• Moore: West Timorese militia well trained - Associated Press
• Chinese businessmen under threat - South China Morning Post
• Timor Gap treaty illegal - Energy Asia
• Indonesia to register East Timor refugees - Agence France-Presse
• US warns Jakarta, stop sniping at East Timor - Sydney Morning Herald
• Militia threat continues in East Timor - Green Left Weekly
• Gusmao accepts presidency after push from Ramos-Horta - Sydney Morning Herald
• Australian unions criticises UN over asbestos concerns - Australian Associated Press
• East Timorese youths rejected foreign military bases - Tempo
• Timor militia bordering on comeback - The Australian

• National assembly faces critics in first annual session - Agence France-Presse
• Wahid to survive assembly grilling, but not out of fire - Dow Jones Newswires
• Wahid faces test of politics, personality - The Australian
• Defiant under fire - Asiaweek
• Behind the power - Asiaweek
• So, who gained from meeting in Yogyakarta - Straits Times
• Indonesian leaders pledge solidarity - Agence France-Presse
• Leaders agree on unity of purpose - South China Morning Post

• Christians rescued from hiding in Maluku jungle - Agence France-Presse
• 1,500 Christian refugees in Indonesia face starvation - Associated Press
• Kopassus men arrested on way to Malukus - The Australian
• Fresh violence in Ambon, 11 injured - Jakarta Post
• 23 Christians slaughtered in new Maluku massacre - Agence France-Presse

• Aceh rebels meet government to assess ongoing truce - Associated Press
• Papuan separatists hold peaceful protest - Agence France-Presse
• War party confronts exhausted refugees - South China Morning Post
• Vision of Papuan freedom spells danger for province - South China Morning Post

• Pertamina fires 19,000 employees - Indonesian Observer

• Suharto indictment procedure 'a sham' - South China Morning Post
• Munir rues DPR's human rights stance - Jakarta Post
• Suharto must be tried for crimes against humanity - Tapol
• Suharto trial only the start of fight for justice - South China Morning Post
• Residents applaud court's verdict on 'becak' - Jakarta Post
• Pedicab drivers win lawsuit against Jakarta governor - Jakarta Post

• Almost all central bank liquidity credit misused - Agence France-Presse
• Jakarta's poor siphon oil dregs to earn a living - Straits Times
• Most of political elite evade tax payments: Government - Jakarta Post

• Haze in Riau: Case of deja vu - Jakarta Post
• Crackdown needed to stop forest fires - Interpress News Service
• Destruction of Tanjung Puting continues - Jakarta Post
• Shrinking habitat and greedy men endanger rare birds - Jakarta Post
• Sony 'powerless' to cope with forest fires - Jakarta Post

• Politics played key role in military reshuffle - Jakarta Post
• Gus Dur `trying to end split in military' - Straits Times
• Australia quietly resumes military aid to Indonesia - Green Left Weekly
• Military reformer loses post in backlash - Sydney Morning Herald
• Wahid loyalist relieved of key command - South China Morning Post
• TNI removes Kostrad chief in major revamp - Indonesian Observer

• Battling graft key to economic progress: US - Associated Press
• GDP grows faster than expected in second quarter - Jakarta Post
• New paddy fields planned - Straits Times
• Jakarta rules out new rice imports this year - Straits Times

Students demonstrate at Palace

Dikhy Sasra/SWA, Jakarta -- Approaching the Annual Session of the People's Consultative Assembly on 7-18 August 2000, demonstrations are becoming more frequent. The Presidential Office, located on Jl. Medan Merdeka Utara, Central Jakarta, was today the target of demonstrators from the National League of Democratic Students (LMND).

With only around 20 participants, the LMND demonstrators peacefully demanded clean government. They held posters saying "Put Suharto on trial", "Clean the Excess of Orde Baru Regime", and "Revoke the Dual Function Policy". Orde Baru (the New Order) is the regime led by former president Suharto. Police officers mounted on a truck were seen guarding the demonstration area, ensuring that the demonstration did not cause a traffic jam around Medan Merdeka area.

At the same time, thousands of security personnels were being briefed in preparation for the Annual Session. The briefing, held on parkland around the National Monument (Monas), was a joint session between the National Police, Indonesian Armed Forces (TNI) and Civil Militia.

After 13 years, 800 farmers win back their lands

Bandung -- After 13 years, the struggle of 800 farmers in Cimacan village, Cianjur regency, brings result. The 34-hectare land that so far had been captured by PT Bandung Asri Mulya (BAM) and converted into a golf field was recaptured. Speaker of West Java Legislative Council, represented by Eka Santosa, decided to immediately revoke the governor decree on Wednesday, August 2, and the concession granted to PT BAM since 1988.

The revocation was approved and witnessed by Cimacan village's chief, Pacet Cianjur district's chief, Cianjur regency's chief, chief of Cianjur Land Agency and chief of West Java Land Agency. While the decision was read and signed, the 800 farmers that had crowded the provincial legislature office here since morning were screaming hysterically. Some old farmers shook hands and cried for joy. The decision is considered a new history of West Java farmers' struggle to get their right back.

Dudu Masduki, coordinator of Cimacan Farmers, said that actually he was already frustrated. For years, he has been victim of the authority that forcibly captured his land by compensating Rp 30 per meter square. At that time, in 1988, he rejected the small amount of compensation first. However, he had to give up since local military and police apparatus terrorized, threatened and even tortured him.

At least three villagers of Cimacan died because of the terror. Tens of villagers were kidnapped and physically abused, as Oman Sarhayu experienced. "I had struggled for 13 years and the government of New Order regime had tricked me," he said. Because of the torture, he let his land be captured by accepting the decree of then governor, Yogie S.M., who is also the former minister of home affairs.

300 demonstrators march to Cendana

L Hakim, I Shalihin/SWA & AH, Jakarta -- Although former president Suharto's case file has been handed over to the Public Prosecutor, demonstrators from infamous City Forum (Forkot) , LMND, City Network (Jarkot) and Karat groups are not satisfied. Today they marched to Suharto's residence on the famous Cendana Street, demanding Suharto be put on trial right away.

As many as 300 demonstrators marched from Proclamation statue on Diponegoro St. starting at 2.30pm today. While marching they yelled their demands, demanding Suharto be put in court. "Hang Suharto Right Now" cried the demonstrators, feeling that the law makers are too slow to handle this case.

At 3.35pam they reached Jl. Suwiryo, only 150 meters from Cendana. They then changed direction, aiming at the Golkar head office on Jl. Pegangsaan Barat, No.4, Central Jakarta, only several hundreds meters from Cendana. "Dismiss Golkar" the demonstrators yelled in front of the Golkar office.

But the office was quiet, with only around 6 persons in it, including the chairman of Golkar Board of Leaders Tadjus Sobirin. Only several officers from the mobile brigade were seen to be guarding the demonstration, carrying nothing else than their sticks.

Protests commemorate 1996 crackdown

Max Lane - Protest actions took place in several Indonesian cities on July 27 to commemorate the 1996 attacks on the headquarters of the Indonesian Democratic Party-Struggle (PDI-P) and the crackdown on the People's Democratic Party (PRD) that followed.

The PDI-P and the PRD organised separate demonstrations. In Jakarta, the PRD participated in protests organised by coalitions involving the most militant sections of the radical democratic forces. In Jakarta, the demonstration was led by PRD chairperson Budiman Sujatmiko. In Semarang, the protest was led by leading PRD member Dita Sari.

In Yogyakarta and in East Java, PRD-initiated demonstrations were attacked by baton-wielding thugs. In Yogyakarta, 18 students and a journalist were beaten.

Both PRD coalition and PDI-P demonstrations called for action to be taken against figures involved in the 1996 crackdown. Some activists called for the banning of former dictator Suharto's party, Golkar.

In Jakarta, there were tensions between the PDI-P and the PRD- initiated coalitions. Several hundred radical activists called on the PDI-P members not to allow Megawati Sukarnoputri's leadership to do a deal with Golkar. There have been rumours that PDI-P and Golkar are hatching a deal to replace Abdurrahman Wahid as president, prevent the prosecution of corrupt Suharto-era officials, stop the repeal of the law banning Marxism-Leninism and reverse the push towards a federal political structure.

The tensions rose particularly when pro-Jakarta East Timorese militia gang leader Eurico Guterres joined the PDI-P demonstration.

Farmers want royal land to help improve lives

Yogyakarta -- More than 1,000 farmers flocked the campus of Gadjah Mada University here on Saturday to ask Yogyakarta King Sultan Hamengkubuwono X to give them royal land in order to improve their lives. The farmers, who claimed to represent the peasants in Yogyakarta and other towns in Central Java, read out what they called the Yogyakarta and Central Java Farmers' Charter, asking the sultan to support the revision of the Agrarian Law.

The farmers demanded that the sultan act on the popular principle Tahta untuk Rakyat (Throne for the People), introduced by his father, the late Hamengkubuwono IX. The farmers want the sultan to hand over the land belonging to the palace, including the land in the Pakualaman area, to small farmers.

Suto, a 70-year-old farmer from Samas, Bantul regency, told The Jakarta Post that most of the land along the Parangtritis Beach belongs to the sultan's palace. Local farmers have been cultivating the land for years.

"But now the palace is offering some of the land to investors. We may lose the land," Suto said. The sultan's palace in Yogyakarta reportedly owns about 30 percent of the land in the province.
 

East Timor

Moore: West Timorese militia well trained

Dili -- UN peacekeepers in East Timor are now facing a well trained and disciplined anti-independence militia force that continues to use Indonesian-West Timor as a safe haven, Australia's visiting defense minister said Friday.

John Moore, who made a six-hour visit to East Timor, defended a decision to send four high-tech, Australian Black Hawk helicopters to guard East Timor's border with Indonesia saying the aircraft are needed to help secure the region from the heightened threat. "Clearly the militia today is better trained, better disciplined and are acting more coordinated than ever before," he said.

Moore called on Indonesia's government to fulfill its promise to empty dozens of refugee camps in West Timor, which have been used as training and recruitment grounds by militia gangs. "The instability on the border is primarily due to a large number still in the refugee camps and it's up to the Indonesian government to move these people along," he said.

In the past few weeks, there have been several incursions across the border by armed militia fighters. On July 24, New Zealand army Pvt. Leonard William Manning was killed in a fire fight with 10 suspected pro-Indonesian militiamen, who had crossed into UN- administered East Timor from West Timor. On Wednesday, a squad of Australian soldiers shot two suspected militiamen to death in a gun battle in the same area.

The peacekeepers landed in East Timor in September to end an outbreak of violence by pro-Jakarta militia opposed to the territory's vote for independence from Indonesia the previous month.

Moore said Australia had made the decision to increase it's military presence along the border weeks before Manning was killed. The four Black Hawk helicopters are expected to arrive in East Timor at the weekend and will be based in the border town of Balibo, 110 kilometers southwest of Dili.

Chinese businessmen under threat

Joanna Jolly, Dili -- Ethnic-Chinese businessmen trying to re- establish East Timor's economy have become a target for hostility and extortion by the local community.

The Chinese are re-starting the profitable wholesale, retail and supply operations they ran before last year's independence vote, but face strong opposition from indigenous East Timorese.

They feel it is too early for the Indonesian Chinese to return because of their past relationship with the former Jakarta regime. "All Indonesian businessmen in Dili were helping the soldiers kill us, giving them food and money. They are coming back too soon and people hate this," said East Timorese businessmen Akui Leong who is associated with the National Council for Timorese Resistance (CNRT), East Timor's umbrella political organisation.

Chinese businessmen came to East Timor after the Portuguese colonial rulers granted them exclusive licences to run import and wholesale businesses. This practice continued under the Indonesian regime when many Chinese businesses allied themselves to Jakarta's military machine for protection.

As the process of reconstruction slowly changes the face of Dili, systematically destroyed in September by the retreating Indonesian army, ethnic-Chinese shops selling everything from motorbikes to food processors are flourishing again.

But the owners report that gangs of youths associated with Timorese political groups regularly visit their premises to intimidate them and demand money. "We have to give them money, or they will give us problems. They come here and drink beer and don't pay. Some threaten us," said Sebastian, an East Timorese Chinese businessman who has returned to Dili to reopen his family shop. Sebastian said he was not allowed to speak Indonesian with his Indonesian Chinese employees. "It is very dangerous for them to stay, it is even dangerous for them to be seen on the road," he said, citing intense competition for jobs amongst East Timorese as inflaming the hostility.

Resentment against the Indonesian Chinese business community reached a peak on April 30 when two Indonesian Chinese were ordered to leave the country by CNRT President Xanana Gusmao, after they were blamed for inciting a riot.

CNRT leaders later told the businessmen they could return, but they continue to face difficulties operating in Dili. Indonesian Chinese are accused of undercutting local businesses by illegally importing goods from Surabaya and from Indonesian West Timor. Duty must be paid on goods coming across the land border from West Timor, but there are reports of Indonesian businessmen bribing Indonesian soldiers to avoid this.

"Indonesian businessmen don't give us a chance to set up our own businesses. They have better supplies, they can sell cheaper and we can't do anything," said Akui Leong. Mr Leong is ethnic Chinese but is regarded as pure Timorese by the community because of his support for the underground resistance movement against the Indonesians.

Analysts worry that Chinese businessmen like Mr Leong could exploit the hostility against the Indonesian Chinese to secure the market for themselves. "The locals can distinguish between those ethnic Chinese who have been here for a long time and the Indonesian Chinese," said one Western analyst.

"The Surabaya Chinese are undercutting the prices of the East Timorese Chinese who do not want them here. It may seem like an ethnic problem, but it is actually all to do with economics."

Timor Gap treaty illegal

The Timor Gap Treaty signed between Australia and Indonesia during the rule of former president Suharto is illegal, and is not recognised by either the United Nations or the East Timorese people.

Peter Galbraith, the director for political affairs for the United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor (UNTAET), said at last month's seminar in Canberra on East Timor that UNTAET was not prepared to accept a "successor state model" for the continuation of the treaty aimed at exploiting the energy resources in the former Indonesian colony. He said that the UN had never recognised the legality of the treaty. He said that both UNTAET and the CNRT -- the East Timorese political umbrella group -- are now actively negotiating for a final settlement of the seabed boundary dispute which underlies the treaty for joint development of petroleum resources in the area.

The seminar, titled "East Timor and its Maritime Dimensions: Legal and Policy Implications for Australia", was organised by the Australian Institute of International Affairs, the Centre for Maritime Policy at Australia's University of Wollongong, and the International Law Association. Victor Prescott, Australia's pre- eminent expert on maritime boundaries, presented his work on East Timor's possible maritime entitlements. His maps showed the new nation state's potential claim in the south to coincide with the western, southern and eastern limits of Area A of the current "Zone of Co-operation". Such boundaries would give East Timor sovereignty over, and access to 100% of royalties arising from the US$1.4 billion Bayu-Undan offshore gas project, currently in the advanced stages of engineering.

Professor Prescott noted however that the boundary disagreement between Indonesia and Australia that produced the Timor Gap Treaty would still exist between Australia and East Timor.

"Australia would probably rely on natural prolongation and East Timor would probably rely on equidistance," he said, referring to the legal principles underlying maritime boundary negotiations. Prof Prescott believes that the eastern "tripoint" called "A16" on the current Zone of Co-Operation boundary would have to be moved a little further to the east in an agreed settlement.

This would result in East Timor inheriting a greater share of Shell-Woodside's Sunrise/Troubadour reserves, which straddle point "A16". In April, Sydney-based oil and gas consultant Geoffrey McKee foreshadowed an East Timorese policy shift away from the "successor state" approach and towards an historic settlement of the dispute.

In a 3,000-word article published in a recent issue of "Inside Indonesia" magazine, Mr McKee suggested that the oil industry will support a median line settlement of the dispute provided a future East Timorese government offers a fiscal regime slightly more favourable than the current Timor Gap Treaty regime.

In March, East Timorese representatives gave an undertaking to Canberra that any future fiscal regime will not be more "onerous" than the current Treaty regime, thus reassuring the Timor Gap contractors and promoting a smooth transition to a new treaty.

At the Canberra seminar, Commander Robin Warner from the Royal Australian Navy explained that, from a strategic point of view, definite boundaries were preferred to joint development zones. She described the extraordinary lengths that Australia went to in August 1999 to define the maritime boundaries for the INTERFET operational area in East Timor.

Her map showed INTERFET's western maritime boundary as being perpendicular to the general direction of coastline starting from the mouth of the Massin River which separates West and East Timor. A similar coastal projection of East Timor's maritime claims -- if adopted in a final settlement of the Timor Gap dispute -- would result in East Timorese sovereignty over the existing Laminaria/Corallina reserves just outside the western boundary of the Zone of Co-operation. "Good fences make good neighbours," said Professor Ivan Shearer, of Sydney University's faculty of law.

Several speakers at the seminar emphasised their belief that the Australian government may be forced by public opinion to accept a settlement of the Timor Gap dispute favouring East Timor. It would be counterproductive, some said, for Australia to prevent the new state from having a sound revenue base and thereby increasing the reliance on Australian aid as is the case with neighbouring Papua New Guinea.

"Anyone who believes that Australia will conduct maritime boundary negotiations with East Timor on the basis of squeezing the last dollar out of them is living in cloud cuckoo land," said Professor Anthony Bergin, director of the Defence Studies Centre of the Australian Defence Force Academy.

Professor Gillian Triggs, international law specialist from the University of Melbourne, said that the successor state model for the Treaty, from a legal perspective, would lead to "muddy waters". She advised that East Timor would more than likely become a "clean slate" nation state and that the International Court of Justice position tends to favour a median line settlements of the maritime boundary disputes.

Her assessment was that "all sights suggest low risk" for the Timor Gap contractors and that "East Timorese leaders seem to be getting good advice". Bill Campbell, director of the International Law office of Australia's Attorney-General's Department, favours a negotiated settlement of the Timor Gap dispute. He is opposed to a possible judicial settlement in which "states lose control".

The Timor Gap negotiations with Indonesia offered only two outcomes, he said, either "stalemate" or a "joint development zone". "Going to court was not an option then, since Indonesia opposed third party settlement," he said.

Jim Godlove, spokesman for Bayu-Undan operator Phillips Petroleum, said: "Phillips has confidence that the East Timorese leaders understand the importance of favourable fiscal terms and will act in the best interests of their nation and the ZOCA contractors.

"Decisions regarding a final delimitation of the seabed are matters solely for the two nations, East Timor and Australia, to make and as such it would be inappropriate for Phillips to speculate on a final settlement of this matter.

"The major unresolved matter that does need to be addressed expeditiously is the lack of a defined fiscal regime in the terms of the Treaty regarding gas exported from the Zone of Co- operation. An agreement on that matter would have significant economic benefits to both East Timor and Australia."

Recent statements by Mari Alkatiri, Timor Gap spokesman for East Timor's CNRT and Mr Gailbraith, UNTAET's political chief, suggest that both agree a median line settlement would provide a satisfactory outcome for all parties.

Indonesia to register East Timor refugees

Jakarta -- Indonesian authorities plan to register all East Timorese refugees still on Indonesian soil and make a last offer, to either stay or return home, a report said Tuesday.

Foreign Minister Alwi Shihab, speaking after a meeting at the office of the coordinating minister for politics and security, said the government was considering closing camps sheltering the refugees on the Indonesian side of the border with East Timor.

Shihab was quoted by the Antara news agency as saying that many, including foreign governments, had cited East Timorese militias in the border camps, as a source of trouble as well as blaming them for the killing of a New Zealand peacekeeper in East Timor last week.

But before closing the camps, the govermment needed to know how many East Timorese remained, and how many of them had no plans to return to East Timor. "The registration of the population should not be delayed," Shihab was quoted by Antara as saying.

He also said the East Timorese refugees will also be asked to give a final answer: whether they wanted to stay or return home. "They will be faced with the choice of staying or returning. If they say they demand time, then that will be considered as wanting to stay," Shihab said. He said registration was expected to start in about two months.

