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ASIET Net News 35 – September 8-15 , 1997
East Timor
Canberra Times - September 5, 1997
Ian Mcphedran – A leading Indonesian pro-democracy
campaigner has called on Australia to sever military ties with
his country and to grant refugee status to East Timorese asylum-
seekers.
Risking possible arrest on his return to Jakarta, Edwin Gozal, a
member of the Central Leadership Committee of the Peoples'
Democratic Party, said the Indonesian people aspired to
democracy.
Mr Gozal, a former leading student activist, said that unless
there was democratic reform in Indonesia, there would be a civil
uprising in the country within the next few years.
He said in Indonesia there was no general election only an
election for generals.
"Australia's Government often says that it should not impose
Australia's democratic values on Indonesia," he said.
"Is democracy only preserved for Western countries, not for
South-East Asian countries like us, or brown people like us?" He
accused Australia of training Indonesian special-forces troops
who were responsible for killing people in East Timor on one
hand, while on the other the Government refused to grant refugee
status to East Timorese. Mr Gozal said he was disturbed by the
Australian Government's low-key approach to human-rights issues.
He said many Western countries had used silent diplomacy against
Indonesia for years and it had not had any impact on the
democratisation process.
"On the other side, the Australian Government has a close
relationship with Indonesia in economic and military projects and
in terms of democracy and human rights they say we have different
values and a different approach." Greens Senator Bob Brown told
Mr Gozal that the actions of the Australian Government on
Indonesia did not reflect the wishes of the majority of
Australian people.
Mr Gozal this week met the human-rights sub-committee of the
Joint Parliamentary Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and
Trade.
He last visited Australia for an East Timor conference in Sydney
last year and when he and his companions returned three of them
were arrested and remain locked up.
East Timor
Antara - September 12, 1997
Dili, East Timor – East Timor Governor Abilio Jose Osorio
Soares on Thursday turned down South African President Nelson
Mandela's call to award special autonomy to the Indonesia's27th
province.
"We must ask ourselves whether or not we are ready to be
autonomous. In fact, nearly 99 percent of East Timor's
development budget comes from the central government," Abilio
said.
Mandela urged Indonesia to give the East Timorese more
opportunity to govern themselves after meeting with Nobel Peace
Prize laureate, Dili Bishop Carlos Felipe Ximenes Belo, in
Johannesburg Tuesday.
"East Timor has actually enjoyed autonomy since it integrated
with the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia. The idea of
granting special autonomy as suggested by Mandela cannot be
implemented because it depends on the province's preparedness,"
he said.
Abilio said the central government's stand that granting special
autonomy to East Timor will harm Indonesia's interest as a whole
must be upheld.
Human rights
Social unrest
Environment/land disputes
Arms/armed forces
International relations
Miscellaneous
Democratic struggle
Activist calls for military ties to be cut
Soares: Timor's special autonomy would depend on locals' preparedness
Portugal accuses Indonesia of 'once again' rejecting 'positive evaluation' on Timor
Lusa - September 11, 1997
Lisbon – Portugal's foreign ministry in Lisbon on Wednesday accused the Indonesian government of "rejecting once again any positive evaluation of the situation" in East Timor.
The foreign ministry reacted officially to claims by Indonesian Foreign Minister Ali Alatas earlier this week that Portugal was lacking the will for reaching a platform of understanding with Jakarta overEast Timor's political status. The United Nation continues to recognise Portugal as East Timor's legitimate administering power.
Alatas claimed that Portugal was not really intersted in finding a solution to the problem of East Timor.
Jakarta's Foreign Minister insisted that Portugal would have to make "big concessions" in order to reach a bilateral agreement on the East timor issue.
Lusa - September 11, 1997
New York – Portugal has formally denounced a new agreement between Australia and Indonesia on the "permanent" demarcation of an exclusive economic zone in the Timor Sea.
A United Nations document on the matter was obtained by LUSA in New York on Wednesday.
According to the document, Portugal filed a diplomatic protest to the Australian government about the issue on 28 August.
Portugal does not recognise the delimitation agreement because it violates the statute of East Timor as a non-autonomous territory, apart from infringing the rights of people of East Timor and Portugal's status as the territory's administering power recognised by the United Nations.
East timor has been occupied by Indonesia since December 1975.
Sydney - September 2, 1997
The Portuguese television station TVI screened recently a video recorded message from Nino Konis Santana, the Falintil guerrilla commander. Extremely important issues were addressed and statements were made whereby indications were given on his stands on some sensitive topics.
The Timorese Democratic Union (UDT), wishes to make clear its position in relation to those announcements, improperly made on behalf of the whole Resistance.
Three fundamental issues are identified by the Timorese Democratic Union, around which others may develop, given an image prone to attract speculative interpretations. These issues suggest solutions unfit to the real interests of Timor and its people, and conflict with the current diplomatic negotiation process.
Thus:
The acceptance by the Timorese Resistance of a solution contemplating a political- administrative association with Indonesia, - Puerto Rico model -, as a viable working solution. The incorporation of Falintil in the Portuguese Armed Forces. The doubt on Portugal's determination in finding an expedite solution for the conflict.
In view of the fact that:
Timor was a Portuguese colony where no armed struggle took place to challenge the Portuguese rule. The revolution of 25 of April 1974 in Portugal recognised the rights of the peoples of its colonies , including the people of East Timor, to self- determination and independence. Timor is a non self-governing territory under Portuguese administration, recognised by the United Nations Organisation. A decolonisation program was being carried out by Portugal with the acquiescence of the United Nations Organisation. The mentioned decolonisation process was abruptly interrupted by the Indonesian Armed Forces. The Indonesian Armed Forces (ABRI), by land, sea and air were the executors of plans drafted by some Indonesian generals to interfere with the decolonisation process and to prevent the timorese to freely exercise their right of self-determination. The Indonesian Armed Forces have been instrumental in the political occupation of Timor. From the very first minute after the invasion up to now, the Indonesian troops have committed the most brutal and horrendous crimes and have oppressed the defenceless people of Timor. The presence of Indonesian Armed Forces inspire sentiments of revolt, hatred and scorn in the Timorese people. The rejection of the Indonesian annexation already cost more than 250000 of Timorese and Portuguese lives. The armed resistance was one of the first means the people of Timor found to express its repulse to the annexation by Indonesia. The National Resistance has full support from the population and enjoys considerable respect and admiration from international institutions.
