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ASIET NetNews Number 25 - July 6-12, 1998
East TimorThousands of Jakarta workers begin strike Irian Jaya tribes defy police crackdown Demonstration for independence in Sorong Rubber bullets wound 24 in West Papua West Papuan students block out police Democratic Coalition Movement formed Demonstration at gold mine in Sulawesi
Political/economic crisisPro-Jakarta leaflets distributed in East Timor Xanana: I feel extremely optimistic Meeting to engineer results of referendum
Labour issuesPoor are facing hunger as crisis intensifies UN body sees food supply worsening Social pressures building
Human rights/lawPedicab drivers demand to ply the streets
NewsRights body blames government for rapes Five may have died in Irian Jaya shooting Strangers in their own land Trisakti defendants to be sentenced
Environment/healthGolkar elects state secretary as new leader Military ties help, Downer insists Harmoko installs new assembly members
Jakarta to sacrifice environmental programs
| Democratic struggle |
Jakarta -- More than 10,000 workers from 14 companies in the Jakarta area have gone on strike to demand an increase in the minimum wage, today's Jakarta Post quoted a labor activist as saying.
Lukman, spokesman for the Labor Committee for Reform Action (Kobar), was quoted as saying workers at six companies had begun a strike on Thursday and workers from three more firms were expected to join the stoppage in coming days.
The striking workers want the Jakarta daily minimum wage to be doubled to 11,500 rupiah ($0.75) from 5,750 rupiah, and are also demanding an end to military intervention in labor disputes and rallies, Lukman said. Indonesia's government has said minimum wages would be increased by 15 percent from the start of August.
Indonesia is in its worst economic crisis in decades and workers have held demonstrations in several centers in recent weeks demanding higher wages and lower food prices. The Indonesian Labor Welfare Union (SBSI) staged a number of demonstrations last month after its leader Muchtar Pakpahan was released from prison by President B.J. Habibie, who took over from former president Suharto on May 21. But the SBSI said earlier this month it was ending all planned demonstrations following appeals from the public and businessmen.
The Jakarta Post said the firms hit by the strike were household products firm PT Ganda Guna Indonesia, food processing firm PT Mayora, electronics firm PT Singamip Jaya Electronic Enterprise, cotton bud firm PT Kapasindo Prima, photo album maker PT Tomy Modern Industri and pen maker PT Zebra Asaba Industri.
Lukman was quoted as saying that workers at footwear firms PT Trio Putra Sanjaya Wisesa and PT Osaga Mas Utama as well as household goods producer PT Golden Swallow were set to join the strike in coming days.
[In a chronology sent to ASIET dated July 9, Kobor said that workers also demonstrated at ministry of labour and were able to meet with the minister's secretary. In a statement read at the demonstration protesters also rejected the new draft act controlling demonstrations and called for the abolition of Labor Law No 25/97, the release of PRD worker activist Dita Sari and other political prisoners, an end to the mass sackings and unpaid "temporary" layoffs and that company books be open to worker inspection. Kobor said that the PT Osaga and PT Golden Swallow management had agreed to their demands but the strike at PT Singamip was violently broken up by the military - James Balowski.]
Louise Williams -- Thousands of protesting tribespeople in the remote Baliem Valley raised an independence flag early this morning, as pro-independence demonstrations in Irian Jaya widened despite a bloody police crackdown at a similar ceremony on the island of Biak yesterday.
Diplomatic and church sources confirmed that up to six people had died and as many as 140 were wounded when police opened fire with rubber bullets and live ammunition on the island of Biak yesterday, where hundreds of Irianese refused to take down an independence flag.
The armed forces commander, General Wiranto, warned the military would take "firm action", saying the hoisting of any flag, other than an Indonesian flag, was tantamount to "a revolt against the Government". "If there is an act of hoisting a different flag, it means they are trying to break up the nation. This means a betrayal of the nation. The Indonesian armed forces cannot tolerate this and will take firm action.
Shops and offices were closed and witnesses contacted by phone said troops patrolled the streets of Irian Jaya's main towns today after a series of pro- independence protests that began in the provincial capital of Jayapura last week. Church sources said they expected protests to continue and expressed fears of further violence.
The Indonesian Government is now facing major pro-independence protests in both East Timor and Irian Jaya, where indigenous people have long complained of second-class treatment by Jakarta's officials, human rights abuses by the Indonesian armed forces, and the domination of the local economy by Government- assisted transmigrants from other parts of the archipelago. Pro- independence groups have seized on the change of Government in Jakarta as an opportunity to express their grievances.
The armed forces today denied there had been any deaths in Biak yesterday but the regional military commander, Colonel Agus Edyono, conceded live ammunition had been used as well as rubber bullets. Church sources said between five and six people died and diplomatic sources said "at least one, and probably more" people had been killed when a crowd of some 700 refused to lower an independence flag flying over the Biak port. A mobile brigade was brought in to boost troop numbers on the remote island, which is surrounded by coral reefs and pristine turquoise waters.
Mr Paul Baut, of the Legal Aid Institute in Jayapura, said 141 people were injured, of whom three had been confirmed dead, and an overnight curfew was imposed.
Colonel Edyono said live rounds were fired into the air, but protesters were hit by ricocheting shots. "These people were not demanding reform, they wanted a separate state. We, and civic leaders, had pleaded with the group to take down the flag since last week, but they refused," he said. Hundreds of students were today holding a vigil at the Jayapura Hospital where a law student remained in a critical condition after being shot in the head during a protest last week.
In Canberra, the Australian Government urged Indonesian forces in Irian Jaya to show restraint, AAP reported. A spokesman for Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said Australia was obviously concerned by the reports. "The embassy in Jakarta is seeking clarification about what has happened," the spokesman said. "Naturally at this time we would urge restraint on all sides in this issue."
[This is a slightly summarised translation of an account of events in Sorong, West Papua on 2 July by IHRSTAD, the Jayapura- based Institute for Human Rights Studies and Advocacy - Tapol.]
On 2 July, around ten thousand native Irian Jayans held a demonstration outside the building of the second-level legislative assembly (DPRD-II) in Sorong. The participants came from all parts of the town including Remu, Kampung Baru, Melano as well as from outside the town, assembling at the DPRD-II at 8am. They arrived in trucks, taxis and on foot. The demonstration was organised by the Students and Community Reform Forum of Sorong, headed by Petrus Sewa, with Robby Kambuaya as secretary.
They entered the DPRD-II building to hand in a statement. As they did so, they sang songs, danced and shouted slogans. Their statement reads as follows:
Sorong, 2 July 1998We firmly support the Independence of West Papua proclaimed on 1 July 1971 in Jayapura; We demand that the government of Professor B.J. Habibie grant West Papua its independence as soon as possible; We demand the release of all OPM (Free Papua Movement) political prisoners who are being held in Kalisosok Prison, Surabaya, in Madura and in Cipinang Prison, Jakarta; We demand the withdrawal from West Papua of the Indonesian armed forces, ABRI which has spread disorder and murdered thousands of West Papuans from 1965-1998 and demand the withdrawal of all Indonesians from West Papua; We draw attention to the Rome Agreement signed by former Indonesian president, Suharto; We draw attention to the letter from members of the American Congress dated 26 May 1998 addressed to the Republic of Indonesia regarding West Papua's right to determine its own future; We demand the revocation of the unlawful "act of free choice" conducted in West Papua in 1969; We demand the cancellation of all political statements made by youth leaders, veterans, tribal chieftains, the government, society leaders to the effect that land in West Papua is part of the motherland of the Republic of Indonesia; A team from the National Human Rights Commission, Komnas HAM, should come and visit us in Sorong as quickly as possible.
When their aspirations were not accepted, the mass of demonstrators got caught up in acts of violence, burning down the DPRD-II building. Shops in several districts of the city were also smashed and burnt as well as the car of the district chief of Sorong.
Face with this outburst of anger, members of the security forces opened fire on the demonstrators. Two people were hit. Mother Mina Sangkek still has a bullet lodged in her body and she has undergone blood transfusions at the Sorong General Hospital. A student was hit in the thigh. The demonstrators were deeply angered by this and turned on the resort military commander, Lt- Colonel Nico Obaja Woru. He too is now undergoing treatment in hospital.
Observers say that a clash is likely to erupt between Buginese who have moved into the area (from South Sulawesi) and the natives of Sorong. According to the latest information received when we phoned Sorong, altogether five people were woundeded when the security forces opened fire.
Menase Karet was hit in the head. Andreas Sawyai, 29, was hit in the right arm. Hans Kambuaya, 34, was hit in the head. Melki Burkowsyom, 35, was hit in the leg. Minah Sangkek was also hit in the leg. One person, a school pupil from the Kapisa clan, has died from gunshot wounds.
Kate Beddall, Jakarta, -- Indonesian security forces fired rubber bullets to disperse around 700 pro-independence demonstrators in the remote province of Irian Jaya on Monday, wounding 24 people, the official Antara news agency said. Local police chief Hotman Siagian was quoted as saying 180 people had been detained by police after the protest on Biak island, off the northern coast of Irian Jaya, was broken up.
