as man will not be content with bread and cake alone."

"Banning Banners--Ruling Golkar Stoops Low To Gain Votes"

An editorial in the government-oriented Indonesian Observer noted (5/14): "Now comes this ruling that bans the Mega- Bintang banners. This may prove to be the last straw for those who seek change but may yet vote for Golkar. Indeed, there seems to be no limit on how low one is prepared is prepared to stoop to emerge victorious."

"Campaign Or Carnival?"

Under the above headline, independent Media Indonesia queried (5/12): "Festival of democracy? It seems that there is a big mistake. There are festivals in the streets, although they have nothing to do with democracy.... What we see in the streets is an authoritarian system. Therefore, it is of great concern if authoritarian activity is considered a festival of democracy. This is faulty political education and we have the obligation to clear up the misconception."

"Alliance For Change"

The leading, independent Jakarta Post said (5/12): "The emergence of a new political alliance, albeit unofficially, between supporters of...Megawati and the PPP is probably about the only surprise anyone can expect from this year's general election.... The strongest message that the new alliance is sending is that the demand for political reforms in this country is growing.... The new alliance will not likely dent Golkar's election chances, but the message it has sent--that there is a growing undercurrent of demand for political reforms--cannot simply be dismissed."

"Whom Do Legislators Represent?"

The leading, independent Jakarta Post featured this column (5/10) by Soedjati Djiwandono on page one: "It seems almost certain that the (upcoming) election will ultimately sustain the present status quo.... It is even doubtful if most members of the new assembly, which is supposed to be the supreme governing body in the Indonesian political system...know much about reform, recognize the need for it, know how to implement it, or have the courage to introduce the idea and initiate steps towards it.... Most parliament members are...carpetbaggers."

Australia: "Elections, Indonesian Style"

The editorial in the liberal Melbourne daily Age (5/27) read: "Since it seized independence after World War II, Indonesia has made extraordinary economic advances, and yet there are increasing signs of dissent which lay bare a fragility in the political system. President Soeharto's economic miracles, backed by massive financial aid from other nations, have not been matched by an extension of democratic rights. Indonesians have not been blind to the widening gap between rich and poor.... As President Soeharto weighs the implications of Indonesia's month of unrest, it is to be hoped that, with encouragement from Australia and other countries, he will take his country on a faster transition to democracy and reject any tendencies towards further repression."

"Indonesian Poll Poses Questions"

The national conservative Australian commented (5/26): "Despite the violent clashes that have been an ugly feature of the campaign...the result is not in doubt.

"The ruling Golkar Party will win.... This is not a democratic election as Australians understand the term.... President Soeharto almost certainly will stand for another five-year term...(and) he will not be opposed. The interest, therefore, is on who becomes his vice-president and putative successor.... As prime minister, Mr. Paul Keating elevated the political relationship with Indonesia to the same plane as Japan and the United States.... In trade and investment, the ties remain strong... Within Indonesia's 200 million people. a growing middle class attracts Australian commercial interest. The challenge for Indonesia is to preserve stability and economic growth by spreading the wealth beyond the rich and middle class. Its governments task must be to act for the wider community...and to foster genuine mass political participation."

"Why U.S. Can't Ignore Jakarta"

The op-ed page of the conservative Australian (4/22) ran this commentary by its foreign affairs editor: "It is worth pointing out that it is vastly hypocritical for the UN Human Rights Commission to criticize Indonesia, but not China.... So far, Indonesia does not have a strategy for dealing with Washington's strategic amnesia and policy flip-flops. There is no Indonesian constituency in Washington in the way there is a China constituency or a Taiwan constituency. With the Cold War over, Washington hardly knows Southeast Asia exists. For Washington, Asia tends to be Japan and China, Taiwan and sometimes Korea.... Canberra has been telling Washington that it needs to ensure that overall it has a good relationship with Jakarta and one that doesn't sway dangerously with whatever breeze is blowing through Washington."

"Human Rights In East Timor And China"

The liberal Sydney Morning Herald noted (4/18): "The resolution passed by the UN Human Rights Commission criticizing Indonesia for violations of human rights in East Timor, raises the question of whether that commission is guilty of double standards. Just the day before, the same body voted down a resolution criticizing China's human rights record. Indonesia can hardly be described as a minnow in world affairs, but it certainly lacks the international clout of the emerging China.... But once countries decide to make moral judgments about the behavior of other countries, there will always be inconsistencies and there will always be a splitting of moral hairs. That is not sufficient reason, however, for liberal democracies not to include human rights as an aspect of foreign policy."

Philippines: "Three Elections: Iran, France, Indonesia"

Former envoy to Europe, J.V. Cruz, penned this for the independent Manila Chronicle (5/26): "The bloodiest of the three election campaigns has been Indonesia, where more than 100 people have been killed during the month-long campaign for the parliament that will then elect the president.... This has been the bloodiest election yet during the three-decade-long reign of President Soeharto, who will, of course, be elected to a new term. Whether he lives long enough to complete it, and who will succeed him if he does not, are the questions that may be of greater concern to the Indonesians (who will vote May 29) as well as to their neighbors in our region. Never has the country's stability under Soeharto been challenged as severely as now."

South Korea: "Ruling Party Eyes 70% Of Seats In Indonesia"

Conservative Chosun Ilbo commented (5/12): "With the general election ten days away, the Indonesian public is interested in knowing whether the ruling party will obtain a landslide victory or not. The Golkar Party, which has ruled since 1971, is trying to win 350 seats. This upcoming general election, which is considered to be a dress rehearsal for the presidential election of March next year, is of great importance to President Soeharto, who will run for his seventh term. "As the Indonesian government limited the opposition parties' campaign activities, including outdoor rallies, and prohibited the strongest candidate, Megawati, from running, the opposition parties have little chance of achieving a surprise victory. Furthermore, the overall economic situation puts the ruling party in an advantageous position."

Thailand: "It Is Time The Old Man Steps Down With Dignity"

Cafe Dam of elite, business-oriented Krungthep Turakij commented (5/23), "Today's more politically-conscious generation of Indonesians are asking themselves whether they still want to be subjected to one-man rule.... They wonder who will inherit the helm in case of Soeharto's sudden departure. Should it be one of his close associates? The elections are for real. They are no longer a staged farce because the long pent-up, frustrated opposition and public are now ready to exert a claim for their legitimate rights.... It is time for the (Indonesian) leader to step down gracefully unless he wants to be gotten rid of in the same manner as he ousted Sukarno."

Bangladesh: "Repressive Pre-Election Policies"

Conservative Ittefaq declared (5/25): "The fact is that in Indonesia, opposition parties are never allowed to be active. Some opposition does try to emerge now and then and labor organizations try to take anti-government stances. But they cannot last long because of the oppressive policy of the Indonesian government.... Despite all this, the human rights situation in Indonesia is not as bad as it is in Burma. Soeharto's rule, though fully autocratic, is benevolent in some sectors. Newspapers can function freely within a very limited scale. Moreover, Soeharto has been able to show some real economic growth for Indonesia--about eight percent in the current decade.... But Soeharto is not showing any signs to create a trend for changing power in a democratic way. The decisions of his relatives are more active in Indonesia. For this reason, despite economic growth, unrest is increasing in Indonesia.

"Simmering Tensions In Indonesia"

The independent Bangladesh Observer pointed out (5/24): "One of the frequent accusations heard outside Indonesia is that the Muslim majority in Indonesia is attempting to force Islam on East Timor through transmigration of Muslims from other parts of Indonesia. The Nobel prize awarded to the two supporters of self-determination for East Timor has raised East Timor's profile again internationally and given a boost to the resistance movement activists to fight for Timorese independence. There is no doubt that ethnic tensions and violence spreading sporadically are nothing new in Indonesia. Tensions generally stem from the government's 'transmigration policy,' which resettles people from crowded islands to less populated ones. This often spark outbursts, culminating into violent riots."

Separatist rebels disrupt election in Aceh

Jakarta Post - May 30, 1997

Banda Aceh -- Troops repulsed suspected Free Aceh Movement separatist rebels approaching a polling station in Pidie regency yesterday, the police said.

Pidie police chief Lt. Col. Teuku Keumala said troops were engaged in a brief shootout with rebels in army-like uniforms at 10:30 a.m. near the polling station.

A resident was killed and the subdistrict head injured, he said. He declined to identify the resident or whether any of the attackers were wounded or captured.

Police on duty then loaded the ballot boxes onto a military truck bound for Bandar Baru subdistrict where the ballots were counted.

Also transported to Bandar Baru were the polling station's chief and the United Development Party's, Golkar's and the Indonesian Democratic Party's scrutineers.

Keumala said the authorities believed the suspected rebels were the same people involved in the burning of a base camp of logging concessionaire PT Tri Jasa Mas Karya Inti in Pidie at 2 a.m. yesterday.

'The burning of the base camp was reported to a nearby police station by two of the company's employees who managed to escape the fire and the attackers,' he said.

The rebels had been spotted Wednesday; apparently they surveyed the area, he said.

Pidie residents did not seem to be affected by the incident. People thronged polling stations throughout the day.

Aceh Governor Syamsuddin Mahmud said yesterday that people's participation in the general election was heartening.

'As you can see, people crowded the polling stations. It shows that their political awareness has improved,' he told reporters, who accompanied him in an inspection to several polling stations in teh Banda Aceh mayoralty and nearby Aceh Besar regency. In the past, he said, turnout was not as high as expected.

Most of the shops, government and private offices, intercity bus and domestic public transportation terminals were closed in the morning as voters thronged the available 7,352 polling stations in the province. Eligible voters in the province number 2,204,994.

The governor denied reports that he would dismiss village chiefs in the area where Golkar lost.

Prabowo absent when the palace family votes

SiaR - May 30, 1997

Jakarta -- The Kopassus commander, Major General Prabowo Subianto, was not present a the Gondangdia polling station, Jl Cendana 31 when president Suharto's family voted in the general elections (29/5) yesterday. Except for husband of Titiek Hediati Prabowo, all of Suharto's sons and daughters attended accompanied by their husbands and wives at the polling station, including Tommmy's new wife. It is not clear why Prabowo did not attend.

The non-apperence of Prabowo at this important event has created speculation that the rumors which have been circulating recently, that there is no mutual agreement between Prabowo and Suharto, are true.

As already reported by Siar, Prabowo the son of a Indonesian Socialist Party figure, Prof Dr Soemitro Djojohadikusumo, is angry with Suharto. The Kopassus commander is angry because Suharto has accused his father of "playing behind the scenes" along with Soebadio Sastrosatomo who published the book "New Era New Leader, Badio Rejects New Order Manipulations (Era Baru Pemimpin Baru, Badio Menolak Rekayasa Rezim Orde Baru).

The basis of the Prabowo-Suharto hostility, according to information obtained by SiaR, began during the July 27 incident. At that time Jakarta rioted and the Red Berets encircled Suharto's residence in Jl Cendana. Prabowo's intent to deploy elite army soldiers to the Cendana was no more than to protect Suharto's family.

However Suharto's reaction was instead the opposite. Suharto believed that Prabowo, considering that he was already enfeebled with age, would carry out a coup d'etat against him. Certainly Prabowo was annoyed when Suharto connected the name of his father in the Soebadio case which is in the middle of being handled by the police because he [Soebadio] is being accused of insulting Suharto.

According to a SiaR source, the Suharto-Prabowo antagonism had an impact on Prabowo's promotion. In the big race within ABRI [Armed Forces] which was planned after the general elections, Prabowo will only be appointed as the Diponegoro Commander although he had requested the position of KSAD representative with the rank of Lieutenant General.

Meanwhile Prabowo's rivals such as Lieutenant General Wiranto, Major General Agum Gumelar (Wirabuana Commander), Major General Bambang Yudhoyono (Sriwijaya Commander) and Major General Luhut Panjaitan (National Infantry Commander) will take over the ABRI leadership replacing the leadership of General Feisal Tanjung, Lieutenant General. Syarwan Hamid General Hartono.

[Unbridged translation from SiaR - James Balowski]

US urges change in political system

Reuters - May 30, 1997

Washington -- The United States called for changes in Indonesia's political system on Friday, as the Asian country's ruling party swept to an overwhelming victory in parliamentary elections.

``The United States believes that parliamentary elections are tightly controlled by the government of Indonesia," State Department spokesman John Dinger said.

"The electoral system severely limits political competition; Indonesian citizens do not have the ability to change their government through democratic means."

Dinger noted that one independent election monitoring group said that while Friday's election proceeded smoothly, some problems were reported, including multiple voting, intimidation of party witnesses, discrimination in treatment of voters and various procedural irregularities.

The monitoring group also found that the entire election process lacked transparency, Dinger said.

"We do hope the government of Indonesia takes steps to investigate those allegations and takes corrective action if needed," he said. ``More broadly, we also believe Indonesia should move toward a political system in which the will of the people can be heard." Indonesia's ruling Golkar party, in power for most of President Suharto's 30-year rule, was assured of winning even before the start of a campaign that saw the worst political violence in the world's fourth most populous country in three decades.

Golkar had taken a record 74 percent of the 105 million votes counted out of a potential 125 million by Friday evening, up from 68 percent in the last poll in 1992.

Watchdog declares election unfair

Reuters - May 30, 1997

Jakarta -- An independent election monitoring group said on Monday national polls on Thursday would not be fair because they favoured the ruling Golkar party.

Mulyana Kusumah, secretary-general of the Indonesian Election Monitoring Committee (Kipp), said the election process was neither free nor fair.

Nearly 125 million people are eligible to vote for 425 elected seats in the House of Representatives following a 27-day campaign that ended last Friday.

The other 75 seats are reserved for the military that does not vote.

Kipp, set up last year ahead of the national and local elections held every five years, said it had recorded a number of violations.

It said state television had given Golkar substantially more air time than the other two parties, the Muslim-oriented United Development Party and the Christian-Nationalist Indonesian Democratic Party.

Kipp urged the People's Consultative Assembly, the highest constitutional body, to guarantee a democratic poll.

The assembly, comprising the 500 members of parliament and 500 appointed members, will meet next March to elect the president and vice-president and approve government policy.

Kipp also said violence during the campaign, which culminated in the deaths of more than 140 people in a shopping mall fire and riots in South Kalimantan province last Friday, was caused by social discontent among the people. Three members of Kipp are currently in prison convicted of subversion, defamation and inciting riots.

Golkar wins landslide victory

Voice of America - May 31, 1997

Jenny Grant, Jakarta -- provisional results show that President Suharto's Golkar Party won another landslide victory during Indonesian elections last week. But as Jenny Grant reports from Jakarta, the Muslim Party has come in a strong second because the government damaged the other minority party.

Usman, a Jakarta taxi driver, said he and about 20 of his friends voted for the Muslim-backed United Development Party - The P-P-P - at their village polling booth in Karawang, West Java, Thursday.

But when the count was over, election officials announced the ruling Golkar had won all of the votes at Usman's poling station. Officials claimed there was not one P-P-P vote in the box.

Usman said he and his friends are angry at a system which has shut their voices out.

In the latest tally, Golkar has won around 74 percent of the votes, the Muslim-backed United Development Party 23 percent and the Indonesian Democracy Party less than 3 percent.

But with stories like Usman's all over the country, Golkar has clearly not won the hearts of Indonesians.

Sociologist Arief Budiman says in rural areas villagers are pressured to vote Golkar if they want to maintain good relationships with the village head.

"The majority of Golkar votes come from the village, from peasants, and usually they are afraid. There is a risk not to vote for Golkar. The village heads know if they don't fulfill the target they wil lose their jobs, so they will try very hard to make the villagers vote for Golkar."

All yees are not on the Muslim Party which has already taken the radical step of demanding a re-vote in Provinces where ballots were not counted openly.

In the province of Madura - a P-P-P stronghold - the local governor said the government would consider a re-vote. He said some ballot boxes went missing in election night riots which left two people injured. Mr. Budiman says the government only has itself to blame for the new-found power of the Muslim Party and the weak performance of the Indonesian Democracy Party - the P-D-I.

"The destruction of P-D-I made the P-P-P emerge as the party that confronts the government."

Last year the government and military backed a rebel P-D-I congress which deposed the popular Megawati Sukarnoputri as leader and installed Suryadi to head the party.

Many P-D-I voters switched allegiance to the P-P-P.

The unpopular Mr. Suryadi said on Friday the P-D-I's loss, from 15 percent at the 1992 polls to just under 3 percent, was "drastic". He said party leaders were very concerned about the defeat.

The portest votes and abstentions - known here as Golput - actually beat the P-D-I to third place in the Central Java towns of Yogyakarta and Solo, the protest vote reached between 15 percent and 20 percent.

Political analyst at the University of Indonesia Arbi Sanit said the P-P-P could become a formidable opposition if it aligns itself with pro-democracy forces.