Bearing in mind that:
The National Resistance is not to limited to the Falintil Commander or other leaders of portuguese or international organisations' preferences. UDT maintains its firm determination in defending its political ideology which binds the party to search for Bread, Peace, Freedom and Land, for the timorese people without alienation from the principles of Right and Dignity. Portugal, through its President of the Republic Doctor Jorge Sampaio, has been unshaken in defending the right of the timorese people to self-determination. The Portuguese Government through its Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Jaime Gama, has been competent, resourceful and tireless in search for a just and honest solution for the problem of Timor, without neglecting the aspirations and legitimate rights of the timorese. The Portuguese people has been and still is the best, the most genuine and valued ally of the timorese People.
Giving expression to:
Waves of protests of its members, supporters and followers in Diaspora and in Timor. Statements by all party leaders living in Timor, rejecting Konis Santana's admission of acceptance. The negative reaction of all UDT's Operational Cells.
The Timorese Democratic Union declares that:
It absolutely and vehemently rejects the indications given by the Falintil commander whereby a solution contemplating the association of Timor with Indonesia, as Puerto Rico with the USA, could be accepted by the Resistance, even with the additment of being a viable working solution. It firmly rejects the innuendo addressed to the Prime Minister Eng. Antonio Guterres, that Portugal is not interested in finding an expeditious solution for the problem of Timor. Timor is not Portuguese territory, notwithstanding the always stated desire to maintain close association and preferential status with Portugal. It totally disagrees with the pretension to integrate the Falintil with the Portuguese Armed Forces, due to tardiness, extemporaneous and contrary to the interests of the ongoing diplomatic process, notwithstanding the absence of repudiation by relevant treaties and conventions to situations similar to that of Timor. The TIMORESE DEMOCRATIC UNION warns also that questions such as the incorporation of Falintil in the Portuguese Armed Forces and the acceptance of Puerto Rican type solutions, contemplating association with Indonesia, when conveyed in the same context, may be susceptible of being interpreted by less accurate and attentive analyst and commentators as a sign of capitulation.
Joao Viegas Carrascalao - President of SPC of UDT
Sydney Morning Herald - September 12, 1997
Louise Williams, Jakarta – Five years after his capture in the jungle by Indonesian troops, the jailed East Timorese independence leader, Xanana Gusmao, is still fighting his war.
Now, well into middle-age and shackled to the tedious, daily cycle of prison life, Gusmao, who was military leader of the clandestine Fretilin resistance forces, insists he has not been cowed by confinement.
This week South Africa's President Nelson Mandela called on Indonesia to grant autonomy to East Timor to end the 22-year-old war, after earlier telling Jakarta that Gusmao must be released.
Indonesia, in reply, conceded that the former guerilla leader could be freed as part of a peace settlement, departing from the stand that Gusmao is a mere "criminal" and must serve out his sentence.
On the question of autonomy for East Timor and the possible role of President Mandela as a broker for peace, Indonesia remained less receptive, saying that Mr Mandela may be "wading into a minefield" if he continued to push the East Timor issue.
Gusmao, it seems, is less concerned about his personal fate.
"Look at me," he says, smiling and gesturing at his clean red, shirt, his combed hair and his trimmed beard. He is adequately fed, he has cigarettes to smoke. Physical suffering is a relative concept, he explains, leaning on his elbows over a bare prison table.
At the time of his arrest, diplomats speculated that Gusmao's capture was part of a secret deal with the armed forces which would allow him to become mediator between Jakarta and Fretilin. Gusmao, himself, was reported to consider political martyrdom in prison useful to the cause.
Twice, in 1993 and 1994, he refused confidential offers, brokered by the United Nations, to escape his 20-year sentence and be released into exile in the country of his choice.
"You know, I was in the jungle for 18 years," he says. "Eighteen years of feeling helpless, of seeing friends die. You feel a great rage inside you but there is nothing you can do.
"If I wanted to I could have been out of jail years ago.
"I am much more use. staying in jail. If I went into exile then the meaning of this struggle would be lost."
His own personal freedom, he says, is not an essential element to any peace settlement in East Timor. Jose Alexandre Gusmao, or Xanana as he is better known, is banned from giving press interviews, so these rare comments and descriptions were passed on by a reliable contact.
As Fretilin's military leader, Gusmao gave no interviews for 15 years and, despite his famous name, he is, personally, little known to the outside world. At the time of his 1992 capture the tall, lean commander was described as "an enigma" and "wily and resourceful", and few doubted that he would be afforded a future role even from within the prison walls.
In jail in Jakarta in the Cipinang prison, 49-year-old Gusmao is not raging. Instead, he says, he is extremely busy.
Every day he analyses political and military actions, using radio news and whatever anecdotes his limited visitors can bring, to try to work out where the conflict is going and what his role in it might be.
He laughs, again, apparently at his own earnestness.
Actually, if the radio signal is not too good, he confesses he listens to "dangut", racy Indonesian songs with mass appeal.
Gusmao's key personal role was highlighted by the extraordinary request by President Mandela to have the prisoner brought from his cell to the State Guest House during the South African leader's official visit to Jakarta in July. The visit was intended to be confidential, but was leaked to the press.
Indonesia considers Gusmao a "criminal", not a political prisoner, and Jakarta maintains the integration of the former Portuguese territory following the 1975 invasion by Indonesian troops is not negotiable.