Antara said the protesters had been demonstrating since July 2, flying flags representing the Free Papua separatist movement. Irian Jaya occupies the western half of New Guinea island and comprises 22 percent of Indonesia's total land area. Pro- independence protests have been mounting in the province since the resignation of former president Suharto and his replacement by President B.J. Habibie on May 21 amid Indonesia's worst economic and political crisis in decades.
On Friday, after two days of protests in the territory's capital Jayapura, a police intelligence officer was attacked and beaten by pro-independence demonstrators and two students were shot and wounded by security forces, Antara said. The police officer died of his wounds on Saturday.
Around 500 students blockaded the campus of Negeri Cenderawasih University just outside Jayapura in the wake of Friday's violence but dispersed on Sunday evening after a four- hour meeting with University Rector Frans Wospakrik, an official in the rector's office told Reuters by telephone.
Wospakrik offered condolences to the officer's family and apologised to two journalists from Jakarta who were attacked by students during the disturbance, Antara said.
Unrest has also been reported in the town of Sorong on Irian Jaya's western coast, where demonstrators demanding independence on Thursday smashed windows in a local government building.
Jakarta -- Students prevented police entering a campus in Irian Jaya Monday to investigate a shooting at a pro-independence rally amid fears over the honesty of the probe, witnesses said. More than 80 students stood guard at the Cendrawasih (UNCEN) University campus where law student Steven Suripatty was shot and seriously wounded Friday during a rally.
"The students wont allow the police in because they cant trust them," UNCEN student Lawrence Wantik, 21, told AFP by phone. The students had been staging a week-long pro-independence demonstration on the campus when the shooting incident took place. "How can we be sure there will be no conspiracy against us. They can fabricate any scenario possible to point a finger at the students," added Wantik who lives in the same Catholic dormitory as Suripatty.
Suripatty is in a critical condition with gunshot wounds to the head in Jayapura General Hospital's intensive care unit where student friends barred visits by security forces. "I understand that the police were put in a difficult position but they should realise the psychological state of the students right now. They are very angry and upset," said Paul Baut of the local Legal Aid Institute.
Baut said the students had found more than 10 bullet casings at the site of Friday's shooting, in which a secondary school- girl, Corina Onim, also suffered a gunshot wound in the knee.
Provincial military commander, Major General Amir Sembiring urged UNCEN's senior faculty members to let the police in to investigate the shooting, Antara news agency said. He said an investigation inside the campus was needed to find out from which direction the shots were fired.
"Statements from the military and local press reports have been misleading," said Baut. "There is no correlation between what the students did and what the troops did to them." Baut said the military had cornered the students by saying the shooting came after they had beaten up an intelligence agent and after they showered the troops with rocks.
Jayapura police chief Lt Colonel Silloy said Monday he "regretted the students decision not to let gthe police in." "What we are facing is not merely students but separatists who dont follow the existing law. Some of the students have been brainwashed by the separatists." [A report in the July 6 SMH said that the intelligence agent beaten up by students, Second Sergeant Dahlan, died in hospital on July 4. Students have also taken over the hospital in Jayapura where the two students who were shot on July 3 are being treated - James Balowski.].
Jakarta -- A Coalition of the Democratic Movement (Koalisi Garakan Demokrasi), which will gather together political [opposition] figures outside of the government, will soon form a pressure group and "moral force" to push for total reform. The coalition will be a single open movement to unite the similar steps [being taken] and perceptions by a number of social groups for complete reform.
The founding meeting of the Coalition of the Democratic Movement was held at the home of the head of [the Islamic mass organisation] Nahdlatul Ulama, Abdurrahman Wahid, in Ciganjur, South Jakarta on Saturday (4/7). Aside from Gus Dur [who Wahid is popularly called], the meeting was attended by [ousted leader of the Indonesian Democratic Party] Megawati Sukarnoputri, Prof Dr Emil Salim, Prof Subroto, Nursyahbani Katjasungkana, Arbi Sanit and Tarto Sudiro. The head of [the Islamic mass organisation] Muhammadiyah, Amien Rais, who it was hoped would attend, had not arrived by 10pm.
According to Subroto who chaired the meeting, the discussions between the figures represented a process of forming a coalition which will be made up of a number of leaders and social organisations. "This coalition is intended to [work toward] complete reform. It is open to anyone at all". For this [to happen], the coalition's supporters are aware and clear that what is needed is united steps [toward] and perceptions [to achieve] total reform. The coalition will grow big because it will be established from all currents in Jakarta and the regions, from workers to scholars.
Subroto said the Coalition for the Democratic Movement will not become a party or a social organisation. "However if later there is a party which want's to join the coalition, yeh, it's open", said the former minister of mining.
When asked hadn't forums or movements of this kind already been established, Subroto said that the coalition is in fact the bringing together of such forums. In a short time, the Coalition for the Democratic Movement will be announced followed by its program. Subroto said that all of the national figures who are concerned about [achieving] complete reform will be gathered. What about Amien Rais? "Yeh, [including] Amien Rais, he holds an important position in society. He is the leader of Muhammadiyah", said Subroto.
When asked if the coalition will automatically become part of the opposition against the government, Subroto did not answer directly. "We are a movement which want's to urge the government to form a new system", he said. The coalition will urge all elements of society to change the economic system and the economics which have brought us to this terrible situation.
"Will the coalition act as a pressure group?" asked a journalist. Subroto answered that as a group or movement, the coalition will push for complete change in all aspects of life, politics, economy, culture and morality.
Subroto explained that the coalition will utilise all channels to present their views, including meeting with the president. "The coalition will soon hold a dialogue with the government", he said.
When asked if the coalition is really [trying to] overthrow the President Habibie, Subroto laughed, "Those are your words", he answered. He explained that the momentum for reform seems to have been lost. "The reform [process] has no focus, has veered off course. This issue was what prompted the formation of the coalition", he said.
With regard to whether the coalition will use the mass movement to put forward its views, Subroto said that in the process of consolidating and forming the coalition, that issue would be discussed.
[Slightly abridged translation by James Balowski]
[Message received from NGO in North Sulawesi dated July 1 - translated.]
More than 300 young Minahasans (one of the peoples of N. Sulawesi) protested about the presence of PT Newmont Minahasa Raya -- the largest gold mine in North Sulawesi located at the village of Ratatotok. A group of "reformists" occupied part of the mine for more than 7 hours.
They are demanding that the company sticks to the Contract of Work which has been agreed; stops imposing fines on community miners; and pays more royalties to the government. At present royalties are split 50:50: 15% to the provincial government; 10% to central government: 25% for the people of Minahasa* and the remaining 50% to the company.
The local people who call themselves a "Reform group" wanted to put pressure on PT Newmont's management. The crowd yelled loudly, waving banners bearing slogans saying "Adhere to Clause 33 of the Constitution" (about land rights); "Cancel the Contract of Work", "Wipe out Corruption, Collusion and Nepotism" and such like.
Around 2pm local time, Newmont's management gave in to the crowd and agreed to meet 9 representatives of the reformists: Aang Marentek; Theodrus Tuerah, Dr Jan Posumah, Adrian Montotalu, Denny Togas, Harry Runtuwene, Max Makal, Arifin Kia Demak and A. Karim Salamon. Newmont was represented by Ian Gaffin as Acting General Manager and Rick Morroy. Indra Sofyar acted as translator for the discussion, which was calm and friendly.
In the discussion Aang Marentek demanded that PT Newmont fulfilled all its contractual responsibilities -- such as the taxes which had not been paid. The protestors also pressed the company to be more open about its production figures. The company did meet some of these demands. For example Ian McGaffin (sic) said that 1230 kiogrammes of gold were produced weekly (surely too high?) and that the company would not impose illegal fines on local miners. Newmont also said it would comply if the government wanted to look into the presence of the mine. It did not agree to increase its percentage contribution to the government as McGaffin said he had no authority so to do.
Aang, who was a member of the provincial Administrative Assembly (until forced to resign by the Regent) said that the protestors would remain at the mine until their demand for an increase in payments was met.
| East Timor |
The East Timor Human Rights Centre (ETHRC) has received further information involving the extra-judicial execution of Maria da Costa (previously reported as Maria Freitas).
ETHRC sources have confirmed that Maria da Costa was pregnant at the time she was shot, and as a result of gunshot wounds, Maria and her unborn baby died. It has also been confirmed that two of Maria da Costa's children, Guirbonio and Domingos Freitas were also shot and killed during the attack on their home. The incident occured when members of Kopassus (Special Forces Command) and the Rajawali and BTT (Territorial) battalions fired shots indiscriminately, after surrounding their home in Samala hamlet, Baucau. It is believed the reason for the attack was that Maria's husband, Salustiano Freitas was a suspected member of the East Timorese clandestine resistance.