Despite the strong performance of the Muslim P-P-P and riots against the government during the election campaign, Golkar was never seriously challenged for first position.

Juwono Sudarsono, Vice Governor of a military think-tank, The National Defence Institute, says 30 years of Golkar rule has made Indonesians cynical about change.

"It's a general resignation that the forces, both the business and economic forces, are just too strong in favour of the incumbent party and the government."

Golkar is the most efficient and experienced of the three parties after winning six consecutive terms in office. But it will now have to contend with a stronger Muslim voice in national politics.

Portugal 'does not recognise any validity' of elections in Timor

Lusa News - May 30, 1997 Sintra, Portugal -- "Portugal does not recognise any validity in the elections that took place in East Timor on May 29, as a result of the illegal extension to that territory of the legislative elections in Indonesia", the government has said in a statement.

Portuguese Foreign Minister Jaime Gama said also on Thursday that Lisbon had made a formal complaint to the United Nations and made contacts with its European partners to condemn the way Indonesia was handling the elections.

Gama said "elections in Indonesia have not been free".

In East Timor, an occupied territory, those elections could not have been free, and the people there have shown that they do not accept occupation and annexation".

He added "they want self-determination".

East Timorese activist and 1996 Nobel Peace Prize co-laureate, Jose Ramos Horta, called the elections a "fraud".

Poll violations

Voice of America - May 30, 1997

Jenny Grant, Jakarta -- Indonesia's poll watchdog on Friday blasted violations and fraud in the nation's general elections held a day earlier. As Jenny Grant reports from Jakarta the Moslem-backed United Development Party demanded a re-vote in some provinces.

The Independent Election Committee - KIPP - cited multiple voting and intimidation of party observers as some of the violations that occurred on polling day.

Mulyana Kusumah, the Secretary General of KIPP, said 8,000 of the group's volunteers monitored 609 polling stations in 13 cities on polling day.

"In 21 percent of the polling stations we have evidence that puts the result of that polling station in doubt."

The group said there was evidence of double voting in 15 percent of the polling places and violent incidents at six percent of monitored areas.

Party observers were forced to leave 7.7 percent of the polling stations monitored and votes were not counted openly in seven percent of the places.

The chairman of the poll watchdog organization, Goenawan Mohammad, said the violations were systematic because organisers of the elections worked for the ruling Golkar Party, headed by President Suharto.

"Due to the fact that the elections were organised by the bureaucracy and those bureaucrats were forced to maintain a high level of percentage for Golkar, so there was a systematic tendency to violate the rules."

The Moslem-backed United Development Party - The P-P-P - on Friday demanded a re-vote in areas where ballots were counted in secret.

Secretary General of the P-P-P, Tosari Widjaya, said scores of ballot boxes were not opened in the polling booths, but were taken to sub-district government offices to be counted.

The party said it would refuse to sign the relection results unless the General Election Institute responded to the complaints.

The Moslem Party said it is considering legal action against the government over the poll violations.

The government has not yet responded to accusations the elections were not free or fair.

Mr. Widjaya said he had reports that six people were killed in riots on the island of Madura, off the coast of Java.

The riots erupted on election night Thurssday when supporters of the Moslem Party became enraged at early indicators Golkar had seized a huge victory.

Thousands of people went on the rampage in the Marueses town of Sampang, burning government offices, a housing comples and a church.

In the first full day of counting, the P-P-P scored over 23 percent of the votes. Golkar has won around 74 per cent and a badly damaged Indonesian Democracy Party has just under 3 percent. Final results will be announced on June 10.

Claims of widespread irregularities in Indonesian poll

Radio Australia - May 31, 1997

Election analysts in Indonesia are claiming widespread irregularities in the country's general elections.

The Jakarta-based Independent Election Monitoring Committee said it had evidence of ballots by unregistered voters, and some people voting twice.

Spokesman Gunawan Mohammad said bureaucrats were forced to maintain a high level of voter turnout for President Suharto's ruling Golkar party. .

The group said it had 8-thousand volunteers at 600 polling stations across Indonesia.

With 84-per-cent of the vote counted, Golkar has 74-per-cent of the vote.

Of the two opposition parties, the Muslim-based United Development Party polled nearly 23-per-cent.

The deeply-split Indonesian Democratic Party was crushed...it's vote dropped from 15-per-cent in 1992 to three-per-cent .

Analysts saw PDI's demise as a moral victory for Sukarnoputri Megawati, who was ousted as leader last year...she was banned from standing this year.

Restive Indonesians find little hope in vote

New York Times - May 29, 1997

Seth Mydans, Jakarta -- Something happened on the way to the thoroughly engineered government landslide that is widely expected on Thursday in a parliamentary election here in the world's fourth most populous country.

An often violent monthlong campaign produced an outpouring of disaffection with the 31-year rule of President Suharto, a tenure that has brought Indonesia increasing prosperity but little political openness or redress for grievances.

Although the government has sought to control every aspect of the vote -- restricting campaign activities, mobilizing government workers, vetting candidates for all three parties and reviewing their speeches -- a widespread restiveness and frustration have made themselves felt in rallies, riots and a broad and illegal campaign to boycott the vote. "I want to see change in Indonesia," Mohammad Feli, a 21-year-old art student, said as he eyed the soldiers guarding his alley here in the capital as the campaign ended last week.

"There is too much unemployment in Indonesia," he said. "I want justice and equality for everyone. I want human rights. I want a system like overseas, like in America."

But in an election-eve speech on Wednesday, Suharto said democratic development in Indonesia would be "a long process." He asserted that a strictly-controlled political system was necessary to assure stability and economic development.

The riots that have shaken the country since last July, when mobs rampaged through Jakarta, appear only to have strengthened the government's sense that Indonesia is too volatile to allow for greater openness.

"What we have seen in the streets is the revenge of the poor," said Juwono Sudarsono, vice governor of the Indonesian defense college.

"A lot of my colleagues argue for American-style openness," he said. "They talk of the cut and thrust of democracy. Well, you get a real cut and thrust here, with people using knives to kill each other. Openness among the poor is like giving them a lethal weapon."

Elections in this nation of 200 million people, which the government calls "festivals of democracy," are designed more as ritual than substance, offering a rare forum every five years for political expression but producing little effect on the country's leadership.

The 500-seat Parliament, made up of 425 elected representatives and 75 members of the military, is largely ceremonial. If Suharto, 75, chooses to stay on for a seventh term, as most people expect, he will be endorsed next year by a People's Consultative Assembly in which Parliament will be joined by 500 additional delegates selected by the government.

And even if Suharto, known for his surprises, chooses to retire, there is no strong opposition figure in a position to replace him. When people speculate about the future, the guessing game is over who the president might select to carry on his legacy.

Over the years, he has seen to it that no potential successor emerged. He has named a new vice president with each election, and a chief virtue of the current incumbent, Try Sutrisno, is said to be his blandness. A year ago, when the leader of one of the non-governmental parties, Megawati Sukarnoputri, showed signs of presenting a real opposition, the government engineered her ouster as party chief.

The split that resulted has in effect neutered her party, the Indonesian Democratic Party. The government's election board did not approve either Mrs. Megawati or her supporters as candidates.

Last week, Mrs. Megawati -- the daughter of the nation's first president, Sukarno -- announced that she would not vote on Thursday.

But despite the restlessness born of his long tenure and of the country's stunted democratic system, Suharto has stated repeatedly that "we will not change a system that has proven effective."

Some foreign and Indonesian political experts suggest that the recent violence was as least in part a result of the frustration and political immaturity bred by Suharto's closed political system.

An Indonesian election monitoring group that is not sanctioned by the government asserted this week that the campaign violence resulted from "inadequate political room and inadequate socialization of nonviolent values and the accumulation of social frustration."

With shocking suddenness, a variety of local conflicts have exploded into convulsions of vandalism, arson and looting often aimed at the Chinese and Christian minorities, who are seen as symbols of affluence in Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim nation. Banks, shopping centers, car dealerships and government offices have been attacked, as well as churches and Buddhist temples.

In one of the worst incidents, as many as 130 people died on the last day of the campaign in the remote town of Banjermasin when they were trapped in a shopping center that was set on fire by rioters.

But although the government system has hardly changed over the last three decades, Indonesia has undergone broad transformations that are straining the social fabric.

The economy has continued to grow at 7 percent to 8 percent a year, and the inflation rate has been held to less than 7 percent. Jakarta has swollen into a vast and increasingly modern metropolis. But economic growth has brought sharp disparities in wealth, widespread unemployment and underemployment, rapid urbanization and social disruption and unredressed seizures of land for new factories, supermarkets, golf courses, housing developments and whole new towns carved out of the rice fields.

One of the main problems Suharto's government faces is an income gap. A thin layer of society has grown very wealthy very quickly. A broad underclass remains very poor. In between, only about 18 million people make up a middle class that Juwono said might form the basis of a healthy democracy.

Another crucial problem is a generation gap. The violence and the most passionate opposition rallies have mostly involved the young and the poor, a fast-growing sector that some analysts say is the greatest threat to stability.

Of the nearly 125 million eligible voters, fully 20 million have reached voting age only since the last election. Many are unemployed and angry, with some 2.1 million seeking to enter the work force each year.

More than 80 million people are too young to remember the poverty, hunger and political chaos of the 1960s, when Suharto came to power. They did not experience the purge of Communists in 1965 that led to the deaths of 500,000 people.

They take for granted the near-universal schooling, health care and basic services the government has provided over the last three decades.

Newly connected to the outside world through mass communications, they are demanding more say in local and national affairs. They are protesting widespread corruption, government abuses and an often unresponsive local government and judiciary system.

These themes distilled themselves into a generalized mood of defiance and dissatisfaction in the final days of the campaign.

"We are the party of the poor!" a demonstrator in Jakarta shouted, waving the green banner of the United Development Party.

An unemployed bus driver named Ambrosius looked on from among the soldiers who guarded the streets.

"The future is gloomy," said Ambrosius, 47, who like many Indonesians uses only one name. "So many people have no job. There has to be change."

His friend Hilarius, who is also unemployed, saw little hope of that. "Whoever is in charge, we are still going to be coolies," he said. "That's the reality. Change is going to take many years."

Voices behind the vote

Australian Financial Review - May 29, 1997

Greg Earl, Jakarta -- Mudrick Sangidoe points to his colourful new hat before his third audience in as many hours: "My brother brought this back from Chechnya. I wear it to show we are part of the international Muslim struggle for democracy."

The crowd erupts in approval. Their new hero has hit all the right buttons. Democracy for the restless youth. A holy struggle for the pious. Globalism for the emerging Muslim middle class. And a dash of style in a political culture looking for change.

His family might run a batik factory and his Muslim party supporters might favour green, but today Mudrick has worn his new hat with Levi's and a snappy blue shirt. Before a crowd that swings from feudal-looking preachers to wild youths clad in body paint, his clothes only serve to underline his cross-over politics.

As the broker of a proposed alliance between the once moribund Muslim United Development Party (PPP) and disenfranchised supporters of ousted opposition figure Megawati Soekarnoputri, the 54-year-old politician has emerged from the election with a support base that will almost certainly make itself heard again.

Mudrick has built an unprecedented coalition between the two big opposition blocks in Indonesian politics, and the result is that anti-government sentiment is now more focused. It has been an achievement enabled by the Government's strategic blunders.

For almost three decades, Indonesian elections have been dominated by a single overriding message from the Soeharto government: Vote Golkar and develop. It has been a winning formula which, despite the rioting of the past few weeks, would almost certainly triumph again today even if the Government's Golkar Party were forced to give up its privileged access to government and military resources.

But when Golkar wins its much forecast and aggressively sought 2 per cent increase in voter support to about 70 per cent, it will be the people who spurn the Government's rich cocktail of pork barrel and power who will be laying the basis for change in Indonesia. While many foreign businesspeople have an almost mystical belief that Soeharto-style stability will prevail in Indonesian forever, the election has opened a window on the immense religious and political diversity at the heart of the country, which any successful future leader will simply have to accommodate.

Military force remains an alternative means of control, but not one that many people in the armed forces may want to employ on behalf of an untested future president, given the trouble they have had containing protesters despite all the training and preparation for this election.

Dr Herb Feith, who wrote the classic history of Indonesia's 1950s experiment with democracy, says: "As I see it, the central problem of the transition we are now apparently entering is how to involve some or all of the newly emerging groups, whose participation would create a sense of new hope and new vision, while offering reassurance to the main groups represented in the present arrangement."

Over more than 20 years the Soeharto Government has created its own political lexicon in a sustained bid to depoliticise the country in favour of economic development. Indonesia has a floating mass which doesn't worry about politics between elections, "Pancasila Democracy", in which there is no conflict, and a non-government party (not opposition).

But while Soeharto has been remarkably successful in achieving half the plan by weaving a fractious bunch of islands and ethnic groups into a major industrial nation, he appears unable to accept that decades old conventional political differences remain embedded in the modern nation's psyche.

Few people expect the real impact to be felt until the 75-year- old president finally leaves the scene, but the election campaign has wrought three significant changes on his purpose-built political system.

The vote boycott is now a well-rehearsed political tool, despite government efforts to portray abstention as unpatriotic. The carefully structured three-party system has been challenged by the so-called Mega-Bintang (the PPP symbol) alliance between some members of the two non-government parties. And Muslim electoral politics has been enlivened by a mix of radical and new middle- class support for the PPP.

The emergence of Mudrick, the PPP's leader in the central Java city of Solo, says a lot about the way the once politically deft Soeharto inner circle has mishandled the demand for moderate change, underlined by the rise of Megawati, but really extending more broadly in the population.

The PPP and Megawati's loyalists first came together in Solo in January when the provincial governor embarked on a ham-fisted campaign to boost the Golkar vote by painting the town in the party's yellow colour. Under Mudrick's guidance, the anti-Golkar white campaign that followed in Solo spiralled into an unexpected marriage of convenience between some of Megawati's Christian/nationalist/radical supporters and some parts of the Muslim PPP. "This [proposed] merger of Megawati and the PPP is the result of a government mistake," says the Solo broker who has nonetheless ridden this new political horse as far as he can. "It's not really the work of the PPP."

The full implications of these developments will take time to unfold. Initially, a substantial increase in voter abstention will cast a cloud over the legitimacy of the Golkar victory.

Next year there could be support from within PPP ranks when Megawati tries to win back the PDI helm from the discredited leadership, which is backed by the Government. If there is no change in the current of either the PDI or the PPP in response to the election, the demand for new parties or non-party political movements could explode.

But under an alternative scenario, Indonesia may now be facing a two-horse political race between the development-oriented Golkar and the Muslim-oriented PPP. This could be one way to open the system to greater competition, although it would have worrying implications if the Muslim party was always the loser.

Regardless of these outcomes, the real significance of the election is that, under the veneer of uniformly glossy shopping centres and happy rice farmers, political diversity lives in Indonesia. Whether Soeharto bequeaths his successor the means to deal with it will be his epitaph.

Take the election of the government-backed executive committee of the PDI under military supervision last June to replace the popularly elected leader Megawati: even these government-favoured candidates still identified with parties banned decades ago. When newspapers listed the members of this peculiarly short-term New Order body, they could identify each of the committee members as a representative of one of the five parties that Soeharto forced together to create the PDI in 1973.

The list simply demonstrated how many members of both officially allowed non-government parties -- the PDI and the PPP -- feel a stronger allegiance to political groups which were banned 25 years ago than to the three parties that are the official building blocks of Indonesia's current political system. Or take the campaign machinations of two people who superficially run education or welfare organisations, but who arguably wield more populist power in Indonesia than anyone but the president himself when he is wearing his Father of Development mantle.

Amien Rais, chairman of the modern Islamic group Muhammadiyah, was publicly kicked out of the presidential establishment shortly before the election because of his views about the Busang gold scandal -- and has been subsequently busy burnishing his reformer credentials under the cover of the election campaign.

Although he is not a political candidate, students reportedly carried Amien's picture at some Yogyakarta rallies in a potent example of the way long-term political positioning has occurred underneath the Golkar victory. "The public is demanding change. If the poll does not proceed in a direct, free, confidential, honest and fair manner, the people that showed their strength before will do so again and on an even larger scale," Amien warned this week.

Meanwhile, his long-time bete noire and chairman of the traditional Islamic group Nahdlatul Ulama, Abdurrahman Wahid, has used the campaign to slip into the palace establishment after a long time in the cold, and this week endorsed Soeharto's daughter as the next vice-president.

This might look like internecine rivalry between two people most foreign investors would never have heard of, but it is really the re-emergence of a 60-year-old struggle for the heart of Indonesian Islam that Soeharto once suppressed, but which will be a major challenge for his successor.

Or finally, step into the central Java tobacco farming city of Temanggung, which played a cameo role in the campaign as the scene of some particularly bitter clashes between PPP supporters and security forces trying to help Golkar win back the 25 per cent vote loss it suffered here in 1992.