However, pressure has been mounting on Indonesia following the awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize to Fretilin's international spokesman, Jose Ramos Horta, and the Bishop of the East Timorese capital, Dili, Bishop Carlos Belo.
That Nelson Mandela, himself a former political prisoner and Nobel laureate, is seeking to break the deadlock is considered significant because the South African leader is not just another Western leader lecturing Indonesia on human rights.
Indonesia has rejected President Mandela's offer to mediate, but President Soeharto has accepted an invitation to visit South Africa later this year and many believe Mr Mandela still has the Indonesian leader's ear.
Other Nobel laureates and luminaries have also urged President Soeharto to back efforts by UN chief Mr Kofi Annan and Mr Mandela to help resolve the conflict.
The group including the former Australian Foreign Minister Mr Gareth Evans made the appeal in a letter to the Indonesian president, it was reported yesterday.
Of his talks with President Mandela, Gusmao says: "I was greatly honoured. It means our struggle is being respected and acknowledged."
Gusmao believes the Nobel Peace prizes are an important part of the new international momentum which has seen the United States and Europe step up pressure on Jakarta over human rights abuses.
"I think they [the Nobel prizes] will continuously promote the East Timorese issue around the world. One action always has a connection to another. So the Nobel Peace awards and President Mandela voicing his opinion about my release are connected."
Gusmao says Australian-based Ramos Horta is his representative in the outside world. Just what practical role Gusmao plays from jail remains deliberately vague.
"I am not just a symbol," he says. "Well, physically, my body is here in prison, but my spirit talks through Ramos Horta so the body might be Horta's but the spirit is mine. When he talks to the world it is actually me who is talking."
Gusmao is not troubled by the recent escalation in the conflict, including a series of attacks on police and civilians which killed more than 30 people in a single month and prompted a military crackdown across the province.
"If it's too quiet then the Government will think everything is fine. So riots are part of the strategy, too. I regret the death of civilians, but this is war."
Gusmao remains militant, but prison has not left him unchanged.
"Well, my prison life is nothing special, just the usual. I do some sports, I read, I paint, I learn."
The topic of his painting reduces him to laughter again.
"Actually, I only soil the canvas," he says, smiling.
"But, because my name is on it people think it's good. The guards even once wanted to borrow my paintings to be included in the Department of Justice's exhibition.
"OK,' I said, "just take them.' When the exhibition was over they didn't say anything to me, they didn't slap me on the back and say, "People really liked your paintings'. Later I found them by accident in the junk room."
On the subject of his wife and children, long-time residents of Australia, he is less frank, brushing the topic aside altogether.
When he was first imprisoned Gusmao was divided by the rest of the jail population by language.
The official Indonesian language is not native to East Timor and it is part of the resistance struggle to maintain the native Tetum language. Now, speaking Indonesian, Gusmao has been able to discover that many of his cell-mates are political prisoners, jailed for the opposition to the Soeharto Government.
"We used to hate Indonesian people so much, you know, seeing your people slaughtered it really got into your head. But, then I realised that it's not the Indonesian people who are responsible but the [Soeharto] regime. In theory, yes, it's the people, but in practice it's not that simple."
And on the question of independence for East Timor, Gusmao also shows a glimmer of compromise.
"It is not a matter of integration [into Indonesia], or not. We want what the people want, which is the right to determine our own destiny. It doesn't matter if the people want integration. But, it needs to be proven through a referendum.
"If they do want integration then we will lead them to the Government ourselves."
Antara - September 11, 1997
Dili – A government official from East Timor province is convinced that East Timor is open to foreign journalists who attempt to cover the area, a member of local House Representative, Florentino, said here Thursday.
"Indonesia would not conceal what has happened in the 27th province of Indonesia," he said in response to a comment by the Vice Chairman of Committee I in the House Representatives, B.N. Marbun, that the government should open East Timor to foreign journalists.
Florentino said foreign journalists can cover whatever news, whenever they want, as long as they do not make an issue of East Timor's integration into Indonesia.
Meanwhile, Chairman of the Center for Studies on East Timor Development, Domingos M.D. Soares, said openess in East Timor would demonstrate Indonesia's goodwill, giving the international community an opportunity to observe conditions in East Timor fairly and transparently. "In this global era, transparent news coverage on East Timor is one thing the international community requests," Soares said.
"Opening news coverage in East Timor, hopefully could accelerate an East Timor solution in international forum.
Reuters - September 10, 1997
Raju Gopalakrishnan, Jakarta – Indonesia can consider releasing East Timorese rebel leader Xanana Gusmao but only as part of a comprehensive solution on the troubled territory, Foreign Minister Ali Alatas said on Wednesday.
Speaking to the Jakarta Foreign Correspondents Club, Alatas also said granting special autonomous region status to East Timor, a former Portuguese colony invaded by Indonesia in 1975 and annexed a year later, was not possible.
He was reacting to a suggestion by South African President Nelson Mandela on Tuesday that East Timor be granted autonomy to end conflict in the territory.
Despite the rejection of the request, Alatas held out hope for reconciliation on other aspects of the problem.
"If there is acceptance of East Timor as an integral part of Indonesia, there can be some quid pro quos by Indonesia," he said.
"We can look into releasing Xanana Gusmao."
Mandela, who has been engaged in efforts to mediate between Indonesia, Portugal and East Timorese leaders to help the United Nations find a solution to the future of the territory, has requested President Suharto to release Gusmao.
Gusmao, the leader of a band of armed guerrillas, was jailed for 20 years in 1992 for resisting Indonesian rule in East Timor and is lodged in a Jakarta jail. He was taken to meet Mandela when the South African president visited Indonesia in July.
Alatas said Suharto had responded to Mandela's request and although he could not divulge the contents of the message, Gusmao's status was clear.
"He was tried, given a sentence and jailed because of criminal activities he has indulged in," Alatas said.
"Releasing him just like that would be a great injustice to those who suffered from those activities. But if it is part of an overall solution, we can consider it.
"We hope our friends, and our foes, will accept that position."