The existence of border camps had made Indonesia vulnerable to various accusations, including one by Washington that Indonesian armed forces were trying to hinder the repatriation of refugees, he said.

"We have so far been only on the defensive but now we will be on the offensive," Shihab said. Shihab will meet UN Secretary General Kofi Annan in New York on August 19 to discuss the issue of the East Timorese refugees in West Timor. UN agencies trying to register the refugees, say their efforts have been thwarted by militia harrassment.

US warns Jakarta, stop sniping at East Timor

Mark Dodd, Dili -- The United States Ambassador to Indonesia has condemned Jakarta's "lamentable and inexcusable" failure to disarm militias operating from West Timor.

Mr Robert Gelbard said the Indonesian Government should disband the militias, transfer two army battalions responsible for violence in refugee camps, and honour its promise to respect East Timor's territorial integrity.

His call came in an interview with the Herald during a visit to Dili and follows warnings from senior United Nations commanders in Dili that the next two months will see whether well-armed pro-Jakarta militias, backed by rogue elements of the Indonesian Army, will launch a full-scale insurgency. The Australian commander of UN border forces, Brigadier Duncan Lewis, expects more attacks by insurgents operating from refugee camps in Indonesian West Timor.

Mr Gelbard said: "What is particularly worrisome is that on June 21 when there were attacks against Australian soldiers and now with the tragic killing of [New Zealand Private Leonard Manning] we have seen increasingly well planned, well organised attacks with sophisticated automatic weapons.

"What that demonstrates to my Government is that the Indonesian Government is still not prepared to take control of the situation. That is something Indonesia must do if it is to achieve the necessary long-term support for its own situation."

Mr Gelbard called for the immediate transfer of Indonesian Army battalions 744 and 745, saying they were responsible for much of the insecurity along the border and intimidation and violence in the refugee camps. "There are still clearly elements within TNI [Indonesian military] that are continuing to support the militias," he said. "It is lamentable and inexcusable that they do not take measures to enforce the territorial integrity and sovereignty of East Timor, since they have taken insufficient action to disarm and disband the militias."

As the international condemnation grew, Indonesia's state-run Antara news agency reported that President Wahid had promised to close the refugee camps used by the militiamen to stage incursions into East Timor. At the same time, the UN chief in East Timor, Mr Sergio Vieira de Mello, said arrest warrants had been issued for the gang accused of killing Private Manning and now thought to be hiding in West Timor.

Militia threat continues in East Timor

Jon Land -- The confrontation on July 24 between pro-Jakarta militia forces from West Timor and a detachment of New Zealand soldiers from the United Nations peace-keeping force -- the third such incident along the western border since the end of May -- highlights again the serious threat that the militia gangs pose. The government of Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid, which has promised repeatedly to disband and disarm the militia in West Timor, appears incapable or unwilling to do so.

In response to the deadly clash, East Timorese leader Xanana Gusmao stated, "There are people in Indonesia who are not interested in Indonesia's democratic process, nor in the process of creating an independent East Timor".

United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor (UNTAET) chief Sergio de Mello warned that the incident "endangers everything we have done".

He added that "there is no danger at the level of internal security. The only danger that exists comes from West Timor."

Peace-keeping force commanders have expressed concern and surprise at the militias capabilities. Militia incursions into East Timor since April indicate that they are better armed and trained than previously thought, raising suspicions that the Indonesian military (TNI) are continuing to support and direct the militia's activities.

The militia gangs stepped up their intimidation of East Timorese refugees in camps across West Timor during July. The camps are the bases from which the militias and their TNI backers operate.

While the International Office of Migration resumed low-scale repatriation of refugees on July 25, the UN High Commission for Refugees has stated that it may pull out altogether if the security situation in West Timor continues to deteriorate. The refugee crisis in West Timor has been further complicated by the arrival of around 5000 refugees fleeing violence in Maluku province. More are expected to arrive in coming weeks.

The peace-keeping force has stated that it believes members of the Laksaur militia were involved in the July 24 incident. The Laksaur gang has terrorised and killed East Timorese villagers throughout the Covalima district of East Timor since February last year (Laksaur members are likely to have been involved in the massacre at the Suai Cathedral in September, when more than 100 people were shot and hacked to death and then incinerated by militia and TNI soldiers).

Also on July 24, some 3000 militia members and supporters staged a rally in Kupang, West Timor's capital. They were protesting outside the provincial prosecutor's office, where a team of investigators from the Indonesian commission of inquiry into human rights abuses in East Timor began questioning former members of the Indonesian civil administration in East Timor and militia leaders.

According to the July 25 Indonesian Observer, the protesters, who called themselves the "Children of the Victims of East Timorese Violence , argued that the questioning of the militia leaders was unfair. A representative of the group warned that if there was not a "balanced" approach to the investigations "there will be no peace and reconciliation".

It is unclear which, if any, of the main militia leaders have been questioned by the investigative team in Kupang. Deputy leader of the militia forces, the infamous Eurico Guterres, has failed to appear before the investigative team in Jakarta since being summoned to do so in April and has ignored requests to do so in Kupang.

Guterres and other militia members, though known to be responsible for murder and kidnapping, remain free to conduct their activities throughout West Timor and Indonesia.

On July 27, Guterres was spotted at a rally in Jakarta organised by Megawati Sukarnoputri's Indonesian Democratic Party-Struggle (PDI-P) marking the attack upon the PDI-P office in 1996 by the military and paid thugs. On the previous day, Guterres' trial on the charge of illegally carrying weapons (a crime which carries a penalty of up to seven years imprisonment) was thrown out of the Kupang district court because the judge could not determine whether he was a civilian or part of the Indonesian military.

Indonesian legal and human rights organisations believe that the investigations into human rights abuses conducted in East Timor will not bring the militia leaders and those responsible for them within the military to account. Prominent human rights lawyer Todung Mulya Lubis told the July 21 Indonesian Observer, "I have serious doubts concerning the team's independent stance as long as there are TNI and police members in it. If they still go forward with that composition, it will be impossible to avoid bias."

Lubis fears for the safety of East Timorese witnesses who may be called before the investigative team in Jakarta. Militia members have staged protest actions at the attorney-general's office and are known to meet regularly with government officials and TNI personnel. In May, the Jakarta office of Solidamor, an Indonesian non-government organisation in solidarity with East Timor, was ransacked and its staff beaten and stabbed by thugs believed to be militia members.

Gusmao accepts presidency after push from Ramos-Horta

Lindsay Murdoch, Dili -- Former guerilla fighter Mr Xanana Gusmao will become the first president of independent East Timor. After insisting for months that he would refuse the job, Mr Gusmao now says he plans to accept nomination for the presidency at United Nations-supervised elections scheduled for late next year.

Almost all of the emerging Timorese political parties and their leaders have pledged their support for Mr Gusmao leading the half-island territory to its independence. A small breakaway faction of Fretilin, the party Mr Gusmao once led, opposes his election.

Nobel peace prize winner, Mr Jose Ramos-Horta, told the Herald that two weeks ago he confronted Mr Gusmao about his unwillingness to accept the position. "I told him 'stop this bulls -- -... you know you enjoy it. Don't tell me you don't'," Mr Ramos-Horta said. When he asked Mr Gusmao whether he could turn his back on his people, he replied no. "Xanana has agreed to accept the job," Mr Ramos-Horta said.

Mr Gusmao spent eight years in Indonesian jails after his capture in Dili in 1992. He was released late last year after a majority of East Timorese voted to reject Indonesia's 24-year rule of the former Portuguese territory.

Timorese leaders have agreed that Mr Gusmao should lead a government of national unity, made up of representatives of all significant parties, for at least five years after the withdrawal of UN administrators. The UN has been running the territory since the withdrawal of Indonesia's armed forces and officials last September.

Mr Gusmao recently married a Melbourne woman, Ms Kirsty Sword, a longtime worker behind the scenes for the East Timorese resistance in Jakarta.

Despite the Indonesian military's sponsorship of violence in the territory last year Mr Gusmao has developed a warm relationship with Indonesia's president, Mr Abdurrahman Wahid.

Mr Ramos-Horta is set to become East Timor's first foreign minister although he insists he would prefer not to have the job. "You cannot retain your integrity once you are in the government," he said. "But if I honestly believe that there is no-one else who can do the job I would do it in a transition period."

All of East Timor's major political parties support Mr Ramos- Horta becoming foreign minister. He returned to a hero's welcome in the territory late last year after 24 years as the resistance movement's international representative.

Australian unions criticises UN over asbestos concerns

Denis Peters and Linda McSweeny, Canberra -- Australian unions and a prominent law firm have warned that workers rebuilding East Timor could be exposed to asbestos contamination.

Australia has long since cracked down on the handling of asbestos, which can lead to fatal disease later in life for workers, but there were warnings that much of the now banned material exists in East Timor.

The Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) said the United Nations was failing to protect workers involved in reconstruction work from potential asbestos contamination.

Local and international aid and corporate workers and peacekeepers might already have been exposed to asbestos and other harmful substances, ACTU president Sharan Burrow said.

"We are totally supportive of the UN's role in the reconstruction of East Timor," she said in a statement. "But we are concerned that there may have been exposed workers involved in clean-up and construction operations to an unacceptably high risk of exposure to hazardous materials, including asbestos.

"This is an issue not only for local East Timorese workers but also the many Australians in East Timor working for aid agencies, serving as peacekeepers or working for companies who hold reconstruction contracts."

Law firm Slater and Gordon, which has conducted most asbestos litigation in Australia, warned Australian manufacturers of asbestos to act immediately to clean up the situation or face future liability.

It also warned that the UN interim administration in East Timor faced liability for the welfare of Australian and indigenous workers in the clean-up and reconstruction after last year's post-independence vote violence.

The ACTU said it had overwhelming evidence that much of the clean-up operations around Dili after last year's mayhem involved removing and disposing of debris that contained the toxic substance.

Asbestos in East Timor was likely to have come from Australian companies, Slater and Gordon's Ken Fowlie said. "Australian manufacturers responsible for any asbestos debris in Timor have a duty to assist in its safe removal," he said. "The asbestos now being uncovered in Timor, like that in Australia, was sold at a time when authorities knew of the health risks from this deadly product. "We face a new wave of asbestos exposure for those helping with humanitarian and reconstruction work in Timor. "

Mr Fowlie said corporate Australia and the UN was taking on a potential liability unless they did all in their power to protect Australian and indigenous relief workers.

Asbestos Diseases Society of Australia president Robert Vojakovic warned the toll from asbestos in Australia was still rising. "The authorities responsible for work in Timor must remember there is no safe level of asbestos exposure," he said.

East Timorese youths rejected foreign military bases

Lisbon -- East Timorese youth rejected the foreign military base. It is one point of declaration of East Timorese Youth Congress that was held from July 10 to 15 in Dili, the capital of East Timor. They rejected a military base in East Timor because they are concerned on its negative impact, such as unstable situation in Southeast Asia and an acculturation with western culture. The congress also reflected youth's contribution and participation in successfully liberating East Timor through a referendum. Therefore, the youth's role is to develop the country.

The congress also declared statement about political, governmental and economy systems that support small industries and protect national entrepreneurs in entering international market. In terms of social and cultural fields, two national languages, namely Tetum and Portuguese, are declared. In one- decade ahead, Tetum will be stated national language.

The first youth congress since East Timor's independence was initiated by Youth Presidium Loriko Assuwain, an organization established on April 1999. The Presidium protects all mass and political organizations of East Timorese Youth.

The congress was also attended by other ten youth and students organization, such as Impettu, Renetil, Ojetil, Obslatil, and Fitun, and youth representatives from 13 districts in East Timor.

Timor militia bordering on comeback

Don Greenlees, Jakarta -- The Harco Hotel in central Jakarta is a dreary resting place for people travelling on the cheap. For 100,000 rupiah ($20) a night, visitors are led down a narrow concrete passageway to a small cell. It's not a place to linger.

The hotel's coffee shop is no more inviting. It is dimly lit and the bare concrete floor is obviously awaiting decorative inspiration and the money to pay for it.

Sitting alone, bent over a table in the corner, is Cancio Lopes de Carvalho. Last year, on his frequent excursions to Jakarta from East Timor's capital, Dili, he was used to the comfort of expensive hotels paid for by the provincial government or the armed forces. On such visits, he was usually guarded by fit men with short-cropped hair. Lopes de Carvalho was an important man: the head of a notorious militia unit that went by the dramatic title of Mahidi, Life or Death Integration. Now his gestures and manner are less sweeping and he describes himself modestly as a "refugee".

At a recent meeting on a bright Jakarta morning, Lopes de Carvalho contemplated the sorry state of an armed movement that only a year ago believed it could dictate the fate of East Timor but today remains confined to the no-man's land of refugee camps across the border.

"Myself, a militia commander, I often feel why do I need to shout. The struggle for integration [with Indonesia] is over," he told The Australian. "You cannot change the outcome because its already an international decision, the UN is in there. The problem now is the fate, the uncertain future of the ... people living in the camps."

The militia, officially disbanded but in reality as active as ever, are a source of worry for the UN peacekeepers in East Timor and of irritation for the Indonesian Government.

This week's ambush by suspected militiamen, which claimed the life of New Zealand Private Leonard William Manning -- the peacekeeping force's first combat fatality -- was a reminder of the dangers posed by pro-Indonesia East Timorese.

It was the latest in a string of cross-border raids -- any one of which could have claimed the lives of the Australian and New Zealand peacekeepers, who have the primary responsibility for protecting the border.

More of these raids can be expected in the months ahead as the UN High Commissioner for Refugees gradually clears the remaining 120,000 refugees from the camps, which by some estimates number up to 240.

But the truth is the pro-Indonesia East Timorese are a group running out of options and of influential friends. Lieutenant- General Hasnan Habib, who is on a panel of experts advising on prosecution over human rights abuses in East Timor, says the armed forces and Government have nothing to gain from aiding the militia, but have a lot to lose in hard-won international support.

"We have to do something serious about prosecuting human rights abuses," he says. "The President has made a commitment to [UN Secretary-General] Kofi Annan so that there is no need to establish an international tribunal."

Lopes de Carvalho, best known for signing a death threat against Australian diplomats and journalists last year, acknowledges he and his comrades cannot count on the same military connections they had a few months ago. Asked whether he felt deserted by the Indonesian Army, he replied forcefully: "That's true! ... It might be harsh, I'm only saying they no longer have any political or moral responsibility towards us."

Sympathy for the pro-Indonesia forces among the political and military elite in Jakarta has declined in direct proportion to the rise in worry over sectarian bloodshed in Maluku and separatism in Aceh and West Papua.

It leaves the militia one card left to play: the existence of a large number of refugees in the camps almost one year after East Timor voted for independence. The camps give the militia bargaining power with the pro-independence victors in East Timor, the UN and the Indonesian Government. If the return of the refugees can be reduced to a trickle, then the pro-Indonesia leadership can claim to represent a significant portion of the population and might be able to cut themselves a better deal.

"What's left in the camps are pure pro-integration people, militia and their families," says Lopes de Carvalho. "There are 140,000 people. If they don't return, that would mean the process of reconciliation has not been successful yet."

Not surprisingly, his assumptions on the numbers wishing to return differ drastically from those of the UNHCR and UN Transitional Administration in East Timor. Those agencies suggest that up to 80 per cent would ultimately like to return home. But the political calculation that the refugees represent bargaining power is absolutely right. It is one of the reasons behind the renewed intensity of disinformation and acts of intimidation in the camps that are hampering the repatriation program and forcing foreign aid workers on the defensive.

Another reason is that the camps remain the springboard for incursions into East Timor. The militia, and those East Timorese who were members of the Indonesian army and police, are not waging jungle-based guerilla war as did the Falintil resistance. They are coming from the camps and the towns. Remove the camps, says Australian Brigadier Duncan Lewis, and you substantially remove the risk of border incursions. "The central issue is really the refugee camps," he says. "Until we get them away from the border, we will still have problems."

Essentially, the rational pro-Indonesia East Timorese leadership -- a small proportion are so fanatical they cannot see what is in their own interests -- hope to use the refugees and the border tensions to achieve reconciliation on their terms and keep alive sympathy in Indonesia.

This has a particular poignancy given the fact many have the threat of prosecution for human rights abuses hanging over their heads. The bottom line is that they want the wrongs they committed in the past forgotten.

Says Lopes de Carvalho, hopefully: "There's no hero, no villain, nothing like that. If we want to investigate the violations, I think, that from the pro-independence side they would have to admit honestly and transparently that they had committed human rights violations too."
 

Government/politics

National assembly faces critics in first annual session

Jakarta -- Indonesia's national assembly will Monday open its first annual session as analysts dismiss the meeting as unnecessary and its agenda as too ambitious.

The People's Consultative Assembly (MPR), the country's highest legislative body which so far has only convened once every five years, will open its first two-week annual session here in line with a decision reached during its last meeting in October.

"It is the first [annual congress] and I certainly hope the last," said political scientist Kusnanto Anggoro. He said annual meetings "do not make sense" for the MPR as not only does it exact too much precious time from all to prepare it every year but it also had too ambitious an agenda that would be difficult to meet.

Authorities say the session would decide amendments to the 1945 constitution and hear progress reports from all higher government institutions, including the president.

Erry Riyana Harjapamekas, president of the state tin firm Tambang Timah who was one of the people behind a "national reconciliation dialogue" in Bali in June, also believed it was redundant.

"I don't really understand the aims of the annual session. If the DPR [the lower house] functioned effectively, it would be sufficient to represent the people, and there will be no need to hold annual MPR sessions," Riyana said.

The 500 members of the People's Representative Council (DPR) join 200 people representing regions and non-political organisations to form the MPR. But the DPR, Anggoro said, was far from effective. He cited that in passing new legislation, the DPR elected in October, had produced just 17 new laws -- mostly technical and already thoroughly prepared by government institutions. The DPR was still sitting on another 19.

Riyana said rumors and tensions ahead of the annual session had badly affected the market, investment and the economy as a whole. "Are we ready to face this every year from now on?" he asked.

Hendardi, the executive director of the Indonesian Association for Legal Aid and Human Rights, said in theory annual MPR sessions had its good sides, including a periodical evaluation of progress by the government. But it should be tighly and well organized," Hendardi said.

He added that efforts by some legislators to call a special MPR session where President Wahid would have to account for his rule, which could lead to a forced resignation, was a bad example. "Realistically, it is clearly difficult to guarantee a smooth annual congress and in the current conditions, maybe once every five years makes more sense," he said.

Gunawan Muhammad, the former chief editor of the leading Tempo magazine, was among the few who came out in support of yearly MPR meetings. "The best system is not necessarily the most perfect one, but a system that can easily be improved," Muhammad said. He also said yearly meetings were needed because "the pace of frustration is also going fast now."

But everyone agreed that it was not for the MPR in its upcoming session to pass amendments to the constitution. An ad-hoc commision of some 17 members has prepared at least 21 amendments to the constitution, ranging from technicalities to fundamental issues such as freedom of religion and the involvement of the armed forces in politics.

"It is certainly a big mistake to allow a committee of just 17 people to decide on changes to the constitution ... this is not an issue for just 17 people, or 700 people at the MPR but this concerns 210 million people," Hendardi said.

"Changes in the constitution will carry widespread implications if they are not thoroughly thought out carefully from all aspects," Riyana said. He said although amendments could always be further amended in the future, such changes should be avoided.

All four agreed parliament should open a public debate on amendments and encourage public discourse on the subject, including in campuses and involving the military before any decision is made. Anggoro said amendments proposed by the ad hoc commission should be accepted only as an input.

And the MPR should set up a committee of constitution which will be given a time-frame to discuss changes with all facets of society, including politicians, religious leaders, students, economists and the military.

Wahid to survive assembly grilling, but not out of fire

Tom Wright, Jakarta -- Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid will likely survive a grilling by the nation's highest legislative body next week, but he will need to make major changes to his leadership style to avoid impeachment later this year, analysts say.