Outside the shell-shocked PPP office, a softly spoken young man approaches a visitor to complain about the lack of jobs for foreign language graduates. But the conversation quickly turns to rumours that the pro-government youth group Permuda Pancasila is about to raid the town to scare recalcitrant Muslim voters from PPP to Golkar.

"But we're not worried about that," the young man says confidently. "For me, this is now a jihad [holy war] for building a democracy. Have you been to Africa? Maybe it will be like Algeria. This is a time bomb and that is the detonator," he says of the Temanggung election violence. A short stroll down the town's gently sloping General Sudirman Street, the aptly named Bambang Soekarno is engaged in a more tactical battle which is really part of a much longer-term struggle for political survival.

As Temanggung head of the pro-Megawati PDI, he specialises in ferrying local villagers to Jakarta for photo sessions with the daughter of Indonesia's charismatic founding President Soekarno. The photos are then treated like religious icons.

In contrast to the holy war under way just down the road, Bambang brings an unexpected Javanese calm to the overheated election. He is more concerned with restoring Megawati to the PDI leadership at a scheduled congress next year, and then to a national leadership position still some years into the future.

He says people do not support Megawati because she is Soekarno's daughter but because they think she will bring a cleaner, more inclusive tone to government that they still associate with Soekarno.

And in a clear message that the Government must make a choice, he says that the existing three-party system will last for some years longer if Megawati returns to the PDI helm. "If Megawati doesn't reappear, there will be many new parties. We will not accept that [her exclusion]. We will protest and fight throughout Indonesia."

Golkar's huge lead in election 'surprising'

Kyodo - May 29, 1997

Christine T. Tjandraningsih, Jakarta -- The ruling Golkar party took a commanding lead Thursday in Indonesia's general election that is guaranteed to keep the party in power for another five years, according to preliminary official returns.

As of 8:50 p.m., Golkar, which has won every national election since 1971, polled 7,127,499 votes against 893,968 for the United Development Party (PPP) and 166,840 for the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI).

But the wide gap in the vote for Golkar and the PPP surprised local and foreign journalists who attended the announcement of the first round of vote count by Mohammad Yogie Suardi Memet, chairman of the Indonesian Electoral Committee.

Before the official count was conducted, it was clearly seen that Golkar and the PPP were closer during preliminary counting at polling booths, while the PDI only got a negligible vote.

Foreign observers, who attended Yogie's announcement, expressed concern that riots could break out if the PPP does not achieve a greater share of the vote by the last day of counting, expected to be June 5.

"The PPP did well during the campaigning and attracted many other supporters... the preliminary results are really unbelievable," an American observer said.

As the PPP attracted new supporters, political analysts predicted that Golkar's vote would decrease in this election.

Yogie refused to comment on the results to journalists after he announced the preliminary official returns.

The PPP and the PDI have repeatedly complained of irregularities in past elections, and have tried in vain to change the election rules.

Vote counting by the General Election Institute began shortly after the nation's 305,219 ballot stations closed at 2:00 p.m. after six hours of voting.

An estimated 125 million Indonesians went to the polls Thursday to vote for members of the House of Representatives. Among the voters are about 24 million young people voting for the first time.

At stake are 425 seats in the 500-member of the House of Representatives for a five-year term. The other 75 seats are reserved for the military, whose members do not vote.

The final results of the election will be officially announced on June 17, but unofficial results are expected within 24 hours of the end of polling.

General elections in Indonesia since 1977 have been held every five years. Political laws introduced in 1973 restricted participation in elections to the three government-sanctioned parties.

It is the sixth general election since 1971 held under the Suharto administration, and the seventh since Indonesia's independence in 1945.

Pijar members hand voter cards over to human rights body

Jakarta Post - May 28, 1997

Jakarta -- Forty members of the Pijar non-governmental organization demonstrated their intention not to vote in the general election when they handed over their yellow cards yesterday to the National Commission on Human Rights.

Commission members Marzuki Darusman and Asmara Nababan told the youths that no Indonesians should relinquish their rights to vote.

The youths handed over their election registration cards to protest the poll which they said was "legally defective". The students cited the rejection of the list of legislature candidates draft by the ousted chief of the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI), Megawati Soekarnoputri, as one defect.

Marzuki told the youths they should return the cards to the General Election Institute which had issued them.

But the commission took the cards for safe keeping.

"You should exercise your rights to vote," Marzuki said.

A team of observer had been formed to follow the election, he said. The team would meet today to discuss issues to be presented to the government.

Meanwhile, Coordinating Minister for Political Affairs and Security Soesilo Soedarman again told the public to vote.

"Brush aside any intention of becoming a Golput (nonvoter)," he was quoted by Antara as saying. "Vote according to your conscience."

"The Armed Forces are prepared to secure the General Election, so no one should hesitate to go to the polling booths."

Several officials and religious leaders have been telling the public to vote for fear of many people boycotting the poll. Their calls intensified after Megawati recently declared her intention to keep her yellow registration card and abstain from voting.

Analysts have predicted that Megawati's "personal decision," would cause more people to boycott the poll. Legislator Marcel Beding, her supporters in East Java led by Soetjipto and others loyalists have promptly followed suit by declaring their intentions not to vote. Predictably, Megawati's PDI rivals led by Soerjadi -- who replaced her as party leader in a government- backed congress last June in Medan, condemned her decision. In Salatiga, Central Java, the local chairman of the Soerjadi led PDI branch, Marsudi, said he regretted Megawati's "irresponsible" decision.

"Her stance has created the impression that she does not feel any responsibility for the people, especially the PDI cadres," he was quoted by Antara as saying. "We are really sorry to hear about her decision."

He said that, despite Megawati saying her decision had been a personal one, her stance was tantamount to launching an initiative to disrupt the election.

Indonesia'a ruling party cruising to poll victory

Reuters - May 30, 1997

Jim Della-Giacoma, Jakarta -- Indonesia's ruling Golkar party was cruising towards its forecast landslide victory in parliamentary elections on Thursday after about half the votes were counted.

Figures announced by election officials at 3:30 a.m. Friday (2030 GMT) with over 59 million votes counted said Golkar had 74.99 percent of the vote, the Moslem-oriented United Development Party (PPP) 22.29 percent and the badly-split Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) 2.72 percent.

Based on past election patterns of a turnout of about 90 percent, the number of votes counted represented more than half of all ballots cast. Election officials said most results would be known by Friday evening.

Nearly 125 million people were eligible to vote in the national and local elections and polling was generally peaceful after a 27-day campaign that proved to be the most violent in Indonesia in three decades.

But police said 13 people were killed overnight in the troubled territory of East Timor when rebels tried to disrupt the polls and a soldier was killed there on Thursday while guarding a poll booth.

Golkar won 68 percent of the vote in 1992 in the last elections and had been aiming for just above 70 percent this time. The PPP had 17 percent in 1992 and the PDI 15 percent.

The announced results also showed Golkar well ahead in voting for regional and local assemblies. The three parties were the only ones permitted to contest the elections.

Most of the earlier political violence, mainly between partisans of golkar and the PPP, was centred on Java island, where 60 percent of Indonesia's 200 million people live.

Political analysts have expressed concern that PPP supporters might not accept the election outcome if they were swamped in areas such as Jakarta and central Java where they regard themselves as strong.

"It seems to have been very calm and orderly," one Asian diplomat said, adding it appeared Golkar could be headed for a landslide in Jakarta.

Markets shrugged off the election in slow trade on Thursday, with the rupiah stable at 2,441.50 to the dollar and the stock market index jumping two percent on blue chip buying. In East Timor, police chief Colonel Yusuf Muharam said a soldier guarding a polling booth was shot dead, bringing to 14 the number of deaths in the territory since Wednesday night.

He said police shot dead four rebels in a clash in the centre of the regional capital of Dili on Wednesday night during an attempt to disrupt the elections.

He said rebels shot dead at least seven civilians in the town of Los Palos and two in Baucau in separate attacks on Wednesday as opponents of the government destroyed a number of polling booths.

The rebels are fighting Indonesian rule in East Timor, which Jakarta took over in 1975 and incorporated as Indonesia's 27th province the following year. The move has never been recognised by the United Nations.

Voters were electing 425 members to the 500-seat House of Representatives and were also choosing regional and local assemblies. The other 75 parliamentary seats are filled by the military which does not vote.

But political analysts say the key election is next March when President Suharto, 75, is widely expected to stand for a seventh five-year term. There is keen interest in his choice of running mate and thus potential successor.

Preliminary election results raise eyebrows

Digest No. 33 - 30 May

With only about 7% of the vote counted by 10pm last night, this morning's Indonesian newspaper reports are only an indication of the final result. But the detailed regional breakdowns are too tempting to ignore. In short, Golkar is far exceeding its target of 70%, the PPP has nowhere come even near winning a majority, and the PDI is a complete wipeout. No statistics on spoiled/ informal votes are available, but anecdotal reports suggest the level could be up to twice the 10% of previous polls.

The complete collapse of the PDI is no surprise. It was expected by all analysts as soon as Megawati was removed in June last year. One consequence is that the neat symmetry of the Golkar-PPP-PDI threesome, symbolising wholeness and lack of conflict, is disturbed. This may not overly worry Golkar functionaries.

Another consequence is that 'opposition' sentiment (in inverted commas because opposition is not in the official dictionary) is now wholly focussed on the Islamic PPP, rather than being split between the PPP and PDI. This, others point out, is dangerous for the Republic.

However, the PPP seems nowhere to have achieved the gains it had been hoping for. It does not even seem to have picked up many disillusioned PDI votes. Instead, the Golkar vote has increased sharply everywhere. In Aceh in 1992, Golkar won 60% of the seats; now it is running at 74% of the votes. Golkar won 57% of the seats in Jakarta in '92, now it is running at 68% of the vote. Measured in these rather crude terms, Golkar experienced similar rises in other 'interesting' provinces - West Java (70% -> 89%), Central Java (56% -> 77%), East Java (58% -> 87%), South Kalimantan (70% -> 79%), and Bali (75% -> 96%).

This could suggest several possibilities. One is that the election violence associated with PPP has driven voters to the safety of Golkar. Another is that disillusioned voters spoiled their vote and left the game to Golkar supporters.

Yet another is that there has been massive poll rigging. This last possibility is likely to be the one highlighted by the PPP, who already this morning had a list of examples of the vote- buying and intimidation that went on in Central Javanese villages yesterday.

The PPP is not set up as an opposition party. Its leaders were selected by the government. It may therefore not be in a position to press its case. After all, were it not for this compliance, there is little doubt that Islamic parties would have easily won every election in the New Order. However, pressure from the rank and file for the PPP leadership to assert itself will this time be much stronger. Gerry van Klinken, editor, 'Inside Indonesia' magazine

Golkar leads in Indonesia, support for PDI shrivels

Wall Street Journal - May 30, 1997

Richard Borsuk, Jakarta -- Early results of Indonesia's parliamentary election confirmed what was known long before the tumultuous campaign -- President Suharto's Golkar party will win handily. But it was too early to tell whether the ruling party would reach or top its target of 70.02% of valid votes, and whether the results might spark a reaction from a Muslim-oriented party expecting to make gains in the poll.

With about 15% of Thursday's vote counted, Golkar had won 83.2% of 16.6 million valid votes. The Muslim-based United Development Party, known as the PPP, had 14.4%, while the Indonesian Democratic Party, or PDI, got only 2.4%. The results show, even at this early stage, that many supporters of the PDI, which gained ground in the last election in 1992, deserted the party to protest the government-aided ouster of Megawati Sukarnoputri as PDI chairwoman last June.

The percentages for Golkar and the PPP may change significantly as votes come in from more than 305,000 polling stations in the sprawling archipelago. In 1992, the first results showed Golkar winning 90% of the vote, which was also the case Thursday night. But when all the votes were counted in 1992 -- many days after the poll -- Golkar had 68%, down from the 73% it won in 1987. On the first night, results from Thursday's election were being reported more slowly than in 1992. The government said it expects the counting to be completed June 5, though analysts expect the shape of the outcome to become clear over the weekend.

Peaceful poll

Thursday's voting, held with security forces on alert, was peaceful throughout the country. On Wednesday, pro-independence rebels launched a series of attacks in East Timor. The Associated Press reported Thursday that between 14 and 22 people were killed in four separate attacks on Indonesian military installations and polling booths.

With only a small percentage of votes counted by late Thursday night, it wasn't possible to analyze much about the election, the sixth since the 75-year-old Mr. Suharto came to power in 1966. The one trend that was immediately clear, however, was how Ms. Megawati's ouster has crushed the PDI, which in 1992 increased its share of the vote to 15% from 11% in 1987.

It wasn't clear, though, if many who sympathize with Ms. Megawati had, like her, boycotted Thursday's vote. Statistics on what percentage of eligible voters went to the polls won't be available for some time. Also, it wasn't possible to immediately tell whether the number of Indonesians who protested against the country's controlled election system by defacing their ballots increased. At several polling stations in Jakarta, poll watchers said they believed the number of spoiled votes was higher this time than in 1992, though no hard evidence of a trend was available.

Looking for clues

Thursday's election, by itself, isn't going to result in any change in how Indonesia is governed. This poll is to fill 425 of 500 seats in the House of Representatives, a weak body that has never initiated a bill. In Indonesia's political structure, power is concentrated in the presidency. Since 1968, Mr. Suharto has been unanimously approved for six five-year terms as president by a 1,000-member assembly composed of the 500 House members and 500 appointees he has approved.

But since the election is the only one Indonesians have, some analysts see the vote as a sort of referendum on Mr. Suharto. It is also viewed as giving clues about the prospects of prominent Golkar figures. After Golkar's vote percentage dropped in 1992, its chairman, Wahono -- who is also House speaker -- was removed from his party post. If Golkar this time tops its target, that may boost the careers of party chairman Harmoko, who is information minister, and of Mr. Suharto's eldest daughter, Siti Hardijanti Rukmana, a deputy chairwoman who campaigned vigorously. Some Indonesians see both Mr. Harmoko and Mrs. Rukmana as possible vice presidents, assuming Mr. Suharto begins his seventh five-year term, in March.

Political analysts point out that using the parliamentary vote as a referendum on the popularity of Mr. Suharto and his government has several major flaws. Golkar is virtually guaranteed to win big, they say, because of several built-in advantages. It is the party of Indonesia's huge bureaucracy, so millions of civil servants and their families are virtually certain to vote Golkar. (Government employees vote at their offices. At one polling station where staff of state-owned PT Bank Dagang Negara voted Thursday, the results were 448 votes for Golkar, 14 for the PPP and none for the PDI.)

Critics of the Indonesian political system also say that in villages, citizens are often pressured by headmen to vote Golkar. Outside big cities, Golkar has won a large majority of the vote in each election. Among Golkar's other advantages are its ability, denied to the other parties, to have branches in villages, as well as domination of coverage on state-owned television and radio. Also, the people who oversee the election are Golkar officials. The chairman of the General Election Institute that organizes the poll is Home Affairs Minister Yogie Memed.

Human Rights Watch/Asia, a U.S. group, said in a statement issued just before the polls opened that Indonesia's electoral system is "rigged against the opposition, legally, structurally and in day-to-day practice." Sidney Jones, the group's executive director, said that "If there were any genuine outlets for expression of political and economic grievances, we almost certainly would not have seen the violence that has erupted across the country in recent months."

PPP challenge

The election campaign, which ended May 23, was marred by violence of different types, including clashes between supporters of Golkar and the PPP. Analysts say the Muslim-based party staged a more vigorous, challenging campaign than expected, which spurred Golkar to work harder to fend it off.

The PPP has strongholds in some neighborhoods in Jakarta and in the provinces of Central Java and East Java. Some PPP members and supporters have said they feel certain of winning several districts and that if they don't, they will charge that the vote counting has been manipulated to boost Golkar. "If PPP doesn't do well in Jakarta, we will show our anger," a party supporter said Thursday as he watched the vote count in a district where the PPP won 70% of the vote, compared with 45% in 1992. But he didn't say how supporters would show their anger.

As of late Thursday, Golkar had won 383,929 votes in Jakarta, or 61.9% of the total counted that far. The PPP won 36.4% and the PDI 1.7%. (In 1992, Golkar won 54% of the Jakarta vote, the PPP got 24% and the PDI 22%.)

In Central Java, an election battleground, Golkar won 74.5% of the first 3.9 million votes counted. The PPP had 23.3% and the PDI 2.2%. (In 1992, Golkar won 55% in the province, the PPP 23% and the PDI 22%.)

Nationwide, the PPP won 17% of the vote in 1992, and it set a target of 27.78% this time.