Alatas said also that he found little indication that Portugal, which is engaged in tripartite talks with Indonesia and the United Nations on East Timor, was willing to look for a lasting solution.
"We may get somewhere if there is political will on both sides," he said. "My feeling is Portugal has not got the political will for a compromise. We have never seen any change in their position – it's always referendum, independence, referendum, independence.
"If Portugal is willing, there may be progress although it will be difficult. The problem of East Timor is very complex now and is enmeshed with all kinds of interpretations and prejudices."
Alatas said also that although there were three autonomous regions in Indonesia – the capital Jakarta, the ancient city of Yogyakarta and the province of Aceh – the government was moving toward ending the special status of both Aceh and Yogyakarta.
Reuters - September 9, 1997
Johannesburg – South African President Nelson Mandela said on Tuesday the former Portuguese colony of East Timor should be awarded autonomy from Indonesia to end conflict over the territory.
"The basis of my representation to (Indonesian) President Suharto was that autonomy should be given to the people of East Timor," Mandela told a news conference after meeting East Timor leader and co-winner of the 1966 Nobel Peace Prize, Catholic bishop Carlos Belo.
Mandela, stretching his peacemaking efforts around the globe in his last years in active politics, met jailed East Timorese rebel leader Xanana Gusmao on a visit to Indonesia last month and discussed his case with President Suharto, who is also due to visit South Africa in November.
Gusmao was jailed for 20 years in 1992 for resisting Indonesian rule. Portugal abandoned its former Asian colony in 1974.
Indonesia, which includes the western half of Timor island, invaded the territory the next year and annexed it in 1976 in a move never recognised by the United Nations.
Mandela, deepening his efforts to end conflict in East Timor, said he had met Belo to brief him on the meetings he had had with other leaders in his efforts to facilitate a peaceful solution.
The president said, however, he could not elaborate on their discussions, since success depended on confidentiality.
Mandela also made it clear that he was merely trying to assist U.N. Secretary- General Kofi Annan in peace efforts, and that peace in East Timor ultimately depended on the people and leaders of the region.
"A solution in East Timor is not something that can be achieved by people outside East Timor. The leaders of East Timor and the Indonesian government are the people who are going to solve this matter," Mandela said.
Mandela has also held talks in South Africa on the issue with East Timor resistance leader Jose Ramos-Horta and Portugal's President Jorge Sampaio.
| Human rights |
Tapol - September 11, 1997
A North Sumatran network of NGOs has sued the local police for banning its Annual General Meeting in June this year. The police accused the organisers of failing to obtain a police permit for the meeting, even though according to a recent regulation, no permit was needed.
The annual meeting of Wahana Information Masyarakat (WIM), the Information Network which brings together a number of NGOs throughout North Sumatra was scheduled to take place from 19 - 21 June 1997. Seventy people had gathered at a hotel in Haranggaol, sub-district of Simalungan, for the occasion, coming from the sub-districts of North and South Tapanuli, Langkat, Asahan, Deli Serdang, Daiiiri and Medan.
From early afternoon on the first day, police were seen prowling around the hotel. They entered the meeting-place in the evening and ordered the participants to disperse. The organisers protested, saying that they had complied with requirements by notifying the authorities one week in advance. When the police said they did not have a permit, the convenors said that according to a regulation introduced in 1995, permission was not required; all that was required was for them to notify the police.
When the participants woke the next morning, they were told to leave the hotel without delay as the police had instructed the hotel proprietor to order them to vacate their rooms. They decided to take a trip by boat on a nearby lake, to decide what to do.
According to a press report, a police officer said that a permit for the meeting had been refused on the grounds that it was bound to discuss matters of a political nature. WIM leaders said this was a routine meeting to evaluate past activities and enable its members to renew contact and discuss internal affairs. [Republika, 21 June]
WIM is suing the local police for Rp 1.3 trillion (=A3300,000) for material and non- material losses caused by the ban. In the early 1990s, many meetings were disbanded by the police up and down the country, leading to strong protest at this intolerable abuse of the right of assembly. As a result, the interior and defence ministers issued a joint decree in December 1995 which stipulated that only large gatherings in public places required a police permit. In other cases, the police need only be notified in advance.
The first court hearing was scheduled to take place on 2 September.
| Social unrest |
DIGEST No. 40 (Indonesian news with comment) - 12 September, 1997
A strange hysteria has spread through Central Java since last April, leading villagers to beat up people at night they suspect of being zombies (hantu pocong, the walking dead). Four people died in July, and more have been taken to hospital with serious injuries before and since. The incidents began shortly before the parliamentary elections and continue until the present day.
Popular descriptions of the zombies vary. They are sometimes seen sleeping in an open drain, or stooping down drinking its water, while exuding a putrid smell. When they stand up they are white and taller than a man. Others report seeing a goat-like creature, others again a beautiful woman. One neighbour coming to the aid of a screaming mother who had seen one near Purworejo attacked it with a machete. It turned out to be a banana tree.
Some say the zombies are ordinary humans who use black magic to turn themselves into ghosts during the dusk prayer time (maghrib, the worst time for ghosts in most Islamic cultures). They simply want your money. People answer the door and fall into a dead fright, allowing the 'ghost' to walk in and take what they like.
But zombies are mostly feared for kidnapping young children. One common belief is that they are to be sacrificed at the location of a planned bridge between Surabaya and Madura. The bridge was promised by Research and Technology Minister Habibie early in 1994, as part of an attempt by President Suharto to woo the Islamic masses. The attempt was later abandoned, and the bridge project remains stalled. Others say the sacrificed babies are put in the foundations of another stalled Habibie project, a planned nuclear power plant near Jepara. Others again say the children are sold overseas.
The phenomenon was largely rural at first, but now urban middle class working parents in Semarang are afraid to leave their children in the care of servants during the day. Police, meanwhile, keep insisting no babies have actually been kidnapped in Central Java.