Salustiano Freitas was taken into custody after the attack and detained at Kopassus headquarters (known as Rumah Merah) in Baucau, where it is believed he was subjected to torture. Salustiano Freitas has since been released, however he remains under house arrest. The other six men detained by Indonesian authorities are still in detention charged under Article 1 of the Emergency Law Regulation No.12/1951 and are awaiting trial. To date no formal investigations have been conducted into the killings.
Dili -- At the moment in East Timor underground leaflets are being distributed which smack of playing people off against each other [ie anti- and pro-integration supporters - JB] and threats which are upsetting society. The leaflets threaten to finish-off East Timorese people who are anti-integration and anti-Habibie.
Not only that, each night in the kampungs (urban villages), many nationalist youth groups and "ninjas", who in the past have created tension in East Timorese society, have reappeared and are operating each night.
All groups suspect that the "ninjas" are looking for and targeting leaders of pro-referendum groups and speakers at demonstrations in order to finish them off. This situation reminds many people of the situation leading up to the Santa Cruz incident on November 12, 1991.
What follows is an underground leaflet which is currently be distributed in East Timor.
Completely wipe-out the pro-independence movement in East Timor
On July 24 at 1pm, a secret meeting was held at the 164 WD Dili Military Command (Korem) between ABRI officers and Apodeti [a pro-integration political party] leaders to discuss the concept of autonomy for East Timor. In a statement the Apodeti leaders had already pressured the Jakarta government to formulate a Special Autonomous Government in East Timor in following manner:
All administrative activities of the Special Autonomous government, including development in all areas, will be carried out purely by the indigenous East Timorese with the exception of: the judiciary, defence and security, be consistent with [the state ideology of] Pancasila and the 1945 Constitution and will continue to be under the Indonesian flag, along with continuing to use the Indonesian Rupiah.
In anticipation of the prospect of a resolution to the problem of East Timor which has been dominated by Fretilin and UDT (Timorese Democratic Union) figures, Apodeti leaders have begun preparing its military strength, which has been established by Apodeti members throughout East Timor including the West Timor Zone (?)... where these cadres have already been armed by the Indonesian Government (ABRI), with full financial and military support to confront East Timorese nationalist/independence groups if East Timor later achieves independence through a referendum. podeti's [military] strength has already reached 10,000, armed with M-16 assault rifles and deployed throughout East Timor and in a short time this will be increased by 25,000. For the moment they are under the command of the Rajawali, Saka, Alfa, Makikit, Halilintar groups along with the 744 and 745 Local Batallions throughout East Timor.
Maliana Sub-district government letter calling counter demonstrationsFor as long as the autonomous government continues toward a referendum, all people -- East Timorese who are anti-intergration will be first be wiped out from the soil of Loro Sae (East Timor). During the period of the autonomous government, Apodeti leaders will not tolerate any political activities carried out by UDT Indonesian-Portuguese decedents who have so far been opportunistic in character. If a referendum is able to be held in East Timor, 80 percent of members of the committee to prepare the referendum in East Timor must be made up of Apodeti members as the only party which is trusted by the Indonesian government. It is believed that because of the economic and political importance of ASEAN to the US, the UN on behalf of the US will play dirty during a referendum in East Timor. This was proven when the format for autonomy by president Habibie was presented via the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ali Alatas, in New York, which got a big reception from the UN.
[On July 7, MateBEAN also reported on attempts to mobilise pro- integration supporters. The following is a translation of a copy of an original letter issued by the Maliana Sub-District to village heads which was included in the MateBEAN report.]
Bobonaro Regency Government Maliana Sub-district
Maliana, July 26 1998
Number: --/26/Um/Kec.M/VI/1998,-
Status: High priority
Appendix: - Regarding: Pronouncement
To: Village heads of the Maliana sub-district
In relation to the above, this is to inform you to rapidly prepare as many people as possible for tomorrow morning, 5am and send them to Dili for an "Anti-Referendum" demonstration.
All facilities, food and drink will be provided by the government and transport has already been prepared at the Maliana public square.
All village heads and village personnel must involved themselves in the intended activity.
This is to be given the fullest attention and carried out enthusiastically.
Maliana District Head
Signed and stamped: Drs. Julio Barros
Registry Number : 010 174 890
CC: Regent of Bobonaro (as a report)
Sdr. Muspika, Maliana district
Archives
[Translated by James Balowski]
For the past six years, East Timorese independence fighter Xanana Gusmco has languished inside Jakarta's Cipinang prison, accused of plotting against the state and illegal possession of weapons. Leader of the revolutionary group fretilin, Gusmco, 52, recently began secret talks with Indonesian officials over East Timor's future. Last week, Time slipped questions to Gusmco into the high-security prison via an intermediary. Excerpts from the exchange:
Time: What is your mood? Are you optimistic?
Gusmao: I feel extremely optimistic. For 23 years we fought against a powerful regime with a military force that is one of Southeast Asia's strongest. We were aided by the belief that no dictatorial regimes are eternal. When Suharto resigned we knew that the time had come when we could think more calmly and more clearly.
Time: In negotiating the future of East Timor, what are the minimum terms acceptable to you? Autonomy?
Gusmao: There can be no solution to the problem in East Timor without a referendum. Otherwise the situation will just continue as it did in Palestine. Autonomy is something you ask for after integration, and what's first needed is a referendum.
Time: Are you worried that, if President Habibie doesn't survive in office, negotiations would be disturbed? What if he's replaced by a hard-liner?
Gusmao: I'm not worried about Habibie falling because I realize that his government is only a transitional one heading toward reform. Also I do not believe that he will give the East Timorese a referendum. There are too many outside forces against it that are stronger than he.
Time: What about the army? Who are the hard-liners?
Gusmao: Every military person who has served in East Timor knows in his heart of hearts that the East Timorese do not want integration with Indonesia and that the only permanent solution is to hold a referendum. The hard-liners are either those who did morally reprehensible acts in East Timor and would be ashamed were these acts to be known, or who fear independence for reasons of domestic strategy. The armed forces could play a big role in bringing about a peaceful solution. Once the right of East Timorese to self-determination is recognized, their character will change from that of an occupying force to that of a peacekeeping force. Feelings of enmity, hatred and accusations against each other will disappear.
Time: Have you considered the possibility that the military presence could simply continue?
Gusmao: I do not believe that is possible. The world is in constant movement, and in the long run change is always in the direction of progress.
Time: Does the Church speak for the people of East Timor?
Gusmao: The Church's position is to support whatever the people of East Timor want.
Time: What's the first step toward finding a solution?
Gusmao: I just hope the government's attitude toward East Timor will become wiser. We respect the interests of Indonesia, and should East Timor become free we would want to create a warm bilateral relationship.
[Reuters reported that on July 8, the Indonesian Foreign Minister Ali Alatas has denied a Lisbon newspaper report that the government was planning to release Gusmao soon. Referring to an earlier proposal by Habibie that Gusmao could be released if the UN accepted East Timor's integration into Indonesia, Alatas said "He can only be released... as part of an overall solution. There is no change in that position". On July 11, the justice minister Muladi, told the official news agency Antara that 90 more political prisoners would be released next week. Reiterating Alatas's statement he told Associated Press that Gusmao would not be one of them - James Balowski.]
Dili, (Yayasan Hak, Rights Foundation)
-- On June 24, at 1:00 pm a secret meeting was held in the Korem 164 WD
military district in East Timor between top Indonesian military (ABRI)
officers and the Jakarta-controlled pro-integration party, APODETE. The
following were agreed upon between APODETE and ABRI:
If East Timor gets "special status" within the Indonesian Republic, Jakarta is to have absolute control over the territory's judicial affairs; foreign affairs and defence. The flag of East Timor WILL bear the colours of the Indonesian flag -- red and white and the currency will still be the Indonesian rupiah. In anticipation of the prospect of a "final solution" to East Timor in the form of a referendum, the APODETE politicians made it expressly known to ABRI that they wanted arms and money to influence the results and thwart the ground support of leaders aligned to UDT and Fretilin. APODETE wanted ABRI's help in mobilising armed civilian groups, supporting East Timor's integration with Indonesia, operating from West to East Timor. In the eventuality of a majority of East Timorese voting for independence in the referendum, APODETE with the help of ABRI WILL CONTINUE arming and financing groups to create chaos in East Timor. The target number of civilians to be armed and financed by ABRI is 25,000. So far, 10,000 East Timorese, with political affiliations towards APODETE, have been armed with M-16 rifles provided by ABRI. Some of them are currently mobilised in the following "nindja groups": Alfa, Makikit and Halilintar. The remaining are para-military volunteers with the Rajawali forces, Battalion 744 and Battalion 745 operating throughout East Timor. ABRI agreed to help APODETE influence the results of the referendum in order for the pro-Indonesia party to garner at least 80 per cent support. The Indonesian military also agreed to terrorise all supporters of UDT and Fretilin and other "pro- independence elements" to prevent them from voting otherwise.
| Political/economic crisis |
Jay Solomon, Sumber Wungu -- Unbowed by his poverty, the village elder is more than happy to display his menu for the day: processed cassava root, perhaps some corn -- and grasshopper.