Muslim body to back Suharto's daughter for V-P next year

Straits Times - May 27, 1997

Derwin Pereira, Jakarta -- The leader of Indonesia's largest Muslim body said his 34 million-strong Nadhlatul Ulama (NU) would back President Suharto's eldest daughter to be Vice-President next year.

NU chairman Abdurrahman Wahid said Mrs Siti Hardiyanti Rukmana, popularly known as Mbak Tutut, "was on par or better than other vice-presidential candidates" and had a "50-50 chance" of making it to the No. 2 post next year.

"Her political credentials and stature have risen during this election campaign. She is fast becoming the country's rising star," he told The Straits Times in an interview yesterday.

He said the Golkar deputy chairman had impressed many Indonesians with her "charm, budding charisma and ability to reach out to the masses on issues that mattered most to them".

"The power to communicate is critical in politics. The President's daughter ranks very high on this score," he said. "People don't see her the way they did before. She has gained a certain degree of acceptance from the masses."

He noted that more importantly, perhaps, was the backing she got from many ulamas or Islamic scholars. She had worked very hard to build up a strong rapport with them, she added.

Mr Wahid said the NU would back her against other contenders such as Research and Technology Minister B. J. Habibie, Information Minister Harmoko and the incumbent Tri Sutrisno.

His observations came after she emerged as a potential Golkar nominee for the No. 2 post last month as speculation built up on the line-up for the presidential election next March.

He noted that her appointment to the post would win points for Indonesia in the long-run as the broader message of civilian leadership and gender equality in Indonesia would diffuse criticism from human-rights circles.

Mr Wahid, who made joint public appearances with Mrs Rukmana in Central and East Java recently, said NU was forging an alliance with her for its own "survival" but denied it was helping her to campaign for Golkar.

His critics said he had brought NU, which does not take sides with any political party, on to the political stage. NU members had also stayed away from the gatherings, which they said were "full of political overtones" in favour of Golkar.

Mr Wahid acknowledged that some NU youths resisted the idea initially but had now come to see his links with Mrs Rukmana as a "tactical alliance of benefit to both sides".

"For us, it is really a question of survival. Aligning with her gives us a shield against our enemies."

25,000 extra troops on alert for polling day

Sydney Morning Herald - May 29, 1997

Louise Williams, Jakarta -- A jittery Indonesian public prepared to vote in national elections today with 25,000 extra troops securing the capital and rumours circulating of further unrest in the wake of the nation's most violent election campaign in President Soeharto's three decades in power.

On the day before about 124 million Indonesians were to go to the polls, police reported a bomb threat at the Japanese embassy following the arrest overnight on Tuesday of four people suspected of attempting to plant a bomb in a Jakarta shopping mall. Regional military leaders in Indonesia warned voters not to panic as rumours raced through towns and cities, and anonymous leaflets appeared on the streets calling for a boycott of the polls and inciting the public to attack local political leaders.

"Don't worry, just go to your polling booths, we will guard your safety," the official Antara newsagency quoted Jakarta's military spokesman as saying.

The spokesman said the four men arrested overnight on Tuesday had been caught with petrol and stones, and were suspected of attempting to burn down a major Jakarta shopping centre.

More than 120 were burnt to death in a shopping centre fire last Friday in the worst election riot when about 50,000 took to the streets of the Kalimantan town of Banjarmasin, where only 250 troops were deployed.

In East Timor, two Indonesian policemen were killed and four injured when rebels attacked their convoy near Bacau, 100 kilometres east of the capital, Dili, church and hospital sources said yesterday.

In central Jakarta, security forces yesterday dispersed about 75 students seeking an audience with the Attorney-General to protest against the exclusion of the ousted pro-democracy leader, Ms Megawati Sukarnoputri, the popular daughter of Indonesia's founding President Sukarno, from the tightly controlled elections.

The Soeharto Government said a so-called "rainbow alliance" of opposition forces was trying to derail today's polling and listed a range of anti-Government groups as being involved - from friends of Amnesty International and the unemployed, to communists.

However, the Islamic opposition United Development Party (PPP) claimed "agents provocateurs" had incited the pre-election rioting in an attempt to discredit the party before voting, and said incentives and threats were being employed to boost votes for "a certain party", clearly referring to the ruling Golkar Party of President Soeharto.

Election officials announced that the two legal opposition parties would be denied access to the computerised election results database, fuelling speculation that the final results may be manipulated.

The PPP yesterday issued a detailed list of election violations, including threats that villagers would disappear from their homes or be forced into work gangs if Golkar lost the election in their area, and claims that Government employees in Jakarta had been given two voting cards each. The report documented threats made to villagers by local Government officials and military officers, who told them they would have to report daily to the authorities if Golkar did not win.

The threats were made in the northern Sumatran province of Aceh, an Islamic stronghold sympathetic to the PPP, where locals have fought a sporadic struggle against Jakarta for independence, claiming they received no benefits from the area's substantial natural gas reserves.

In Java, the PPP claimed Government officials had threatened villagers with kidnappings and problems in future dealings with the bureaucracy if Golkar lost.

Government employees and their families, and the relatives of military officers are obliged to vote for Golkar in the national elections.

Only three parties are permitted to contest national elections: Golkar, the PPP and the PDI, which was weakened last year when Ms Megawati was ousted from the party leadership.

Megawati's boycott is one among millions

Sydney Morning Herald - May 29, 1997

Louise Williams, Jakarta -- When Indonesia's democracy leader, Ms Megawati Sukarnoputri, announced her decision to boycott today's election, she joined millions of people so disillusioned with Indonesia's political system that they believe the best way to use their vote is to spoil it.

The Indonesian boycott movement, or golput, began in 1971 when a group of opponents of the Soeharto regime announced they would no longer vote. The golput has since become an important measure of discontent within the controlled political system.

The Soeharto Government has called on people to vote today and warned that inciting others to boycott the poll is illegal, but pre-election surveys of students and young people across Java show that 60-90 per cent of first-time voters will either spoil their ballot or not go to the polls.

Many people believe the true golput figures will not be released but, behind the scenes, the Soeharto Government is carefully monitoring this symbol of protest.

It is difficult to assess how many people have used elections to make their silent protest in the past, given the official turnout figures of about 90 per cent, but academics estimate that up to 20 per cent of voters may boycott this poll, a figure representing about 25 million people.

"I will choose all," said a Jakarta driver yesterday morning, laughing, meaning he would invalidate his vote by marking all parties.

"There is no point. For the ordinary Indonesians, this election does nothing. The poor just stay poor, they struggle to earn money and the rich are just so rich.

"I like Megawati but I can't vote for her," he said, referring to Ms Megawati's exclusion from the election, following the Government-manipulated split of her Partai Demokrasi Indonesia (PDI), which forced her and her supporters out of the political mainstream.

The key question today is whether Ms Megawati's supporters will follow her boycott example or back the Muslim-based United Development Party (PPP) as the only way of maximising the vote against the ruling Golkar party.

However, many supporters of the PDI, originally a coalition of nationalist and Christian parties, would feel uncomfortable voting for a Muslim-led party.

Indonesia's Christian and Chinese minorities have been the target of riots over the past year, with working-class Muslims venting their frustration against ethnic Chinese domination of the Indonesian economy.

All quiet after Indonesia's poll tragedy

Asiatimes - May 26, 1997

Ong Hock Chuan, Jakarta -- Indonesia ended 27 days of electoral campaigning on Friday with yet another surge of violence in several spots throughout Jakarta and other parts of the country.

The day also saw a riot which registered the highest election- related casualty count so far. According to police, more than 130 people are believed to have died when rioters set fire to a shopping center in Banjarmasin, the capital of South Kalimantan, about 900 kilometers northeast of Jakarta.

Rescue workers said they had found at least 130 bodies in the burned-out Mitra Plaza shopping and cinema complex in the center while police said four others died of burn or stab injuries.

Witnesses said what began as clashes between supporters of the ruling Golkar party and the rival Muslim-oriented United Development Party (PPP) deteriorated into widespread rioting and looting.

One rescue worker said the dead were all rioters or looters who were afraid to emerge when troops and police arrived .

Saturday, which marked the first of a five-day "cooling off" period before polling day on May 29, passed without incident.

As the three political parties are not allowed to carry out any campaigning during this period, including street rallies which have been the catalysts of inter-party clashes and riots, the emotions whipped up during the campaigning period are expected to be kept in check until election day.

The ruling party, Golkar, is still expected to win comfortably. Observers said that there is a strong possibility of it achieving its target of 70.02 percent of total votes cast, especially when there is an apparent split between non-establishment icons Megawati Sukarnoputri, the deposed head of the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI), and Abdulrahman Wahid, who heads the country's largest Islamic organization, the Nadlathul Ulama, which has about 30 million followers.

Megawati, whose stature is buoyed more by anti-establishment feelings than her own popularity, told a press conference last Thursday that she would not be voting at the May 29 elections. She also asked Indonesians to exercise their political rights according to their own consciences. This was seen by political analysts as an oblique and Indonesian way of urging her loyalists to abstain from voting since persuading others not to vote is against the law in Indonesia. They said that Megawati, who has been banned by the government from standing in the elections, wants to undermine the legitimacy of the elections through Golput - the Indonesian term for blank votes.

Megawati's message, however, was itself undermined by Abdulrahman the next day. He said her message should be disregarded by PDI members, including Megawati loyalists, because her decision was personal in nature and should not affect how others choose to exercise their right to vote.

The big winner from this rift between Megawati and Abdulrahman, who were considered allies before Abdulrahman began a political courtship with President Suharto's daughter and Golkar leader "Tutut" Siti Hardiyanti Rukmana in recent months, is expected to be the PPP.

During the campaign period the PPP emerged as the strongest contender against Golkar, attracting tens of thousands to its campaign rallies. The party was helped by the participation of Megawati loyalists who not only wanted to support another party but also were active in disrupting electioneering efforts staged by the current leadership of the PDI.

There is a strong possibility of the PPP winning seats in Jakarta and Aceh in northern Sumatra, two constituencies in which it managed to beat Golkar in the past.

A victory, especially in the capital of Jakarta, would help morale but analysts are skeptical that it would amount to anything more significant.

"Have no illusions about it," said a political observer. "The general election is not about democracy as practiced in other countries.

"In Indonesia it is about a five- yearly event to legitimize the government, and perhaps to provide a safety valve for releasing political frustrations among the people."

Timorese statement on Indonesian elections

Ramos Horta Statement - 29 May, 1997

For the sixth time in 27 years, the Suharto regime of Indonesia has stage-managed a mock election aimed at legitimizing itself primarily in international eves. For the people of Indonesia these five yearly rituals have little meaning. They do not provide a possibility of orderly political change, despite the urgent need for an end to massive corruption, extreme inequalities in wealth distribution and human rights violations.

Anxious for an end to the worsening conditions in Indonesia and realizing their impotence to effect change through orderly political means. the people of this fourth most populous country in the world are openly venting their frustrations and anger. The response of the authorities is violence, which in this year's election has been higher than ever before. The official death count exceeds 250. The real toll is certain to be many times this number. This unacceptably high figure points to the underlying instability of Indonesia, and evidences the profound dissatisfaction of its people with three decades of authoritarian rule, The aging Suharto--after the fail of Mobutu of Zaire, now the longest surviving dictator of his type--appears insensitive to his people's just demands for change and democratic participation. Instead, he seeks public acceptance of the fraudulent results of this latest election farce.

However the level of popular dissatisfaction and dissidence in Indonesia makes it unlikely that the over 200 hundred million people of this important country will resign themselves to accept yet another five years of present conditions. A spiral of violence can be anticipated for Indonesia from now on. as dissent grows. It will be met with the customary repression by the military-backed regime, now increasingly desperate as its grip on power begins to slip, leading to an extended period of instability, disruption to peace and much human suffering. Even the survival of the Indonesian state may well be jeopardized, with consequent impact on the stability of the Southeast Asian region and beyond.

The brutal, two decade long occupation of East Timor by Indonesia provides a good example of the inflexibility and violence of the Suharto regime. Unable to respond positively to proposals for a peaceful end to the present quagmire, Suharto remains locked in a position that only leads to massive suffering for the people of East Timor, and a major drain on Indonesia. The regime is now also locking itself into a lose-lose situation in Indonesia itself. at a huge cost to the country's future. Its brightest intellectuals are being persecuted and its future leaders decimated, as political participation is inhibited and stifled amidst a growing climate of violence.

As an East Timorese and a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, I find it my duty to appeal to President Suharto to acknowledge the realities of his country and annul the last parliamentary elections. On many occasions in the past our East Timorese leader, Xanana Gusmao, and myself have appealed to Mr. Suharto to show statesmanship and respect for the right of the people of East Timor to self-determination, ending the fruitless Indonesian policy of terror and repression in East Timor. We have repeatedly pointed out that such a policy. ignoring realities and just popular aspirations, would not resolve the problem Indonesia faces in East Timor. Events have proved us right. This time. with a similar situation in Indonesia itself, I call on President Suharto to speedily institute meaningful democratic reforms in his country and to allow the people to express their just aspirations for change freely end peacefully in a new internationally supervised election. All that is needed is an atmosphere of fair play, respect for existing constitutional provisions, and the absence of manipulations and distortions. This is probably Mr. Suharto's last opportunity to work towards a peaceful future for Indonesia.

Golkar victory may not be clear-cut

Wall Street Journal - May 27, 1997

Richard Borsuk and Puspa Madani, Sleman -- In a campaign that often featured unpleasant surprises, some things still went smoothly for Golkar, Indonesia's dominant party.

At a recent rally here in central Java, the crowd was big yet orderly, the band playing dangdut (Indonesian soul music) was good and the participants pledged to vote for President Suharto's political vehicle.

But Golkar support perhaps isn't as deep as its leaders want or need. Sukartini, a 32-year-old primary school teacher bused to the rally with colleagues, says she will vote Golkar Thursday but not solely because she thinks it's the best choice. "The headmaster will know if I don't vote for Golkar," she says. "I don't know how but he will."

Indonesia's violent election campaign has generated great enthusiasm -- but not for the process or choices. Intended to be largely a ritual to confer legitimacy on the government, this election has instead shown that the country's tightly regulated political system needs changes, many analysts say.

Certain to win

One thing won't change after the polls close Thursday: Golkar is certain to win by a wide margin, as it has in the five parliamentary elections held since then-Gen. Suharto gained power in 1966 and built a political system called the New Order.

It's also virtually assured that Golkar, whose full name is Golongan Karya ("Functional Groups"), will get at least two- thirds of the vote. But the way the campaign has gone, Golkar could both win and lose. Some analysts assert that if Golkar reaches its remarkably precise target of 70.02% of the valid votes, many Indonesians will feel the result isn't credible.

If Golkar wins "less than 70%, people will interpret this as bad for Golkar, and its political legitimacy will fade away," says Amien Rais, outspoken leader of Muhammadiyah, Indonesia's second-largest Islamic organization. "But if Golkar gets more than 70%, people won't believe that figure."

In any case, the campaign has bolstered charges that Indonesia's political system isn't functioning well. "People are very bored with 30 years of the same system, same leaders, same game," Mr. Rais says. "Many people think it's about time to have change."

Fewer seats for military

Government officials point out there has been one change this time: Thursday's votes will fill 425 of the 500 seats in the House of Representatives, rather than 400 as in previous polls. The number of seats reserved for Indonesia's military has dropped to 75 from 100.

But government critics say this isn't meaningful reform, since the House has little power in a political system dominated by President Suharto. Moreover, critics contend, outspoken House members usually don't get another term, as they are dropped by parties from candidate-lists that the government must approve.

Martono, a Surabaya taxi driver in his late 40s, says he'd like to have his own member of the House to whom he could take complaints -- something the Indonesian system doesn't have. "In the campaign, all the parties say they will help small people, but I don't know who we get to help us."

A constant complaint aired during the campaign is that Indonesia's top-down approach to governing -- which functioned well in the 1970s and 1980s -- no longer works because citizens are far more sophisticated than before. "This election, and process, doesn't give people a channel to feel they can be heard," says Hotman Siahaan, a sociologist at Surabaya's Airlangga University.

'Change will have to wait'

Yet few expect political reform to emerge from this election. "Change will have to wait until Suharto isn't there," an Indonesian editor says. "He built this system and he thinks it still works. So there won't be change for now."

One sign of pressure for change is that throngs of young Indonesians flouted government-imposed restrictions on processions and other campaign tactics deemed to be disruptive. "The most interesting aspect of this election has been the resistance toward Golkar and authority," says Riswandha Imawan, a political scientist at Gajah Mada University in Yogyakarta. Symbols of the state such as police stations have been "openly attacked by people who felt they've been treated unfairly."