The 60-year-old leader will sum up in a speech Monday his first ten months in government to the 700-member People's Consultative Assembly, or MPR, the body that elected him to power last year.

Wahid will use the speech at the MPR's annual meeting as a platform to defend his tumultuous administration against a myriad of criticism from politicians enjoying democracy for the first time after 32 years of iron rule under former dictator Suharto. The fractious 500-member parliament, all of whom sit on the MPR, complain that Wahid regularly contradicts his own policies, and has failed to set the economy on a clear recovery path.

While the parliament remains too divided to offer a strong alternative president, Wahid must use the assembly session next week to consolidate support among his coalition partners, analysts say.

A repeat of last month's parliament appearance -- where Wahid bluntly told coalition partners they had no constitutional right to question his firing of two ministers -- will only push more politicians toward the opposition.

"He would be very stupid to repeat that," said Salim Said, a senior lecturer in the faculty of social and political sciences at Universitas Indonesia. "It would be the beginning of the end for him," he added.

PDI-P backs Gus Dur

Wahid, known as Gus Dur to most Indonesians, needs to build on encouraging signals in recent days that a major coalition ally, the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle, or PDI-P, is still willing to back his presidency, analysts say.

Relations between Wahid and Vice President Megawati Sukarnoputri, who heads the PDI-P, have deteriorated after his sacking in April of a senior PDI-P member from his cabinet, and his refusal to discuss the matter with lawmakers. However PDI-P, the largest party in parliament with a third of the seats, still doesn't feel ready to challenge Wahid's government, analysts say.

Importantly, Heri Akhmadi, chairman of the PDI-P's MPR faction, told the Jakarta Post Friday the party was opposed to draft legislation aimed at making it easier for the assembly to impeach Wahid. The Jakarta Post quoted the PDI-P's Heri as saying the MPR should allow Wahid to serve his full term until 2004. Currently, the MPR elects the president for a five year term.

Lawmakers can only begin an impeachment process by proving he has broken the constitution, after which they call a special assembly session at which the president must give an accountability speech.

The new legislation, which is set to go before the MPR for a vote during its August 7 to August 18 meeting, will allow the assembly to call a special session without such proof. A number of politicians, including MPR speaker Amien Rais, want to push the legislation through to give the assembly more power to oust Wahid if he doesn't improve his performance in the coming months.

New cabinet crucial

Even if the MPR doesn't pass the new legislation, which many claim is unconstitutional, opposition politicians can still stir up trouble for Wahid in parliament when it reconvenes at the end of August. The parliament has the right to call a special session of the MPR if it can prove the president is involved in corruption.

Currently, opposition politicians claim Wahid is involved in scandals involving misuse of funds from Brunei's sultan, and the national food logistics agency, although details of the corruption allegations remain sketchy. In such a climate, Wahid must use the MPR meeting and the following weeks to build on his support in parliament to withstand the attacks, analysts say.

A cabinet reshuffle, giving a large number of seats to PDI-P, rather than his own political appointees, would be a good start, they add. "That would be a signal to everyone in the country that Gus Dur is really trying to lead the country," said Salim from Universitas Indonesia.

The cabinet reshuffle may also lead to the appointment of Mines and Energy Minister Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in the new position of First Minister, people close to the president say. The idea of a first minister, which existed in Indonesia between 1959 and 1963 under former president Sukarno, is to bring some cohesion over the cabinet, and speed up decision making, they say. Yudhoyono, a former general who is trusted by Wahid, may also be able to mediate between the president and Megawati.

Such a reshuffle could involve pushing some current coalition members, including Rais' National Mandate Party, out of the cabinet. Finance Minister Bambang Sudibyo is one of Rais' appointees in the present cabinet.

Wahid faces test of politics, personality

Don Greenlees, Jakarta -- Jaya Suprana is the rotund and very jolly host of a talk show on an Indonesian television channel owned by ex-president Suharto's eldest daughter, Siti Hardiyanti "Tutut" Rukmana.

Two nights ago, his popular weekly interview on Televisi Pendidikan Indonesia (Indonesian Educational Television) featured a new breed of presidential offspring -- the daughters of Abdurrahman Wahid. In his usually good-natured style, Suprana joked and bantered his way through an hour with Alissa, Yenny and the disarmingly natural youngest sister, Inayah.

The contrast between the old presidential palace and the new could not have been greater. And the Suharto children surely suffered from the comparison. Where the Suharto children displayed the imperial bearing and spoilt attitude of a sultan's progeny, the Wahid children spoke plainly and openly about life with an unconventional father and having to cope with the sudden move to the rarified world of the colonial-era presidential palace.

One important message that Suprana teased out of the three -- a fourth sister is studying in China -- is that they really don't want the man most Indonesians know affectionately as Gus Dur to stay too long in the job. If Wahid's numerous critics succeed, his children may not have to wait long to get their wish.

The open and relaxed style Wahid and his family have brought to the presidency has been one of the more refreshing aspects of his rule. But the President's approach to the job and personal attributes also have become one of the major points of friction over his leadership. The criticisms range from his erratic decision-making and public contributions to debate, to his unwillingness to consult and even his capacity to do the job after suffering two strokes and near blindness.

Wahid's critics will on Monday have their best shot at him yet, when, for the first time since his election last year, he faces the very body that put him in office. According to some analysts, the majority of the 700-member People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) would love to get rid of him if only they had a decent alternative candidate. The fact is they don't: if Wahid goes, the uninspiring Vice-President, Megawati Sukarnoputri, is constitutionally obliged to take the helm. But that won't stop Wahid's many enemies from gnawing away at his presidency or plotting his overthrow.

The annual MPR session will start with a speech from Wahid reporting on the Government's progress. This will form the basis of two days of discussions that are certain to be the forum for a litany of complaints. This is likely to lead to the MPR giving itself greater flexibility to call itself into "special session", so it can pass a no-confidence vote in the President and hold a fresh ballot to choose a successor.

Despite these manoeuvres, it does not appear any of the would-be Machiavellis have the appetite to immediately initiate steps for Wahid's ouster. This impression is reinforced by the recent rhetoric of the key political leadership -- MPR speaker Amien Rais, People's Representative Council (DPR) speaker Akbar Tandjung and Megawati.

The three met Wahid in Yogyakarta last Tuesday and appealed for a cooling-off period before the MPR session -- fearing disturbances on Jakarta's streets. Rais has said the internal rule changes affecting special sessions should not be seen as a prelude to a move against Wahid.

For her part, Megawati remains typically detached. She has not involved herself in any moves to destabilise Wahid but she has not used her authority in her Indonesian Democratic Party for Struggle (PDI-P) to rein in his critics.

Meanwhile, supporters of the President hope that by allowing the MPR to let off some steam next week, the pressure on him will be reduced. They then want to consolidate by reshuffling the ministry in late August or September, putting more "profess- ional" ministers in place. These would be at the expense of party-political appointees foisted on Wahid by the disparate forces who elected him last year.

Yet, it is unlikely this will provide anything more than a reprieve. Wahid's opponents -- scattered across the parliament but particularly concentrated in the Islamic parties -- will find various means to keep the President on the defensive.

The main weapons will be investigations by the main legislature -- the 500-member DPR -- into allegations of corruption or mismanagement directly implicating Wahid and his immediate circle. Following next week's meeting, the DPR, whose members also sit in the MPR, will start looking into, among other things, the case of money misappropriated from the State Logistics Agency, Bulog, by Wahid's former masseur. Such activities could ultimately form the pretext for a move against Wahid.

Indeed, the strategy among these parliamentary plotters appears to be to give Wahid, in the coming months, just enough rope to hang himself. With the plethora of problems facing the country, that could prove easy to arrange.

And if the grave issues confronting the Indonesian Government aren't enough, the President's uncertain health and his colourful and mercurial style will surely keep alive speculation about how long he will stay in the job.

Defiant under fire

Jose Manuel Tesoro, Jakarta -- There can often be more than one Abdurrahman Wahid. There is Wahid the brave idealist, whose belief in political reconciliation rivals his convictions on religious freedom. There is Wahid the cunning strategist, for whom there is no difference between allies and rivals. And then there is Wahid the spoiled autocrat, who harbors an intense dislike for criticism of his actions or choices.

As of late, the last Wahid has been making many appearances. On July 20, when he delivered his response to an official summons by parliament, there was no doubt which Wahid was in attendance.

The president had been called to explain his sacking last April of two ministers from the largest parties in parliament, the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) and the former ruling party Golkar. Facing a sea of stern faces, Golkar leader and parliamentary speaker Akbar Tanjung said: "We are demanding that the president answer the question posed by 250 of our members: Why were these two ministers sacked?"

Wahid responded by arguing that the parliament's right to question him was a privilege granted by a 1999 law and not a constitutionally mandated prerogative.

He was therefore under no obligation to reply. As for the allegations of corruption he had made against the two ministers in a closed-door meeting with legislators on April 27, Wahid implied that it was the parliamentarians' fault for leaking them.

In short, not only did Wahid refuse to respond to the legislature's questions, he rejected its authority to demand from him any answers. "The president is not accountable to parliament," said his state secretary Djohan Effendi in a prepared speech. "The firing was a political decision in accordance with the presidential prerogative." Wahid did have a point: The country's founding document gives Indonesia's executive sweeping powers. The question is whether, for Wahid, it was the best place -- or time -- to raise it.

For on August 7, less than three weeks after the interpellation session, the president faces the same 500 parliamentarians. But this time, they will form part of the 695-member People's Consultative Assembly, or MPR, which elected Wahid to a five-year term last October. Wahid is to deliver an accounting of how well he has carried out the MPR's "Broad Outline of National Direction," its guidelines for state policy, over the past nine months. Should he be found to have failed, or to have violated laws or the Constitution, the MPR could have grounds to impeach him.

Wahid's high-handed attitude on July 20 did not make legislators more likely to treat him charitably during the MPR session, which will last until August 18. "Just an apology would have been enough to get Gus Dur to 2004," said Eki Syachrudin, a Golkar MP as well as an MPR member. The president did say sorry in a letter to parliament delivered two days later. But it was for the regrettable consequences of the sackings, not for his obdurate stance. "Of course we are not satisfied," says Golkar legislator Ade Komaruddin, who had led the motion to question the president.

On paper, the president appears extremely vulnerable in the MPR session. He will find no sympathy from assembly chairman Amien Rais, leader of a loose Islam-linked coalition called the Center Axis. Nor will parliament leader Tanjung prove friendlier: He has already attacked the president for his "inconsistency." Even Wahid's firm ally, Vice President and PDI-P chief Megawati Sukarnoputri, is putting some distance, recently turning down his request that she read out his July 20 statement. In the possibility that his record comes to a vote, Wahid can rely on solid support only from his own National Awakening Party, which makes up little more than 8% of the assembly.

Attempts so far to forge a compromise have come to naught, leaving the upcoming session disturbingly unsettled. On July 1, prominent Indonesian figures such as respected scholar Nurcholish Madjid met with Wahid in Bali to deliver gentle suggestions on how he should change his style of government.

Wahid instead used the occasion to lash out at parliamentarians, labeling them "trouble-makers." A meeting that he was supposed to hold with Megawati, Rais and Tanjung fell through. Wahid's attitude: no problem. The one thing all the parties seem to agree on is to refrain from mobilizing their supporters on the streets around the MPR session.

Yet the president's position is more secure than his frictions with other leaders indicate. For one thing, Indonesians have yet to find a replacement for Wahid.

Although Tanjung has largely united Golkar behind him, memories of its past abuses and corruption as ex-president Suharto's political vehicle have not receded enough to make the party palatable. Megawati still has to persuade the public as well as the other parties that she can be a more capable and accommodative leader. Rais's stance often weaves back and forth between the center and the Islamic extreme. "[The MPR has] no alternative," says Indonesian political analyst Soedjati Djiwandono. "In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is still king."

Even parliamentarians concede that the procedure for impeaching Wahid is not as simple as converting this MPR session into a special one to remove the president. "The process takes quite long," says PDI-P MP Heri Ahmadi. First, the parliament must issue a memorandum of warning to the president about his perceived transgressions. Then the president gets three months to improve his record, after which the parliament again sits in judgment. If the chief executive is found lacking, he gets another month to prove himself. Only after the last trial can the legislature demand a special session.

In other words, like it or not, the MPR is stuck with the president. But if parliamentarians cannot oust him yet, they will still try to erode his credibility and authority. On July 12, some MPs submitted a motion to launch an inquiry into the $4- million "Bulogate" scandal surrounding the misuse of state food monopoly funds by Wahid's masseur, as well as the president's unreported receipt of $2 million from the sultan of Brunei, purportedly for the separatist province of Aceh. During the MPR session, the parties are also likely to probe Wahid's weaknesses, especially his handling of the ongoing religious violence in the Maluku islands and the vulnerability of the economy and the currency.

The legislature's disgust with the president may also translate into renewed support for constitutional amendments -- which are up for discussion during the session -- especially those concerning limiting the powers of the president. "When there is constitutional wrangling, the result is a stalemate," says Djiwandono. "Who is likely to win? The president, because he has the power."

Indeed, much of the current political impasse can be blamed not just on competing interests but on a flawed system in which the relationship between president, the parliament and the MPR has yet to be delineated. There are some who argue that this crisis may ultimately build more balance into government. But if Indonesia's current turmoil is part of its passage towards democracy, then the progress is a perilous one indeed.

[With reporting by Dewi Loveard in Jakarta.]

Behind the power

Dewi Loveard, Jakarta -- Shortly before Gus Dur (as President Abdurrahman Wahid is popularly known) was to face parliament in the interpellation session, he made an unexpected announcement to his cabinet: His partner, Megawati Sukarnoputri, would read his response to the parliamentarians' questions about the sacking of former ministers Laksamana Sukardi and Jusuf Kalla. Those close to the vice president say Megawati was shocked by the decision. Any such grilling in parliament should be answered by the president alone.

Taciturn and low-profile, Megawati normally goes along with the president's controversial decisions. But this time, she whispered to Wahid that she would not do as he had instructed. She added: "I will back you up, so please do not be emotional." Gus Dur ended up facing the parliamentarians himself.

It was the first time Megawati had gone against Wahid's will -- and it suggested that she was trying to keep a distance from the president. A close associate of Megawati says she is tired of being ordered around by the president. She also remains angry at the way he sacked her close friend Sukardi without consulting her. The fact that the decision, made last April, happened when she was out of Jakarta did not help.

Wahid cannot afford to alienate Megawati, for she holds the key to his political future. In the People's Consultative Assembly, her Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) controls 185 seats, or 27%. Any move by the assembly to unseat Wahid must have the PDI-P's support. Conversely, it is only with the PDI-P's backing that Gus Dur's position is tenable.

But what if Megawati wants to be president herself? According to insiders, she has been organizing a shadow cabinet that would be ready to take over at any moment. Sukardi figures prominently, along with some key members of Suharto-era governments. Her strategy, however, is not about destabilization. PDI-P secretary-general Sutjipto insists that Megawati is not aiming for a hostile takeover. "There is no point in playing such a game," he says.

First, though, Megawati needs to consolidate her fractious party. At least three separate factions currently dominate the PDI-P. The first faction is allied strongly to the former ruling party Golkar. It is widely known that Golkar is gathering power with the military and regional representatives' factions in parliament. At one point, Golkar chairman Akbar Tanjung, together with deputy parliamentary speaker Ginandjar Kartasasmita, contacted Megawati to ask her to mobilize her forces because Gus Dur could no longer be relied on. The choice for Megawati under this scenario is to run with either Tanjung or Ginandjar as her running mate.

The second faction wants to bring Islam to a position of dominance in the country. "The majority of Indonesians are Muslim," says one leading member. "There are signs the international community is trying to reduce the role of Islam in our country. We don't want to make Indonesia an Islamic state like Malaysia or Saudi Arabia, but we don't want Islam to be given an inferior position either."

The last faction is dominated by Christians and is led by Theo Syafei, an ex-general formerly of Golkar. This group is directly opposed to the Muslim faction and is pushing for a bigger role in the party for Christians. Although the clique wields some clout, it does not have the kind of power needed to dictate the party's agenda or influence the top leadership.

Bringing these factions closer together would assist Megawati in any campaign to be president. A close friend says that her ambition is fueled not so much by her party's strong electoral position as by her belief that it is her destiny to live once again in the palace, where she, as the daughter of first president Sukarno, spent much of her childhood. "It's quite normal that she should have such an ambition, since after all she was the winner of the last election [when the PDI-P won the most parliamentary seats]," says the friend.

Yet at the same time, Megawati does not want to betray her partner and friend Gus Dur. PDI-P lawmaker Panda Nababan quotes her as saying: "How can I mount a hostile takeover against Gus Dur? Both of us were the victims of repression during the Suharto era." For now, Wahid's presidency is secure.

After the interpellation session, he was able to walk out of parliament with a victory, however tarnished, mainly because Megawati had told her MPs to accept the president's position. It remains to be seen, however, how much longer her patience can be tried.

So, who gained from meeting in Yogyakarta

Jakarta -- So who benefited from Tuesday's Yogyakarta meeting of the Big Four? Birthday boy Sultan Hamengkubuwono certainly did, catapulting himself onto centre stage as a unifier heads above the squabbling politicians, the man who might just have saved a presidency and so be a suitable alternative.

The unglamorous truth is, of course, that no one went to the lunch meeting with any expectation of solving Indonesia's myriad problems, or even to present a united front long enough for a group photograph.

Like the huge bomb that went off in the capital just as the Sultan began serving nasi tumpeng to his guests in Java's cultural centre, Tuesday's meeting created a lot of boom, but was somewhat off the mark.

People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) Speaker Amien Rais, not the best of friends with the Sultan, a former neighbour, used his invite to show Vice-President Megawati Sukarnoputri that he would like to be nicer to her. "I'll go only if Mega agrees to go," he had told all and sundry, underscoring his new-found respect for her and estrangement from the man he did put on the throne, President Abdurrahman Wahid.

Ms Megawati went to Yogyakarta because it would have been hard to reject a personal invitation from the Sultan. His father, the illustrious Sultan Hamengkubuwono the Ninth, was a close friend of her father, founding President Sukarno.

Her early departure from the lunch to visit Mr Sukarno's grave site in Blitar, followed soon after by Dr Amien, showed they both attached "no high value to the meeting", noted an insider.

Parliament Speaker Akbar Tandjung was not part of the original Ciganjur Four which met in October 1998 to pit themselves as reformers against the government of Dr B.J. Habibie and Golkar.

Always ambivalent about Mr Abdurrahman, he had in recent weeks allowed himself to be goaded by the President's supporters -- who have been trying to get legislators to mount one corruption probe after another against him -- to talk about pulling Golkar out of the National Unity Cabinet.

But his threat to take Golkar into the opposition has backfired, serving mainly to remind the other parties that it was, after all, Mr Suharto's political vehicle for 30 long years.

A chance to associate himself with the key figures of the reform movement was thus not to be taken too lightly. Ever the West Sumatran outsider, he does understand that Javanese politics is largely about consensus building, or at least the pretence of compromise.

Gus Dur himself told at least one close aide before the meeting that he expected nothing from the Yogyakarta meeting. Then, an aide asked: "Why go and give the quietly ambitious Sultan a national stage to pose as someone who can get the leaders together when no one else could?"

"Nothing wrong with that. Who do you think is smarter?" he countered. "Whatever the Sultan's motives, he is the king of Java and due respect has to be shown." Concluded the aide: "This is Indonesian basa basi at its best." Basa basi is Indonesian for idle chat.

Still, in a country tired of politicians bashing each other and bombs going off in the streets, any show put up by their leaders is "psychologically constructive", as one Cabinet minister put it.

But do not expect the niceties of basa basi to reign when the MPR begins its session on Monday. If the President stills shows no signs of offering the major parties some concessions in terms of power-sharing, then Tuesday's Yogyakarta meeting might well be the last time all four national leaders and the king sit down to lunch together.

Indonesian leaders pledge solidarity

Yogyakarta -- Five top Indonesian political figures pledged here on Tuesday to set aside their differences and work together to safeguard the country's territorial integrity and economic recovery.