"They're actually quite healthy," says Rakiman, as a local boy displays a fried, clipped grasshopper that spent its last minutes in a nearby tree. In fact, they're making a business out of selling the insect in this arid central Javanese village, at 6,000 rupiah (40 cents) a kilogram. Cocoons can also make a nice meal if need be, Mr. Rakiman says.
Sumber Wungu is a troubling example of Indonesia's mounting difficulty in feeding its poor, but it isn't the only one. World health officials now fear that up to half of the nation's 200 million people will face acute food shortages by year end, sending the World Bank, United Nations and International Monetary Fund scrambling to put in place effective assistance programs. The IMF has pledged $43 billion in aid, but diplomats in Jakarta estimate that an additional $10 billion in cash and supplies may be needed within six months.
For Mr. Rakiman's village, hunger is not new. Centered in the Gunung Kidul district of Yogyakarta province, inhabitants of this highland area see drought and famine come in cycles. Last year's drought ended, but not before ruining this year's rice crop. The rain has returned in the middle of the dry season, causing confusion among farmers over whether to plant. And the prices of fertilizers and pesticides have increased beyond the villagers' means.
What has changed is the undoing of progress. Village leaders say that in recent years rice and chicken had become a regular part of their diets. "Before the crisis our people ate tiwul [processed cassava] only once a week, but now we eat it all the time," says Sukarji, Sumber Wungu's village chief. Moreover, water shortages were abating, and electricity came to the village five months ago. Now, Mr. Rakiman says, "We're headed back to the 1960s."
And the bigger picture is just as bleak. The rupiah has plunged more than 80% in value since last year, and rioting in May disrupted many food-supply networks controlled by ethnic- Chinese Indonesian traders. In the neighboring city of Solo, for example, more than six weeks after the rioting, the preponderance of the city's Chinese-owned businesses remain boarded up or burned out and their owners too frightened and broke to reopen. The result: Cooking oil and other staple food prices remain at astronomical levels, causing many traders to simply stop supplying areas like Sumber Wungu, knowing the residents there can't afford the goods. Cooking oil "is too expensive for us" at 8,000 rupiah a kilogram, concedes Mr. Sukarji.
The question of revamping Indonesia's food-supply network is a particularly thorny issue dogging Jakarta in recent weeks, because it is divided along racial lines. Indonesia's minister for cooperatives, Adi Sasono, has preached the removal of middlemen from Indonesia's food-distribution network in favor of state-owned cooperatives. The argument goes that cooperatives will bring more players into the supply trade, lower the price of goods and diminish the threat of hoarding. Chinese Indonesians make up a large number of these middlemen, and charges of hoarding fueled much of the violence against them in recent months.
Academics and aid workers, however, see Mr. Sasono's plan as simplistic, if not dangerous. Indonesia's cooperatives themselves don't have the strongest reputation for efficiency, and the government risks alienating its ethnic-Chinese population even more.
What's needed, according to Loekman Soetrsino, a professor at Yogyakarta's Gadja Mada University, is a more balanced approach: assisting the ethnic Chinese in rebuilding their stores, while also including a larger proportion of the population in the food trade. "The Chinese have controlled trade here for centuries, you can't replace them overnight," Mr. Loekman says. He proposes enacting affirmative-action programs on two fronts: one to help Chinese Indonesians enter nonbusiness sectors, while at the same time training pribumi, or indigenous Indonesians, in the distribution trade.
The second key component needed to alleviate Indonesia's food problem is a refocusing on an agricultural sector that has largely lain dormant for the past decade, academics charge. Ironically, they note that Mr. Habibie himself played a large role in shifting Indonesia's economic focus away from agriculture and into high technology, having served for most of the past two decades as former President Suharto's minister for industry and technology.
Dibyo Prabowo, an agricultural economist at Gadjah Mada, notes that after Mr. Suharto's government led Indonesia to rice self- sufficiency in 1984, the government seemed to lose all interest in agriculture. Instead, it focused more on industrial businesses, and under the stewardship of Mr. Habibie, attempted to make the leap into aerospace and automobile businesses. The result is that Indonesia is slack in the agricultural technology needed to meet food demand and is dependent on imported food items that are unaffordable. Even in densely populated Java, large tracks of land sit idle -- farmers lack the knowledge to effectively cultivate them.
Mr. Dibyo thinks agriculture could prove to be the savior for Indonesia, however, as the country tries to dig itself out from under nearly $200 billion in foreign debt. As a fertile nation, Indonesia could use the sector to again start earning hard- currency reserves, he says. More important, it would give the country a firmer economic base. "We made the error in the past of not having an agricultural base we could fall back on," Mr. Dibyo says. "Now we have to move forward step by step."
[On July 9 the South China Morning Post reported that Habibie issued a veiled warning to ethnic Chinese traders to resume business operations in the wake of rioting or risk losing contracts. He told members of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry that he was willing to issue a presidential decree canceling distribution contracts if there was no recovery within two weeks - James Balowski.]
Jim Della-Giacoma, Jakarta -- Indonesia's food situation has worsened in recent months and it is likely the key August harvest of rice, the country's staple, will fall below target, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) said. "The food supply situation in Indonesia has deteriorated since the FAO/World Food Programme assessment last March, due to the effect of the prolonged drought and the intensification of the financial and economic crisis," the FAO said in a statement obtained by Reuters on Wednesday.
Earlier predictions envisaged a strengthening rupiah and a deceleration in inflation in 1998, neither of which has materialised. The rupiah was at about 2,400 to the dollar in July 1997; it is now trading close to 15,000.
"The depreciation, in particular, has led to inflation and put added strain on the country's commercial import capacity," the statement said. "The prices of food and other basic necessities have risen sharply, amidst rapidly increasing unemployment, thus seriously eroding the purchasing power of large segments of the population," it said. "A cause for serious concern is the large and rapidly growing population groups facing acute food insecurity."
Since Indonesia's economic and weather-related problems began in 1997, the number of people living below the poverty line has surged. Official estimates now say close to half the country's population of 200 million will fall below the poverty line by the end of 1998. Poverty is defined as being unable to afford 2,100 calories and minimum non-food essentials per day per person.
The current greatest concern is over the 1998 rice crop. The FAO estimated in March that Indonesia would produce 47.5 million tonnes of rice, 3.6 percent below reduced production in 1997 and 6 percent below the 1996 harvest.
But the statement said this estimate was based on a prediction that the second rice harvest, which is due in August and accounts for one-third of the total production, would be average. This assumption no longer held true. "Since April, weather conditions have been generally favourable for the secondary rice crop, but plantings have reportedly been reduced and higher costs of fertilisers, pesticides and other inputs and the distribution problems could affect productivity," the statement said.
"Localised locust infestation to crops has also been reported from some areas. As a result, the output of the secondary crop is expected to be reduced," it said. "The current official forecast puts total paddy production at 46.29 million tonnes, some six million tonnes below the original 1998 production target," it said.
The report said a re-assessment of the situation in early August would be necessary to provide an accurate picture of Indonesia's food import and assistance needs. "The food situation in the country remains tight," it said.
Indonesia's rice import requirement for 1998/99 (April-March) has been estimated at up to 3.5 million tonnes, but the report said this was unlikely to be the case now. "Current indications are that total rice production could be lower than earlier forecast. If this were to occur, the rice deficit for the marketing year 1998/99 would be higher than the earlier estimate of 3.5 million tonnes," it said.
Up to June 24, international donors had pledged about 1.0 million tonnes and the commodities regulator BULOG had imported about 1.5 million tonnes of rice. "However, given preliminary indications of a possible higher rice import deficit and the financial limitations of the country, substantial further international assistance will be required," the FAO said, particularly for the rehabilitation of the agriculture sector in drought-stricken areas.
"It must, however, be stressed that notwithstanding the potential impact of the above-stated measures, prospects for future food security in the country will depend heavily on the health of the economy which would require large external funding," it said.
Amy Chew, Jakarta -- Social pressures are building in Indonesia, where nearly half the population is forecast to be living below the poverty line by the end of the year as jobs dry up and prices soar.
"Many workers are hungry. They have no jobs or money to buy their basic necessities," said Teten Masduki, head of the labour division of the respected independent Legal Aid Foundation. "How can you have political stability when your people are starving?" he asked.
The Manpower Ministry said in its latest estimate that unemployment was expected to reach 16.9 million by the end of this year out of a workforce of around 90 million. "Of this number, 60 percent of the unemployed are women," Endang Sulistyaningsih, head of Manpower Planning at the ministry told Reuters.
An estimated 80 million people were currently living below the poverty line and the number was likely to increase to 95.8 million, or almost half the 200 million population, as unemployment and inflation rose, the Central Bureau of Statistics said last Friday. Based on the bureau's calculation, the poverty line is currently defined as 52,470 rupiah ($3.70) per person per month or 227,720 rupiah ($15.65) for a family of 4.34 people in a city and 4.28 people in a village. Inflation rose nearly 47 percent during the first half of this year, and was up around 60 percent on a year-on-year basis.