Still, the electoral system heavily favors Golkar, which most Indonesians see as synonymous with government and the country's huge bureaucracy. An organization of civil servants helps form the backbone of Golkar, and the party is allowed to have offices in villages -- a right denied to the other two permitted parties, the Muslim-based United Development Party, or PPP, and the Indonesian Democratic Party, or PDI. Golkar dominates coverage on state-run television, whose news bulletin must be shown by all six Indonesian channels. And Golkar is quietly backed by virtually all the country's major business groups. "This is part of corporate citizenship," a director of one Jakarta conglomerate explains.

Army Chief-of-Staff Gen. Hartono last year donned a yellow jacket -- yellow being the Golkar color -- at a function in Central Java. That upset many Indonesians because the military is traditionally neutral in the campaign. Over the past year, officials in Central Java painted buildings, bridges and even flower pots yellow in some cities.

'Yellowization' backfires

But the move has backfired, according to Mr. Riswandha. "Yellowization" and the government-backed ouster of Megawati Sukarnoputri as head of the PDI last year "has made people unhappy toward the government, which in this case can't be separated from Golkar," he says.

Even so, he believes that a "hierarchy of fear" will help Golkar get the results it wants in rural Java. Local officials who want to improve their bureaucratic careers set high targets and achieve them, he says. Golkar has campaigned much harder this time than five years ago, many observers agree. In Sleman, a district 10 kilometers from Yogyakarta, Golkar local Chairman Haerudin says the target of 66% support for Golkar will be reached in the district, compared with the 57% the party got in 1992. "We didn't do so well [in 1992] because of internal and external factors," he explains. "Now, we're solid and get sympathy from the people."

In the 1992 election, Golkar's percentage of the nationwide vote dropped to 68% from 73% in 1987. While many analysts thought this was a logical decline, given Indonesia's economic gains and growing urbanization, Golkar treated the result as a calamity. The party's chairman, Wahono, was replaced by Information Minister Harmoko, who's on the TV news almost every night as the state channel reports his activities and statements.

Stiff resistance

In this campaign, Mr. Suharto's eldest daughter, Siti Hardijanti Rukmanac, has also emerged as an effective campaigner. The 48- year-old Mrs. Rukmana, known as Tutut, is seen by some Indonesians as a contender for the nation's vice presidency next year.

But Golkar's strong push in Java has met stiff resistance. Many young Indonesians upset with Ms. Megawati's ouster have joined noisy rallies of the PPP, which has become for now a de facto opposition party. The PPP has scored points by repeatedly raising the name of Eddy Tansil in rally speeches. In 1994, the businessman was convicted of corruption charges in a scandal involving a $600 million loan from state-owned Bapindo Bank. Last year, Tansil escaped from jail after bribing prison guards. In one Jakarta rally, PPP Chairman Ismail Hasan Metareum complained that when small people commit a petty crime, they are punished unfairly but Tansil "received special treatment in prison and now our law enforcers don't know his whereabouts."

Anger about Ms. Megawati's removal and Tansil's escape should help boost PPP, which got 17% of the vote in 1992. Party officials predict they'll get at least 25%. But the PPP may win fewer votes than many Indonesians expect; big, noisy rallies don't necessarily translate into votes.

The PPP's showing hinges partly on how many Megawati supporters vote for it as a protest vote, and how many spoil their ballots or boycott the poll to show discontent.

Playing on public cynicism over the electoral system, the PPP charged recently that it had obtained a document showing that in one district in Sumatra a local official wrote a report showing the district would vote 86.29% Golkar, 7% PPP and 6.71% PDI. The Jakarta Post quoted officials as dismissing charges that the results had been rigged in advance. One official was quoted as saying the leaked report appeared to be a projection sheet from which the word "projection" had been removed.

Indonesian group criticises government over election campaign

Radio Australia - 26 May, 1997

An Indonesian election monitoring group says the government must share responsibility for widespread violence and unrest during the campaign for this week's general election.

The government and military have blamed the three politicial parties and fringe groups for the worst election violence in 30 years, but the Independent Election Monitoring Committee says the government is also to blame.

The group cited disproportionate television coverage of the ruling Golkar party, the use of religious leaders to mobilize Golkar support and the ousting of Megawati Sukarnoputri from leadership of the Indonesian Democratic Party.

It says the campaign process lacked transparency and the law failed to address electoral fraud and what it called "political corruption".

The group also warned that lack of transparency may lead to widespread doubt over the election results.

Indonesian's 124 million eligible voters go to the polls on Thursday.

Violence during the campaign has left about 260 people dead.

30 years of Suharto brings on 'regime fatigue'

Washington Post - May 24, 1997

Keith B. Richburg -- President Suharto gained a new distinction last week: With the fall of strongman Mobutu Sese Seko in Zaire, the Indonesian president's 30 years in power now rank him second in tenure, just behind Cuba's Fidel Castro, among the world's leaders. And like his counterparts elsewhere, Suharto is discovering that in politics, as in love, familiarity can breed frustration and discontent.

There are no indications that Suharto, 75, is facing anything like a Mobutu-style exit from the political scene. There are no rebels surrounding the capital and no obvious successors waiting in the wings. The Indonesian military backs Suharto, while the system he created rigidly constrains most forms of political expression. And unlike Mobutu, who bankrupted his mineral-rich African nation, Suharto has presided over a prolonged period of impressive economic growth -- an average of 7 percent a year -- and has reduced poverty dramatically in the world's fifth-most- populous nation.

"Mobutu would still happily be president of Zaire if he had a 7 percent growth rate and $40 billion worth of investment," said a Western diplomat who asked not to be quoted by name. "We are not in a revolutionary situation."

But the signs of mounting popular disaffection are palpable, from the thick-carpeted boardrooms along Jakarta's high-rise commercial strips to the slums south and east of the city, where unemployed young men in T-shirts and headbands challenge police lines with stones and molotov cocktails. Everyone, it seems, is clamoring for change -- but a change to what, no one is quite sure.

"I think this Suharto government is suffering from regime fatigue," said Susanto Pudjomartono, chief editor of the English-language daily newspaper the Jakarta Post. "If a regime has ruled for 30 years, it has lost its touch."

Campaigning for the May 29 elections for Indonesia's rubber-stamp parliament -- normally a lackluster contest among three government-sanctioned parties -- has sparked rioting this year in Jakarta and across central Java. Tension also flared into violence earlier this year between Indonesia's majority Muslim population and the economically privileged ethnic Chinese minority.

Newspapers and magazines, normally restrained in their coverage of politics, lately have shown more bite, even treading into sensitive areas such as the business dealings of the Suharto children. And members of Jakarta's normally conservative middle- class elite have become surprisingly candid in their criticism of Suharto -- and in their suggestions that it is time for him to leave.

Suharto's regime also is facing criticism from the United States, which has moved human rights concerns to the forefront of its agenda with this key regional ally long viewed as a linchpin of stability in Southeast Asia and the Pacific. In congressional testimony earlier this month, Aurelia Brazeal, the deputy assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, said, "Our relationship with Indonesia, as important as it is, will not reach its full potential until there is improvement in that country's human rights performance." She cited labor rights, press freedom and controls on politics as areas of U.S. concern.

While political life in Indonesia remains strictly and stubbornly controlled from the top, there is evidence of a more subtle, but potentially far-reaching "revolution" of sorts stirring beneath the surface.

Some 20 million Indonesians, or 10 percent of the population, are estimated to have access to satellite television, opening a world of information to them outside the government's control, such as programs on the Cable News Network. Satellite dishes and receivers cost as little as $200. The Internet has only about 20,000 users now, but usage is becoming more widespread in the cities, providing another means of access to censored material. There is also an impressive array of independent, grass-roots organizations -- legal aid societies, human rights groups and environmental organizations.

Like South Korea and Taiwan, two other military-led regimes that shifted peacefully to democracy in recent years, Indonesia "has the same pattern of extended economic growth creating social change, and a middle class no longer willing to be denied a place in the political system," said the Western diplomat.

Indonesians want to avoid a violent upheaval like the one over leadership succession three decades ago. The Indonesian Communist Party, or PKI, launched a coup attempt by assassinating top army generals, and the military seized power and embarked on a ruthless campaign of bloodletting against suspected leftists.

"Everyone agrees that for the government not to respond to the pressures will be dangerous," said political scientist Dewi Fortuna Anwar of the Indonesian Institute of Sciences. "But how far to respond is the question. . . . [There] is a lot of disagreement about how fast to do it, and to what degree."

Said Pudjomartono, the Jakarta Post editor, "We lack the courage to topple Suharto."

The more likely scenario is gradual change from within the system, led by an accepted, moderate figure of the establishment. To many, Megawati Sukarnoputri, daughter of Indonesia's first president, Sukarno, offers the best hope. Sukarnoputri is anything but radical. She stays within the confined legal boundaries. When the government orchestrated her removal as head of the small Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI), she challenged it not in the streets but in the courts. Since being dumped as party leader, she is banned from running in the current elections. She announced that she would refrain from voting, but she stopped short of calling for an election boycott, because that would have been illegal.

"Megawati is not anti-establishment," said Subagio Anam, a businessman and aide to the opposition leader. "She is part of the establishment. . . . If you go outside the system, you will be totally crushed."

With Sukarnoputri, by far the most popular opposition leader, effectively banned from politics, the upcoming election holds little suspense. The ruling Golkar party and its two small, legally authorized rivals have identical platforms, all the candidates have been vetted and approved by the military, and all support the appointment of Suharto for another five-year presidential term beginning next year.

So tightly is the system controlled that Haji Harmoko, the Golkar chairman who is also information minister, predicted that his party will win 70.02 percent of the vote. Few expect him to be far off the mark.

The only question now is whether the United Development Party will increase its share of the vote from the 17 percent it won five years ago, and eclipse the PDI as Golkar's main rival. Since Sukarnoputri's ouster from the PDI, the party has lost much of its support, and United Development -- a Muslim-oriented party -- has emerged as the only effective voice for the regime's opponents.

Most of the recent violence, including rioting Friday night in Jakarta, has been by young United Development supporters who have refused to listen to a call for a ban on all outdoor rallies.

The election is for 425 seats of a 500-member parliament, with the remaining 75 seats reserved for the military. This parliament then forms one-half of the 1,000-member assembly that names the president. The other half is appointed. The appointed membership guarantees that Suharto will be chosen for a new term, regardless of whether either of the two smaller parties manages to dent the Golkar majority.

Any change from within largely depends on Suharto. But few believe he has plans to step aside. Suharto has even hinted that he may be trying to perpetuate his stay in power through his daughter, Siti Hardiyanti Rukmana. She has been mentioned as a possible vice president to Suharto, who has named a different one for each of his six terms. Anam, Sukarnoputri's aide, attributed the president's staying power to what he calls "the four M's."

"He has money. He has might -- he has the army. He has the mass media. And the fourth M, he has the power to manipulate," Anam said. "As long as the M's are there, there's no way to change through democratic means."

Police and troops break up election rallies in Indonesia

New York Times- May 24, 1997

Seth Mydans, Jakarta, -- The Government displayed its power today, using tear gas, rubber bullets and an overwhelming armed presence on the streets of Jakarta, the capital, to quash attempts by its opponents to hold rallies on the last day of campaigning for next week's parliamentary election.

As black-uniformed marines, riot policemen padded like hockey goalies and 20,000 soldiers in battle gear guarded key neighborhoods, hit-and-run convoys of young men on motorcycles buzzed through the city waving banners and gunning their engines.

Rioting erupted in south Jakarta -- as it has in several cities during this violent, monthlong campaign -- when a mob of young men from the governing party, Golkar, threw rocks and attacked demonstrators from the People's Democratic Party, the bigger of the two legal opposition parties.

As the crowds ran wild, smashing windows and storefronts along a two-mile thoroughfare, security forces fired tear gas and rubber bullets as they did during more widespread rioting in the capital on Tuesday in which one person was reported to have been killed.

Starting on Saturday, campaigning will be banned during a five- day cooling-off period before the election, in which 125 million people are eligible to vote.

In his 31 years in power, President Suharto has raised Indonesia from hunger and poverty, producing one of the region's economic success stories but one of its most stunted countries in terms of democratic ideals.

Golkar has held a monopoly on power at all levels, and elections have been orchestrated more as pageants than as contests for office, so the outcome of the voting on Thursday is certain.

But widespread corruption, Government abuses, rising unemployment and underemployment and growing demands for a popular voice in national affairs have exposed a deep vein of discontent and anger here in the world's fourth-largest country. The resulting atmosphere of tension has made this the most violent election campaign here in recent times, with 123 people reported killed.

Golkar is assured of an overwhelming vote in part because millions of people in the military and in Government service D from teachers to civil servants D will be required to vote for the Government party.

But it was hard to find anyone on the streets of the city today who spoke in favor of the Government. They talked of corruption and unemployment and injustice, but the passionate issue appeared to be Mr. Suharto's autocratic rule.

"This is not democracy; this is power," said one man who declined to give his name. "This is not a president; this is a king."

Even a 28-year-old marine lieutenant, who said his orders were to bar opposition demonstrators, said it was time for a change.

"We want to have a place that is structured more like America, so that there is social justice for our people," he said. " People should have a voice, but in fact they don't."

Even an opposition landslide on Thursday would not oust Mr. Suharto. Voters are to choose 425 elected legislators. Together with 500 other representatives chosen by the Government and 75 members from the military, they will form a 1,000-member People's Consultative Assembly that will elect the next President in 1998.

Though Mr. Suharto has not announced his intentions, he is widely believed to be planning to continue in office. But he is 75, and already the nation is looking ahead toward an uncertain future.

The President has made no public provision for a successor, and that question mark has contributed to a growing restiveness in this country of 200 million. The last transition of power, when Mr. Suharto succeeded

Indonesia's founding President, Sukarno, was accompanied by a purge of Communists that led to widespread killings in which some 500,000 people died.

The Government acted early, one year ago, to choke off potential opposition. It engineered a split in the opposition People's Democratic Party that forced the ouster of its popular leader, Megawati Sukarnoputri, a daughter of Mr. Sukarno.

When that action sparked wide spread rioting in Jakarta last July the Government launched a cam campaign of arrests and interrogations intended to neutralize its opponents.

A growing number of Indonesians appear to have joined a movement to boycott the election, either by staying away from the polls or by spoiling their ballots.

On Thursday, Mrs. Megawati added fuel to this movement, announcing that she would not vote. But she carefully avoided urging others to boycott the election: other people who have called for a boycott have been arrested.

Dramatic rise in Indonesian election campaign death toll

Radio Australia - May 25, 1997

More than 130 people have died in a blaze set by rioters in the Indonesian province of South Kalimantan.

Michael Maher reports the fatalities are the result of the worst election violence seen in Indonesia in decades.

The violence in the city of Banjarmasin broke out last Friday on the last day of campaigning in Indonesia's parliamentary elections. Clashes between the Muslim-based party, the PPP and the ruling Golkar party turned into full scale rioting. Hundreds of homes and offices were set alight, but most of the deaths occurred in a blaze in a three storey shopping complex. Police have yet to give a final death-toll, it could take days before all the charred remains of buildings have been thoroughly searched. This has been the worst outbreak of violence in the most violent campaign yet seen during President Suharto's 30-year rule. Apparent from fatalities in Banjarmasin, more than 200 others have also died in election-related incidence, there will now be an official cooling off period before Indonesians go to the polls on May 29th.

East Timor

Arbitrary detention

East Timor Human Rights Centre - May 29, 1997

The East Timor Human Rights Centre (ETHRC) has received further information in relation to Joao Guterres (also known as Mau- Lana), aged 28, who was reported missing following his arrest on 15 May, 1997, in the district of Baucau.

It is believed Joao Guterres was arrested at a military checkpoint at Tigre (located between Vemasse and Laleia, Baucau district) and taken to Dili where he is currently detained at Battalion 744 headquarters in Taibessi. The reason for his arrest is unconfirmed, however according to one source, Joao Guterres, who is an employee of the hotel Villa Harmonia in Dili, had been seen talking to some foreigners. The ETHRC believed Joao Guterres may have been arbitrarily arrested.

The East Timor Human Rights Centre is concerned for Joao Guterres if he is not located soon as he may be at risk of torture and ill treatment if still in detention. Detainees in East Timor are routinely subjected to torture and ill-treatment while in military or police custody, especially if they are denied access to family members and independent legal representation.

Disappearance/Arbitrary Arrest

East Timor Human Rights Centre - May 29, 1997

The East Timor Human Rights Centre (ETHRC) holds grave fears for the safety of Julio Gomes, 18, from Luca village in the district of Viqueque, who has been missing since his arrest on 4 April 1997.

According to a report received by the ETHRC, Julio Gomes was arrested by members of the Rajawali battalion (Special Command Forces), and two members of GADAPAKSI INTEL named Marcelino de Jesus and Antonio Vicente. The reason for his arrest is not known, however, the ETHRC believes he may have been arbitrarily arrested. Julio Gomes' family went to INTEL headquarters to inquire as to his whereabouts but were unable to obtain any information or to locate him.