Most victims of zombie beatings have been vagrants, travellers or mentally disturbed individuals. One body of a bearded man in his thirties lay unclaimed in the Magelang morgue for over a week until the authorities buried it, still unidentified.
In Sragen a man and his wife in their thirties out catching grasshoppers in the rice fields at night (they sell for $2 a kg) were set upon by an agitated crowd last week and nearly killed. Local police knew them and convinced the villagers to release them. In Semarang at the end of August, a 65-year old slightly unhinged woman who begged around the market place and liked staring at children was beaten up by a crowd shouting she was a ghost. They tried to deflate the tires of the police who rescued her. Only when a policeman demonstrated that strands of her hair really burned were they convinced she was human. Elsewhere in Semarang crowds beat up three other people in different incidents last week. In one case they shouted 'kill, kill' at a 20-year old woman.
Hospital nurses in Purworejo were afraid to go out in their white uniforms after dark in July for fear of being mistaken for zombies.
The worst incident so far took place in Sragen yesterday. Thousands of people flocked to the police station to demand punishment for two 'baby snatchers', actually two innocent beggars, who had been arrested by villagers. When the crowd decided the police were only protecting the kidnappers, they started wrecking the building. For three hours reinforcements were unable to reach the small number of police at the station because of the crowds milling in the streets. Eventually warning shots were fired and the crowd dispersed. This is the third police station to be wrecked by crowds in Java in recent days - the other two appear also to have been due to no immediate fault of the police.
Officials have been at a loss to explain the phenomenon. Police appeal for calm and say the rumours must have been started by criminals. Predictably, other officials have warned they are a deliberate attempt at subversion. Islamic leaders urge people to put aside superstition and immerse themselves in true religion. One psychologist said perceptively that rural people were nervous after the pre-election rioting, and no longer trusted the security apparatus.
Although it has so far gone almost unremarked among journalists outside Central Java, and even less so among social scientists, the hysteria raises serious issues. Zombies are not as far removed from politics as westerners might suppose.
Some might be tempted to say, for instance, that the Javanese sense of cosmic harmony is disturbed by the feeling that power at the centre - that of President Suharto - is growing unstable. They might point not merely to his inability to prevent the riots that swept Java earlier this year, but also to prevent the present El- Nino inspired drought, already causing serious hardships that are set to worsen.
Others will point instead to the loss of credibility that the authorities - particularly the military and police - have suffered over their corruption and their blatant opposition to popular leaders like Megawati. Others again will point the finger, not at local or national authorities, but at troublemakers who have unleashed this wave of hysteria with their politically inspired rioting, and say that such disturbances hurt the people more than the government.
My own view is that the zombie mania is not unconnected with the sense of drift now enveloping the national leadership, which translates into confusion and poor leadership down to lower levels of government.
[Gerry van Klinken, editor, Inside Indonesia magazine]
| Environment/land disputes |
Reuters - September 10, 1997
Jim Della-Giacoma, Gelumbang – Dusk comes an hour early each day in this part of Indonesia's Sumatra island as a pall of smoke rising from a patchwork of grass and scrub fires blankets the region and neighbouring Malaysia and Singapore.
A Reuters reporter who toured South Sumatra on Tuesday saw a series of uncontrolled scrub fires, some as high as five metres (18 feet), dotted across the province, which is just across the Strait of Malacca from peninsular Malaysia and Singapore.
Both nations have issued health warnings to citizens that the levels of haze pollution are dangerously high. Malaysia has called the pollution a national disaster and launched cloud seeding operations over the capital Kuala Lumpur to induce rain and clear the air.
There was heavy rain overnight in both Kuala Lumpur and Singapore, and officials said pollution levels appeared to be much lower.
Forest fires on Sumatra and in Kalimantan, the Indonesian half of Borneo island, have contributed to the haze which has hung over the region for some weeks now. Besides pollution, low visibility caused by the haze has closed some Indonesian airports and also affected sea traffic.
Indonesia has said it is taking active measures to control the fires. On Tuesday, President Suharto banned the use of fire to clear land for cultivation, but that message has apparently not seeped down to South Sumatra.
"It's good for farmers as burning the scrub makes the land fertile," Seno, a worker on a watermelon farm near the town of Gelumbang, told Reuters.
"Before, this land was part of a rubber plantation, but a couple of months ago we cut down the rubber trees, burnt them and planted the watermelons," he said as he tendered the 1 1/2 hectare farm owned by a local businessman.
Indonesia's Environmental Impact Management Agency (Bapedal) says those who clear land using fire without permission face a possible 10 year jail sentence or 100 million rupiah ($33,000) fine. But many farmers are unaware of the sanctions.
"The only problem is if I am not careful and burn down somebody else's land. Then the police might come and get me and throw me in jail," Seno said when asked about the legality of what he had done.
Apparently, much care is taken while burning off scrub for land- clearing. Scores of neat black squares of scorched earth can be seen while landing at the airport at Palembang, the capital of South Sumatra province.
But other residents said controlling the fires was becoming increasingly difficult because of a prolonged dry spell. And they added that there had been no rain for almost three months in this tropical area.
During a six-hour drive through South Sumatra, many fires could be seen but only at one spot was any effort being made to control the flames.
"I knew from the wind that the fire was coming in the direction of my land and so I've been guarding it day and night," said Iwan, a farmer cultivating a plot of rubber trees and cassava plants outside the village of Lembak, some 70 km (43 miles) south-west of Palembang.
He had enlisted the help of a number of workers from a nearby housing project who brought with them two waterpumps as well as vital manpower to form a fire break to save the trees from serious damage.
"We don't know how this started, but it has been burning to the north for three to four days and we estimated it has already destroyed some 30 hectares of forest." said Gupronudin, one of the construction workers.
But there appeared to be no initiatives taken by local authorities to control the fires.
Only outside Palembang's Sultan Mahmud Badarudin airport have signs been placed along the road saying "It is forbidden to burn this land."