In a statement issued at the end of more than two hours of talks at the Yogyakarta Sultan's Palace, the five said they realized the sharpening conflict among the political elites was crippling efforts to improve people's welfare.

"Therefore we agreed to rebuild the spirit of solidarity between all components of the nation in safeguarding the territorial integrity of the Unitary state of the Republic of Indonesia, while being aware that differences are essential to the attainment of progress," the statement said.

The meeting at the palace brought Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid together with parliament speaker Akbar Tanjung, Vice President Megawati Sukarnoputri, national assembly chairman Amien Rais and the host, Yogyakarta Sultan Hamengkubuwono X.

In the statement, read out to journalists by Prince Joyokusumo who had been tasked by the sultan to organize the meeting, the leaders also agreed to give top priority to efforts to overcome socio-economic problems.

"Overcoming the worsening socio-economic conditions of the people has become the main priority and the remedy is the joint responsibility of all components of the nation," their statement said.

The financial markets reacted positively to the talks, with the jakarta stock exchange composite index rising to a high of 496.733 before falling to 489.677 after a bomb blast in Jakarta. The rupiah too remained relatively steady at 8,950 to 8,970 to the dollar. "Regardless of the result of the meeting, it eases political tension," a dealer with Ramayana Artha Perkasa securities said.

Shortly after the talks ended, Rais said that the leaders had discussed "national economic recovery." He declined to elaborate further on the content of the talks but claimed that the meeting had succeeded in reducing tensions among the particpants. "Of course, no question about it," he said.

Hamengkubuwono, speaking briefly to journalists after the talks, said: "It seems the four can communicate well among themselves."

Tension has mounted between Wahid and parliament. His ties with Megawati and Tanjung have also suffered following the sacking of two ministers from his coalition government in April who belonged to the duo's parties.

The government's apparent inability to contain a sectarian conflict in the Malukus, and separatist movements in Irian Jaya and Aceh, as well as a stand-off between the president and parliament have also knocked confidence in the economy and raised questions over Wahid's leadership.

Rais, a staunch supporter of Wahid during the presidential elections at the national assembly in October, has since become a vocal critic of the president.

Many have expressed concern that an August 7-18 general session of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) which Rais chairs, will turn into a drive to oust Wahid from the presidency.

But Wahid said after the talks all five had agreed that the MPR convention "is an annual meeting and it will be no more than that." Tanjung, echoing the president, said the annual meeting would be "not more than" just a meeting to listen to a progress report by the president.

A group of 30 students from the local chapter of the Indonesian Muslim Students Association held a peaceful street rally in downtown Yogyakarta as the guests arrived to protest the meeting.

Leaders agree on unity of purpose

Vaudine England, Yogyakarta -- Indonesia's top leaders chose statesmanship over party politics yesterday when they answered the Sultan of Yogyakarta's call to meet and settle their differences.

President Abdurrahman Wahid, Vice-President Megawati Sukarnoputri, and the speakers of both houses of parliament, Amien Rais and Akbar Tanjung, agreed that only by acting together can the nation's problems be solved.

"We realise that miscommunication within the elite can have an impact on the success of the reform agenda ... We realise that conflict among the elite is not beneficial for the efforts to improve people's lives," they said in a communique.

Ms Megawati was persuaded to lend her enigmatic presence to the gathering only after last-minute pressure by Sultan Hamengku Buwono X and by a special emissary from Mr Wahid. She was the first to leave the meeting and made no comment. The President, however, said: "The atmosphere was very cheerful ... There are always problems, it is up to those who control the temperature." He denied rumours of a rift between himself and his deputy.

Similarly upbeat were Mr Rais and Mr Tanjung, with the latter describing the get-together as "friendly and open". "We hope the result of the meeting will make the political situation better. Political tensions will reduce because all the leaders [here] are very happy," Mr Tanjung said. Mr Rais added: "The meeting was very productive, symbolically at least, because the people know it was very important for us to meet."

Tension has mounted between Mr Wahid and parliament. His ties with Ms Megawati and Mr Tanjung have also suffered following the sacking of two ministers from his coalition government in April, as the two were executives of the political parties headed by his vice-president and Mr Tanjung. Mr Rais, a staunch Wahid supporter during last October's presidential polls, has since become a vocal critic of the President.

"The significance of this meeting lies not in what they say, but in that they met," said editor and political commentator Aristides Katoppo. "It indicates they realise that no matter what differences they have, they should discuss them. And they recognise there are over-riding national priorities aside from personal ambitions. So this will help defuse tensions."

Each of the leaders could be accused of creating the very tensions they now say are dissipating, but the gathering will nonetheless give Mr Wahid a better chance of good treatment at the hands of parliamentarians, whom he is due to address next week about his performance since taking office. Mr Rais, whose strident criticism of Mr Wahid has encouraged some members of parliament to push for impeachment, again said such a move was "100 per cent" out of the question.

The final point of the "Yogyakarta Document" agreed yesterday was a plea for legal institutions to act quickly on corruption -- a move seen by some as veiled criticism of the Government for its allegedly slapdash accounting and for its failure, so far, to prosecute former president Suharto and his cronies.

Mr Katoppo said: "Of course when they talk about bickering between the elite, they are referring to themselves actually, and it is all about jockeying for seats in the next cabinet reshuffle. There is also the recognition among them that not one of them is strong enough alone, and they need each other."

Ordinary Indonesians often express the desire for more action and less back-biting at the top, so that the goals of the reform movement which toppled Suharto can become the focus of national life once more.
 

Regional conflicts

Christians rescued from hiding in Maluku jungle

Jakarta -- More than 2,000 Christians fleeing attacks by Muslim fighters in their village have been evacuated from mountainous jungle in eastern Indonesia's Maluku islands.

"As of now, 2,254 people have been found, out of an estimated 5,000 who fled to the jungle," Mr Sammy Weileruni, a lawyer working with the Maranatha church in Ambon, said. Police also helped with the evacuation.

The residents fled the village of Waai, 35 km north-east of Ambon, as militants razed their village on July 30. At least 37 people have died in the jungle, Mr Weileruni added.

Reports from those who managed to reach the village of Suli close to Ambon city, said 23 people were killed by attackers who chased them into the jungle, while 11 others died of various causes like severe cold or existing wounds while in hiding there. To reach Suli, refugees had to walk 50 km through mountainous terrain to avoid what they regarded as hostile villages believed to be the base of the attackers. Mr Weileruni said the operation to bring down more people from the mountains would continue.

1,500 Christian refugees in Indonesia face starvation

Jakarta -- Forced to flee their homes by rampaging Muslim militants, hundreds of Christian refugees sheltering in remote mountains in the Maluku islands are facing starvation, international aid workers said Saturday.

With no food or medicine and a lack of water, about 1,500 refugees are trying to survive in jungle-covered mountains on the island of Ambon, said Maria Teresa Vilhena of the emergency relief agency, Doctors Without Borders.

"We have a high emergency situation here," said Vilhena, from Switzerland. "Some people are already dying in the jungle."

She said many of the refugees are too afraid to leave their jungle hide-outs and seek help from international aid workers for fear of being attacked again.

Most of the refugees come from Waai village, about 2,600 kilometers northeast of Jakarta, which has been the target of several raids by Muslim militants recently. At least 38 people were killed in and around the village this past week.

Vilhena said that in the past two days about 4,000 people, many barefoot, bearing open wounds and in shock, have found their way down from the mountains. Many are now sheltering in a church. The others have been transported to a warehouse in Passo village, in another corner of Ambon island, where they are receiving food, water and medical care, she said.

On Friday, three people, including a baby and a six-year-old boy, died from various diseases after trekking out of the mountains and making it to relative safety, she said.

Maluku and nearby North Maluku provinces have been plagued by Muslim-Christian violence that has claimed nearly 4,000 lives since January 1999.

Animosity is stoked by an influx of Muslim migrants from other parts of the country. The migrants have upset the numerical balance between the two communities and have come to dominate retail trading -- siphoning off business from the Christians.

Indonesia's government imposed a state of civil emergency across the region in June, but fighting has escalated in recent weeks. Much of it has been blamed on the arrival of thousands of members of an Islamic vigilante group, the Laskar Jihad or Holy War Force.

On Friday, Indonesia's state-appointed National Commission for Human Rights called for a UN peacekeeping mission to help end the war.

The commission's secretary general, Asmara Nababan, said many Indonesian soldiers and police officers were taking sides in the conflict and without international assistance the fighting would continue.

On Saturday, Indonesia's military said it had destroyed thousands of guns and other weapons it had confiscated from Christian and Muslim fighters recently, the official Antara news agency reported.

Kopassus men arrested on way to Malukus

Paul Dillon, Ambon -- The detention of five members of Indonesia's notorious Kopassus (Special Forces) in the Maluku islands has raised fears the Australian-trained commandos are engaging in an East Timor-style dirty tricks campaign.

A senior military source has confirmed five unarmed Kopassus commandos were arrested after being spotted aboard a ship that arrived in the Malukan capital of Ambon on Sunday. The source said two Indonesian navy officers boarded the ship, Lambelu, outside the port to check for suspicious people and prevent the secret off-loading of weapons and munitions to Muslim forces engaged in the 19-month conflict.

The officers spotted the five long-haired Kopassus members and passed the information to their commander. Kopassus commandos, who are feared by the population of the sprawling island archipelago, from separatist Aceh province to Papua, usually wear their hair long. The navy was ordered to detain the commandos if they could not produce travel orders, but their fate is unclear.

Records show the Kopassus men boarded the vessel on Buru Island, a stronghold and staging point for Laskar Jihad (Legion of the Holy War), an extremist Muslim group from Java whose arrival here in May resulted in a sharp escalation in the number and scale of clashes between Christians and Muslims.

Ninety per cent of Indonesia's 210 million people are Muslim, but in Maluku province (formerly the Spice Islands) roughly half the population is Christian. The source said the presence of Kopassus members was unusual. He did not know the current whereabouts of the five, but said they did not disembark in Ambon.

The Indonesian Special Forces were responsible for organising some of the most notorious East Timorese militias, who laid waste to the former Portuguese colony following the independence vote last August. More than a thousand people died and East Timor's infrastructure was destroyed in a three-week orgy of militia violence before the arrival of an Australian-led multinational force in late September.

Meanwhile, authorities and civic leaders in Jayapura, capital of the Indonesian province of Irian Jaya, have agreed to let about 1200 refugees from the Maluku islands come ashore from an impounded state ferry. Prompted by past demonstrations against dumping refugees in the region, the authorities had barred the ship from berthing at the port and its passengers from disembarking.

Fresh violence in Ambon, 11 injured

Ambon -- Explosions erupted and gunshots rang out again in ravaged Ambon city on Wednesday, leaving at least 11 people injured. Heavily armed rioters raided the areas of Trikora, Pohon Pule, Diponegoro and Paradise Tengah in downtown Ambon at about 11am, causing panic among passersby, motorists and local residents.

According to data from Dr. Haulussy General Hospital, Bakti Rahayu and Al Fatah Islamic Hospital, most of the victims were suffering from bomb shrapnel and gunshot wounds. They were between 21 and 30 years old.

The incident was triggered by a road crash involving two cars at the end of Pohon Pule bridge at about 9am local time. One of the drivers, Stevy Hattu, fled the scene in his car as soldiers near the site opened fire to stop the vehicle.

The 30-year-old driver said he did not want to stop as there was a group of armed men approaching the scene. "I had to take a victim of the car crash to hospital. It would have been ridiculous if I had turned myself over to those rioters," he told reporters at Dr. Haulussy General Hospital.

Civil emergency executor Maluku Governor Saleh Latuconsina confirmed the incident later in the day. Concerning the Waai incident which killed at least 23 people on Tuesday, Latuconsina said that the security troops were mistakenly guarding the abandoned village and its water supply, not the refugees.

"After visiting the village, I saw troops only guarding the empty border line of Waai, which is located about 28 kilometers south of Ambon. They were supposed to be securing the refugees up the hill, about one kilometer from Waai," he said. Latuconsina admitted that he had received information that a group of soldiers opened fire on the Waai refugees in Tuesday's fray.

The governor also visited the neighboring, predominantly Muslim, villages of Liang and Tulehu, whose residents reportedly attacked Waai at least three times last month. "I warned the locals from Liang and Tulehu not to be easily provoked as it was clear that a third party was playing with the situation here. They said Waai people initiated the attack," Latuconsina said. A company from the National Police's Mobile Brigade (Brimob) has been deployed to safeguard the Waai refugees.

Separately, an inventory team assessing damage in the arson attack on a 30-hectare compound of state Pattimura University in Poka and Rumahtiga villages on July 4 estimated on Wednesday that the losses could reach more than Rp 1 trillion.

Policemen Meanwhile, at least 130 police officers based in the province of Maluku have quit the ravaged area for safer places, including South Sulawesi, as interreligious conflicts have yet to recede.

Several officers interviewed by The Jakarta Post at Makassar Police Headquarters on Wednesday said they were just seeking safe places for their families. "We want to return to Maluku after we are sure that our families are in safe places with their relatives here," First Sgt. Abdullah said.

"But if permitted [by the commander], we'd prefer to live here. We wish we had the opportunity to be moved here," Abdullah said, claiming to represent his fellow officers.

He said there had been three deployments of police officers to the area and that the latest, made up of dozens of personnel, along with their families, arrived in Makassar on the Lambelu vessel on Tuesday. South Sulawesi Police chief Brig. Gen. Sofyan Jacob confirmed the exodus, denying allegations that the policemen had escaped from duty.

"Some of them had official permits from their superiors. While others, with their families, had to rush to leave Maluku for security reasons. This is very understandable," Sofyan said.

The policemen handed over 67 guns they brought with them to the Makassar headquarters, he said. He said coordination with Maluku Police Headquarters had been organized to arrange the return of the officers to Maluku.

23 Christians slaughtered in new Maluku massacre

Jakarta -- Muslim assailants killed at least 23 Christians fleeing from an attack on their village into the jungles of the Indonesian island of Ambon, a Christian activist said Tuesday. The dead were among some 4,000 people who had fled the village in fear of their lives, he said.

The killings were the latest incident in a wave of Muslim- Christian violence that has swept the Malukus islands since January 1999, leaving more than 4,000 dead.

"A surviving witness whom our men have questioned in Suli village, said there were at least 23 bodies in the forests where some 4,000 villagers had fled to escape attacks by Muslims on Waai village," said Sammy Weileruni of the joint Christian coordination post in Ambon city.

Weileruni said that the 27-year-old witness, Ishak Bakarbessi, said that Waai village, which had been under attack since Sunday, was now completely obliterated and that all the villagers had left it for the jungles.

"But the Muslim attackers and some soldiers from the Kostrad 321 battalion are now occupying the village and have set up tents and makeshift shelters," Weileruni said quoting the witness. He was refering to members of the army strategic reserve command (Kostrad) battalion, which had been assigned to safeguard the area covering Waai.

Bakarbessi could not give further details but said that the attackers had pursued the villagers when they fled into the jungles. Weileruni said the 23 victims may have been killed between Monday and Tuesday morning, and added that because of conditions there, the bodies were left lying where they fell, and could not be immediately retrieved.

Waai, a village some 35 kilometres northeast of Ambon city, was first attacked on July 5 and 6. The fresh attack was launched Sunday.

Weileruni and leaders of the Christian community in Ambon have repeatedly expressed distrust of the Indonesian troops deployed in Ambon and have called for the intervention of foreign peacekeepers. They have accused soldiers of siding with the Muslims, and cite several documented cases of uniformed and armed soldiers taking parts in attacks on Christian settlements in Ambon in recent weeks.

Violence between Christians and Muslims in the Maluku islands was sparked by a dispute between a Christian public transport driver and a migrant Muslim in Ambon on January 19, 1999. The clash quickly degenerated into mass violence between the two groups there and in other islands in the groyup. Some 4,000 people have been killed and half a million driven from their homes in the past 18 months.
 

Aceh/West Papua

Aceh rebels meet government to assess ongoing truce

Geneva -- Representatives of the Indonesian government and separatist rebels in the Aceh province met yesterday to assess the success of the ongoing three-month truce.

President Abdurrahman Wahid has proposed prolonging the unprecedented truce, which came into effect on June 2 after negotiations between the two sides in Geneva.

"We want to extend the truce, but we have to know first the position of the Indonesian government, whether they will change their attitude by abiding by the agreement or not," Mr Zaini Abdullah, a Stockholm-based Free Aceh Movement representative, said on the eve of the meeting.

He said that under the agreement, Indonesia was to withdraw troop reinforcements sent to Aceh from other parts of the country. But he accused the Indonesians of doing the opposite by sending more troops into Aceh, boosting the total to about 30,000.

Indonesian officials did not return repeated phone calls for comment. An official close to the talks confirmed that the meeting of the so-called Joint Forum had started at a secret location but refused to give any more details.

Papuan separatists hold peaceful protest

Jakarta -- At least 15,000 separatists staged a peaceful protest in the Irian Jaya town of Manokwari yesterday to mark the 1969 referendum that turned the island into an Indonesian province. The Papuans covered a monument commemorating the referendum with black cloth, saying it was a monument to a historical lie.

The ceremony at the People's Referendum Monument was led by the chairman of the Manokwari Tribal Institute, Mr Barnabas Mandacan, the state Antara news agency said. The separatist "Morning Star" flag was raised, along with the Indonesian red-and-white emblem.

For years, raising the Morning Star flag was outlawed in Irian Jaya, now known officially as West Papua. The crowd dispersed peacefully after four hours.

War party confronts exhausted refugees

Vaudine England -- Large Papuan women with hatchets resting between their feet and men in war paint with traditional tall bows and arrows yesterday stopped refugees from the strife-torn Maluku Islands coming ashore in Irian Jaya.

The show of strength in Jayapura, where thousands of residents gathered at the port, marked the fourth time in a week that the refugees had been turned away from the province.

"I am originally from Ambon but we in Jayapura do not want refugees from Ambon coming here. We will allow women, children and elderly people perhaps, but we know the others will bring problems. We don't want the fighting between Muslims and Christians to come here," said a man in the crowd. "It's not that we don't want refugees, it is that we don't want their problems," said the man who was part of the narrow, sullen human corridor through which other passengers had to pass.

Also at the port gate were about 200 riot police, dogs sniffing for explosives, a Marine platoon, some 100 soldiers and about 35 intelligence officers.

Officials denied a deal had been made between the Government and the pro-independence militia, Satgas Papua. But events on the ground showed an accommodation had been reached: so long as no one carrying an Ambon identity card was allowed through, other disembarkations could proceed.

Soldiers, policemen and Marines helped other passengers disembark from the troubled vessel Pelni, which had been refused entry at the Irian Jaya ports of Sorong, Manokwari and Biak before reaching Jayapura yesterday.

Given the ship's problems on its 10-day journey from Jakarta via the Maluku capital, Ambon, the authorities started discussions on Friday about how to cope in Jayapura. The decision reached was to divide the more than 2,000 exhausted passengers into three categories: people originally from Jayapura trying to come home, people from Sorong who were unable to disembark there last week, and Ambon "refugees".

Passengers had their state identity cards checked on the ship before members of the first two categories were allowed to struggle off small loading boats into the crowd. Every few paces, aggressive-looking Papuans, many in traditional bird-feather garb and face paint, demanded to see their identity cards again. Flying over the tense scene was a full-size "Morning Star" Papuan independence flag, which conveyed the widespread desire for independence from Indonesia.

About 1,000 people fleeing the communal strife which has plagued the Maluku for 18 months remained on board the ship moored in Jayapura's scenic bay overnight. Food was taken to them and one woman who had just delivered a baby was taken away by ambulance -- with police on every street corner to ensure her safe passage.

The Ambonese refugees still on board will be sent away yet again, this time back up to the largely Christian city of Manado in North Sulawesi. Whoever was not taken in by Manado would be sent on to Kupang in West Timor, a police officer said, adding this had already been agreed with the authorities in Kupang.