The East Timor Human Rights Centre is concerned for Julio Gomes if he is not located soon as he may be killed or subjected to torture and ill treatment, if he is still in detention. Detainees in East Timor are routinely subjected to torture and ill- treatment while in military or police custody, especially if they are denied access to family members and independent legal representation.

Election-related violence kills 14 in East Timor

Reuters - May 29, 1997

Jim Della-Giacoma, Jakarta -- At least 14 people died in a wave of election-eve violence in East Timor and as million of Indonesians voted on Thursday the toll rose when rebels killed a soldier guarding a polling boooth.

East Timor police chief Colonel Yusuf Muharam, speaking by phone from the capital Dili, said the soldier was shot and killed near Hatolia in the Ermera district.

``He was guarding the ballot box. He was shot by rebels," Muharam said, adding that he was the only victim in the incident.

Residents reported other attempts overnight to destroy polling stations in the Ermera district, about 45 km (28 miles) southwest of Dili.

Shooting and explosions were heard in the capital Dili and the second town of Baucau late on Wednesday and early Thursday.

Muharam earlier said police shot dead four rebels in an attack on a mobile brigade or riot police post on the outskirts of Dili on Wednesday night on the eve of the poll.

He said rebels had also shot and killed nine civilians in two other incidents.

"From the rebels there were four dead and four captured alive. They received gunshot wounds. Four police were injured by gunfire. No police were killed," Muharam said.

"They were trying to seize weapons from the guard post, but they failed," he said.

"In Baucau, there were two citizens shot dead. In Los Palos, there were seven citizens shot dead and two seriously injured," Muharam said.

He said three people were kidnapped in Los Palos, about 200 km (124 miles) east of the capital. "Security forces are now tracking them," he added.

Muharam said the captured rebels were being treated at police headquarters for their wounds. Hospital sources in Dili said only four police and four rebels were believed to have been injured in the clash.

Diplomatic analysts said it was the biggest surge in deadly violence in East Timor in recent years. Indonesia invaded East Timor in 1975 and annexed the territory the following year as its 27th province in a move still not recognised by the United Nations.

Police and residents said voting was generally peaceful through the day.

"There was lots of shooting last night in Dili at around 10 p.m. (1400 GMT)... Things have returned to normal this morning with traffic moving and people voting," a Dili resident said.

"There was a big explosion followed by a lot of gunfire at about 2 a.m. (1800 GMT Wednesday) but we are still in the dark what it was all about," said one resident of Baucau, 100 km (62 miles) east of Dili.

The military estimates there are about 80 anti-Indonesian guerrillas operating in the rugged territory, although other sources say there could be as many as 200.

The Indonesian armed forces maintain a strong presence in East Timor.

One diplomat who watches East Timor closely said the territory had been very tense in recent days after two police were killed in an ambush on Tuesday by a platoon-sized unit of rebels near Baucau.

A similiar sized rebel unit was involved in an ambush in Viqueque last month in which four soldiers and two government officials were killed.

"There have been a lot of leaflets circulating in East Timor that the rebels would try to disrupt the election," the source said.

13 shot deat in election violence in East Timor

Voice of America - May 29, 1997

Jenny Grant, Jakarta -- Millions of Indonesians went to the polls for general parliamentary elections Thursday. As Jenny Grant reports from Jakarta, balloting was marred by election-eve violence in the disputed territory of East Timor, where at least 13 people were shot dead.

Election officials and party poll-watchers repeated an election oath at 305,000 polling stations across Indonesia Thursday morning, pledging the voting would be free and secret. The wooden and metal ballot boxes were then locked, and people began to line-up at the outdoor polling places.

National Police Chief Lieutenant General Dibyo Widodo says 130,000 police were deployed throughout the country to help provide security during the election.

More than 250 people were killed in riots and traffic accidents during a violent election campaign. The streets of Jakarta were quiet and free of the usual traffic jams on Thursday, as many people took the day off from work fearing poll clashes.

But in the troubled territory of East Timor, there was a wave of pre-election violence on Wednesday. East Timor Police Chief, Colonel Yusuf Muharam says police shot and killed four people in the capital Dili, after they burnt down a number of polling booths. He said two people were shot dead in the town of Bacau, and seven more in Los Palos.

Colonel Muharam says the victims, whom he described as rebels, were opposed to integration with Indonesia and were trying to disturb the elections.

Indonesia's President Suharto, who heads the ruling Golkar Party, voted Thursday, along with his six children and their spouses, outside central Jakarta home in Jalan Cendana.

The President smiled as he cast his ballot, with eldest daughter Siti Hardiyanti Rukmana, the Deputy Chairman of Golkar. Golkar which won 68 percent at the last polls five years ago is expected to clinch at least 70 percent in these elections.

There was a small scuffle as an American journalist who tried to interview the President was detained by police.

Prior to voting, the Chairman of the Muslim-backed United Development Party, Buya Ismail Metareum, told VOA he was confident his party would perform strongly in the polls.

The popularity of the Muslim P-P-P soared during the election campaign, especially with young Muslims.

"We have no target for this election, but if we see the situation I think P-P-P will have at least 23.5 percent, or 94 seats in the D-P-R (House of Representatives) because the P-P-P situation in this election is the same as the situation in the 1982 polls."

Mr. Buya says the target will only be achieved if there is no interference in the polling and counting process.

[Latest reports say 4 of the killings were in Dili, 2 in Bacau and 7 in Los Palos - JB]

East Timor rebels kill two police in ambush

Deutsche Presse Agentur - May 27, 1997

Jakarta -- Separatist (sic) rebels in East Timor killed two Indonesian policemen and wounded seven in an ambush Tuesday, according to an official who declined to be named

He said 18 police in two trucks were ambushed by about ten rebels in Lega district 160 kilometers east of the East Timor capital, Dili. After a skirmish, the rebels fled to nearby mountains.

The police were among security forces deployed to maintain security in the district of Baguya during general elections scheduled for Thursday.

On April 7, East Timor Fretilin [actually should be Falintil] rebels carried out a similar attack in Viqueque district 200 kilometres east of Dili, killing six people and wounding five.

The Fretilin movement launched an armed rebellion against the government in 1976, and remains active in the former Portuguese colony although its attacks have grown rarer.

Indonesia invaded East Timor in 1975 and annexed it the following year, sparking international criticism and local dissent. The United Nations has never recognized Indonesia's sovereignty over East Timor and regards Portugal as the adminsitering power.

Portugal tries to verify report of Dili shooting

Reuters - May 28, 1997

Lisbon -- The Portuguese government said on Wednesday it was trying to verify a report of shooting incidents in the East Timorese capital of Dili involving Timorese guerrillas and Indonesian soldiers.

"We are following the situation using the usual channels, including the International Committee of the Red Cross, to try to find out what happened. Obviously we have no diplomatic representation in Dili," a foreign ministry spokeswoman told Reuters.

In a report from Sydney, the Portuguese news agency Lusa quoted Timorese rebel sources as saying that an undetermined number of Timorese might have been killed in the shooting outbreaks in Dili which began late on Wednesday night.

Lusa said the shooting was believed to have started when a group of guerrillas of FALINTIL, a group opposed to Indonesia's occupation of East Timor, attacked Indonesian military positions in Dili.

Lusa quoted Timorese rebel sources contacted from Australia as saying that Dili was ``flooded with Indonesian troops" and that shooting had been heard in various parts of the city.

Lusa also quoted a Roman Catholic church source in Dili as confirming shooting incidents had taken place.

"Three people with whom I spoke by telephone were crying and said they were terrified," Lusa quoted the church source as saying.

Indonesia invaded the former Portuguese colony of East Timor in December 1975 and still maintains a heavy military presence there. It unilaterally annexed the territory in July 1976 in an act not recognised by the United Nations.

Two police officers killed in East Timor

Reuters - May 28, 1997

Jakarta -- Two Indonesian policemen were killed and four injured after rebels attacked their convoy in the troubled territory of East Timor, church and hospital sources said on Wednesday.

Police and military officials could not be reached for comment.

"The attack happened yesterday (Tuesday) at 10 a.m. near Baucau. Two policemen were killed after being shot by the rebels," a source in Baucau town, 100 km (62 miles), east of the East Timor capital Dili, told Reuters by telephone.

Sources at the Wira Husada military hospital in Dili said the four injured men were still being treated there.

There were no indications if the ambush was linked to the nation's general election campaign, which has seen the worst political violence in the country in more than 30 years.

Voting takes place on Thursday. A church source said the attack took place about 20 km (16 miles) east of Baucau when about 20 policemen in two trucks were on their way to the town of Los Palos for guard duty during Thursday's general elections.

``There was no gun battle because the policemen only carried sticks. Two policemen in the first truck were killed. The officers in the second truck were injured after the vehicle fell into a ravine because the driver became nervous," the source said.

Tuesday's attack follows a major ambush in East Timor in April when a senior government official, an aide and four security guards were killed at a village near Viqueque town, 120 km (75 miles) south of Dili.

Military officials have said the number of armed rebels in East Timor is dwindling and do not number more than 200 poorly quipped fighters.

Indonesia invaded East Timor in 1975 and annexed it the following year in a move not recognised by the United Nations, which still considers former colonial ruler Portugal as the administering power.

East Timor hit by suspected separatist attacks

Radio Australia - May 29, 1997

Indonesian authorities say at least 15 people have died in East Timor, in a series of attacks by suspected separatist rebels.

Michael Maher reports that the violence occurred ahead of elections held throughout Indonesia today.

Police in East Timor say that the deaths occurred yesterday in separate incidents in the towns of Dili, Baucau and Los Palos during attacks by Fretilin guerillas aimed at disrupting Indonesia's parliamentary elections. The police claim that the fatalities included nine civilians and four members of Fretilin. There is yet to be any independent confirmation of those police reports or figures. However, East Timor's pro-independence movement has stepped up its activities during the course of the Indonesian election campaign.

Earlier this week, two policemen were reported to have been shot by Fretilin fighters and polling booths have been destroyed. Although Indonesia claims East Timor as its 27th province, it's a claim which isn't recognised by the United Nations.

Ramos Horta sceptical about Timor negotiations

Publico - 15 May, 1997

Lisbon -- The special representative of the National Council for Maubere Resistance (CNRM) does not believe that the forthcoming round of talks between Portugal and Indonesia on East Timor will produce any concrete results. With regard to the next meeting between Jaime Gama and Ali Alatas, which is scheduled for June and will be the first meeting supervised by Kofi Annan, Ramos Horta has no doubts: "I am under no illusions".

Indonesia's "inflexibility" is at the root of the Timorese leader's scepticism. Ramos Horta does not for a moment question "the UN Secretary General's involvement". He praises the "competence and suitability of Ambassador Jamsheed Marker (the Pakistani diplomat appointed by Kofi Annan to be his Personal Representative on the question of East Timor), and he emphasises the importance of "Portugal's good faith and determination". He blames Jakarta's attitude for his negligible expectations on the negotiating process.

All or nothing in New York

Given this scenario, the CNRM special representative and 1996 Nobel Peace Prize laureate believes that "the time has come for some critical decisions". If his predictions are right, Horta promises to do all in his power to get Portugal to adopt a "more aggressive strategy" and bring about a vote at the next UN General Assembly session.

A confrontation at the General Assembly over the question of East Timor has not happened since 1982, when a resolution against Indonesia was adopted in New York. This possibility is out of the question as long as the current negotiations under the Secretary General's auspices continue. What Ramos Horta foresees is an inconclusive meeting in June, which could lead Kofi Annan to end the talks process. Then, the path would be clear for Timor to be put to the vote at the UN General Assembly.

In the view of Ramos Horta, both the international attention attracted to East Timor by the 1996 Nobel Prize awards, and the domestic situation in Indonesia itself, make ideal timing for a General Assembly vote. When the General Assembly meets, Indonesia will be going through an inevitable critical period between its legislative elections (in late May) and the Presidential contest scheduled for 1998. Horta expects that these internal upheavals will weaken Jakarta externally. Further Execution in Dili The East Timor Human Rights Centre (ETHRC) has stated that it has received reports confirming the murder of 32-year-old Fernando Lopes, shot to death in Dili on 8 February.

According to the Australian-based organisation, Fernando Lopes, born in Comoro, was shot in the back at 4 o'clock in the morning in the Timorese capital. The extra-judicial killing occurred in a street just 50 metres away from a police station. The perpetrators were Indonesian soldiers whose identities have not been revealed. Fernando Lopes was still alive when he was taken to the Wirahusada military hospital, but died the following day.

Last year, the ETHRC received 24 confirmed reports of extra- judicial executions in East Timor.

Human rights

Children sacrificing studies for 10-hour days in factories

South China Morning Post - May 29, 1997

Jenny Grant, Idah enjoys the weekend like any other child - playing noisy games with her friends.

But unlike most 14-year-olds, when Monday morning arrives Idah heads to work at a biscuit factory rather than school.

She is one of the child labourers in the West Java heartland of Tangerang, the sprawling industrial area 30 kilometres west of Jakarta which supports the rapid growth of the nation's capital.

Idah lives with her grandmother Atji and 10 other relatives in a mud-floor house in the centre of Priok - a village of about 2,000 people surrounded by rice fields and factories.

The factories churn out biscuits, sandals, bags and garments for export and local consumption.

Many of the factories - including big name sports shoe brands like Reebok, Nike, Eagle, and Sportec - are alleged to employ child labourers under the legal age of 16.

Economic necessity has forced children in Priok to leave school and work in the factories, joining an estimated 2.9 million other Indonesian child workers.

"I earn 35,000 rupiah (HK$122.50) a month working from seven in the morning to five in the afternoon. Plus I have to pay the factory 3,000 rupiah a week for transport to work," said Idah, who packs biscuits at the PT Yudiawangi factory.

For adults, the minimum monthly wage in Tangerang is 171,000 rupiah.

Other child workers in Priok say they are driven to work in closed metal trucks with no ventilation.

"If we break any of the biscuits we have to pay for them out of our wages," said Herni, who packs biscuits with dozens of child labourers on a platform above hot stoves.

Most of the children do not have contracts. By hiring on a daily basis the companies avoid paying holiday wages.

At the PT Sumereva Indonusa sandal factory, 35 of the company's 400 workers are underage. Child workers say it is common for their fingernails to fall off with the abrasion of sewing leather.

PT Tae Yung Indo, which sews fashionable long coats for export to Korea, the Philippines and Switzerland, has only three toilets for 60 workers, many of whom are children.

Children must wait until one of three toilet cards is available before they can leave the factory floor.

Young workers in Priok say they have to work to help their parents, who also live in poverty as rice farmers or meatball sellers.

The poor are finally fighting back in Indonesia

Vancouver Sun - May 28, 1997

Edward Alden, Jakarta - On one side of the lagoon, Arie, his wife and two children live in a tiny shack of scrap wood and rusting corrugated iron, perched on stilts above canals choked with plastic bottles and tin cans. On the other side is what Arie calls "Miami," and to the people of Muara Baru it might as well be across the world, rather than just across the pond.

"Miami" is a gated community of plush condominiums, swimming pools and satellite dishes, where young girls dress in the starched skirts and pressed white shirts of private school uniforms. The cheapest homes sell for 350 million rupiah, about $180,000. If the Indonesian government has its way, Arie and the 30,000 people in Muara Baru will soon be evicted and their homes demolished to make way for another Miami, part of a massive waterfront reclamation and redevelopment project headed by Indonesian President Suharto's youngest daughter. They have been offered $12 a square metre, about $120 a house, for land that is worth probably 100 times that much. The cost of even a modest new home in Jakarta is $15,000 minimum. The only possible reprieve, local government officials have told them, is if the district votes 90 per cent in favor of the ruling, army-backed Golkar party in Thursday's election. "If the people don't vote for Golkar, I will have a big problem," said Hamid, one of the community's leaders.

The plight facing Muara Baru is not unusual in Indonesia. Land rights issues are second only to wage issues in the cases appearing before the country's quasi-independent human rights commission. More than 250 people have been camped on the commission's doorstep since their shanties were demolished April 17. In a country that has enjoyed growth rates between six and seven per cent for almost 25 years -- in part, most observers say, because of the relative stability brought by authoritarian military rule -- development pressures are constantly encroaching on the poorest people.

Since the early 1980s, there has been a boom in Jakarta's real estate market, with office buildings, luxury apartments and huge shopping malls sprouting across the city. Total office space in Jakarta grew from 345,000 square metres in 1980 to 2.5 million square metres in 1994. Development has transformed the face of Jakarta, and few would complain about the changes.