But the signs were apparently put up too late and they are ringed by patches of burnt grass and shrubs, as is the airport runway.
"The mayor has put up those signs, but outside of the city you don't see any such things," one airport worker remarked.
South China Morning Post - September 10, 1997
Associated Press, Jakarta – Worried about a constant smoke haze hanging over his country and its neighbours, President Suharto yesterday imposed an immediate ban on lighting fires to clear forest land.
Environment Minister Sarwono Kusumaatmadja said Mr Suharto had ordered plantation companies to stop all land clearing.
"If they disobey, serious punishment will be imposed," he said after a meeting with Mr Suharto. He did not elaborate on possible penalties.
He said about 300,000 hectares of forest had been burned in drought-stricken Kalimantan and Sumatra since May.
Hundreds of fires have caused a thick pall over many parts of Indonesia and neighbouring Malaysia and Singapore.
At least three airports in Indonesia have been shut down since the weekend because of poor visibility, and cars have been forced to drive with lights on during daytime in some areas.
The smoke has worsened already chronic air pollution over Jakarta and a thick haze has covered Malaysia's capital, Kuala Lumpur, while Singapore's Environment Ministry has received dozens of complaints about air pollution daily.
Mr Sarwono estimated last week that as many as 20 million people could suffer respiratory, eye and other health problems from the smoke.
"The President considers the forest fires as very serious. They have to be stopped immediately by any means," he said yesterday.
He said most fires had been deliberately lit by plantation companies wanting more land for cultivation, and rejected claims that slash-and-burn farming by indigenous people was the main cause. Mr Sarwono said about 40 plantation companies had agreed to adhere to the fire ban.
Malaysia and Singapore had provided information from satellites to help track the progress of fires, he said.
Malaysia has also started a cloud-seeding programme to trigger rainfall to clear the air, and Mr Sarwono said Indonesia would begin a similar project.
Officials have said the fires will continue to burn until the monsoon rains, but meteorologists predict the rains may be delayed by months because of the El Nino weather phenomenon over the Pacific Ocean.
| Arms/armed forces |
Antara - September 10, 1997
Jakarta – The Indonesian Navy is planning to purchase five modern submarines from Germany, Navy chief of staff, Admiral Arief Kushariadi, said after inaugurating a telecommunication post here Tuesday.
Indonesian Minister for Research and Technology BJ Habibie and the German Defense Ministry's Secretary General Gunnar Simon signed a memorandum of understanding on the purchase of the submarines here Monday.
The used submarines belong to the 206 class and are 48.6 m long, 4.6 m wide and 4.5 m tall.
Kushariadi however did not mention the price of the submarines which were used by the German Navy to guard Germany's water territory.
The Indonesian Navy is familiar with German-made military equipment, notably conventional submarines.
Kushariadi will visit Germany on Sept 23 to inspect the submarines.
Indonesia bought two new submarines from Germany in 1982.
| International relations |
Australian Associated Press - September 10, 1997
Karen Polglaze, Jakarta – Indonesian President Suharto might stay away from the November APEC leaders' meeting if Canadian authorities could not guarantee control of demonstrations over East Timor, Foreign Minister Ali Alatas said today.
Suharto's attendance at the major meeting of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum to be held in Vancouver had yet to be confirmed, Alatas told the Jakarta Foreign Correspondents' Club here.
Demonstrations over East Timor were expected to dog Suharto's steps during the leaders' meeting which is the highlight of the APEC year.
While Suharto was used to people expressing opposing views publicly, he should not be subjected to the indignities of out-of-control protests, Alatas said.
"If our conclusion is that it will get out of hand, then why should we subject the President to such indignities?" Alatas asked.
The non-attendance of the leader of the region's most populous country would be a heavy blow to the forum which groups 18 economies in the Asia-Pacific comprising Australia, China, the United States, Japan, Singapore, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Thailand, Chile, Brunei, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Chinese Taipei, Canada and Indonesia.
Suharto also expected to be confronted by demonstrators during a trip to South Africa set to take place later this year.
The president will travel to South Africa on a return visit after South African president Nelson Mandela visited Jakarta in July and met with Suharto and jailed Fretilin leader Jose Alexandre 'Xanana' Gusmao.
Diplomatic as ever, Alatas said Mandela was trying to be helpful in response to the South African leader's proposal for East Timorese autonomy reported in newspapers here today.
However, Alatas cautioned that there had been a long history of political events in East Timor and newcomers did not always fully comprehend the difficulties.
"Someone who comes in at a later stage doesn't always understand the problems," he said. He dismissed the possibility of making East Timor a special autonomous region, saying the existing special regions of Indonesia Aceh in northern Sumatra and Yogyakarta in Central Java were on their way out and to create a new one would be going against the trend.
But Alatas admitted that a successful bid for autonomy in East Timor could spark similar requests from other areas of the ethnically diverse archipelago.
In a wide-ranging question and answer session with Jakarta- based foreign media representatives, Alatas also canvassed the prospect of the release of Gusmao as part of a quid pro quo package of measures for the overall solution to the problem of East Timor.
Indonesia says Gusmao was sentenced to 20 years imprisonment for criminal offences such as stealing cattle and burning villages in East Timor.
Alatas said there was no question that he would be released unless it was part of an overall solution which would require significant compromise on the part of Portugal.
East Timor was invaded by Indonesia in 1975 and formally annexed in 1976.
The annexation is not recognised by the United Nations which regards the former colonial power Portugal as the administering authority.
| Miscellaneous |
DIGEST No. 41 (Indonesian news with comment) - September 13, 1997
The People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) in March next year will be entirely predictable. The president may have made his peace with the armed forces and thus expect a smooth ride. However, as the crucial MPR session approaches, when Suharto will be appointed president for probably the last time, nothing is left to chance.