Vision of Papuan freedom spells danger for province

Vaudine England, Jayapura -- Tension is rising in the province of Irian Jaya, with almost daily incidents of protest, killing or intimidation occurring across the vast land mass.

A combination of indicators -- ranging from a sudden lack of public transport to outright riots -- suggest serious instability is threatening Indonesia's eastern-most province and last frontier.

"We have now a very high potential for conflict," says John Rumbiak, of the human rights advocacy group, Elsham. "And mentally, Jakarta is so far away, so distanced from the situation here now, it's crazy. It seems the Government doesn't understand and doesn't care."

The obvious cause for concern is the insistent aspiration of most Papuans -- the original residents of Irian Jaya -- for independence. At a congress in June, thousands trekked for days to express their wish for independence from Indonesia, which claimed sovereignty in 1963 when the former Dutch administration withdrew.

Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid is believed by many in Irian Jaya to be personally sympathetic to demands for talks and even a gradual transition towards greater local autonomy. But Mr Wahid is stymied by his inability to control the armed forces and by the strongly held Indonesian belief in the unity of their nation forged from the Dutch colonial empire.

But aside from the independence movement, which remains avowedly peaceful, a series of recent incidents suggest other forces are also at work, leaving analysts to ponder the usual dilemma of attributing such events to mere incompetence or to conspiracy.

On July 8, a mob destroyed the main market of Sentani, the airport town near Jayapura and the ramifications from that incident continue. The drama began during a drunken brawl at a local brothel on the shores of Lake Sentani. A Papuan was killed, apparently by migrants from Sulawesi.

A mob then destroyed the market -- run largely by Bugis migrants from South Sulawesi who, unlike most Papuans, are Muslim. Interestingly, the adjacent mosque was not touched.

Depending on who one talks to, this is because Papuans chose to stop their destructive rampage at that point, or because the riot was provoked by the Bugis in the first place -- who themselves chose to save their mosque.

Police arrested four Papuans, allegedly without investigation, and severely beat one suspect, throwing him into a truck and then shooting him in the leg. He remains handcuffed to a bed in Jayapura's main hospital. Meanwhile, local residents note that Bugis traders had emptied their stalls the day before the attack, suggesting they had been warned of trouble in advance.

That was just one incident. Reports continue to come in daily of new problems. Despite the verbal assurances from Mr Wahid that Papuans may raise their "Morning Star" independence flag in public, local police continue to get in the way -- beating those who try, shooting in the air, or simply sawing off the metal flag poles, as happened last week on the outskirts of Jayapura.

Jakarta's inaction has led hundreds of displaced non-Papuans to seek shelter near Jayapura. The refugees, who had agreed to be part of the Government's transmigration programme, now say they just want to go home. At the same time, thousands of distraught refugees are arriving from the devastated Maluku Islands, adding to the danger of an already fractious mix.

As in many parts of Indonesia, it is the voluntary migration of some ethnic groups, such as the assertive traders from South Sulawesi, which has skewed local commerce and administration. But some of these people fear the consequences of a looming independence struggle and are packing up and leaving.

"This combination of social problems builds demands for independence among Papuans," said Mr Rumbiak. "And security personnel don't do anything except seemingly encourage the troubles. Wahid is in a state of political deadlock, the political process with the Papuans has reached its own traffic jam. And there are people here managing the conflict in ways which will only make things worse," he said.

Armed militia already exist, both for and against independence, and many ordinary Papuans aspiring to freedom are swept into militaristic groups before they realise, say rights activists. "After being repressed for so long, people are now letting it all out, supposedly in the name of the [independence] struggle. It's a very dangerous time," said Mr Rumbiak.
 

Labour struggle

Pertamina fires 19,000 employees

Jakarta -- State-owned oil and gas corporation Pertamina has dismissed 19,000 employees in a bid to reduce inefficiency.

Pertamina President Director Baihaqi Hakim told the press at the Finance Ministry here yesterday that the company now has 27,000 employees, down from a previous total of 46,000.

Baihaqi also discussed the follow-up to the results of the efficiency audit on Pertamina. However he added that efficiency alone was not enough for Pertamina. "Pertamina needs total restructuring, including a revised organizational structure. The new structure is expected to come into effect as of January 1, 2001," Baihaqi said.

Baihaqi Hakim disclosed that Pertamina's Balongan refinery in Indramayu, West Java, had been a problem right from the start. He said the refinery -- where a malfunction was cited as the reason behind last week's erratic fuel supply in Jakarta -- had several weaknesses, including the absence of a backup system.

"I felt the problems right from the start. How come it doesn't even have a backup system? Other plants are not like that, and problems like these do not prevent them from operating. "But, in Balongan, even a small problem can result in total shut down," Baihaqi said.

He was speaking at a press conference held to discuss the follow-up to the efficiency audit on the State Logistics Board (Bulog), Pertamina, state electricity enterprise PLN and the Reforestation Fund.

Baihaqi added that the system adopted at the Balongan refinery was a single-line system without any backup, thus making it highly vulnerable to operational problems. He claimed, however, that the Balongan plant had been able to pump out the fuel after a build-up of stocks.

"For the time being, there are no more problems at Balongan, and it has resumed production," he added. "The question now is how to fill up the Plumpang depot [in Jakarta]. Perhaps, the quickest way is the use of tankers," Baihaqi said.

Commenting on 159 reported cases of corruption, collusion and nepotism (KKN) cases within Pertamina, Baihaqi said he had officially submitted 13 cases to the Attorney General's Office. "Actually, there are 14 cases. But, the Sentul Circuit case has been combined with that of former president Soeharto's," he said.

Of the remaining cases, Baihaqi noted that not all cases uncovered by the auditors could be followed up via the process of litigation. "Some have been abandoned, others have to be be examined further. We are also reporting on the Bontang [natural gas liquefaction plant in East Kalimantan] case. We are not stopping at just these 159 cases," he said.

According to Baihaqi, Pertamina has also decided to carry out a decentralization program in the decision-making process for the procurement of goods and services, bunker services and reservoir management team.
 

Human rights/law

Suharto indictment procedure 'a sham'

Vaudine England, Jakarta -- Prosecutors say they will be ready to deliver a detailed indictment of former president Suharto on corruption charges in a Jakarta courtroom on Monday. But independent corruption investigators say the legal process is a sham.

"The indictment and a dossier detailing the case will be submitted to a judge in the South Jakarta District Court on Monday," said Yushar Yahya, a spokesman at the Attorney-General's office, yesterday. But District Court officials said the dossier was so thick it would take longer than Monday to read.

Suharto, who is under house arrest, will probably avoid attending the largely procedural hearing on the grounds of ill health. On Thursday, prosecutors formally charged Suharto, 79, with skimming off US$570 million in state funds through a complex network of charities that he controlled during his 32-year rule.

But Agam Fatchurrochman, of the respected Indonesian Corruption Watch, called the process "just a drama". "You know Indonesia -- you can buy lawyers, judges, even [a government department] itself," said Mr Agam.

"Since Suharto's fall from office in May 1998, it has been so hard to get Suharto in front of a court. And why? Because maybe the people in the Attorney-General's office have been trying to find a formula for how to save Suharto, by just charging him about his charitable foundations. That was maybe just petty corruption."

Mr Agam, whose organisation has unearthed its own evidence of high-level corruption, including that of former attorney-general Andi Ghalib, said: "In our view, Suharto has responsibility for the Indonesian economic crisis because of his control of the economy. "In our view, this Suharto process now will go on for about two or three months only. After that the case will be dismissed; they will say something like the charges are not suitable because anyway the charitable foundations were not part of the government bureaucracy," he said.

The scepticism about recent moves against Suharto extends across a broad swathe of public opinion, with the timing of the charges against him attributed to the opening of a special parliamentary session on Monday. Juan Felix Tampubolon, head of Suharto's legal team, has also said court proceedings against his client have been timed to bolster President Abdurrahman Wahid's flagging popularity.

That popularity must be proven during the parliamentary session, thereby diverting attention from the Suharto case. Mr Agam argues that it should also not be forgotten that Attorney-General Marzuki Darusman "is a politician". "Personally and institutionally, Marzuki is part of the [formerly ruling] Golkar party," Mr Agam said. "As part of Suharto's New Order, he will still back his friends."

Corruption Watch believes the only fair answer to the Suharto issue will be a political, not legal one. "In our view, we have to take political action. The Peoples' Consultative Assembly has to declare that Suharto is found guilty and he and his family have to confess and return all stolen property to the state," said Mr Agam.

He said President Wahid's offer of a pardon to Suharto was often misunderstood, as Mr Wahid had said such a pardon would come after the former despot confessed and returned the wealth. "We agree with that," said Corruption Watch's Mr Agam. "We know Suharto can buy judges ... anyone. We fear the process is too long and that it is making new corruption."

Munir rues DPR's human rights stance

Jakarta -- A combination of incompetence and legacies from past regimes are inhibiting the government from upholding the law and protecting human rights, a watchdog chairman said on Thursday.

Chairman of the supervisory board of the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras), Munir, said that faulty legal instruments inherited from the past administration were still under its influence.

"As its result, the government has no moving space to reform them," Munir said at a seminar on the work of the Abdurrahman administration on legal and human rights affairs.

He suggested the government reshuffle the Cabinet, especially those members who deal with legal matters. "How can the government effectively approach the problem when its ministers of law and legislation and human rights affairs and the Attorney General, who are supposed to work with the same vision, all come from different political parties?" He further blasted what he saw as a lack of synergy between the government and the House of Representatives (DPR) in facing this situation. Munir said the two bodies were using legal affairs and human rights issues to attack each other.

By way of example, he said that the House had accused the government-sanctioned National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) of being ignorant and biased, and urged that its members be reshuffled, but it had failed to consider that the commissions' membership is regulated by the law. "It's the House's task to first change existing laws which might hamper the government's legal reform efforts rather than exploit these issues to judge the government. There is a double standard there," he added.

Commenting on the handling of human rights cases, Munir accused both the government and the House of lacking concern for conditions across the nation.

He pointed to the House's use of its interpellation motion not to censure human rights abuses occurring across the country but on a political party matter. Numerous rights abuses in Maluku, Aceh, Irian Jaya and Lampung have never been touched upon by the legislative body, he added. "Instead they used it [the interpellation right] to question the President over two sacked ministers whom no one actually cares about," he remarked.

Suharto must be tried for crimes against humanity

The decision announced today by the Indonesian government that Suharto, the former dictator, will go on trial later this month on charges of corruption is a totally inadequate response to the horrendous crimes for which he was responsible.

During his nearly 33 years in power, he was responsible for killings on a scale with few parallels in the blood-stained twentieth century. Within weeks of his seizure of power in October 1965, the Indonesian armed forces under his command launched a campaign of slaughter which left up to a million people dead by early 1966. Western governments knew very well what was happening but turned their eyes away, ready to welcome the installation of a military regime that would open up the country to unbridled foreign exploitation.

Suharto was never called to account for these massacres which occurred as part of a systematic campaign to destroy political opposition and pave the way for the creation of a repressive apparatus that held the entire population at its mercy for more than three decades.

Suharto should also face charges for war crimes which were perpetrated by his armed forces in East Timor. The invasion of East Timor in December 1975 was an act of aggression that resulted in the deaths of at least 200,000 people, a third of the population.

Carmel Budiardjo, director of TAPOL, said: "The corruption charges against Suharto do not measure up to the need to indict and punish Suharto for presiding over a systematic campaign of killings and repression which was the hallmark of the Suharto era. My recent visit to Indonesia convinced me that people want to see Suharto in the dock and behind bars for the crimes against humanity perpetrated during his regime of terror."

The massacres of 1965/66 paved the way for numerous other slaughters, the most notorious of which were the shooting to death of hundreds of Muslims taking part in a protest demonstration in September 1984, the killing of thousands of alleged criminals on city streets in 1985 which Suharto has since acknowledged took place on his orders, numerous killings in West Papua after the territory was annexed by Indonesia in 1963, and the murderous military operations in Aceh, North Sumatra which lasted throughout the 1990s and led to at least five thousand deaths.

TAPOL calls upon the Indonesian government to initiate investigations into the crimes against humanity for which Suharto must be held responsible. Only then will it prove that it takes seriously the need for Suharto to be called to account for the untold damage he inflicted on the people of Indonesia and East Timor.

The international community too should recognised that Suharto blood-stained rule places him the same category as other notorious killers twentieth century like Pinochet and Pol Pot.

Suharto trial only the start of fight for justice

Vaudine England, Jakarta -- Significant though the corruption charges filed yesterday against former president Suharto are, his forthcoming trial barely scratches the surface of the bundle of crimes most Indonesians believe he committed.

On the issue of money, and the ties with the bureaucracy and business which allegedly earned the Suharto family billions, this case is little more than one drop in a large bucket.

Conservative estimates of the Suharto wealth start at US$10 billion (HK$78 billion). Many bankers and even President Abdurrahman Wahid predict US$45 billion.

Starting from the mid-1980s, the Suharto siblings, with their father's backing, secured control of many of the country's core industries. Suharto allegedly ensured the family got a cut from almost every economic activity in town.

But no matter how much money was siphoned away from the 200 million mostly poor Indonesian people, human rights groups, students and observers say this is nothing compared with murderous behaviour by Suharto.

Scholars have long since concluded that his New Order government came into being on the deaths of up to half a million people, slaughtered in the aftermath of the 1965 coup attempt which brought him to power.

Suharto's regime depended on a pattern of major human rights violations to stay in power, they say. These range from the brutal suppression of riots and any form of free expression, to the killings of alleged criminals in 1984, a massacre in Tandjung Priok port in 1986, the torture and disappearance of student activists, and the organised, state-sponsored terror of military rule inflicted on Aceh and other parts of Indonesia.

A generation has grown up in a state where any sign of free thinking or unconventional behaviour was brutally suppressed, where the education system was neutered in the name of social control, where the legal system was destroyed, and where tens of thousands of people have either been forcibly moved off their land or seen their life's work taken from them by the military- business complex which underpinned Suharto's rule. Whether any charges will stick is unknown.

"I'm absolutely sure that Suharto will never be brought to court," said Arief Budiman, professor of Indonesian studies at the University of Melbourne in Australia. "The President will be too reluctant to do that."

Residents applaud court's verdict on 'becak'

Jakarta -- Housewives, motorists and taxi drivers hailed on Tuesday the Central Jakarta District Court's ruling allowing becak (three-wheeled pedicabs) to operate in the capital.

Their support came with reservations, however. They said they were strongly against pedicabs being allowed to operate on main thoroughfares, citing traffic congestion and disturbances to other road users as reasons.

Residents in Kebon Kacang and Bendungan Hilir subdistricts, Central Jakarta, and Jelambar subdistrict, West Jakarta, agreed on Tuesday that pedicabs were still a vital mode of transportation.

"I need becak to take me home after my daily shop here," housewife Sumartin, 35, said at Bendungan Hilir market. "Becak are more convenient than ojek (motorcycle taxi) because becak can carry more than one person and large bags of groceries," she said. "Furthermore, becak drivers are very helpful. They will help me load and unload groceries, such as heavy gas canisters, if needed," she explained.

Two women living in housing complex in Jelambar were of the same opinion. Pedicabs, they said, were very useful for people living in residential complexes even though there are scores of motorcycle taxis. "It's just more comfortable [to take a becak]," one of the women, Tati, said.

The Central Jakarta District Court ruled in favor of pedicab drivers on Monday, declaring the Jakarta governor's ban on their operation, which was based on the city Bylaw No. 11/1988, unlawful.

The court ruled that pedicab drivers were allowed to operate in and around residential complexes, marketplaces and other selected areas in the capital. Ibrahim, an executive working at an office in the central business district on Jl. Sudirman, said he liked to use a pedicab to go to his nearby house for lunch. "It's more comfortable and quieter to take a becak. I can sit down and read my newspaper. It's relaxing," Ibrahim said.

Notary Stella Rumngangun, who drives from her house in Duren Sawit in East Jakarta to her office on Jl. Dewi Sartika, also in East Jakarta, said the presence of pedicabs on the streets of the capital did not worry her. "As long as they don't operate on the city's thoroughfares it's okay. But if they do, they will surely cause traffic jams because there are already too many buses in the city," Stella said.

She added that pedicabs were essential for people living in housing complexes like her. "Ojek are available, but you can't expect old fat ladies to take them," Stella said.

Kosti Jaya taxi driver Ma'fud supported the court ruling but, like others, insisted that pedicabs should not be allowed on the city's main roads. "I remember years ago when becak drivers were operating on the main streets. They used to cause congestion," Ma'fud said. "But I support the becak drivers. What would they do if they were not allowed to work?" he added.

Blue Bird taxi driver, Aom Ahmad, joined the chorus. "Becak should be allowed but not outside of residential complexes," Aom said. "In Bandengan area [North Jakarta], there many becak on the main roads, which is very disturbing because they always jam the streets," Aom added.

Separately, Governor Sutiyoso reiterated on Tuesday that he would continue to round up pedicabs despite the court's ruling. "As long as City Bylaw No. 11/1988 on Public Order is still in effect, I will continue to hunt pedicabs. Besides, the verdict is not yet final. We have already appealed to the Jakarta High Court," he said. "All the factions in the City Council are demanding that I settle this problem once and for all," he added.

Separately interviewed, Deputy Governor for Administration Affairs Abdul Kahfi said it would not be easy to amend the bylaw. "The bylaw is still in effect until it's amended and the city administration will just follow the bylaw," he said on Tuesday. "Amending the bylaw requires the involvement of the City Council, which is unlikely to amend it easily," he added.

Wardah Hafidz, the coordinator of the Urban Poor Consortium, an NGO which supports the pedicab drivers, said on Monday that there were 54 main places in the city where pedicab drivers wait for passengers and another 460 less popular spots. There are about 7,000 becak drivers in the city, she added.

Pedicab drivers win lawsuit against Jakarta governor

Jakarta -- Over 1,000 people crammed into the Central Jakarta District Courthouse and joyfully screamed after the judges ruled in favor of becak (pedicab) drivers, declaring unlawful the Jakarta governor's ban on pedicabs in the capital.

"The plaintiffs [pedicab drivers] are allowed to operate in and around residential complexes, marketplaces and other selected areas in the capital," presiding judge Manis Soejono told the court.

"I also advise the city administration to revise city Bylaw No. 11/1988, which prohibits pedicab drivers from operating in the capital. The case is closed." The verdict was saluted by pedicab drivers, who clapped wildly, hugged and congratulated one another in the packed courtroom.

On the contrary, it shocked lawyers representing the city administration, Iskandar and Hendra Panggabean, who immediately made their way out of the courtroom after Judge Manis finished reading the verdict. "We have to report this verdict to Governor Sutiyoso first. Whether we will appeal or not, that's entirely the governor's decision," Iskandar said, before hurriedly leaving the courtroom.

The court, however, did not entertain all of the plaintiffs' demands stated in their lawsuit. "The court rejects the plaintiffs' demand that the governor must make a verbal apology and a written apology via the media to the pedicab drivers for causing non-material damages," Judge Manis said.

"Since it was never proven in court that non-material losses were inflicted on the drivers, the plaintiffs' demand that Sutiyoso pay Rp 1.875 billion (US$210,600) in non-material damages is rejected," he added.

Judge Manis also rejected the demand that the city administration hand over City Hall in exchange for non-material losses inflicted on the drivers. Celebrating their victory, the euphoric becak drivers escorted by several NGO activists brought their pedicabs to Jl. Gajah Mada and nearby streets, causing heavy and prolonged traffic congestion in the crowded business area.

At noon, they pedaled to City Hall to stage a rally. They were intent on meeting Governor Sutiyoso to force him to comply with the newly issued verdict of the Central Jakarta District Court. "We want to know how Sutiyoso reacts to the court's decision," 45-year old becak driver Suparno said. However, after waiting for about one hour, neither the governor nor his deputies were willing to meet with representatives of the drivers.