Workers' demonstrations have intensified since Suharto's May 21 resignation amid the worst economic crisis the world's fourth most populous nation has faced since he took power 32 years ago.
Indonesia is currently caught in a vicious circle of economic decline and political uncertainty. But the political risk factor is keeping away direly-needed foreign investment, which in turn is increasing the threat of further unrest.
Adding to the current political uncertainty are rumours that the former president -- who handed over power in May to his vice-president B.J. Habibie -- is manoeuvring for a comeback. Some analysts say this could take the form of placing diehard supporters in positions of influence to ensure his position and wealth -- currently under judicial investigation -- is protected.
A key to the future lies in an extraordinary meeting in the coming week of the Golkar party, of which Suharto currently remains chairman of the board of patrons. The Suharto knives appear to be out for party chairman Harmoko, who was regarded as a strong supporter of the former president until he called on Suharto to quit in May.
"Golkar should not be allowed to be led by a political opportunist," the country's former vice-president Try Sutrisno told a meeting called in advance of next Thursday's opening of the formal party session. Reformists fear an effort by the old guard to keep control of Golkar. The party has shown signs that it could split apart, and new vocal political groups are forming to contest general elections expected next May, but Golkar still remains a formidable political machine after nearly three decades in power.
The Legal Aid Foundation's Masduki said workers were well aware of the state of the economy, but he accused the government of failing to take concrete steps to bring about true political stability. "The military is used to intervene whenever people make demands. That is pseudo stability," he said. But, he added, workers who had been deprived of the right to form their own unions over the years would be far harder to control than more cohesive student protesters on their campuses.
| Labour issues |
Jakarta -- About 2000 becak (pedicab) drivers pedaled their three-wheeled vehicles to Jakarta City Hall yesterday morning to urge the authorities to allow them to operate in the city's alleys and narrow streets.
Under the watchful eyes of hundreds of members of the security forces, the pedicab drivers said they were very upset with Jakarta Governor Sutiyoso, who recently allowed them to operate in the capital and then seven days later reversed his decision.
"The authorities can arrest us if any of us are found operating on the city's main thoroughfares, " a spokesman of the pedicab drivers, Slamet Edi Prayitno, told the city officials. "We are now facing difficulties finding jobs during the current crisis. So now, please, give us the chance to operate in alleys and narrow streets here," he said.
In an attempt to persuade the governor to change his mind again, the drivers suggested the administration limit the number of pedicabs and issue identification cards for the permitted drivers.
The flow of pedicabs heading to the City Hall on Jl. Medan Merdeka Selatan in Central Jakarta started as early as 6 a.m. yesterday. In front of the City Hall, where Sutiyoso has his office, the drivers peacefully parked their light vehicles on the road's median and sidewalks.
Seven representatives of the drivers, mostly from towns in West and Central Java, were then invited by the city officials--led by the head of the city's social and political affairs directorate Herbagus Suharyono--to press their case.
The city officials insisted in the meeting that the administration would stick to the existing 10-year-old city ordinance that Sutiyoso ignored when he announced that the city was opened to pedicabs. "I hope all of you could understand it," Herbagus told the representatives. "We have offered to finance your transportation back to your hometowns," he added.
The meeting was also attended by at least three reporters, including one from The Jakarta Post. The seven representatives then left the meeting.
Outside the City Hall, Slamet -- one of the representatives and who also claimed to be the drivers' coordinator -- told his colleagues that the city officials had promised "not to take stern action" against them. His explanation was greeted with cheers. "Hidup (Long Live us!), hidup, hidup," yelled the crowd. The drivers then took their vehicles and left the scene in a long convoy that caused heavy traffic congestion as people packed the sidewalks to watch them pass.
Sutiyoso publicly announced on June 25 that he was allowing the pedicabs to operate again after they had been banned for 10 years in a bid to enable unemployed people to make money during the economic crisis. The governor changed his mind and revoked his own decision on the pedicabs on the grounds that drivers had entered the forbidden areas.
He also ordered an immediate crackdown against the pedicabs, which are banned in the city based on City Ordinance No. 11/1988 which states that the capital is a pedicab-free area. Last Friday, the governor set aside Rp 50 million (US$3,400) to pay for the drivers to return home.
| Human rights/law |
Jakarta -- The National Commission on Human Rights put the blame squarely on the government yesterday for the rampant rapes and sexual assaults during riots in Jakarta and other cities in May, denouncing its attitude toward the victims as "insensitive".
"The security vacuum during the riots points the blame at the state, on the neglect by civilian and military leaders in providing effective protection, which in turn allowed these sexual assaults to become widespread," the commission said. It also said that the increasing use of violence by some members of society was partly encouraged by the various forms of violent practices conducted by the state for many years.
In a statement, the commission called on the government to declare that the rapes took place as a starting point to restore the honor of victims. The commission said the rampant sexual assaults by gangs of cruel people followed a standard pattern, targeting mainly helpless women and children from the ethnic Chinese community. But it noted that women from other communities also suffered.
The government and the public should mobilize solidarity and sympathy for the victims, and forge a common commitment to give protection to the victims, witnesses and volunteers who are assisting them, it said. The commission 'demands that the government issues an apology for its failure in providing protection to its citizens". It proposed the immediate establishment of a commission to investigate the riots and prosecute the culprits, particularly those responsible for sexual assaults.
The statement was read by member Saparinah Sadli at a media conference attended by deputy chairman Marzuki Darusman and members Clementino Dos Reis Amaral, Soegiri and Asmara Nababan.
The Armed Forces has said its own investigation did not find any evidence that rapes occurred, and pointed out that not a single victim had come forward to lodge an official complaint.
State Minister of Women's Affairs Tutty Alawiyah had earlier taken the same stand but, following public pressure, she announced Wednesday the formation of an all-women team to help those who were sexually abused during the riots. First Lady Ainun Habibie is patron of the team, which is headed by Tutty.
Several voluntary women's groups have compiled data of these rapes and interviewed the victims. They were the first to raise the alarm about the sexual abuse because victims were too terrified and ashamed to come forward.
The Commission "regrets the lack of the moral response from the public to the reports of sadistic rapes and notes with deep concern the government's skepticism which influenced public opinion to doubt these reports in the absence of any evidence. "They are insensitive to the psychological burdens sustained by the victims and their families. This has intensified their plight because they feel that they have to bear this calamity alone".
Marzuki and Clementino said several commission members had talked to victims of the abuse enough to become convinced they had occurred. Clementino warned of a possible attempt at a cover-up because some victims had received threats if they went public with their ordeal.
The commission said the rapes occurred during riots that began on May 12, and had gone on up until as late as one week ago. "Some of the reports suggested these sadistic rapes were conducted in the open, often in front of their own families. "This widespread sexual violence can be qualified as an act of intimidation, or even terror, directed at a certain ethnic group. "They amount to a violation of human rights which can be regarded as a criminal act against humanity," the statement said.
Meanwhile, the chairman of the Supreme Advisory Council A.A. Baramuli disclosed yesterday that the military might announce the "mastermind" behind the May riots in Jakarta next week, Antara reported. Baramuli, who is also a member of the human rights commission, met with the ethnic Chinese community in Pluit and other residential areas in North Jakarta to convince them that the government was serious in trying to uncover the facts behind the riots. He appealed for their cooperation in the government's investigation.
Jakarta -- Indonesian troops may have killed as many as five people and wounded 141 when they opened fire on a crowd which raised a separatist flag in Irian Jaya province, church and human rights sources said Tuesday.
But local military commander, Colonel Agus Edyono, who confirmed that live ammunition had been used as well as rubber bullets, said although he had heard of deaths, he could not confirm the reports. "I received numerous calls from people informing me of the death of several people," Edyono told AFP by phone from the island of Biak where the shooting took place in a planned military operation involving some 200 marines, army and airforce early Monday. "So far we have no confirmed reports of deaths," he said.
Edyono said a shortage of medical supplies was making it difficult to treat the wounded, but doctors were doing their best with limited resources to care for 20 people still in the local polyclinic. A resident told AFP that 32-year-old Orboy was killed by a gunshot wound to the head, but he was unsure whether it was a live or a rubber bullet.
"The bullet went into his brain. I would think it was a live bullet," he said, adding that Orboy's body had been returned to his village in northern Biak. "Two of the four victims who are now in critical condition also seemed as if they had been shot with live bullets. One's thigh was completely shattered, and the other's intenstines were messed up as the bullet went through his lower back," the source said.
Paul Baut of the Legal Aid Institute in the provincial capital of Jayapura said continuing reports telephoned by residents from Biak put the total number of dead at five. He said of the 141 people injured, more than 20 were taken to the local polyclinic. The resident said of those remaining in the hospital Tuesday, four were in critical condition and 17 had been seriously injured.
More than 100 people had been arrested Monday and by late Tuesday 25 people remained in detention, including the alleged ringleader, a local civil servant named Felix Yacob Karma, he said. "These people were not demanding reform," Edyono said. "They wanted a separate state. We, and civic leaders, had pleaded with the group to take down the flag since July 2, but they refused."