On 9 August, President Suharto asked a meeting of all 500 members of the new parliament (to form half the MPR) to 'consider' reinvigorating his emergency powers. Although he has never explicitly invoked them, MPR decisions to grant the president emergency powers have been a regular feature of its five-yearly meeting since 1971. The model for the special powers is the letter the ailing President Sukarno gave to General Suharto on 11 March 1966.
The 1993 MPR session did not mention them, leading some to think the New Order's habit of resorting to extrajudicial, emergency rule was maturing into more rule-based conduct. But the 9 August request, in which Suharto spoke for two hours without a drink of water about his role in saving the nation at crucial times from 1945 onwards, is a reminder that little has changed. Commentators assumed the president wants the powers this time to ensure no one takes the initiative of chosing a successor out of his own hands.
The MPR consists of 1000 members. The 500 non-parliamentary members are appointed by the government, and are now mostly known. Forum Keadilan comments in its current edition on the overwhelming preponderance of bureaucrats and their spouses and children.
The most important body within the MPR is the Working Committee (Badan Pekerja). Several of the men mooted as possible vice- presidential and hence presidential candidates are on this committee: Information Minister Gen Hartono, Assistant for Abri Social and Political Affairs Maj-Gen Bambang Yudhoyono, Army Chief of Staff Gen Wiranto, and Housing Minister Akbar Tandjung. Observers note that by putting these rivals together in one place they will each stop the other from making a premature move. Wiranto will keep Abri factions in line, while Hartono will do the same for Golkar.
There are certainly plenty of factions within Golkar. Insiders acknowledge there are groups loyal to chairman Harmoko, to Hartono, to Habibie and to Suharto's daughter Tutut. Some of this is cast as conflict between the military and 'civilian' streams within Golkar.
The public got a glimpse of Golkar factionalism in August when the Golkar delegation in Irian Jaya's provincial assembly was told by superiors in Jakarta to boycott the installation of a military officer as assembly chairman. And again when Golkar member from North Sumatra Marcos Lubis openly said in a parliamentary commission last week that Harmoko was not fit to lead the MPR session and that he preferred Syarwan Hamid. Indeed the competition between Golkar chairman Harmoko and former Abri Chief of Social and Political Affairs LtGen Syarwan Hamid to chair the session remains intense.
However, most observers dismissed the Golkar factionalism as normal, driven more by personal fear or ambition than solid bloc- based lobbying. It is unlikely to rock the national boat. Beyond its main task of winning elections, Golkar in any case lacks independent clout.
Given Suharto's vigorous control over senior officer appointments in recent years, factions within Abri are more difficult to discern. Observers have long distinguished 'Green', Islamic, pro- Suharto officers from 'Red-and-White', secular anti-Suharto officers. But this distinction now appears less useful.
More interesting than the question of rebellion within the ranks could be to ask why the presumed factional leaders are making so little use of the abundant ammunition available to them.
The crisis sparked by the collapse of Southeast Asia's currencies could hardly have come at a worse time for Suharto. It has put severe pressure on government reserves and led to inevitable belt- tightening. One would expect the exercise of 'rescheduling' non- urgent projects to be a wonderful opportunity for opponents to create a scene about the economic damage created by Suharto's nepotism.
The ammunition is there - son Tommy Suharto's Timor 'national car' has been exempted from rescheduling, as has (so far) daughter Titiek's Malaysia-Indonesia bridge. Neither obviously benefit the common people. In the face of the nation's financial difficulties, one of six large companies given tax holidays recently is owned by the Suharto family (Kiani pulp). Yet criticism of these measures has been less than determined.
Some observers, Arbi Sanit among them, have speculated that the reason could be somewhat as follows. Suharto has abandoned his attempt to counterveil dissident Abri opinion (Benny Murdani) with an appeal to Islam led by Habibie. ICMI, the vehicle for this appeal and chaired by Habibie, has been allowed to wither. Instead, Suharto has made a deal with senior (Red-and-White) Abri figures, possibly involving a guarantee that Abri will determine the next presidency, in exchange for Abri protection of the Suharto family. This would mean that, unlike its vigorous leaking of anti-Suharto material in the early 1990s, Abri has lost interest in coming down on Suharto and now regards him as an ally, not to be criticised.
The loser in this scenario is Habibie. Deputy governor of the government think tank Lemhanas, Juwono Sudarsono, appeared to confirm this when he said recently that the next president would be once more from Abri. The statement triggered a media debate about the relative merits of Abri versus 'civilian' (read: Habibie) leadership. Some thought Juwono was asked to float this trial balloon precisely to evince a polemic and identify Habibie supporters. Other than Habibie himself, however, few protested strongly.
If this speculation is correct, then Suharto has achieved what Sukarno could not: continuity even after his departure from the palace, minus serious upheaval within the elite, and minus concessions to demands for democracy.
[Gerry van Klinken, editor, Inside Indonesia magazine.]
Voice of America - September 10, 1997
Indonesians living in the Eastern part of the country are more likely to die at birth; not be able to read; and have no access to safe water than their fellow indonesians living on the islands of Java and Sumatra, according to a new government report. Jenny Grant reports from Jakarta.
The Central Bureau of Statistics and the United Nations Development Program released the Mid-term Indonesia Human Development Report here Monday.
Eastern provinces – such as West Nusa Tenggara and the disputed territory of East Timor – scored the lowest of any provinces in a number of development areas.
Eastern Indonesia includes all islands East of Java, from the resort island, Bali, to Irian Jaya, which shares a border with Papua New Guinea.
While life expectancy for a Jakartan is 79-point-three years, it is only 53-point-six years for someone living on the West Nusa Tengarra Islands of Lombok or Sumbawa. The average life expectancy of an East Timorese is only 60-point-two years.
The former Portuguese territory East Timor scored the lowest of Indonesia's 27 claimed provinces on the human development index scale.
The H-D-I measures development by life expectancy, education and per capita consumption.
Director General of the Bureau of Statistics Sugito Suwito acknowledges the East- West split, but made no effort to explain it.