Even in the shanty towns, the poor are not eager to save their hovels. But without some compensation, they have nowhere else to go. In most cases, the Indonesian government has simply moved aside the residents and bulldozed their homes to make way for new buildings. While there are no figures kept on how many people have been forced out with little or no compensation, it probably numbers in the hundreds of thousands.

But Arie and Muara Baru's leaders are doing something unthinkable in Indonesia a decade ago: they are fighting back. With a local lawyer's support, they have challenged the Suharto regime in court, demanding fair compensation for their homes. And, they warn, if the army tries to force them out, they will not go without a fight. "For the first time, these people have the courage to protest," said M.S. Zulkarnaen, the former president of WALHI, an Indonesian environmental organization. "Since the late 1980s, most of these communities have become well organized, with lawyers and their own institutions. This is a new phenomenon for Jakarta." And that phenomenon is, in no small part, the result of support from countries like Canada. When Canadian eyes turn to Indonesia these days, they see gold, oil, gas and a booming economy that generated almost $3 billion in potential business deals during Prime Minister Jean Chretien's Team Canada mission last year.

But the new resistance in places like Muara Baru is as much the creation of Canada's involvement in Indonesia as the business deals the prime minister brought home. In the 1980s and early 1990s, Canada, largely through the Canadian International Development Agency, was one of the key countries supporting non- governmental organizations and helping train the lawyers and social activists who now try to defend the rights of the vast, poor majority of Indonesia's population of 180 million. In the jargon of the development agencies, Canada has helped to foster "the creation of civil society" in Indonesia. But does Canada now have the courage to support its own creation? While the Indonesian government is looking to Canada for investment, Arie and his people are looking to Canada to help them save the only homes they know. Arie has taught himself several languages, including English, in an effort to bring their story to the world. "We need help," he says. "Where is the World Bank, where is UNESCO, where is Canada?" If the army destroys their homes, he says, "the world will know what happened." Asmara Nababan, executive director of INFID, one of the country's more influential non-governmental organizations, thinks Canada is losing its nerve. "We think that Canada can play a significant role in supporting change and democracy in Indonesia," he said. "But they are very cautious towards our government. They don't like to make public statements on human rights."

Canadian support for nongovernmental organization, he says, has been drying up at the same time CIDA is pumping more than $4 million a year into loans for Canadian companies exploring business opportunities in Indonesia. "They have a lot of economic interests in Indonesia and they don't want to embarrass the Indonesian government," said Nababan. Canadian support for communities like Muara Baru would clearly not please the government. Even if the people there believed the Suharto regime might change its mind - which they don't - they have no intention of voting for Golkar, says Hamid, a retired soldier. The fight to save their community has turned them into supporters of deposed opposition leader Megawati Sukarnoputri. Most will express that opposition the only way they can, by spoiling their ballots. Canadians are accustomed to using the courts to defend their rights; in Indonesia, demanding just compensation for expropriation carries grave risks. Haji Soenardi, the lawyer working on behalf of Muara Baru, spent three years in jail in the early 1980s for opposing Suharto. Adnan Buyang Nasution, who founded the Legal Aid Institute - a team of lawyers that defends many of those facing dispossession - was also jailed in the 1970s. Still, the communities are not powerless. Soenardi's efforts on behalf of Muara Baru have tied the case up in court for more than six years. While he admits he has never won a case of this type before the Indonesian courts, every day of delay works in the community's favor. "If [the government] can't do something in one day, they will pull back and try to negotiate," he said. "And the longer the delay, the more expensive the land gets." Perhaps, he says, the government will decide it's better to pay fair compensation than to risk an uprising by bringing in the army. In addition, Zulkarnaen and WALHI sued the Indonesian government to force it to do an environmental impact assessment on the north Jakarta waterfront redevelopment project. The project will remain on hold until the assessment is completed. The Indonesian government agency that does environment assessments, known as BAPADEL, was first established through a CIDA grant. Zulkarnaen says the government and the army are growing increasingly wary of simply bringing in the bulldozers and risking open confrontations with the people. But there are other ways. Last year, one corner of Muara Baru mysteriously burned down in a fire that started in a newly established restaurant. The army immediately moved in with wire fences and signs warning that the land was now claimed by the government. The restaurant owner was never seen again. Zulkarnaen figures Muara Baru is safe until at least next spring, when the turmoil from this month's violent election campaign has waned and foreign investors begin to warm up again to Indonesia. But he says international attention and assistance are crucial. The NGOs themselves are under mounting pressure, facing a government crackdown in the runup to the election. In a recent letter to World Bank president James Wolfensohn, Nababan of INFID said the failure of the bank and western countries to speak out on human rights and to support the NGOs simply strengthens the Suharto regime's efforts to suppress any dissent. "Doing nothing or keeping silent can very well represent an act of taking sides in a political playing field," he wrote. Will Canada be among those countries supporting people like those in Muara Baru? Joel Ornoy of the Indonesian-Canadian Alliance, a coalition of Canadian NGOs supporting their counterparts in Indonesia, is not optimistic. "Canada's reputation has taken a bit of a beating for more being more interested in trade and investment than in real grassroots community work," he said. "The government has said very clearly that Canada's emphasis is changing from community links to trade links." "There's very little doubt left about where the emphasis is taking place."

Social unrest

Riot fire fatalities increase, 133 corpses found already

Kompas - 26 May, 1997 Banjarmasin -- The number of dead in the Siola Mitra Plaza shopping complex, in Banjarmasin, South Kalimantan, which burned in the riots which befell that town last Friday (23/5), continues to increase.

The Antara news agency mentions that until 18.00 on Sunday yesterday (25/5), already 131 totally burned corpses have been found on the second floor of the shopping complex.

Members of the Banjarmasin branch of the Red Cross Volunteer Corps mentioned that the additional burned skeletons were found on the second floor of the building, while it was stated that on the third and fourth floors no victims were found.

So the number of victims who died as a result of the Banjarmasin riots now totals 133 persons, because previously one person each was found burned to death respectively in the Sarikaya supermarket and the Lima Cahaya shop.

The burned corpses were transported to the hospital in waves. The three hospitals assigned to carry out autopsies on the skeletons of the victims are the Ulin General Hospital, the Banjarmasin Islamic Hospital, and the Dr Soeharsono Army Hospital.

"The autopsies are to find the identities of the victims, even the tiniest items, considering that the condition of the skeletons is no longer complete," said a member of the team of physicians of the Banjarmasin police. He could not yet make out who the burned corpses originally were, whether from visitors to Mitra Plaza, from a group of rioters, or from the employees.

To assist in the identification process, a Central Forensic Laboratory Team from Police Headquarters arrived in Banjarmasin yesterday.

Besides involving medical personnel from the City Resort Police and the South Kalimantan Regional Police, a number of members of the Banjarmasin branch of the Red Cross Volunteer Corps also assisted fulltime until the evacuation was completed. Besides finding skeletons and a few identity cards of the victims, duty functionaries also found a number of evidence items, in the form of sharp weapons, near the skeletons.

Meanwhile, as noted by Kompas, in the Ulin General Hospital, 65 persons are undergoing treatment for serious/minor burns, 19 persons in the Islamic hospital, and five in the Suaka Insan hospital. These are relatively young people of 16-28 years, all residents of Banjarmasin.

In the meantime, from Palangka Raya in Central Kalimantan reports come about rumors that on 28 May riots will occur similar to Banjarmasin, namely that all shops, banks and government officies will be burned.

The South Kalimantan PPP Regional Directing Board General Chairman, Syafriansyah, has stated his concern about the 23 May incident which has claimed many victims. And the entire Regional Directing Board expressed its condolences to the families of the victims. But he rejected the opinion that the event was connected to the PPP mass. The PPP, he said, never made an instruction to carry out riots.

Gradually normal

The situation in Banjarmasin has gradually returned to normal. The community is resuming its activities, traffic beginning to run smooth. But the situation in Banjarmasin is still tense, the security apparatus still being on the alert.

Shops in the shopping zones of Sudimampir, Ujungmurung, Pasar Baru, and Pasar Lama are still closed. On the periphery of the town, beverage and snack stalls have started to display their wares. Every one and a half hour, security units go on patrol to various locations of the town, because there are still rumors that rioters will set fire to residences.

At night the atmosphere is oppressive, as there is an appeal not to go outdoors after 20.00. Banjarmasin then appears like a ghost town.

Still healthy

The General Chairman of the Indonesian Religious Teachers Council (MUI), KH Hasan Basri, disclosed in his residence yesterday that he was still safe and healthy, although he had been unable to leave the Hotel Kalimantan, in Banjarmasin, for five hours, and the greater part of the hotel had burned due to the riots. He returned to Jakarta on Saturday afternoon (24/5).

He was taken out of the hotel by a unit of Mobile Brigade agents around 21.00 on Friday, together with the national campaign executive Saadilah Mursyid, who is also Minister/Cabinet Secretary, and about 60 other persons.

He was in Banjarmasin to read out a special prayer at the final campaign round of the Functional Group. He had been invited by Saadilah Mursyid. Because of the riots, both the campaign and the prayer did not take place.

Concerning the riots, KH Hasan Basri said that the perpetrators were irresponsible infiltrators. He expressed his puzzlement why the historical churches in Banjarmasin were also burned. According to the scholar who originally came from Banjarmasin, all this while, interrreligious relations there have always been good.

Officials have confirmed at least 130 dead

Voice of America - May 25, 1997

Jenny Grant, Jakarta -- Indonesian officials have confirmed that at least 130 people died in a massive shopping center fire on the island of Borneo on Friday. As Jenny Grant reports from Jakarta, the blaze began during a riot on the last day of campaigning ahead of Thursday's general election.

Rescue workers at the Mitra Plaza Shopping Center said Sunday they have recovered scores of bodies from the site of the blaze in the South Kalimantan Capital, Banjarmasin.

Officials say most of the dead are believed to be looters. Witnesses said rioters set alight a bank in the complex, trapping people inside, who were too afraid to leave when police and military arrived.

Police only began removing the charred bodies Sunday because the shopping and cinema complex was still burning a day after the fire began.

The rioting started at noon Friday when clashes broke out between supporters of the ruling Golkar party and the Moslem-backed United Development Party.

The two groups attacked each other with stones and knives. Thousands of people later joined the attack and then ran amok in the town of 400,000 people, burning shops, houses and cars.

The state Antara News Agency reported Sunday that eight shopping centers, 130 houses, over 80 vehicles and three hotels were burned in the riots. Four people died from stab wounds and burns during the disturbances and about 100 others were injured.

Isa Ansari, and evacuee from one of the burnt out hotels told VOA Sunday that he and his friends were trapped in the Kalimantan Hotel, while looters smashed and ransacked shops below. He said the hotel was then set ablaze and 59 hotel guests were forced to flee.

Armed forces spokesman Brigadier General Slamet Supriadi said 181 people were arrested in the riots. The riots broke out on the last day of general election campaigning. The campaign month was marred by clashes in towns across Java. Indonesians go to the polls this Thursday.

International relations

Massachusetts committee okays Indonesia sanctions

Reuters - May 29, 1997

Leslie Gevirtz, Boston -- A Massachusetts state legislative committee Thursday approved a measure that would impose sanctions against companies that do business with Indonesia.

The Massachusetts Committee on State Administration approved the measure, which its sponsor, state Senator Marc Pacheco, said was amended to make it conform to the World Trade Organization's Government Procurement Act.

Pacheco said he hoped the bill, which must now go to the state's House of Representatives, ``would send a strong message to the dictatorship in Indonesia that they must change their ways and provide the people of East Timor basic human rights and a measure of self determination."

Massachusetts passed a similar measure in 1996 that bans the state from doing business with firms that do business with Burma, also known as Myanmar. That law, which went into effect on January 1, has sparked an international furor among U.S. trading partners.

The European Union and Japan have protested to Washington about the Burma law and federal officials have met with Massachusetts legislators in hopes of having them change the measure.

A battle before the WTO still looms and a spokesman for Massachusetts State Attorney General Scott Harshbarger said his office stands ready to defend the Burma bill.

The Indonesia legislation was amended to exempt individual purchasing contracts of more than $500,000 and construction contracts of more than $7 million to avoid any potential violations of the WTO act.

The measure prohibits Massachusetts state agencies from contracting with companies that conduct business in Indonesia.

"Whether it has been imposing sanction on South Africa or Burma, Massachusetts has a history of taking a leadership role in issues like this and several other states around the country have already begun to file legislation modeled after the Massachusetts bill," Pacheco said.

If the measure passes both houses of the state legislature, the ban would remain in effect until Indonesia complies with United Nations resolutions calling for self determination in East Timor.

Rebels are fighting Indonesian rule in East Timor, which Jakarta took over in 1975 and incorporated as Indonesia's 27th province the following year. The move has never been recognized by the United Nations.

Indonesia's ruler President Suharto, 75, is widely expected to run for a seventh five-year term next year.

Indonesia may buy Russian jetfighters

UPI - May 28, 1997

Jakarta -- Indonesia is considering the purchase of advanced Russian-made Mig jetfighters if the United States continues to block the acquisition of its F-16 aircrafts because of alleged human rights violations. Air force chief Marshall Sutria Tubagus says today it is not certain whether Indonesia will acquire the advanced U.S.-made jetfighters, "because the U.S. has always linked any prospective buy with human rights issues."

Tubagus says Indonesia will not allow other countries to interfere in the country's internal affairs. Therefore, he says, Indonesia is considering shopping around to find other countries willing to sell jetfighters. Tubagus admits the U.S.-made F-16s jetfighters have advantages. He says, "Air Force pilots are familiar with the aircraft and we have a number of facilities that can be used for maintenance and operation." In August, the U.S. administration was reconsidering the sale of nine F-16 fighter jets to Indonesia because of its concern over the crackdown on political dissent in the wake of unrest in July that left at least five people dead and 23 others missing. The riots were triggered by a military-backed police storming of the opposition Indonesian Democratic Party headquarters in Jakarta.

The Riadys' persistent pursuit of influence

Washington Post - May 27, 1997

Sharon LaFraniere, John Pomfret and Lena H. Sun -- April 19, 1993, was a tense day at the White House. After a lengthy standoff, the FBI planned to pump tear gas into the Branch Davidian compound near Waco, Tex. At stake were the lives of dozens of federal agents and the nearly 80 men, women and children holed up inside. The White House situation room was on full alert.

It was not too busy, however, for President Clinton to spend some time with James Riady and John Huang of Indonesia's Lippo Group conglomerate. The two had been cleared in that morning for their fifth White House visit in a week. Riady, Huang and an associate, Mark Grobmyer, chatted with Clinton in his study just off the Oval Office shortly after 5 p.m., while in the background Clinton's television replayed scenes of the failed FBI raid that led to scores of deaths.

Riady later told government ministers back home in Jakarta about his chat with the preoccupied president that breezy afternoon, saying that Clinton even showed him the situation room. Such anecdotes helped Riady create the impression, true or not, that his family had a direct pipeline to the Oval Office, and that perception seems to have enhanced Lippo's prestige in the eyes of at least some government officials in Asia.

To the Riadys, that was worth all the money and effort they spent cultivating official Washington, according to former Lippo executives, Indonesian government officials and others who know the family and the massive conglomerate they own. And that could answer a question that has dogged investigators ever since the controversy over Democratic fund-raising practices broke last fall: What did the Riadys stand to gain from their remarkable courtship of an American president and his political party?

Without the link to Clinton, the Riadys were prominent businessmen, but they were also ethnic Chinese in a country that deeply mistrusts the Chinese. As successful as they were, therefore, they had little chance of gaining admittance to President Suharto's inner circle, and that limited Lippo's chance to win billions of dollars in contracts he hands out to friends and family members.

The Clinton connection changed all that. It put the Riadys in the category of a potential back channel to the White House should the Indonesian government -- or the Chinese government -- ever desire it. "Riady's goal was to sell his relationship with Clinton to two governments, Indonesia and China," said one former Lippo executive, who asked not to be identified. Rarely has a foreign-based corporation cultivated a U.S. president so aggressively. The Riadys, who got to know Clinton in the early 1980s during a Little Rock business venture, did all they could to strengthen that relationship once Clinton was elected. They and their business associates contributed more than $700,000 to the Democratic Party since 1991, including a $450,000 contribution from a business partner's family that was returned last year as possibly illegal. The Riadys also hired one of Clinton's closest friends. They hosted events for three groups of U.S. commerce and trade officials who traveled to Jakarta. In the National Portrait Gallery sits a life-size bronze bust of Clinton donated in the Riadys' honor. Typical of their efforts was an offer to fly a Little Rock contingent to the 1994 economic summit in Indonesia's capital city in case Clinton "would like to see some Arkansans while he was over there," a White House aide has said.