Police said on Monday that the flag raised over the port area in Biak had been the "Morning Star" flag of West Papua. "They put the flag on top of a water tower at the port, and kicked away the ladder so that no one could take it down, then they forced people to salute it, sing songs with them and donate money," Edyono said. He added only 50 to 70 people had been directly involved, not 700 as reported by the state Antara news agency.
"Generally rubber bullets were used, but when some of the troops fired in the air, ricochets bounced off the walls, and the doctor confirmed they were ricochets because the bullets were bent," he said. "We had tried all persuasive means. We gave them time, and asked priests and local public figures to persuade them to go home. In the end the local government and the priests decided to leave it up to the military," he said.
Louise Williams -- "These are primitive people," said the Indonesian military officer of the tribespeople of the pristine forests and coastal mangrove swamps of the remote province of Irian Jaya.
"Primitive, no!" snapped back an Irianese highlander in the audience, as the officer launched into a briefing for a recent aid program in the provincial capital, Jayapura. "Old methods are not the same as primitive methods; people have been farming here for thousands of years," said the highlander.
These are familiar murmurings of resentment and misunderstanding in Irian Jaya, where animosity between the indigenous tribespeople and the soldiers and bureaucrats of the central Government in Jakarta, who control their daily lives, runs deep. For decades the Irianese, like other ethnic minorities within the Indonesian archipelago, have complained of being treated like second-class citizens in their own villages.
Over the last 10 days, the cultural insults, the sporadic human-rights abuses by Indonesian troops, the domination of local economies by outsiders, and the forced removal of tribes from their lands for mining and development projects, have erupted into mass demonstrations against Indonesian rule. In a series of protests in major towns and remote mountain settlements, the independence flags of the Free Papua Movement (OPM) were raised and Government buildings occupied. Early on Monday morning Indonesian troops opened fire on hundreds of Irianese on the island of Biak, killing up to seven people and injuring 141. The local military commander said about 700 people, some armed with long, curved traditional knives, refused an order to lower the independence flag flapping over the tiny port, ringed by the bountiful coral atolls and the brilliant turquoise of the Pacific Ocean. The small local military detachment had called in a mobile sea patrol, then opened fire with live and rubber bullets.
"This started off with the mood of reform. People thought now that (President Soeharto has resigned) things could be said, feelings could be expressed without people being shot," said a local Catholic priest, sadly.
The protests in Irian Jaya followed major demonstrations for independence in the contested province of East Timor last month, and human-rights officials have warned that, unless Jakarta revises its treatment of ethnic minorities, the Government could face continuing regional rebellions which threaten the Indonesian state.
Indonesia is a fragile multi-ethnic, multi-religious nation and the domination of the bureaucracy and the armed forces by the majority Muslims from the heavily populated island of Java has led to claims of "Javanese colonialism" in other parts of the country.
"This is a long story." the priest said. "Irian Jaya has been part of Indonesia for more than 30 years. But even from that moment the people felt left out. Now there are so many experiences and resentments, ranging from political restrictions to very basic things like the right to move around and the right to speak up."
Ethnically and culturally, there is a case for independence in Irian Jaya. The Irianese share only the legacy of Dutch colonial rule with the rest of Indonesia. Culturally and racially they are distinct, and their natural links lie not with the Javanese Muslims who dominate the Indonesian Government, but with the Melanesian people of the adjoining independent nation of Papua New Guinea. The indigenous people of Irian Jaya have little in common with the people they call the "straight, black hairs", the Malays from Indonesia's populous western islands. The Irian Jayans revere pigs and many are Christians. The majority of Malay Indonesians are Muslims who shun pork and are offended by nakedness.
But the legal case for independence is weak. Unlike East Timor, Irian Jaya's incorporation into Indonesia is recognised internationally, despite criticism from the United States and other Western nations of Indonesia's heavy-handed administration.
Irian Jaya was formally incorporated into Indonesia in 1963. In 1945 Indonesian nationalists had declared independence after a long struggle against the Dutch colonial government. But the Dutch resisted calls to leave Irian Jaya, long after they had withdrawn from the rest of Indonesia.
Indonesian troops began infiltrating Irian Jaya in 1962 in an attempt to fan a rebellion against the Dutch. Fearing war, Holland then handed over administration to the United Nations. The UN signed the territory over to Jakarta a year later. In 1969, 1000 representatives of the Irian people voted unanimously to join Indonesia in an "act of free choice" that was widely criticised by the local people and fuelled a fledgling armed independence movement.
Few of the people who raised their independence flags this week have ever fought with the OPM, but it remains a symbol of their resentment. As a guerrilla army, the OPM survives largely because of the harshness of the terrain and the fact that its small bands of tribesmen, many armed only with traditional weapons, have carried out only sporadic attacks on Indonesian targets.
In 1996, OPM rebels kidnapped a groups of Indonesian and foreign natural scientists, provoking a major assault by Indonesian special forces. The giant Freeport copper and gold mine has also been a frequent target.
Human-rights activists say retaliatory moves by Indonesian troops have included the massacres of civilians believed to sympathise with the OPM, and other human-rights abuses. The presence of the OPM has been used to justify the deployment of Indonesian troops in even the most remote mountain villages, where terrible stories are told of killings and summary executions. Daily life is complicated by suspicion between tribespeople and outsiders.
An Indonesian Human Rights Commission member, Clementino Dos Rios Amaral, says there is a moral argument for Irian Jayan independence. "From what I have heard, for more than 30 years human rights have been violated and there has been torture of the Irianese accused of joining the OPM independence movement. I have talked to students who fear there is an ethnic cleansing of the Irian people with all these killings and torture. "The people feel they are not being treated justly. It is now up to the central Government -- if it takes a wrong turn, then disintegration will follow."
But this week the commander of the Indonesian Armed Forces, General Wiranto, made it clear that the raising of a flag, other than the Indonesian flag, would be considered a "treacherous" betrayal of the nation. "This is very significant problem for the continuity of the nation. The armed forces cannot tolerate this and will take firm action," he said.
But the local priest says the feelings of the Irian Jayans have been repressed for too long ."The problem should be talked over with the Government officials; the people come without weapons, please let them talk. If this kind of dialogue is refused, I am afraid there could be a lot more violence."
The highlands of Irian Jaya are a place of unimaginable beauty, a pristine land inaccessible by road and untouched by the modern world save for the tiny grass runways hacked out of the trees for the irregular visits by missionary planes.
Here the mountain air is cool and the breeze is sweet. The old men are clothed only in their penis gourds and hug their naked bodies against the cold. Few such isolated places are left on Earth. Irian Jaya was first visited by the Portuguese in the 16th century but much of the rugged highlands, which conceal the world's only tropical glacier, remain uncharted even today.
The tribes of these mountains and valleys had been farming for 9000 years when they were first contacted by outsiders in the late 1930s. But technologically they were still living in the Stone Age, without metal axes, with no written language, without looms to weave, and divided by mountains so sheer that hundreds of different languages had remained locked away in the valleys.
But with no written history, and after a generation of contact with the outside world, the languages and the stories of these ancient tribal cultures may soon be lost forever. When the control of Irian Jaya was handed over to Indonesia, Jakarta began the process of bringing the people into the fold, enforcing the teaching of the national language, Bahasa Indonesia, in all the village schools and discouraging the preservation of local traditions and beliefs. Irian Jaya had no natural cultural links with the Javanese-dominated Indonesian Government, only the artificial borders drawn up by the Dutch in colonial times.
Irian Jaya is rich with natural resources, gold, copper, timber and fertile land, a vast empty eastern treasure trove for the overcrowded islands to the west. Exploiting valuable natural resources such as timber and the world's largest copper mine at Freeport in the south of the province is highly profitable for the Indonesian Government, which Irianese leaders say has returned little to local tribes in the way of compensation.
But the Government argues that it has done much to develop Irian Jaya, providing basic infrastructure, health services and schools. On the drawing board now is a massive dam and hydro- electric project for the north-east, with associated mining, industrial and residential development in what is now a vast tract of virgin forest.
Over the years the Government has helped tens of thousands of "transmigrants" from Java and other islands to settle in Irian Jaya with the promise of two hectares of land apiece, and other outsiders have followed to take advantage of new trade opportunities. Of the 1.9 million people who live in the province, between 750,000 and 850,000 were born outside Irian Jaya, and the non-indigenous population will continue to rise as the central Government targets Irian Jaya as a priority resettlement area. In the capital, Jayapura, 80 per cent of the population are non-indigenous people.
In the mountains, as they have for centuries, the men live in one hut, the women in another with the children and the pigs. It is easy to romanticise the simplicity of a self-sufficient village existence, free from even the intrusion of a radio or a telephone. But in the health clinics the statistics reveal a less appealing reality. Every year scores of people die from disease, children and mothers are lost at birth, entire villages suffer chronic bronchitis because without bedding or warm clothes they must huddle around smoky fires in the huts every night.