H-D-I'S are remarkably high in Jakarta, Yogyakarta and North Sulawesi, and are low in East Timor, West Nusa Tenggara and Irian Jaya.
East Timor has the lowest standard of education – only 38- point-five percent of its people have had basic education – and the lowest per capita consumption.
Fifty-four-point-seven percent of East Timorese adults are illiterate and 31-point-two percent of Irianese adults also cannot read or write.
The infant mortality rate in Jakarta is 20 for every one thousand live births. in West Nusa Tenggara, 75 out of every one thousand babies born die at birth. in East Timor it is 65.
The capital Jakarta ranked number one on the development scale.
Most of Indonesia's population, industry and fertile farming lands are concentrated on Java and Sumatra. Fifty five percent of Indonesia's 200 million people live on Java.
Eastern Indonesia is generally drier, with less fertile soil but huge mineral reserves.
South China Morning Post - September 10, 1997
Jenny Grant, Jakarta – Indonesia must be led by a former member of the military until the year 2005, according to a top analysts.
Juwono Sudarsono, vice-governor of the National Resilience Institute, a military think-tank, said civilian bureaucrats were "lazy" and "not qualified" to lead the country.
"The armed forces are the only institution in society that can hold the country together. They have the vision, the discipline, the hierarchy and the ability to effectively organise political ideas into action," said Mr Sudarsono.
He said the president and vice-president should both come from military stock until 2005.
President Suharto, a former general, is widely expected to run for a seventh term when the 1,000-member Peoples' Consultative Assembly meets in March to elect a new leader and deputy. The next term is from 1998 to 2003.
"Every officer who moves up the ladder from second lieutenant to brigadier would have gone to at least three or four commands so that they get a feel for the pulse of the country. This is the essence of political leadership," Mr Sudarsono said.
He said civilian politicians were too busy fighting over internal disputes to focus on providing national leadership. "The bickering shows us they're not qualified for greater state tasks," he said.
Associated Press - September 11, 1997
Jakarta – Indonesia's president might not attend an Asia- Pacific leaders' summin in Canada in November because of possible protests over his country's human rights record in the troubled territory of East Timor, the foreign minister said Wednesday.
Ali Alatas said President Suharto had yet to decide whether to go to the 18 country Asia Pacific Economic Co-operation meeting in Vancouver – the region's biggest annual diplomatic event.
Alatas said Indonesian officials would gauge how serious any protests against Suharto might be in Canada, where there is a vocal netowrk of activists who want independence for East Timor.
"If our conclusion is that it could get out of hand then why should we subject the president to such indignites?" Alatas told the Jakarta Foreign Correspondents' Club.
However he indicated that the president would not be bothered by "demonstrations that are well under control in accordance with the law of the land."
APEC groups Canada, the United States, Japan, China, Australia and most countries of Southeast Asia.
Alatas said Suharto, a 76-year-old former army general who has governed Indonesia for 31 years, believed that overseas official visits should produce good will, not friction between nations.
Alatas said this was one reason Suharto also had no plans to visit neighbouring Australia where protests over the plight of East TImor are common despite close co- operation on other political and economic issues.
East Timor has been wracked by civil unrest, pro-independence guerilla warfare and human rights abuse since Indonesia invaded the former Portugese colony in 1975. Indonesia annexed East Timor in 1976 and claims it as its 27th province.
The United Nations, currently host to talks between Indonesia and Portugal over the territory's future, does not recognize Indonesia's sovereignty there.
Straits Times - September 9, 1997
Jakarta – The Indonesian House of Representatives yesterday passed a package of four Bills on security and defence which, among others, authorizes the President to mobilise citizens for war. The Bills are on military tribunal, mobilisation and demobilization, military discipline, and police.
Mr Sutejo, who chairs a session on the Bills' deliberation, said: "All the factions ... agree to pass the Bills to be signed into law by the President."
The factions consist of representatives from the ruling Golkar Party, the United Development Party, the Indonesian Democratic Party and the Indonesian armed forces.
Defence and Security Minister Edi Sudradjat and military commander General Feisal Tanjung attended the session.
The Bill on mobilisation and demobilization authorizes the President, as the highest commander of the armed forces, to conscript citizens between 18 and 50 of age to do battle should the armed forces prove unable to stop a crisis from threatening the nation's existence.
The legislation defines the armed forces as the army, navy, air force, police and the reserve army.
It also requires a state-of-war announcement by the President before citizens can be conscripted.
The Bill also spells out punitive measures for those refusing conscription or to contribute belongings needed during mobilisation.
The article on penalties also applies to government officials who abuse power or refuse to return belongings to owners during demobilisation, as the mobilisation provision does not abolish citizens' rights to belongings, jobs and education.
In writing the legislation, the government drew on the doctrine of public participation in the national defence and security system between 1945 and 1950, formulated in the early years of independence. The House of Representatives also passed amendments to the police law to curtail what some analysts have criticised as the excessive powers of the police.
Articles amended include one that allows police to use force and firearms while on duty. Police can now take "additional action" only for self-defence purposes.
The new law also provides a mechanism to prevent abuse of power by the police.
As a result, police who make professional mistakes will now face sanctions regulated under a police code of ethics, while those who break the law will be go before a military tribunal. The modified law gives police the authority to only monitor public meetings, as opposed to the old law which allowed police to stop, disperse and take other measures against illegal public meetings.
The legislature also passed an amendment on military tribunals, replacing the old law passed in 1970, to place all judicial proceedings involving the military under the supervision of the armed forces chief, instead of the Supreme Court.
A military discipline Bill was also passed along with the other three Bills.
When the Bill authorising the call-up of citizens for active duty was introduced, military insiders said that it did not indicate a shift in Jakarta's perceptions of the external threats facing the country.
Rather, said Professor Juwono Sudarsono, vice-governor of the National Resilience Institute, it was to enable the authorities to "marshal the assistance of society at large to deal with all kinds of emergencies, including natural calamities and man-made disasters".