The drivers, claiming to represent a total of 6,000 pedicab drivers in the capital, then gathered along the street in front of City Hall. Their action immediately caused another traffic jam.

The situation almost turned violent when several pedicab drivers began banging on a car belonging to the city administration. "Do not touch the car! Do not touch the car! ... It has nothing to do with our demand!" one driver shouted to calm his friends.

Speaking as a representative of the pedicab drivers, coordinator of the Urban Poor Consortium Wardah Hafidz demanded that the city administration immediately issue a ruling that would regulate the operation of becak in the capital.

"Winning the lawsuit will not mean that becak drivers are free to roam the city's streets without regulation. They should be treated like any other street users," Wardah said. Another becak driver, Wahod, 50, said that he was relieved with the court's ruling.

Met separately, Governor Sutiyoso -- seemingly amazed by the court's decision -- questioned the court's right to judge the city bylaw. "Where is the so called regional autonomy if regional administrations' rights to take care of their own business is neglected by the court?" he asked.

The governor insisted that the city administration would continue with its operation to rid the city's streets of pedicabs despite the court's verdict. "I'll remain consistent with the cleanup because I am just following the bylaw. I'm under constant pressure from city councillors that for once and for all I rid the city of pedicabs.

"The bylaw is still in effect so I have no choice but to uphold the bylaw. City administration will appeal to the high court," he announced. "If residents want the bylaw to be amended, they have to deliver their demand to City Council because the bylaw was enacted with the council's consent," he said.

City Council speaker Edy Waluyo supported Sutiyoso. "City administration must appeal to the high court because we have the bylaw which prohibits pedicabs," he said.

Similarly, chairwoman of the National Mandate Party (PAN) faction at City Council Wasilah Sutrisno urged the city administration to appeal to the high court. "I wonder whether the court understands the law or not. It [the verdict] violates the bylaw," she said.
 

News & issues

Almost all central bank liquidity credit misused

Jakarta -- More than 95 percent of the 144.5 trillion rupiah (16.8 billion dollars) of central bank liquidity credits extended to Indonesian institutions between 1997-1999 were misused, press reports said Saturday.

In a report to parliament, head of the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) Satrio Billy Yudono said the government risked losing 138.4 trillion rupiah (about 16 billion dollars) in emergency liquidity credits extended by Bank Indonesia to commercial banks between 1997 and 1999, the Jakarta Post said.

The figure accounted for 95.8 percent of the total liquidity credit isssued to 48 banks by Bank Indonesia during the period at the peak of the country's financial crisis.

Attorney General Marzuki Darusman who also received a copy of the audit report, said his office will investigate the 48 banks over the liquidity loans. "We need to study BPK's report first and, if necessary, will immediately issue a travel ban on the bankers implicated in the loan scandal," Darusman said.

Bank Indonesia acting governor Anwar Nasution pledged full cooperation of the central bank in the investigation, adding that if necessary, central bank officials suspected of implication in the scandal would be suspended.

The findings came after an audit launched in February concerning the central bank and 48 banks which received credits. Ten of the banks now have their operations frozen, 15 are in the process of liquidation, five have been taken over by the state and 18 others had their operations suspended. The audit had been ordered by the parliament.

Yudono said that 84.8 trillion rupiah of the credits were misused by the recipients while the rest were extended in violation of banking regulations. The BPK audit report showed that many of the loans were used for foreign exchange speculations, for lending to affiliated businesses and for repaying subordinate loans. Many other banks spent them on funding branch expansion, acquiring fixed assets and even for lending through the interbank market.

The audit team' chief Bambang Wahyu was quoted by the Jakarta Post as saying that none of the banks had returned their loans. "This amount [144.5 trillion rupiah] has now become the government's debt to the central bank with an annual interest of three percent," Wahyu said.

The report blamed lax supervision by the central banks for the potential losses. "The [Bank Indonesia] clearing mechanism was easier, faster and required no verification and registration," the report said. The irregularities took place as the country's banks reeled under the financial crisis which struck the region in mid-1997.

Jakarta's poor siphon oil dregs to earn a living

Jakarta -- Motorists in and around the capital are probably familiar with the sight of teenage boys and young men chasing after passing fuel trucks, opening the valves on the back of the vehicles, collecting drops of fuel in small buckets and scattering.

These people are usually found near toll gates, at traffic lights and along streets known for their traffic congestion. They arm themselves with buckets or plastic bags. They usually work in groups, selling the fuel to brokers who wait nearby with large buckets and jerry cans.

According to drivers of the state-owned oil and gas company Pertamina, the fuel siphoners are not criminals because they only take the dregs of fuel left inside the tanks of the trucks. The siphoners' only enemy is the police, though motorists have complained about the recklessness of these liquid scavengers.

One of the most popular sites for fuel siphoners in the capital is the city's sole Pertamina fuel distribution centre in Plumpang, where scores of them are seen seeking to collect those few drops of fuel left inside the empty tanks of the trucks. The whole siphoning process only take a few seconds. However, if the siphoners are lucky, it can take at least two minutes to collect the remaining fuel in the tanks.

They place their filled buckets and bags into zinc buckets they have placed strategically near the place of their "business," where they can earn between 15,000 rupiah (S$2.80) and 30,000 rupiah per day.

"I'm able to collect 20 to 30 litres a day for which I can earn 15,000 rupiah to 30,000 rupiah. After cutting the cost of my meal, I can save 10,000 rupiah to 15,000 rupiah a day," said Wayanto, 26, a father of two.

Most of political elite evade tax payments: Government

Manado -- Over half of the country's legislators, many ministers, generals and other high-ranking government officials were evading tax payments, Director General of Tax Machfud Sidik said.

Machfud said that many members of the country's political elite received incomes outside their taxed salaries, which they did not declare to his office. "Don't just look at the ordinary citizens, even the members of our political elite don't fulfill their tax obligations," he told reporters over the weekend.

He said that this situation showed the lack of a sense of civic obligation among the public. "Given these conditions, it will be difficult to reach our tax revenue targets," Machfud said.

He added that raising the public's awareness of civic obligations required long-term educational programs similar to those involved in raising the public's awareness of environmental issues.

On the other hand, Machfud said, the government must improve the quality of its public services, otherwise people would never truly understand the benefits of their tax payments, and hence would keep evading them.

"They [the people] are already accustomed to paying officials to do work for which they are also being paid by the government," he said. Taxpayers, he said, demanded that they be served properly without having to fork out unofficial fees. "Raising tax awareness and improving public service quality go hand in hand," he added.

At present, he said, out of approximately 20 million potential private taxpayers, only 1.3 million were registered with his office. Even then, he said, some 40 percent of the 1.3 million, or about 520,000 taxpayers, were fictional since their names and addresses somehow did not match up. "And not even all of the remaining taxpayers, who are categorized as compliant, pay their taxes in full," he added.

Machfud said he expected to increase the number of registered taxpayers by three times within the next five years to about four million. According to him, the number of registered taxpayers has grown by only 60 percent from around 800,000 people over the past 10 years.

Machfud said the government and the House of Representatives planned to draft a law on tax amnesty, which aimed at encouraging current tax evaders to register their real income with the tax office. "I am targeting 20 million potential tax payers with this law," he said.

He said the law would offer current tax evaders a cut in their unpaid taxes, if they report their real income to his office and henceforth honestly meet their tax obligations. The law, he said, would overlook the origin of a tax payers' wealth, thus encouraging those involved in corrupt practices to submit true returns without fearing prosecution.

He said that under the planned law, tax officials would be obliged to keep the identities of such private tax payers confidential. "This is a delicate issue and will invite much political interference," Machfud predicted.

Plans for a tax amnesty for private tax payers were initially included in an article of the tax law amendment bills, which the House of Representatives recently approved. But the House withdrew the article, proposing the drafting of separate legislation on the matter.

Machfud said people might misinterpret the law as a scheme to forgive corruptors. "Ask God for forgiveness. Being realistic, we just want their money," he said.

According to him, the country is not even capable of solving a single high-class corruption case through legal means, much less prosecuting major corruptors and recovering illicitly acquired state funds. He said that the law primarily aimed at expanding the tax base to include ordinary citizens who have so far evaded their tax obligations.
 

Environment/health

Haze in Riau: Case of deja vu

Roderick Bowen, Palembang -- The vegetation fires along the Riau -- North Sumatra border that started on July 7 and sent smoke across the Straits of Malacca until July 20 should have been no surprise to anybody. The European Union-funded Forest Fire Prevention and Control Project (FFPCP) based in Palembang, South Sumatra has monitored such outbreaks of fires since 1996 and has warned on many occasions that further fires can be expected in the same places and at the same times of year.

The Project has detected considerable numbers of vegetation fires in central Sumatra using National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) satellite data in each of year since 1996. This NOAA information is available up to four times a day and shows the location of fires to an accuracy of around 2 kilometers.

The NOAA data, has been, and continues to be, supported by high- resolution satellite pictures supplied by the Centre For Remote Imaging, Sensing and Processing of the National University of Singapore.

These pictures show fire locations to the nearest 100 meters but coverage of the areas of interest is much less regular. The satellite information has been checked by FFPCP staff during field visits to central Sumatra and there is no doubt as to the location of, or the causes of the fires.

Fires in central Sumatra have taken place each year since 1996 in the periods March to April and again in June to July. And, in each of the five years, Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore have been affected to a greater or lesser extent by smoke haze from these fires.

The present outbreak of fires, as those before them, coincided with climatically dry periods in central Sumatra. Riau's climate is humid with no distinct wet or dry seasons, but dry spells crop up every year around March and again in July. The number of fires at any one time is directly related to the amount of rain that has fallen in the previous weeks.

The fires themselves, and the resulting smoke haze, are a direct consequence of the plantation development program that is being pursued in central Sumatra.

The area was formerly well-wooded but heavy, non-sustainable, logging has seriously depleted the forest. In many cases the damage to the natural forest has been so great that its successful re-growth is unlikely. National and provincial land- planning authorities have thus allocated many former forests for conversion to estate crops -- the great majority for oil palm estates.

This change of land use is now taking place in the coastal wetlands along the border of Riau and North Sumatra provinces. Conversion is particularly extensive where the districts of Tapanuli Selatan, Labuhan Batu, Kampar and Bengkalis meet.

Similar widespread conversion is also occurring in the coastal swamps southeast of Tanjungbalai in North Sumatra and Riau, as well as in the coastal peat swamps of Pasaman and Pesisir Selatan districts in West Sumatra and in the extensive swamps of Ogan Komering Ilir district in South Sumatra.

It is fires lit by estate companies to burn off the remaining felled trees that have no commercial value, and the residual undergrowth that are the source of most of the smoke. All companies in the area take advantage of the same spells of dry weather and fire numbers; smoke thus rises sharply over three or four days and remains at a peak until fresh rain quenches them and puts an end to new burns. All the fires are planned. They are thus not wildfires.

The type of land being opened up in central Sumatra adds to the smoke haze problem. As noted above, many of the areas being planted to oil palm are in wetlands. The soils in these areas have a high content of plant remains.

This partly rotted plant debris that makes up peat soils means that the "soil" itself can burn in dry periods. Such fires are particularly smoky as they smolder rather than burn cleanly. Dry weather fires in deep peat become deeply-rooted and are almost impossible to extinguish until they are put out by the return of the rains and a rising watertable.

The fertility of such peat soils is usually very low and infrastructure development is difficult and expensive. There is also a history of failure where agriculture-based transmigration schemes have been attempted on coastal peats.

Despite these drawbacks companies are keen to plant the sizable areas of peats that can be found not only in Riau and North Sumatra but also in other provinces along the east-coast of Sumatra. Less extensive, although ecologically equally important, wetland peats are also dotted along the west coast of the island.

The reasons for this invasion of the wetlands of Sumatra are not hard to find. Prime amongst them is the acute shortage of remaining dryland that are free from claims by farmers to land ownership and land use rights.

Under the New Order regime traditional land rights were largely ignored and large blocks of prime land were made available to companies for plantation development. Under the current more transparent and less repressive regime, companies prefer to avoid conflict with their increasingly vocal neighbors.

A secondary, but still important, consideration in choosing to move into wetland areas is that some of the additional development costs incurred by a company can be offset against the sale price of any valuable commercial timber species that are extracted before the land is burnt.

Conversion of forest land to oil palm is an important part of Riau's development strategy. According to the Environment Impact Management Agency in Pekanbaru, 261 companies have land allocations for plantation estate development.

This is an admirable objective provided that the land is suitable for the desired use, and provided that conservation needs are respected and that existing land rights are recognized. However, it is doubtful if these caveats are being met in Riau.

The 1999 provincial spatial plan shows that 334,500 hectares of conversion forest remained in Riau. Despite this sizable allocation recent research by the International Center For Forestry Research based in Bogor shows that this is insufficient to meet targets.

New oil palm plantation areas are thus being allowed on lands that are still officially designated as production forest as well as within protected forests. This "new" land is increasingly being taken from areas with deep peat soils and is thus nominally protected from development.

Swamp forest on peat soils in Riau cover 4.3 million hectares or 27 percent of the total peatland of Indonesia. If these areas continue to be cleared by estate companies using fire, the result will certainly be further outbreaks of dense, trans-boundary smoke haze pollution.

[The writer is the team leader of the forest fire prevention and control project in Palembang, South Sumatra. It started in 1995 under the European Commission and the Indonesian government.]

Crackdown needed to stop forest fires

Jakarta -- They may have become an annual ritual, but Indonesia's forest fires are by no means welcome events in this country -- as well as in neighbouring nations that often ended up choking in the resulting thick smoke.

Yet while Indonesian authorities usually join in the yearly fuming over the fires, activists say the government must come down harder on the forest concessionaires that deliberately start the blazes to clear land for replanting.

Even Deputy Governor Rustam Abrus of Riau province in western Indonesia, one of the areas most affected by the annual infernos, is now demanding that the Forest and Plantation Ministry revoke the operating permits of the companies responsible for the fires. "Most of the haze now afflicting the province is a result of fires set by companies," he says.

Darminto Soetano, head of the Forestry Ministry's provincial office in Riau, admits that during the first half of July alone, there have already been 340 fires in 71 areas belonging to forestry and plantation firms. This is despite a 1998 warning sent by the government to forest concessionaires, after fires in Indonesia that year resulted in heavy smoke that blanketed the region for months.

That severe haze episode caused extensive health effects on people, especially the elderly and children, and interfered with air traffic in Indonesia, as well as in Malaysia, Singapore and even Thailand.

Lawsuits have also been filed against forest concessionaires accused of starting the fires. But activists note that no single company has been punished yet, a fact that they say has emboldened firms to keep on using fires to clear land. There were about 16 cases filed in connection with the 1997 and 1998 blazes, while six lawsuits reached the court this year for similar offenses.

Barlin, an official at the environmental Office of West Kalimantan north of Jakarta, says that while there have been some suits filed against "stubborn" businessmen for "burning practices," there have been no convictions so far. "It further weakens the process of law enforcement," he says. Hapsoro, a member of the forest monitoring group Telapak Indonesia, also says that such suits often result only in out-of-court deals.

This year, the now familiar haze began to be noticed early in July, with south-east winds spreading it from forest fires in Aceh, Barumun (North Sumatra) and Riau in western Indonesia. The Meteorology and Geophysics Agency (BMG) has also said that since July 18, it has detected 14 "fire hot spots" in central Barumun, South Tapanuli, Labuhan Batu and North Tapanuli.

Although the haze is less than that experienced by many areas and nearby countries in 1997 and 1998, the present smoke has already sparked anger in Malaysia. There, residents in the capital Kuala Lumpur and in several towns in Selangor, Perak, Penang and Kedah states wound up teary eyed and coughing recently because of the "imported" pollution.

Irham Buana of the Legal Aid Institute in Medan, North Sumatra, says that the fires have already destroyed around 20,000 hectares of forest in Barumun Tengah.

Some forestry officials say that now at least, there are measures in place to prevent the fires from spreading to other areas. In the last two years, the Forestry Ministry has been busy setting up fire prevention task forces throughout the country.

West Kalimantan forestry office head Arman Malalongan also says, "All government institutions here have been well prepared for the likely recurrence of fire." In addition, the Forestry Ministry has required all forest concessionaires to have their own fire prevention task forces.

But all these have proved ineffective in stopping the fires from spreading, largely because of lack of personnel and reliable equipment.

Activists also point out that what officials mean by "being ready" is having people in the risky areas know how to make early warning calls whenever they spot fires, where to go and get the necessary tools and how to work together to put them out.

"Even though such practice is useful, it won't work out," says Hapsoro. "That is more [appropriate] for a fire in a village." Besides, he adds, forestry personnel and village residents are equipped "only with manual tools, such as brooms for striking the flames, plastic buckets for pouring the water and hand extinguishers."

Hapsoro says that to fight forest fires, communities need joint action and coordination among large institutions, plus proper technology. But he adds that even wealthy concessionaires have failed to equip their fire task forces appropriately.

One fire-extinguishing demonstration held by the major forest concessionaire Hutan Musi Persada had fire fighters sending emergency calls by striking sticks of bamboo, and then forming rows through which buckets of water for putting out the fire were passed by hand. "This backward method has not changed until now," says Hapsoro, who is puzzled by the poor facilities of wealthy forestry firms.

He also remarks that since most of the fires are caused by the concessions, these companies should put more effort and money in preventing the blazes from affecting other areas, if they really cannot think of other alternatives to clear the land.

Then again, all the 421 forest concessionaires now occupying some 52 million hectares of forest in Indonesia are actually required to set aside $10 to $30 for every cubic meter of timber they produce. The money goes to a fund earmarked for reforestation.

But activists say this so-called 'reforestation fund', which is supposed to be under the care of the Forestry Ministry, has been used mostly other purposes such as the production of N-2130 aircraft, the construction of luxurious office buildings and the expansion of the industrial sector. Meanwhile, forestry officials have been seeking foreign assistance to finance fire prevention drives.

Destruction of Tanjung Puting continues

Jakarta -- The destruction of Tanjung Puting National Park in Central Kalimantan shows no sign of stopping, leaving its few remaining orangutans -- Asia's only great ape -- on a desperate plight, environmentalists have warned.

The recommendation of local and international environmentalists for drastic action to stop illegal logging and save the endangered orangutans has so far fallen on the government's deaf ears.

Two weeks ago, a report by the Washington-based World Research Institute, Trial by Fire: Forest Fires and Forestry Policy in Indonesia's Era of Crisis and Reform, warned the Indonesian government to take drastic measures to prevent a reoccurrence of forest fires in the country.

The latest report on the threatened national park was published last week by the London-based Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) and Telapak Indonesia Foundation, titled Illegal Logging in Tanjung Puting National Park -- An Update on The Final Cut Report. The park is one of only three protected areas in the country where orangutans are found in sufficient numbers to ensure their long-term viability.

The report's joint investigation found a devastating fact: Logging gangs have invaded the core of the park where orangutan behavior is studied. The illegal loggers have also begun switching to other timber species as most of the profitable ramin (Gonystylus bancanus) tree species had been logged out. It was estimated that at least 60,000 cubic meters of timber, mainly ramin, were looted every month.

"Although much of the responsibility for Indonesia's forest crisis rests with former president Soeharto and his coterie of family members and close business cronies, there has been an upsurge in illegal logging since he was removed from power," it warned.

The impact of illegal logging, combined with the effects of forest fires in 1997, has resulted in a staggering decrease in the number of orangutans. Recent estimates suggest that the number of orangutans left in Tanjung Puting National Park could be as low as 500, compared to 2,000 in 1994.

Dr. Carel van Schaik, who has studied Leuser orangutans at Gunung Leuser National Park, blamed illegal logging for their present plight. "Indonesia had high deforestation rates, but, until the mid-1990s, we were always optimistic that this would not endanger orangutans because there were national parks and even part of logging concessions which were meant to be maintained as unlogged in perpetuity," van Schaik said.