It is this "primitiveness" that Indonesian Government officials argue must end. But few people are asking the key question -- how to improve the health and quality of life of remote tribal people without destroying the fabric of their society. Already development is reaching these tiny villages, even if only to lure away the young to the towns.
"We have no doctor, no paramedic, only a tiny airstrip," says one health worker. "I see the old people still working here happily, but the young people like to go to the big towns like Wamena or Jayapura."
In Wamena, like many other towns, migrants have come from other parts of Indonesia to control commerce. Even the souvenir shop selling handicrafts from the mountains to the trickle of tourists is run by an outsider. Many young tribesmen move into town to do menial jobs. Alcohol is a growing problem, as is the sale of land for a pittance to outsiders. As village life gradually breaks down, more and more people drift to the edges of the towns.
"The problems are like being in a no-man's land between tradition and modernity; people no longer know where they fit. They don't know how to do business, they can't compete with the outsiders, so they get lost," said one highlander. But they are fighting it. Clementino Dos Rios Amaral says that out of the nine regions in Irian Jaya only two are governed by native Irianese. "That sharpens the feeling that they are being discriminated against."
Local environmentalist Chalid Muhammad says at first he thought all the Irianese wanted was to be treated humanely and fairly and not like second-class citizens. "But now I think they may want more; anti-Indonesian sentiment is intensifying." For the moment Irian Jaya's hopes for independence are slim. But modern Indonesia is a political entity based on an outdated colonial border and some political scientists believe that a weakening of the Jakarta Government could eventually see the Indonesian nation splinter, with new rebellions in the outer islands.
Jakarta -- Prosecutors at the military tribunal investigating the Trisakti shooting incident demanded prison sentences for two police officers who ordered their men to shoot into the crowd of demonstrators. They requested a 10 month jail term for First Lt. Agus Tri Heryanto and a seven month sentence for Second Lt. Pariyo.
Col. Sadji Pumomo and Capt. Bambang Ari Wibowo, who read the indictments in turn, said the defendants had ordered their subordinates to open fire without the authorization of their superior officer, Lt. Col. Timur Pradopo, the West Jakarta Police chief. The defendants, both of whom belong to the police Mobile Brigade, were charged under Article 103 of the Military Penal Code, which carries a maximum sentence of two years and four months In prison.
The defendants are among 18 people implicated in the May 12 incident in which the security forces opened fire on demonstrators at Trisakti University, killing four students. The incident sparked off three days of riots in major cities across the country. The other 16 suspects are still under police investigation and may yet face prosecution.
The prosecutors insisted the defendants be jailed and ordered to pay the court administration fee of Rp 5,000. Defense lawyers have argued that the officers should have not have been brought before the tribunal court. They believe that the case should have been handled by their superior officers.
However, the prosecution challenged this argument yesterday. "The defendants superior officers submitted the dossiers on this case to the military tribunal. This step was in line with the principle of 'unity of command' within the Armed Forces, " Sadji said.
Sadji also said that both police officers had admitted during interrogation that they had ordered the shooting without their superior's consent. "Agus gave the order to open fire during the May 12 incident without authorization from his field commander, the West Jakarta Police chief Lt. Col. Timur Pradopo," he said. The order triggered panic among the demonstrators he added. Agus was the company commander and Pariyo was the action platoon commander when the incident took place.
Based on the testimony of witnesses and infantry Capt. Arman Dahlan, the situation was calm before Agus ordered his men to open fire Sadji explained. "It is therefore obvious that Agus and Pariyo disobeyed the rules stated in the 1997 guidelines on handling riots," he added. Both officers were on duty from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. on the day of the shooting incident, he said, adding that it was possible the officers had been tired and lost their temper.
Both defendants remained standing throughout the 3.5 hour hearing. Presiding Judge Sudji Suradi ordered them to straighten up every time they relaxed their posture. The trial was adjourned until next Tuesday, when the defense lawyers will present their statement.
"We will give the defense team time before Agus and Pariyo present their personal statements. They have their own version of events and that too must be heard, " Buyung, a defense lawyer, said. He said the defense lawyers would raise what he called "false accusations" that the prosecutors had leveled at the defendants at the start of the tribunal.
| News |
Jakarta -- Indonesia's ruling Golkar party on Saturday elected the country's State Secretary Akbar Tanjung as its new leader and officially snapped its last links with discredited former president Suharto. The result of the leadership vote was greeted with cheers and hailed as a victory for the party, which many had predicted could not survive in the post-Suharto era.
It was also widely seen as a victory for Suharto's sucessor, incumbent president B.J. Habibie. His followers had feared that Tanjung's rival for the leadership, retired General Edy Sudrajat, would move to oust Habibie. Said Golkar reformist Sarwono Kartasasmita after the vote: "This whole thing is a step ahead for Habibie's legitimacy. I can imagine how relieved he is to hear the result of this congress."
Sarwono also said he believed the military was behind Tanjung's victory. "There are signs that ABRI (the armed forces) supported him and have some intention (to use) Golkar. And that, if they can channel it openly, will be all right," he said.
Tanjung, 53, a Moslem and former minister of youth and sports, received 17 of the 27 provincial votes cast. Sudrajat, 60, polled 10 votes. It was the first vote in the history of the party, which in the past had simply followed the dictates of Suharto.
A cheer went up from the floor and the two rival candidates hugged one another when the results of the secret ballot, the party's first ever direct leadership vote, were announced on the final day of a three-day special party congress. "There are 302 people present, which constitutes more than two thirds of the delegates and thereby legitimises an election," Siswono Yudohusodo, the chaiman of the meeting, told the members.
Tanjung, born in the province of North Sumatra, said Friday he would be prepared to give up his position of state secretary if the party wished him to. A student leader in his youth, Tanjung has been a member of Golkar for 21 years. He represented East Java in 1977. In 1988, when he became Minister of Youth and Sports under Suharto, he became a member of the now-defunct Board of Patrons of the party. He also served as Minister of Housing from 1993 through 1998 and was appointed State Secretary by Habibie after Suharto stepped down on May 21.
Earlier Saturday, the congress approved a sub-committee decision taken Friday to abolish the Board of Patrons headed by ousted president Suharto. That move officially severed Suharto's links with Golkar, whose ability to survive without him has been questioned. The congress also saw the departure of Suharto's daughter Siti "Tutut" Hardiyanti Rukmana, one of the five members of the outgoing board which officially ended its tenure Friday. The last remaining official family link with the party was snapped when, in announcing the new office holders, Suharto's son, Bambang Trihartmojo, was replaced as party treasurer by a businessman.
On Friday the congress said Golkar had decided to turn itself into a "real" political party and raised the possibility of Tanjung becoming a candidate for the presidency of the country. "In the United States, England and Malaysia, party leaders become heads of state, it should be the same here too," said party deputy chairman Abdul Gafur.
Small groups of student demonstrators who have picketed the three-day congress daily since it convened on Thursday have called for Golkar to dissolve itself, calling it a remnant of the 32-year-long Suharto era.
Louise Williams, Jakarta -- The Australian Foreign Minister, Mr Downer, has strongly defended Canberra's military links with Indonesia as useful channels for urging restraint, despite revelations that Indonesian troops were involved in kidnapping and torturing democracy activists.
After meeting President B.J. Habibie and the Indonesian Foreign Minister, Mr Ali Alatas, Mr Downer said the new Government in Jakarta was committed to improving human rights and resolving the East Timor conflict. Outside the hotel where he was speaking, a group of Indonesian protesters held up photographs of missing democracy activists and urged Australia to pressure the Habibie Government.
In the last months of the Soeharto regime scores of anti- Government activists were kidnapped and detained in a secret interrogation centre near Jakarta, where they were tortured for information. The interim results of a military investigation found soldiers were linked to the disappearances. Fourteen people remain missing.
Mugiyanto [a leader of the banned People's Democratic Party - JB], who was tortured and detained at the interrogation centre for 83 days, called on Canberra for action. "So far the Australian Government has been very soft on human rights and very supportive of the Indonesian Government," he said. "We are sure the Indonesian military were involved in the disappearances because of the methods, the results of the investigation and their tools of torture."
However, Mr Downer said: "There is a difference between some particular people within the military committing human rights abuses and the whole of the military having an institutionalised policy. "Our position is that the military contact we have with the Indonesian armed forces has been a very useful vehicle for us to encourage the exercise of restraint... and our view is that by and large the military have exercised restraint."
He acknowledged the seriousness of the shooting of unarmed university students when police opened fire on a demonstration in May -- now the subject of a legal action -- and this week's shooting of protesters in Irian Jaya. Mr Downer said Australia was concerned about the independence protests in Irian Jaya but did not believe Indonesia would splinter under pressure from separatist movements. "We don't think there will be a break-up in Indonesia, it's a beat-up to be even talking about it," he said.
It was a "vast leap of logic" to compare independence movements in Irian Jaya with East Timor. Irian Jaya was recognised as part of Indonesia by the United Nations in 1969 despite local hopes for independence after the departure of the Dutch colonists. East Timor, a former Portuguese colony, was invaded by Indonesia in 1975, and Jakarta's sovereignty has never been recognised by the UN.