If the Riadys hoped to use their ties to Clinton to gain direct benefits from the U.S. government, however, the evidence is well hidden. In contrast to Asia, where Lippo has extensive dealings with government officials at every level, the firm's U.S. operations are minor. In fact, the Midas touch that Lippo patriarch Mochtar Riady displayed in Indonesia, Hong Kong and China seems to have failed him here. The firm has floundered in its effort to develop a U.S. bank specializing in international trade, and while it has teamed up with some U.S. companies on Asian business ventures, they require little U.S. government aid.

Indonesia is another story. In Jakarta, Lippo has approached the Suharto regime for almost everything from critical building permits to outright financial bailouts. And in China, where Lippo is investing heavily, the firm is equally if not more dependent on official support because government ministries own the companies that are Lippo's partners.

When Clinton was elected president, the Riadys saw a chance to gain more leverage with the governments in Beijing and Jakarta, according to associates of the family. One former executive recalled James Riady's pitch when Lippo hosted a delegation of Chinese officials in Jakarta in 1993. "James told them if they ever needed a special word passed to the White House, he or his father would be happy to do it," the executive said.

In their contacts with Clinton, the Riadys pressed the views of the Chinese and Indonesian governments. In early 1993, Mochtar Riady sent the president a four-page letter, urging him to renew China's trading privileges and to support Suharto in his desire to attend the Group of Seven economic summit later that year. Clinton recalls that James Riady also tried to persuade him to meet Suharto at the 1993 Tokyo summit -- a meeting Clinton granted after his top foreign policy advisers recommended it. And in a 1996 Oval Office meeting, James Riady urged Clinton to stick to his policy of separating the issue of China's trading privileges from human rights concerns.

The Riadys offered others as messengers too, including Mark Grobmyer, with whom Lippo worked closely, and Webster L. Hubbell, who was paid $100,000 by Lippo after leaving the Clinton Justice Department. In early 1993, James Riady arranged for Grobmyer, a Little Rock lawyer and longtime friend of Clinton, to spend 1 1/2 hours with Suharto in Jakarta. An official with Indonesia's Foreign Ministry said Riady insisted that Grobmyer "had the ear of President Clinton."

"He said the meeting would give us special access to the White House. Suharto's people were interested in this access so they met with him," the official said.

After his trip, Grobmyer wrote Clinton about Suharto's desire to address the economic summit. He noted that the Riadys had scheduled meetings for him with top Indonesian officials and attached a thank-you letter for Clinton to send James, describing Grobmyer's insights as "very helpful." Clinton didn't send it, but James Riady gave Suharto's aides a copy of Grobmyer's letter to Clinton as proof of his family's influence, according to the Foreign Ministry official.

The Riadys also promoted Hubbell at Suharto's presidential palace as someone "influential with Bill Clinton," said another Indonesian official. After Hubbell resigned from the Justice Department amid allegations of fraud, James Riady arranged for him to tour Indonesia.

Riady made sure that Hubbell, like Grobmyer, visited the former Portuguese colony of East Timor, where Indonesian security forces have been accused of widespread human rights abuses. Riady "said letting a friend of Clinton's see Timor might help change U.S. policy. So naturally we thought it was a good idea," the official said.

Indonesian officials who traveled to Washington saw tangible proof of Lippo's White House access. In April 1993, James Riady escorted the governor of Jakarta to the East Wing for a meeting on which the White House can provide no details. He also took Wardiman Djojonegoro, the Indonesian minister for education, to the Oval Office in September 1994 to hear Clinton give his radio address. About that time, Djojonegoro's ministry granted Lippo a license to operate an international school at one of its property developments.

And Riady accompanied Hartarto Sastrosoenarto, Indonesia's coordinating minister for production and one of Suharto's most influential advisers, to the White House for a September 1995 lunch. Joining them was John Huang, who had left Lippo for the Commerce Department the previous year, and Mark E. Middleton, a former mid-level presidential aide who continued to use the White House Mess to entertain clients and friends. Two months later, the Indonesian government arranged for a group of private companies to rescue Lippo during a financial crunch.

"These trips helped Lippo improve their ties to the Suharto regime," said the former Lippo executive. "As a result, Suharto helped rescue them when they needed help." Neither the Riady family nor their representatives would comment for this article.

U.S. officials insist that neither the Indonesians nor the Chinese needed Riady as a backdoor emissary because diplomatic and other official channels were wide open. Suharto's powerful aide, Hartarto, for example, has little trouble getting on the schedule of U.S. Cabinet secretaries. "I don't think the Indonesian government found any need to use the Riadys as intermediaries to the U.S. government," said Robert Barry, an appointee of President George Bush who served as U.S. ambassador to Indonesia from 1992 through mid-1995.

Still, Suharto was seeking greater recognition in the world, and the U.S. government was signaling that problems like Indonesia's human rights abuses and poor treatment of workers stood in the way of better relations. U.S. officials acknowledge that the perception that James Riady had special access to Clinton could be of great value to Lippo. "From the Asian perspective, personal relationships are more important than anything else," said one senior administration official.

Said another former administration official who dealt extensively with Indonesia: "I think James Riady had a particular cachet that other people didn't have."

The family empire

The Lippo logo -- two bright red infinity signs -- is ubiquitous in Indonesia. Besides the banks and financing firms at Lippo's core, the company manufactures textiles and electronic products. It mines coal, sells insurance and builds shopping centers, housing developments and hospitals. Lippo's flagship, Lippo Limited, publicly discloses assets of $3.6 billion. In Jakarta, locals joke that Lippo stands for Lama-Lama Indonesia Pun Punya Oe, meaning: In the long run, even Indonesia will be mine.

Mochtar Riady, a charmingly genial man with an easy dignity, built the Lippo empire over four decades, beginning with a single bank. Now 68, he laid out his business philosophy in a 1984 interview with an Arkansas magazine: "Every network has to have its foundation laid on special, personal, human connections," he said. "What I am looking at is what my partners can offer in personal contacts and business connections."

The result of those connections today is a complex network of joint ventures with others from Suharto's half-brother to Wal- Mart. One count puts the number of Lippo's subsidiaries at 143. Its intricate structure, typical of Asian conglomerates, means "no one can really put the pieces together," said Stephen Chipman, former Asia director for the accounting firm of Grant- Thornton. "Probably the only people on this planet who really have a handle on the whole thing are the Riady family."

James Riady's estate outside Jakarta, one of at least three lavish homes he owns, is testimony to the success of his father's philosophy. A southern-style plantation manor in the middle of a Lippo-owned golf course, it is three stories tall, with soaring French windows and Greco-Roman columns. Inside is a multimillion-dollar art collection. Outside is a lake and pad for Riady's helicopter -- all ringed by a moat.

For all the Riadys' wealth, however, they are not in the top tier of politically connected Indonesian firms. A half-dozen or so others are closer to Suharto, and therefore more likely to benefit from his government's largess. Suharto has ruled Indonesia's 17,500 islands for 31 years, and his control of the world's fourth most populous nation is absolute. His relatives are some of the biggest beneficiaries of his power over commercial enterprises: Every television owner, for example, must pay a tax to a company owned by Suharto's oldest son.

Suharto's relatives are involved in some Lippo businesses, but Mochtar Riady's main contact with the Indonesian president is through his longtime patron, Liem Sioe Liong. Like much of Indonesia's business elite, Liem and Riady are ethnic Chinese, and they face the prejudice and resentment of the indigenous Indonesians known as pribumi.

Liem, sometimes described as Indonesia's richest business tycoon, has the advantage of a close, long-standing friendship with Suharto. But Mochtar Riady, who shed his Chinese name of Lee Mo Tie to fit in better with the pribumi, is "in the outside circle, trying to move inward," said one former administration official who specialized in Indonesia.

The Riadys may need good relations with the Suharto regime now more than ever because their financial empire appears not quite as secure as it once was. In late 1995, Lippo Bank's failure to make an inter-bank interest payment caused a run on the bank. Panicked depositors yanked out funds, and a group of private companies, at the behest of the state-owned Central Bank of Indonesia, came to Lippo's rescue.

That was followed by a financial restructuring last September that allowed the Riadys to pump $373 million into Lippo's ailing real estate development operations. Lin Che Wei, a financial analyst in Jakarta, sees Lippo as a carefully balanced house of cards, held up partly by the Riadys' practice of gobbling up shares of Lippo stock to drive up the price. "Riady is a master of this kind of game," said Lin, an analyst at Deutsche Morgan Grenfell. "He understands what investors want -- a rising share price."

At the same time the Riadys are trying to maneuver closer to Suharto, the family is positioning itself with the Chinese government. In 1993, for instance, Riady and Huang arranged a trip to Atlanta so a high-ranking Chinese Communist Party official involved in Beijing's bid to host the Olympics in 2000 could meet the team that put on the 1996 games. The Chinese government has responded favorably to Lippo's overtures: China Resources, a wholly owned enterprise of China's Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation, is now an equal owner with Lippo in Hong Kong Chinese Bank in Hong Kong. When Lippo was desperate for cash to bolster a struggling real estate development outside Jakarta, the Chinese firm came up with $26 million.

Lippo is setting up banks, building hotels, stores and offices and investing in cement factories in a half-dozen Chinese cities. In Fujian province, the ancestral home of Mochtar Riady's parents, Lippo plans a major development, an island temple dedicated to Mazu, the goddess of fishing. Lippo's plan calls for a vast office, tourist and industrial park, complete with food malls and golf courses.

U.S. operations

The Riadys came to know Clinton by happenstance. When Mochtar Riady decided in the late 1970s to shop for a U.S. bank, Stephens Inc., a prominent investment banking house based in Little Rock, provided advice. Jack Stephens and Mochtar Riady hit it off, and the two families bought a controlling interest in Little Rock's Worthen Bank.

Mochtar Riady installed his confident and energetic middle son, James, as Worthen's co-president. The younger Riady, then just 28, didn't care much about politics, but "he was interested in people who were important because they were important," said a former Worthen executive who worked for him. A Stephens family member said Riady met then-Gov. Clinton for the first time over corn bread and grits at one of Jack Stephens's regular lunches at Stephens Inc. When Clinton traveled to Hong Kong in 1985, the Stephens and Riady families arranged a cruise of Hong Kong harbor, a dinner, a shopping trip and a cocktail reception.

Riady bought a house in a prestigious Little Rock neighborhood, where he entertained frequently, and seemed eager to pick up American customs -- an enthusiasm that occasionally led to improbable scenes. One ex-Worthen official recalls that at 10 one night, Riady showed up on his doorstep with a half-dozen Asian employees in shorts and black socks. They wanted to be taught basketball.

To the Riadys' disappointment, the Stephens partnership fell apart in 1986 after a New Jersey investment firm that owed Worthen $52 million went bankrupt. That spelled the end of the bank's international division. Bank examiners said it involved too much risk, and they criticized a number of insider loans to entities controlled by the Riadys and the Stephenses. The examiners found more than $40 million in loans or lines of credit to businesses in which the Riadys were either owners or investors.

Once he packed up in Little Rock, James Riady concentrated on a small, troubled retail bank in California that he bought in 1984. He spent $946,000 for a house in an exclusive Los Angeles neighborhood and commuted from Jakarta.

But the Riadys were not much more successful in California than they were in Little Rock. Lippo Bank, as it is now called, has steadily lost money, staying afloat only because James Riady has poured in $26 million. Meanwhile, regulators have issued three "cease and desist" orders in the past seven years, citing sloppy management and questionable transfers of funds.

In 1990, bank examiners requested a criminal investigation after discovering that a 21-year-old teller made more than 900 suspicious wire transfers totaling $7 million to accounts at the Hong Kong Chinese Bank, owned by Lippo and China Resources. According to an examiner's memo, the teller routinely wired amounts of just under $10,000, the threshold at which transfers must be reported. Almost all the transfers were booked under phony names and initialed by a supervisor, according to congressional investigators. There is no indication that the bank's top echelon knew of the practice.

Roy Tirtadji, managing director of the Lippo Group, suggested in an interview last year that Lippo Bank suffered from neglect. "We didn't really pay much attention to the California bank," he said. "It was so small."

What did interest James Riady, increasingly, was developing U.S. political contacts. His representative was John Huang, who ran the Los Angeles-based bank. Huang and Maria Hsia, an Asian American fund-raiser in California, began raising money for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee in the late 1980s. In an April 1988 memo sent to Hsia, Riady listed six senators he wanted to invite to Indonesia, Hong Kong and Taiwan. He offered private dinners or luncheons hosted by his family.

Riady also specified the need for senators to urge Taiwan to loosen its banking regulations and allow Asian American banks, or at least his bank, to open branch offices there. It was one of the few times Riady seemed to be seeking a specific benefit from U.S. officials.

But Riady's efforts to play on the U.S. political scene in those years paled in comparison to the push his family made once Clinton was elected president in 1992. In a typical overture, Mochtar Riady flew to Little Rock to see Hillary Rodham Clinton receive an "Arkansan of the Year" award from the March of Dimes. He donated $50,000 on the spot.

Riady said in early 1993 that he was working closely with Grobmyer, the longtime Clinton friend who accompanied Riady on the first three of some 20 visits to the White House. Another contact was presidential aide Middleton, who cleared Riady to the Executive Mansion a half-dozen times. The Riady family's strongest connection to the administration was Huang, who moved from the Commerce Department to the Democratic National Committee after meeting with Clinton and James Riady in the Oval Office in September 1995.

With Huang's fund-raising activities now the subject of numerous investigations, the Riadys have lost the White House entree they worked so hard to win. But ironically, the controversy may have done more to enhance the family's reputation back in Asia than all the White House visits ever did.

"The interesting thing about this huge scandal is that it's giving them great face in Indonesia," said an American financier who works with an Asia-based firm. "It's working in the favor of the Riadys. People are saying, "It shows you how influential they are, how close they are to the seat of power.' "

[Staff writer Steven Mufson in China and researchers Alice Crites and Nathan Abse contributed to this report.]

Q&A: The Lippo Group

The basics on Mochtar and James Riady and their controversial conglomerate. Q: What is Lippo Group?

A: The Lippo Group is a giant Jakarta-based conglomerate involved in banking, finance and other enterprises. Its flagship, Lippo Ltd., listed $3.6 billion in assets in 1995. The firm owns only one small bank in the United States but has extensive interests in Indonesia, Hong Kong and China. It was founded by Mochtar Riady, an ethnic Chinese born in Indonesia.

Q: What is the Riadys' relationship with President Clinton?

A: The Riady family bought a bank with Arkansas financier Jack Stephens in the early 1980s. One of Mochtar's three sons, James, was dispatched to Little Rock to help run the operation. A Stephens family member says James Riady met Bill Clinton for the first time at one of Stephens's weekly lunches at the bank. The White House has said Riady is one of Clinton's many friends and political supporters, and Riady sometimes offers his views on issues involving Asia.

Q: How did James Riady get into the White House, and how often did he go?

A: Riady made at least 20 visits to the White House since Clinton was elected in 1992. He met privately with the president three times. The first visit, in the Oval Office study, was scheduled as a photo opportunity for Riady, Lippo's John Huang and an associate, Mark Grobmyer. The second time, Huang asked for Clinton's approval to move from the Commerce Department to the Democratic National Committee. On a third visit, Riady urged Clinton to push trade with China. Mark E. Middleton, a White House aide who served as a liaison to the business community, cleared in Riady about six times. It is not clear with whom Riady met on other occasions.

Q: How much has Lippo given to the Democrats?

A: James Riady masterminded a giving campaign of Lippo executives to the Democratic Party, beginning in 1988. Federal Election Commission records indicate Riady, Lippo executives and business executives contributed more than $700,000 to the Democratic National Committee since 1991.

Q: Is what they did illegal?

A: Foreign contributions to U.S. campaigns are against the law. Investigators are examining whether Lippo executives were given money that they in turn passed on to the Democratic Party. The Democratic Party returned a $450,000 contribution from the Wiriandatas, the family of Mochtar Riady's longtime business partner, because it could not confirm whether the Wiriandatas had paid their taxes or question them about the source of funds.

Canada could substitute US in supplying armed forces

Publico - 15 May, 1997

Lisbon -- The Canadian Government is studying insistent Indonesian requests for closer relations between the military of the two countries. Jakarta is seeking training for its army and police, regular exercises with the Canadian Navy, and a military attachZ in Ottawa.

These contacts, relating to military assistance, are the result of restrictions on this kind of support by Washington. In 1992, following the Santa Cruz massacre, US Congress suspended the military assistance being provided to Jakarta through the IMET programme. Although IMET was resumed last year, it was limited to the "civil education" of Jakarta's military, involving training schemes on democracy, submission to political authority, and respect for human rights.

Restrictions were also placed on the sale of US arms to the Indonesian Armed Forces. Jakarta no longer has access to small weaponry, riot control equipment and US-made armoured vehicles. A draft bill put forward by Patrick Kennedy could increase the number of items banned, and make arms transactions conditional upon respect for human rights in Indonesia. (...)