"Since the Soeharto regime got into trouble in the mid-1990s, there has been anarchy in the forests. Laws have been flouted. A lot of logging concessions have been woefully over-logged and there has been rampant logging and clearance for oil palms in areas not meant to be logged at all, even national parks. The fires and the drought of 1998 were a double calamity." Van Schaik warned that if the current crisis persisted, there would be no viable orangutan population left in the world within a decade.

The report also provides detailed events since the launch of the Final Cut, including on the alleged abduction and assault on Telapak Indonesia's director, A. Ruwindrijarto, and EIA expert Faith Doherty during their field visit to the area earlier this year by timber baron Abdul Rasyid's men.

Both Doherty and Ruwindrijarto were released after three days, thanks to support from Indonesian non-governmental organizations (NGO) and intervention from the highest level by the Indonesian government and the British Embassy.

The alleged abduction even got the attention of both local and foreign media, such as The Daily Telegraph and The Observer. Rasyid, owner of the Tanjung Lingga Group logging company and also a member of the People's Consultative Assembly from the Golkar Party, has strongly denied the accusation and instead has accused the two environmentalists of trespassing on his property. "Despite the evidence, there has been no real action by the government against him," EIA's director Dave Currey said.

Apart from naming the culprits of the illegal logging practices, the two organizations also provided dossiers to the police and the Ministry of Forestry and Plantations, and presented the evidence to the then governor of Central Kalimantan.

However, despite promises made by the government to tackle the timber theft in February and sporadic action against timber thieves, the national park's destruction continues. "If a government ignores its true assets and lets them be plundered by criminals and thieves, then it ignores the very basis of civil society," said Ruwindrijarto.

The report places the fate of Tanjung Puting as a test case for a government that claims to be committed to fighting corruption and has made promises to its international donors that it will tackle illegal logging immediately, especially in national parks.

"There is no question of what is happening, no question of who is behind it, and no question of the lawlessness it creates. The only question is whether the government has the courage to move in." In its efforts to reveal the ongoing destruction of Tanjung Puting National Park, the two organizations failed to present the case to House of Representatives legislators on July 21. The legislators refused to allow three foreign representatives from EIA to talk in the formal forum.

But afterwards, President Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid expressed his personal interest at a 90-minute meeting with Dave Currey, Faith Doherty and Ruwindrijarto last Tuesday (July 25). The meeting was also attended by Minister of Forestry and Plantations Nur Mahmudi Ismail.

In the meeting, as mentioned in a media release later on, the President wanted to see an end to timber barons profiting from the illegal logging of Tanjung Puting and was committed to the suspension of ramin timber exports. Latest reports suggest that 70 percent of the logs supplied to the processing sector are from illegal sources. "If the government holds sticks to the President's promises, then, at last we will see some action," Currey said. "But we will continue our campaign to stop the illegal logging for as long as it takes."

Shrinking habitat and greedy men endanger rare birds

Kafil Yamin, Bandung -- A good soldier knows what he is supposed to give as a present to his commander when he returns from duty in the jungle. Not fresh fruit or live fish, but a rare species of monkey, bird or deer.

The importance of a military officer can be seen from his private collection of animals. A general holding a key position usually has a vast collection of animals, including rare species. The more protected species he has, the more strategic his position is, said Hapsoro, an activist of Telapak Indonesia, which campaigns for the protection of rare species in Indonesia.

Birds are becoming a popular gift as they remain one of the most popular hobbies. The bird business is also bullish, with private possession or trade of certain species being prohibited. Some protected bird species can be found in the back gardens of generals and other high-ranking officials.

Iwan Setiawan, a researcher with BirdLife, sees a big irony here. A present is regarded as being special if it is an animal from a protected species. He once saw the back yard of a general's house that was full of birds, including endangered ones. The general proudly said that an endangered bird was a present from one of his subordinates who returned from Irian Jaya, others came from Kalimantan and East Timor. They are not aware that their hobby further threatens endangered species, he grinned.

It is easier, then, to find rare species and other protected animals in the mansions of rich people than in the wild. A Bandung-based journalist, who once happened to come into a top official's home here described the backyard as a "small zoo". You can find a range of endangered animals from Javan tiger to Javan hawk-eagle, he said.

Under Law No. 5/1990 on Natural Preservation and Conservation, one trading in or possessing protected animals are subject to five years imprisonment and Rp100 million in fine.

According to Iwan, the population of Javan tiger can be counted on one's fingers now, while Javan hawk-eagles (Spizaetus bartelsi) number some 300 individuals. Continuing pressures on the forests have dropped its population significantly, he said.

The Javan eagle lives only in primary forests in Java. Now that forests account for only 3 percent of Java's land, the bird's habitat is increasingly threatened. BirdLife estimates that the population of Javan-hawk eagles has declined by 50 percent over the last five years. Meanwhile, their area of distribution has been fragmented and decreased to only 10 percent.

Java boasts 18 resident birds of prey. Habitat fragmentation and hunting have put the survival of most, if not all these species at risk. Surveys on 27 islands conducted between 1981 and 2000 shows forest raptors survive in smaller patches. Other endemic raptors on Java island are Crested Serpent-eagle (Spilornis cheela], Black Eagle (Ictinaetus malayensis), Rafous-bellied eagle (Hieraatus kienerii). Outside Java, the Sulawesi hawk-eagle (Spizaetus lanceolatus) is going through a similar plight.

Deforestation resulting from forest conversion to palm oil plantations and the enlargement of cacao plantations have become serious threats to the declining population of Sulawesi eagles. A recent study by the Indigenous Natural Conservation [YPAL] found 20 raptor species in South Sulawesi province with Brahminy Kite being the most common species, followed by the Sulawesi Serpent eagle (Spilornis rufipectus), Lesser Fish-eagle and Sulawesi hawk-eagle.

According to Iwan, the pivotal value of the Javan hawk-eagle and Sulawesi hawk-eagle, both popularly called elang Jawa and elang Sulawesi, rests on their nature as top predators. As a top predator, the Javan eagle can by manage the size of its prey population. So it serves as a sort of balancing power in nature, a role that men cannot do, he said. If peasants in villages, are incapable of controlling rats that affect their paddy fields, they can rely on the eagle. It is their mistake not to care about the eagle, Iwan added.

Indonesia is not alone in terms of forest degradation. Massive industrialization in other Asian countries steps up pressures on natural forests and therefore causes continuing decline of raptor populations in this archipelago.

The dwindling population of Asian raptors was discussed in a seminar here from June 25 through June 27. Experts from Asia, Europe, Middle East and the US discussed ways to save the animals.

The Second Symposium of Asian Raptor Research and Conservation [ARRC] recommended, among others, collaboration with governments and local communities to prevent and minimize habitat loss, compilation of local knowledge on raptors, and encouraging studies on raptor adaptation on the changing environment.

Geographically, Indonesia is crucial to the existence of raptors since it is one of the migration sites from the North during the autumn. Periodically, raptors migrate from the North to Southeast Asia and return to the north in the spring.

The Javan hawk-eagle is better known as burung Garuda, which has become the mascot of Indonesian unity in diversity. Their population is now on the decline.

Sony 'powerless' to cope with forest fires

Jakarta -- "I am really ashamed every time my counterparts from Malaysia and Singapore call me to complain about the haze coming from Sumatra," State Minister of Environment Sony Keraf said in an interview with The Jakarta Post recently.

Sony said ministers from the two neighboring countries always used well-chosen and polite words to tell him about the suffering of their people due to the smoke.

He described the burning of forests by big plantations and forestry industrial estates as "organized crime which often involves government officials and military officers as the backers of the companies". The minister warned that the country's relations with its neighboring countries, including Thailand and Brunei, would be seriously affected if the government failed to fulfill its promises to stop the haze. "Our neighbors are very upset with the smoke, but they refrain from being too harsh for the sake of ASEAN solidarity," Sony said.

During the dry season, private and state owned firms slash and burn forests, especially in Sumatra and Kalimantan, to expand their palm oil and forestry estates. The resulting haze from the fires spreads to nearby countries and causes health problems.

Citing his own experience during a recent visit to West Kalimantan, Sony said local authorities, including the ministry of forestry and plantations officials, were also responsible for the fires.

Sony recalled how West Kalimantan Governor Aspar Aswin bluntly denied that two companies, PT Finantara Intiga and PT West Kalindo, had burned forests in the province to expand their estates there. "Although I showed him satellite data, he still repudiated it," the minister noted.

In other provinces, like Riau, provincial ministry of forestry and plantation officials often blame local farmers as the most responsible for the fires in their regions. "Many companies feel free to burn because government officials or military officers back their activities," Sony said.

Sony, who represents the Indonesian Democratic of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) in the Cabinet, is a doctor of philosophy. He taught business ethics at Atmajaya University before his promotion to the Cabinet.

Sony's appointment was strongly opposed by environmentalists due to his poor experience and knowledge of the environment. He has slowly proved his capability. "My office can not directly deal with the environment violators. I can only issue recommendations," Sony complained when asked about obstacles he was facing as a minister.

Sony, 42, hinted the government would never be able to stop forest fires if it didn't have a strong commitment to law enforcement. He said the government's inconsistency had resulted in companies defying its warning not to use slash-and-burn techniques in opening new land for plantations.

From 167 forest fire cases since 1997, only one firm has been punished. It was ordered to pay a fine. Forest fires during the long dry seasons in 1997 and 1998 affected some 10 million hectares of forest, mainly in Sumatra and Kalimantan.

Citing satellite data from Singapore which showed 138 hot spots in Riau last week, Sony said 23 forestry estates, including PT Adey Crumb Rubber and PT Gunung Mas Raya and 21 plantation companies, were involved in slash- and-burn activities.

In North Sumatra, at least 193 hot spots on five forestry estates, including 175 belonging to PT Inhutani IV, and eight plantations were picked up by satellite cameras.

Sony also said he had data showing that in Central Kalimantan the giant firm PT Salim Group was also involved. Fires in West Kalimantan involved six companies, including PT Cemaru Lestari, according to the minister.

"The companies will continue committing crimes because they know the government is unable to take any action against them," Sony complained. Sony said the government had a good opportunity to enforce the law in Riau, where four companies would soon be taken to court for their crimes.

"I hope the court will be able to prove its capability of enforcing the law," Sony remarked. The minister also disclosed the Ministry of Finance had agreed to provide Rp 1.5 billion to his office for funds to monitor forest fires throughout the country. "My staff need money to buy plane tickets, for local transportation costs and for their lodgings during visits to the locations in the regions," Sony said.

Sony has picked several experts from various ministries and state universities, including Sudharto P. Hadi, a professor of law at Diponegoro University in Semarang, to assist him in his office on Jl. D.I.Panjaitan, East Jakarta. "I need a strong team. But I do not know whether I will still remain in the Cabinet after the next reshuffle," Sony said.
 

Arms/armed forces

Politics played key role in military reshuffle

The need for military support by the government and internal rivalry led to the latest military reshuffle, says military analyst Kusnanto Anggoro of the Jakarta-based Centre of Strategic and International Studies.

Question: What is your reaction to the removal of the controversial chief of the Army Strategic Reserves Command (Kostrad) Lt. Gen. Agus Wirahadikusumah, who bears an image of reformist officer?

Answer: This has nothing to do with reformist's pros or cons but with internal rivalry. It is true that Agus is among the more radical reformist group in the army. It is also true that in (Army Headquarters) Cilangkap's eyes Agus has made some mistakes like talking to the media first about an issue rather than in his own circle. His attempt to audit Kostrad's finances and his other mistakes have contributed to his downfall.

What are the other mistakes?

It is better not to say at this point in time.

Are they political in nature?

Yes they are.

You mentioned about internal rivalry, could you elaborate? Actually this is not purely internal rivalry, the reshuffle was also made possible by the civilian political elite. As you know civilian support for Gus Dur (President Abdurrahman Wahid) has been waning in the last two months. The latest recent example was the overwhelming support of legislators to employ their interpellation right (to question Gus Dur).

So Gus Dur has to seek whatever support he may get from the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR). The military's representatives both at the legislature (DPR) and MPR, totaling at least 38, have been consistently mute. This muteness sent a message to Gus Dur. Their support is crucial and badly needed by Gus Dur.

And there is a price for this ...?

Yes, in the form of concessions such as more leeway and maneuverability in reshuffling the internal organization of the Indonesian Military (TNI), and in controlling the recent civil emergency in Maluku.

Secondly, Gus Dur should display a more tolerant attitude toward conservative elements in TNI. So Agus, seen as a reformist, has been less than an asset to Gus Dur in this kind of political situation. This has been a very political reshuffle.

So what will be the future of the reform movement?

It will move more slowly. This will also be determined by (behavior of) civilian politicians.

How do you assess the post of Kostrad chief politically?

Actually it is not so significant politically. Kostrad has only 10,000 troops. Politically it is way down compared to the post of Territorial Chief, Chief of General Affairs or Secretary General of Defense. Agus himself is well aware of this.

How do you see the whole picture of the reshuffle involving eight Army officers?

Ryamizard (Maj. Gen. Ryamizard Ryacudu, the chief of the Jakarta Military Command who took over Agus' position) is okay. He is an apolitical soldier, (Gen.) MacArthur type, so to say, while Agus is more like Eisenhower.

Out of the eight, only Simbolon (Brig. Gen. Romulo Simbolon, chief of staff of Jakarta Military Command who was assigned to an unspecified post at the TNI headquarters) is known as an Agus man. Lintang (Col. Lintang Waluyo, Army expert staff member to the Army Chief of Staff who was assigned as the new chief of staff of the Jakarta Military Command) is also an apolitical officer.

Could you briefly describe the political map inside the Army? There are mainly three categories in the Army's political grouping, so to say. The first one is the "institutionalized" group, meaning those officers who climb the ladder of ranks on a professional basis. This group has a "gradualist" attitude toward military reform. Gradualist means they would like to accomplish total political reform in 10 to 15 years.

The second one is those officers who always ride on somebody's backs to promote themselves to higher ranks. Their attitude toward reform is radical or progressive. In term of military reform, both groups have their disadvantages. With the first group, who will know what will happen in 10 to 15 years? Can we really arrive at the designated destination? As for the second group, who can guarantee that a radical movement will not sink the boat? The third group is the marginalized officers. Included in this group are fallen officers, gracefully or otherwise. Their attitude toward reform is reactionary.

But the nature of relations between the three groups is very dynamic. One group may regard the other group an ally at one point in time or an enemy at another time.

Gus Dur `trying to end split in military'

Straits Times - August 2, 2000

Jakarta -- The replacement of Lt-General Agus Wirahadikusumah as chief of the Army Strategic Reserves Command (Kostrad) can be seen as an effort by Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid to improve his relations with the military and, at the same time, to end the divisions within the armed forces. Lt-Gen Agus was replaced by Major-General Ryamizard Ryacudu.

In an editorial published yesterday, The Jakarta Post newspaper noted that, when the Indonesian leader brought the pro-reformist general to Jakarta from South Sulawesi, he antagonised generals who were reluctant to give up the privileged position of the military (TNI).

Among high-ranking military officers, Lt-Gen Agus was among the very few, if not the only one, to support openly the idea of abolishing the military's socio-political role and turning it into a professional force.

Mr Abdurrahman, apparently impressed by such a view, suggested that with such a vision, Lt-Gen Agus deserved to be given a post in Jakarta rather than in some far-flung region.

But the newspaper suggested that Monday's reshuffle announcement was a political decision by the President and said that it made sense for him to patch up his relationship with the military at this point.

"The beleaguered President is at present under heavy criticism from various sides for his handling of the administration and the possibility cannot be discounted that some of the factions in the upcoming People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) session will try to make it highly uncomfortable for the President and possibly even try to unseat him," the editorial said. "Patching up his relationship with the military at this point, therefore, makes sense for Mr Abdurrahman.

"However, where that leaves the nation is a question whose answer may not please everyone, particularly those pro-democracy groups in society which have sacrificed much in their fight for democratisation and civilian supremacy in this country.

"The fact that appointed military representatives are likely to continue to maintain seats in the MPR, the highest law-making body in this country, is an indication that true democracy may take longer to establish than many of us would wish."

Indeed, the editorial said that Lt-Gen Agus' replacement opened up "a trail of questions that are begging to be answered". It noted that Kostrad was considered to be the army's pre-eminent combat force as well as a power base and stepping stone towards more lofty positions within the military. Lt-Gen Agus was appointed in March and so held the position for just four months.

The Jakarta Post said: "The basic question, of course, is why was Lt-Gen Agus replaced?" TNI spokesman Air Rear Marshal Graito Usodo said the main reason was that the military "needs changes and these have been adjusted to the present conditions and situation". The newspaper said that although "organisational needs" were certainly part of the motive, not much could be learnt from such a standard official answer.

Australia quietly resumes military aid to Indonesia

Pip Hinman -- It took the July 24 murder of Leonard Manning, a New Zealand United Nations soldier in East Timor, to remind the world that the Indonesian military hasn't changed its spots. But just four days earlier, Indonesia's defence minister Juwono Sudarsono announced that Australia had offered to resume training Indonesian military (TNI) personnel. The announcement may account for Australian foreign affairs minister Alexander Downer's relatively benign comments on Manning's murder; UN Transitional Administration in East Timor officials placed the blame squarely on the Indonesian government and military.

Sudarsono announced the decision to send 12 TNI officers to Australia for training at a reception for the shadow defence minister Steven Martin and the Australian ambassador John McCarthy.

According to an article in Detikworld, a popular Indonesian newspaper which sided with the anti-Suharto protests in 1998, Sudarsono said that the Australian government had sent emissaries to Indonesia to discuss the program and that he didn't know if TNI officers' training would take place before or after the Olympic Games.

Detikworld stated that the ALP had initiated the exercise. Philip Dorling, a spokesperson for the shadow foreign affairs minister Laurie Brereton, described this as "far-fetched" and "a bit like something out of left field", although he did not know what discussions Martin had had while in Jakarta last week.

Denial

Martin's office hotly denied the Detikworld report. Asked what Martin would be discussing in meetings with Sudarsono, Indonesian defence secretary General Sugiono, TNI commander Admiral Widodo and Ferry Tingaggoy from the TNI parliamentary faction and other senior figures, Martin's press secretary told Green Left Weekly that Martin would be simply acting as a "statesman". Asked what that meant, she replied, "That's what shadow ministers do, meet people, say hello and shake hands".

Labor's policy on Indonesia, which will be voted on at the party's national conference at the end of July, is not a repeat of the past, Dorling stressed. "We have moved on from a position of defence relations being at the centre of our policy."

However, he added, "That doesn't mean we are closing the door on defence cooperation in the future ... in a democratic Indonesia, that cannot be ruled out." ALP leader Kim Beazley, in a May visit to Jakarta, talked up the need for "cooperative endeavours" between the countries' defence forces.

Dorling also said that Martin had been "fully briefed" on Labor's foreign affairs policy on Indonesia before leaving and that Brereton was yet to be briefed on Martin's trip.

Australia's training of TNI personnel was suspended on September 10 at the height of the bloody rampage by the TNI and its hired thugs in East Timor.

Australia's defence minister, John Moore, announced that the government would be reviewing "all aspects" of Australia's defence relations, and some exercises were called off. His move was pre- empted by Indonesia unilaterally pulling out of the security agreement signed with the Paul Keating Labor government in 1995.

Tony Burke, an expert in Australia-Indonesia defence ties, told Green Left Weekly that he would not be surprised if some level of training had continued.

This was confirmed by Martin's press secretary who told Green Left that officer training "had been going on for 100 years" and that "it only involves Indonesian officers going to our universities". In other words, the suspension of military ties never included a cessation in military training.

Repairing ties

Since the Australian government was forced by last year's mass protests to push for a peace-keeping force in East Timor, it has been looking for ways to ameliorate relations with the Indonesian government and military.

The US has resumed military ties with Indonesia with the Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training program (CARAT 2000), under way off the coast of Surabaya. Sudarsono is using the crisis in the Maluku islands to push the US to re-establish equipment supplies to Indonesia. (The US had been supplying Indonesia's army, navy and air force with some 70% of its spare parts.)