Mr Downer said Australia was encouraged by the Habibie Government's willingness to move on East Timor, but warned that the 23-year-old conflict would not be resolved quickly. "You have very passionately held views there; it is obviously a very divided place. There is no point trying to resolve the issue with a quick fix."
Mr Downer called for the East Timorese people and the Indonesian Government to talk. Australia would not seek to "micro-manage" the negotiations, but could help by continuing to provide development funds.
Australia had increased aid to Indonesia by 20 per cent in recognition of the economic crisis and the drought, he said. "It is in Australia's national interest that the Indonesian economy recovers as soon as practically possible."
[On July 9 Reuters quoted Downer as saying "...the Australian government thinks it is very important that the Indonesian military exercise the maximum of restraint [in West Papua]" adding that with the exception of the shooting of four student protesters at the Trisakti University on May 12. "...in an extraordinarily difficult environment, they (the military) did exercise restraint". On the question of East Timor, Downer said "There is no point in trying to resolve the issue of East Timor with some instant resolution because it won't create peace in East Timor," citing the negotiations that eventually led to a peace deal in Northern Ireland as an example. On July 10 the news agency Lusa quoted Downer as "praising the proposals by Habibie for East Timor" - James Balowski.]
Jakarta -- Chairman of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) Harmoko swore in 27 new members yesterday, 24 of whom represent the dominant political group Golkar. Some of the new appointments are politicians and public figures known to be close to President B.J. Habibie, including his aide, political scientist Dewi Fortuna Anwar, and cabinet ministers Theo L. Sambuaga, Adi Sasono and Agung Laksono.
Harmoko, who is also chairman of Golkar's executive board, insisted the appointments were part of periodic changes in the assembly, Antara reported. Those who were replaced were mostly the wives and offspring of former and serving government officials. They voluntarily resigned following nationwide calls for an end to corruption, collusion and nepotism in the government.
The children of former president Soeharto, who are Golkar representatives in the Assembly, however, have kept their MPR seats despite demands for their resignation. Golkar leaders have called on their representatives in the Assembly and the House of Representatives who owe their seats to family ties to resign rather than await expulsion. Soeharto's youngest son, Hutomo Mandala Putra has said he would only resign if formally asked by his Golkar constituency in South Sumatra.
The 1,000-strong MPR is due to convene for an extraordinary meeting in November or December, making its composition crucial in determining the outcome. Harmoko told reporters yesterday that there should be no more changes in the Assembly's membership after this month because a working committee would start preparations for the meeting.
The 27 new MPR members sworn in yesterday are: Tuty Sinsuw Gundong and Dewi Fortuna Anwar, representing the functional group, Theo L. Sambuaga, Lahmuddin Fattah, Radi A. Gany, Soekartono Hadiwarsito, Ridwan Hisyam, Widarto, Mediteransjah, Soendoro, Adi Sasono, Endang Harsono, Nadjib Sungkar, Moh. Aly Yahya, Mashud Wisnusaputra, Yuddy Chrisnandi, Darwis Nasution, Ninik Tommy Joesoef. HR Agung Laksono, Suprapto Nitihardjo, Johannes A Sinungan, Abdul Bari A, A. Hafiz Zamawi, Nafsiah Umar Salim HR Usman Draman, Barlan Lubis, representing Golkar; and Khalid Abdullah Karamah, who represents the United Development Party faction.
Noted ulema Ali Yafie was supposed to be installed yesterday but he reportedly turned down the offer, while Golkar Secretary- General Ary Mardjono failed to turn up, apparently because he was busy with preparations for today's Golkar congress.
Separately, Ary denied yesterday he had signed a letter to recall 104 Golkar members in the House, including Harmoko. Copies of the letter, with Ary's signature, have been circulating among Golkar leaders here to attend the congress. "That letter is a forgery designed to discredit my good name," Ary told reporters at Golkar's headquarters, Antara reported. He said the Golkar executive board had not discussed any plans to recall its representatives in the House.
The list of the 104 names includes Harmoko, Abdul Gafur, Burhan D Magenda Amir Santoso, Agung Laksono, Lukman Harun, Rully Chairul Azwar, Rhoma Irama and Marwah Daud.
| Environment/health |
Stevie Emilia, Jakarta -- More pollution. That's the first thing that comes to mind after learning that the city plans to suspend its environmental programs due to its limited budget.
The city used to have a regreening program, a Blue Sky program -- which addressed air pollution -- and a clean river program. Without these programs, Jakarta's sky could take on a grayer tinge than even before, while its small number of green areas may do little to help. Rivers will fill with garbage, causing floods to most parts of the city when it rains.
The decision to suspend the programs came as a big surprise to many environmentalists because it was made exactly two weeks after the celebration of World Environment Day on June 5.
Blame it on the limited budget. The administration's 1998/1999 fiscal year budget has already suffered from the chopping block twice. Initially, the city's budget tallied in at Rp 3.2 trillion (US$216.9 million), but was cut to Rp 2.7 trillion and later to Rp 1.4 trillion as a result of the crisis.
Governor Sutiyoso said the current revised budget would be used to help needy Jakartans at the grassroots level. Although he indicated he would only suspend the three environment programs, he would not mention how long they would be held off.
The city's original Rp 3.2 trillion budget allocated Rp 25.5 billion to the environmental sector. Now, the city's environmental department doesn't even have an idea how much makes up its share of the current city budget.
Emmy Hafild, chairwoman of the Indonesian Forum for Environment (Walhi), said the city's decision to put off the environmental programs was a "setback" to the efforts to improve the city's environment. "The environment is being sacrificed," she said. She warned that more funds would be needed to address the impacts of the environmental damages.
She also questioned the government's spending priorities in the budget. The administration, for example, had installed decorative lights and other outdoor displays along certain main streets to commemorate the city's 471st anniversary on June 22, she said. The city will also hold the annual Jakarta Fair, scheduled to begin Saturday and run until Aug. 2, she added. "Such fancy activities are a waste of money and are unnecessary, but they're going on. The city should set its priorities straight. Protecting the environment is vital, especially because people's health is at stake," Emmy said. She conceded that the city's celebration was far less glamorous compared to previous years, but found it surprising that the city was able to set aside Rp 350 million out of its budget for this year's commemoration.
The city has also collected Rp 815 million from 55 city-owned firms for outdoor displays. The amount collected would be split almost evenly between the celebration of the city's anniversary and the country's Independence Day celebrations in August.
The Jakarta International Trade Fair Corporation, the organizer of this year's Jakarta Fair, has also set aside about Rp 3 billion for this year's festival -- less than half of last year's budget for the same event. The corporation is 15 percent owned by the administration.
Emmy said she could not understand why these celebrations were to go on while environmental programs were being halted. "Jakarta 's environmental programs are too important to be stopped, even only temporarily," Emmy said. She cited a 1996 World Health Organization report that said that stomach problems from unclean water was the number one killer of children under five years old, while the second killer was respiratory diseases caused by bad air quality. "The administration should be the first to promote the need to protect the environment and improve its quality," Emmy said.
And under the clean river program, or Prokasih, launched in 1989, the city was in charge of monitoring the cleanliness of five of its 13 rivers, both physically and chemically. The city also had to monitor whether nearby industries, hospitals and hotels polluted the rivers. The Blue Sky program, started in 1996, aims to improve air quality in big cities, including Jakarta , which ranked third for the most polluted cities in the world after Mexico and Bangkok, according to United Nations 1996 statistics.
Two major sources of pollution identified by the program are motor vehicles and industrial plants. The city carried out vehicle emission tests under Blue Sky to fight air pollution. The regreening project is also deemed by many as vital for the improvement of air quality here. Earlier, the administration had planned to turn 30 percent of the city's 65,000 hectares into green areas, much like the area around the National Monument (Monas) in Central Jakarta. Only 15 percent of the city's area has been set aside for green areas. The three programs, however, are often criticized for being short on action and for only carrying out limited measures. They are also seen to be dependent on public participation.
Still, there has been some progress. More people seem to realize the health dangers of vehicle emissions and have started switching to environment-friendly fuels, such as compressed natural gas or unleaded gasoline. More industries, hotels and hospitals are now treating their waste before dumping them into rivers.
There was a 10 percent increase on the number of vehicles passing the emission tests, from 33 percent in 1996 to 44 percent last year. "I don't know about the condition of rivers chemically, but I see that the garbage is not as much as it used to be," Emmy said.
The head of the city's environmental bureau, Aboejoewono Aboeprajitno, urged people not to misunderstand the decision, saying the administration had not completely scrapped the programs. "It was not an easy choice, but we no longer have the budget to finance environmental programs."
The administration, he said, was still willing to facilitate NGOs or private sectors in organizing environmental campaigns. For instance, he said, the city morally supported five-day emission tests last month held by Segar Jakartaku, an environmental organization.
Over previous years, the tests were jointly financed by the administration and a private company and were conducted for a seven-day period in various areas. But last month's test was only conducted at the National Monument area. The result was not yet available.