Even if the Labor Party doesn't want to take the credit for instigating a revival of links with the TNI, it's not surprising that little has been said in Australia about re-establishing military ties with Jakarta. However, Major General Peter Cosgrove's recent comments that Australia's long-term military relationship with Indonesia had been an important consideration in the successful East Timor peace-keeping mission was no doubt part of the softening up exercise.

Max Lane, chairperson of Action in Solidarity with Indonesia and East Timor (ASIET), believes that the government is between a rock and hard place in devising a new policy on Indonesia. "Support for East Timor's occupation is no longer a bargaining chip for the government. Now it is forced to compete with the rest of the region and the more powerful West for special nation status vis-a-vis Indonesia", Lane said.

"Mass anger last year at the government's refusal to help stop the carnage in East Timor was in large part due to what Howard once candidly described as successive governments' `wrong policy' on East Timor. Military ties with Indonesia, at any level, was then, and is now, part of that wrong policy."

This view, that Australia should not be giving Indonesia's military the benefit of the doubt, was summed up by the preliminary findings of the Senate committee hearing on East Timor which wound up last October. It stated: "Indonesia's invasion of East Timor in 1975 resulted in the slaughter of tens of thousands of East Timorese and began a military occupation that operated beyond the rule of law. ABRI's frustration at its inability to stop Falintil['s] guerilla campaign for an independent East Timor resulted in a brutal and callous regime of systematic intimidation and gross violations of human rights."

The report went on: "Evidence before the Committee suggested that it was widely accepted that ABRI/TNI established, trained, armed and directed the operations of the militias in East Timor." Now, speculation is growing that the militias is still being trained by the TNI and that some of the trained thugs are joining the extremist Islamic militias contributing to the violence in the Malukus.

But for successive Australian governments, maintaining military ties with Indonesia has always come first. Their spurious argument has been that, given the TNI's influence in government and society, it is better to "engage" with the TNI and try to develop a more "democratic" culture within it.

Military ties

For decades, Australia has maintained a substantial military aid program to Indonesia, including training military officers, supplying aircraft and parts for the air force, and conducting regular naval, air and land exercises. From 1991, close relations were forged between the TNI's Strategic Reserve (Kostrad) and Special Forces (Kopassus), both of which were commanded by Suharto's son-in-law Prabowo Subianto.

Kopassus is the most highly trained section of the Indonesian army and has been at the forefront of operations in East Timor, Aceh and West Papua. During the May 1988 student-led protests against Suharto, Kopassus troops were seen rappelling a helicopter into a Jakarta university, skills which Burke says were taught by the Australian military.

Since 1994, Australia's Special Air Service and Kopassus have held annual exercises in Java and Western Australia. One such exercise was taking place in WA last September when Moore announced the "suspension" of the military training program, Burke said. Hundreds, if not thousands of TNI officers have been trained in Australia.

Australia's defence cooperation with Indonesia has also been driven by its economic relationship with Indonesia. Now that Australia no longer holds the trump card it once did -- support for Indonesia's occupation of East Timor in return for economic favours such as privileged access to Timor oil -- a new relationship has to be forged. Competition for special status will take many forms and re-establishing military ties would seem to be one of them.

Another rationale for maintaining close military ties was the alleged need to counter a threat from China. However, the government's recent white paper Defence Force Review 2000 states that Australia faces no armed threat from any country in the region.

Australia currently spends $700 per person on defence annually (about $13 billion). "Some of this would be earmarked for military programs with Indonesia", said Lane, "and as part of the formal `discussion' period on Australia's defence spending and programs we should demand that the government allocate this money towards much needed social programs instead."

Lane stressed that ordinary Indonesians, especially those in Aceh, the Malukus and West Papua, are crying out for Western governments not to continue to give political legitimacy to the TNI, an institution which denies them their democratic rights. "Security forces are attacking their own people all the time; the recent military attack on a National Peasants Union demonstration for land rights in South Sumatra is another reminder of the TNI's oppressive role.

"We can assist the Indonesian people's campaigns to get the TNI out of politics and to bring the Indonesian generals to justice in an international court by demanding that the Australian government not re-establish military ties", he said. "While violence, killings and intimidation continue in the West Timor camps, the Maluku islands, Aceh and West Papua, it's obvious that the TNI is beholden to no-one. The TNI must get out of politics and business and dismantle its territorial security apparatus.

"We in Australia need to cement links with and campaign in support of the growing democracy movement in Indonesia. That is our best and only weapon against policies designed to preserve and protect the elites in both countries", Lane concluded.

Military reformer loses post in backlash

Hamish McDonald, Jakarta -- The sudden transfer of a leading reformist general out of the Indonesian Army's most important combat command threatens a new chill in Jakarta's relations with Western governments, and puts off any immediate prospect of a resumption in military aid.

Worried foreign officials in Jakarta see the general's removal as part of a backlash by military conservatives wedded to the central political role awarded the armed forces (TNI) under former president Soeharto.

They are even more worried by the fact that this crackdown on openness and reform was done with the support of Vice-President Megawati Sukarnoputri, whose nationalist PDI Perjuangan party is the biggest element in the coalition backing President Abdurrahman Wahid.

The reformer, Lieutenant-General Agus Wirahadikusumah, will be replaced tomorrow as head of the army's Strategic Reserve (Kostrad) and assigned without specific job responsibility to the army headquarters, effectively ousting him from influence on armed forces policy.

The new Kostrad commander will be Major-General Ryamizard Ryacudu, leader of the Jakarta garrison. General Ryamizard is regarded as a conventional soldier with connections to the Soeharto-era leadership through his father-in-law, a former armed forces commander and vice-president, Mr Try Sutrisno.

General Agus has been an outspoken advocate of the military's withdrawal from its "Dwi-fungsi" (Dual Function) role in politics, which saw it create "territorial" command down to village level under Soeharto, a tight hold that involved enormous repression and corruption.

He was openly derisive of the former armed forces commander and defence minister, General Wiranto, when General Wiranto refused to resign after being named in February by a government inquiry as partly responsible for last year's violence in East Timor.

His pressure helped Mr Wahid gain General Wiranto's agreement to step down, and General Agus was soon after appointed to the Kostrad command.

General Agus's latest sin was to expose the withdrawal of 190 billion rupiah ($38 million) from two of Kostrad's business ventures by his predecessor, Lieutenant-General Djaja Suparman.

When General Suparman was unable to account for the funds drawn in large tranches over December and January from Mandala Airlines and the Dharma Putra Foundation -- enterprises supposed to top up the pitiful official salaries of officers and men -- and returned some in a cheque from his personal account, General Agus went public, called in defence auditors, and suspended two of Kostrad's financial officers.

Reports in Jakarta say his move sent tremors through the officer corps, and enraged General Wiranto, still influential and close to General Suparman. A group of conservative generals met at General Wiranto's house last Wednesday, according to Tempo magazine, and then approached Ms Megawati, who joined then in pressing Mr Wahid for the transfer of General Agus.

Military sources said the argument used to win over Mr Wahid was that taking pressure off the demoralised TNI on this key financial front would lead to more zeal in stopping inter- religious violence in the Moluccan islands.

Analysts said the move against General Agus would be taken very badly by the United States, and would effectively squelch debate about resuming training, equipment transfers and other support for the TNI, all of which was predicated on continuing reform.

"The Americans placed great store and hope in his progress, to increase the rate of TNI reform," one defence analyst said. "Generally he is seen as the vanguard of the reform movement."

Wahid loyalist relieved of key command

Chris McCall, Jakarta -- The military yesterday booted its most outspoken reformist general out of the command of the elite Kostrad strategic reserve, a post he had occupied for just four months.

In a ceremony today, Lieutenant-General Agus Wirahadikusumah will hand over command and take up an undefined post as a senior officer -- a "walk the halls post", as one diplomat put it -- at military headquarters.

General Agus is the second reformist to be moved in a matter of weeks. He is the most senior of eight officers, among them six generals, changing posts in the third military reshuffle since President Abdurrahman Wahid was elected last October.

General Agus was replaced by Major-General Ryamizard Ryacudu, formerly head of the Jakarta regional military command. General Ryamizard's replacement is Major-General Slamet Kirbiantoro, who followed General Agus as head of the Sulawesi-based Wirabuana military command.

As Kostrad chief, General Agus ruffled feathers by exposing a corruption scandal at a Kostrad benevolent fund. It led to suggestions he had been pushed aside by someone influential with a lot to fear.

General Agus was stoical about his transfer. He said he understood both Mr Wahid and Vice-President Megawati Sukarnoputri had been consulted. "I cannot say whether it is justified or not justified," he said. "In any organisation, including the military, changes of task are normal."

He said he had not been able to change much in his four months, but he called for the reform process in the military to press ahead and for it to return to its original role of a people's army, forged during Indonesia's independence war against the Dutch in the 1940s.

Speaking of a "crisis of credibility" at home and abroad for the Indonesian military, he called for a new style of management, in particular public accountability and a sharper focus on rights rather than on factional interests.

General Agus said he felt his ideas had made a positive contribution. "In reality we can see they are adopted by the TNI [Indonesian armed forces]," he said. "You can see several kinds of improvement. This is what I struggled for and I got a positive response from the people."

General Agus shot to prominence in February during a public row between Mr Wahid and former military chief General Wiranto. General Agus publicly backed Mr Wahid's call for General Wiranto to step down from the cabinet over last year's East Timor violence, which occurred while General Wiranto was still military chief. In doing so he was regarded by other senior officers as breaking military protocol, since General Wiranto outranked him.

His transfer has sent shivers running through the diplomatic community, which fears derailment of the reform process. "If the President is really serious about reforming the military, this is the guy who is spearheading those efforts," one diplomat said.

Mr Wahid personally backed the promotion of General Agus after winning his verbal battle to remove General Wiranto from his cabinet, but has since run into his own political problems.

Not all analysts see the transfer of General Agus as a defeat for reform. Political commentator Wimar Witoelar said those running the military remained committed to reform, but just not as fast as General Agus would have liked.

One thing General Agus did manage to do in his brief period in charge of Kostrad, the crack unit whose image has been tarnished down the years by a series of accusations of human rights abuses, was to expose a corruption scandal at Yayasan Dharma Putra, a soldiers' benevolent fund.

TNI removes Kostrad chief in major revamp

Jakarta -- Indonesian Defence Forces (TNI) spokesman Vice Marshall Graito Usodo yesterday said that TNI is set to announce a reshuffle of several senior officers on Monday, including the Army's Strategic Reserves Command (Kostrad) chief Lieut. Gen. Agus Wirahadikusumah.

Agus has meanwhile confirmed to sources that he would hand over his position to Maj. Gen. Ryamizard Ryacudu, the current chief of the Jakarta military command (Pangdam Jaya) "The reshuffle would be announced soon. Insya Allah [God Willing], barring obstacles, it will be announced tomorrow [today]," Graito said yesterday.

Agus, a Harvard-trained senior officer, has in recent times come under media scrutiny for what many have described as his over zealousness to uncover a major financial scandal within the crack military unit.

The financial scam, reports say, involved Rp350 billion, most of which were left unaccounted for by his predecessor Lieut. Gen. Djadja Suparman. An audit conducted under Agus' auspices early this month led to the dimissal of two Kostrad senior officers.

Today's planned TNI reshuffle would be the third since Abdurrahman Wahid came to office as president, and promised to reform the military as part of wide democratic changes.

Graito said further that the official announcement is to be made at the Defence Ministry at Jl. Merdeka Barat, Central Jakarta. However, Graito refused to mention the names of officers who will be re-assigned to other post. "I am a professional. I won't tell you the names before the official announcement," said Graito.

A military analyst at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), Kusnanto Anggoro, meanwhile said that a new military institution would be set up, namely the Inter-Forces Joint Staff, which he predicted would be headed by the current Air Force chief, Marshall Hanafie Asnan.

The Observer has learned that Wirahadikusumah is to be posted at the Defence Ministry, and that his post is to be handed over to Ryacudu, who is the son-in-law of former Vice President Try Soetrisno.

Filling the post left vacant by Ryacudu, sources say, would be current Udayana Military Command chief Major-General Kiki Syahnakri. However, other sources insist that Ryacudu's replacement would be Maj. Gen. Slamet Kirbianto, the Wirabuana Military Command chief who oversees Sulawesi. Kirbianto is now in Jakarta on official visit.

TNI's earlier reshuffle involved two senior commanders out of 122 officers, 60 from the army, 26 from the navy and 16 from the air force. The shake-up included replacing the chief the elite forces Kopassus commander Maj. Gen. Syahrir MS. by Brig. Gen. Amirul Isnaini and chief of the Pattimura regional military command. which oversees the Maluku province, Brig. Gen. Max Tamaela by Balinese Colonel I Made Yasa, who was later promoetd to become brigadier general. Syahrir, who was replaced by Brig. Gen. Amirul Isnaini, was appointed as operations assistant to the Army chief of staff.
 

Economy & investment

Battling graft key to economic progress: US

Washington -- The United States has reaffirmed its position that rooting out graft is key to economic growth following Jakarta's move to charge former president Suharto with corruption.

"Combating corruption through legal action and by improving the way business and government operate is essential to economic progress and good governance, not only in Indonesia but in all nations," the State Department said in a statement released here.

However, it said that "it's up to the Indonesian people and their government to decide how to pursue specific corruption investigations and prosecution".

"Given popular calls for firm and resolute investigation and follow up of this matter in Indonesia, we expect that the issue of corruption will continue to be the focus of debate and legal action there," it added.

State prosecutors charged the former president with corruption on Thursday, bringing him a step closer to a criminal trial.

GDP grows faster than expected in second quarter

Jakarta -- The Central Bureau of Statistics (BPS) announced here on Friday a higher than expected growth rate in the country's gross domestic product (GDP) in the second quarter but business analysts warned that the fragile condition in the political field could drag down the upward trend in the economy.

BPS deputy chairman Kusmadi Saleh said that the economy grew by 4.13 percent year in the second quarter, much higher than the market consensus of 3.5 percent. He said that the GDP grew at a meager level of 0.38 percent in the April-June period, much lower than the quarterly growth level of 2.36 percent in the previous quarter. "But if compared to the same period last year, the growth rate reached 4.13 percent," he added.

Kusmadi said that the quarterly growth rate was lower in the second quarter due to a seasonal decline in the agricultural sector. "But the overall performance is very encouraging and we are optimistic that the GDP growth will meet the official target of between 3 percent and 5 percent this year," he told a press briefing.

According to a BPS report, the GDP value, based on the current price, increased to Rp 609.2 trillion (US$71.6 billion) in the first half from Rp 560.8 trillion at the same period last year. Kusmadi said the major contributors to the GDP growth in the second quarter were the non-oil industries, utility sector and construction as well as services.

The construction sector grew by 13.07 percent in the second quarter over the same period last year, or 2.22 percent compared to the first quarter result. The transportation and communications sectors came second with year on year growth of 10.51 percent, although they showed only a paltry 0.93 percent growth in the quarter-on-quarter basis.

In the second quarter, the manufacturing sector's year-on-year growth stood at 5.73 percent, higher than the quarter-on-quarter record of 1.12 percent. Utility sector rose 6.79 percent year-on-year, slightly higher than the quarter-on-quarter record of 4.52 percent.

The agriculture sector is the only sector that recorded a negative growth on both year-on-year and quarter-on-quarter bases at minus 4.30 percent and minus 4.12 percent respectively. Kusmadi said the agriculture sector had always declined in the second, third and fourth quarters of any given year since harvesting season for most commodities took place between January and April.

On the demand sides, government spending rose 2.33 percent year- on-year, 6.12 percent for the quarter-on-quarter. He said the government had spent more money recently partly on its program to raise salaries for senior government officials and on the country's security program.

The actual household spending rose by 2.56 percent in the second quarter over the same period last year, better than the quarter- on-quarter result of only 0.40 percent.

Investment's year-on-year growth jumped by 21.14 percent, compared to the quarter on quarter increase of 3.31 percent. While exports jacked up by 24.08 percent year-on-year and 5.04 percent quarter-on-quarter.

Economists described the economic growth in the second quarter as being more healthy than in the previous quarter as it was driven by exports rather than by consumer spending as many previously feared. But they warned that the fragile condition on the political front could drag down the upward trend in the country's economic performance.

Head of research at PT Socgen-Crosby Securities Indonesia, Lin Che Wei said he was quite optimistic that the growth trend would be sustainable as long as the political situation would not get any worse than it already is. He said the second quarter result in particular was way beyond expectation. "Overall the result is quite satisfactory. It's well above our forecast. It is higher than the market's expectation." Lin said the second quarter growth of 0.38 percent was above his earlier forecast of 0.2 percent, while on a year on year basis the 4.13 percent result was well above his estimate of 3.6 percent. However, Lin said, the country should be aware that the current political instability might continue over the next couple of months and drag down economic activities.

Kusmadi said he was upbeat that the GDP growth in the third quarter would continue to show a positive trend, but refused to disclose a figure. He said economic activities had grown quite significantly in the second quarter of this year as indicated partly by the sharp year-on-year growth of investment and exports.

New paddy fields planned

Jakarta -- Indonesia plans to develop two million hectares of new paddy fields outside Java to secure rice supplies for the growing population.

Mr Atos Suprapto, the director-general for facilities and infrastructure at the Agriculture Ministry, said the ambitious project would be completed next year and would focus on the provinces of South Sumatra, Jambi, Riau, Bengkulu and West Kalimantan.

He cited data from the Central Statistics Office which revealed that one million hectares of paddy fields had been converted into non-agricultural areas from 1983 to 1993. Without new paddy fields, rice production would not be able to satisfy demand, he warned.

Jakarta rules out new rice imports this year

Jakarta -- Indonesia's National Logistics Agency (Bulog) has said that, as rice stocks were still plentiful, there was no need to sign any more contracts to import rice this year.

"Bulog's existing rice stocks are still plentiful and our rice harvests are very good. So we won't sign any new contracts this year," Bulog chief Rizal Ramli was quoted in yesterday's edition of the Indonesian Observer as saying. "Our existing stocks are much higher than the demand," he added.

The country is one of the biggest rice importers in the international market and the move is likely to affect Thailand and Vietnam, which are Jakarta's largest suppliers. Last year, Indonesia bought about 3.6 million tonnes of rice, which accounted for about 13 per cent of the rice sold on the world market. Mr Ramli said rice from existing contracts would continue to be shipped to the country, but gave no details on how much rice was yet to be imported.

Bulog had to renegotiate 178,000 tonnes of old rice contracts this year to help cut an influx of imported rice, which depressed prices of locally-produced grain. In a bid to lift prices, Bulog spent almost 500 billion rupiah (S$100 million) to buy rice from farmers at official farm-gate prices during the main harvest from January to May.

Indonesia's unhusked rice production is expected to increase to 51 million tonnes this year from 49.5 million tonnes last year, with the higher output attributed to an expansion of rice- planting areas and favourable weather.

Bulog lost its monopoly on the import of basic commodities such as wheat, sugar and soya beans in 1998 in line with a deal with the International Monetary Fund.

Private traders are now free to import rice, but Bulog still organises most imports through its tenders. Traders said Indonesia had been expected to import three million tonnes of rice this year with Bulog accounting for half of these purchases.

But Mr Ramli said private traders were expected to import one million tonnes. "Our unhusked rice production will be enough to meet local demand, so imports can be around one million tonnes of rice for stocks ... but this will come from private traders, not Bulog," he said.

Separately, The Jakarta Post quoted Mr Ramli yesterday as saying that Bulog would become a state company by next June in a move to improve the agency's performance. He said the change would allow for better transparency in the use of Bulog's resources. "Our target is that by June next year we will become a state firm with a social mission."

As a state company, Bulog would be allowed to take part in commercial activities. Gains from such involvement could be used to offset the government's rice subsidies, Mr Ramli said.

He added that the agency could commercialise its 1,500 or more warehouses. It now uses less than five per cent of them. He said the overcapacity resulted from corrupt practices in the past when many facilities were built without any feasibility studies.