• Refugee action signals move to appease critics - South China Morning Post
• Jakarta rejects international tribunal - Associated Press
• Jakarta 'losing will to disarm' - Sydney Morning Herald
• Jakarta under growing pressure - Straits Times
• Militia up in arms - Far Eastern Economic Review
• Ambivalence over East Timor - Jakarta Post Editorial
• Extradition of Eurico opposed - Jakarta Post
• Legislators offer sympathy to Guterres - Indonesian Observer
• Dili asks Jakarta to return jailed militia boss Guterres - South China Morning Post
• Refugees caught in stand-off - South China Morning Post
• Crisis in classroom as teachers quit in droves - Sydney Morning Herald
• Australian opposition backs East Timor on Gap Treaty - Agence France-Presse
• `TNI involved in training and sharing weapons' - Bali Post
• Guterres accuses Indonesian government of disloyalty - Agence France-Presse
• Indonesian military trained, armed us: Militias - Kyodo News
• Dili braces for flood of refugees - Sydney Morning Herald

• Oil field blockade could damage the economy - Straits Times
• Indonesian workers protest against fuel price hike - Agence France-Presse
• Workers occupy mayor's office in East Java - Detik

• Female politicians form caucus - Indonesian Observer
• Government system requires major reforms: World Bank - Agence France-Presse
• Wahid rejects MPs' summons to explain financial scandals - Sydney Morning Herald
• Devolving Jakarta's hold on power - Wall Street Journal
• Wahid and the military struggle for supremacy - International Herald Tribune
• Indonesia army printed cash to fund subversion - The Age
• Gus Dur blinks in clash with generals - Straits Times

• Malukus emergency is still on - Straits Times
• Fresh unrest in Indonesia's riot-torn Ambon city - Agence France-Presse
• Muslims attack Christian village on Ambon island - Agence France-Presse
• Violence continues in Maluku province - Jakarta Post

• Papuan Council chiefs take conciliatory steps - Jakarta Post
• Jakarta bans hoisting of separatist flag in Irian Jaya - Straits Times
• West Papua: Situation will worsen, says Melsol - Green Left Weekly
• Troops restore order in Irian Jaya after clashes - Straits Times
• Troops patrol remote valley after rampage - South China Morning Post
• Three dead, three missing in Aceh - Kyodo News
• Wahid pressed to impose civil emergency in Aceh - Agence France-Presse

• Abdurrahman rejects Tommy's review plea - Straits Times
• Rights panel implicates 23 military personnel - Associated Press
• Officers could be tried in civil court under a new bill - Jakarta Post

• Wahid's masseur arrested - Agence France-Presse
• Batam a gateway for weapons smuggling - Detik
• Riau Police chief apologizes to students over clash - Indonesian Observer
• Provocateurs provoke police-Islamic students clash - Detik
• Two more officers detained for selling weapons - Detik
• Indonesian asylum-seekers leave Swiss embassy in Jakarta - Agence France-Presse
• Fire destroys evidence of cases of band banks - Indonesian Observer
• Wiranto declares UN guilty of `vulgar fraud' - The Age
• Australia renews invitation for visit by Wahid - Agence France-Presse

• Smoking lights up revenues, not health Interpress News Service

• Experts warn of low morale in TNI - Jakarta Post
• Indonesia's Wahid names new army, navy chiefs - Wall Street Journal

• Fuel subsidies for the poor still not in place - Detik

Protest continues at Caltex, car burned

Jakarta -- Angry villagers in Riau province yesterday continued to occupy a water treatment plant operated by oil company PT Caltex Pacific Indonesias (CPI). They also blockaded a contractors drilling rig at Kopar region, and held six CPI vehicles, one which they set ablaze.

The villagers did not stop the Rangau Water Treatment Plant from pumping water into the town of Simpang Padang or to CPIs nearby production facilities. The treatment plant is Simpang Padangs only source of clean water. It also functions to prevent the Rangau River from overflowing during the rainy season.

At CPIs Mutiara oil field, everything has returned to normal after a week-long blockade, during which protesters had held 13 vehicles, as well as service rig. Some of the vehicles had been extensively damaged, but Caltex said it was glad the Mutiara blockade had been ended as the company can now negotiate with protesters.

Most of the locals demonstrating against CPI said the company should employ them, rather than outsiders. But the company points out that its workers must have certain skills and qualifications.

Although we are unable to predict the outcome, CPI remains hopeful that discussions will lead to a win-win solution for all parties, the company said in a press release yesterday. CPI is now holding talks with villagers from Malayu and has stressed that a result will only be achieved if there are no more threats and intimidation.

The company is appealing to the remaining protesters at Kopar to cease their unlawful actions, as they are hurting CPIs business, which makes it difficult for community development programs to be conducted at needy villages.

These programs include education, training and job creation projects that serve as an important, although only partial, solution to the high unemployment rate in Riau.

Riau residents cripple oil company work

Jakarta -- Groups of local residents in Riau, demanding jobs from contractors of an oil company, have seized cars and blocked rigs trying to enter the company's premises, virtually crippling its operations.

Residents of Sungai Rangau village in Tanah Putih subdistrict have seized 37 cars and five rigs belonging to PT Caltex Pacific Indonesia (CPI), crippling the oil firm's operation, the Indonesian Observer quoted Riau police chief Brigadier-General Maman Suparman as saying on Monday.

He said an agreement had yet to be reached between the residents and management of the oil firm. "I have ordered the police in Bengkalis regency to arrange a meeting between the local residents and CPI management," Mr Maman added.

CPI Public Affairs Manager Poedyo Utomo said the company would lose two billion rupiah (S$387,600) per day if drilling was not continued. "If this situation continues, the state loss will continue. It will also affect oil prices," Mr Poedyo was quoted by Antara as saying.

"We were forced to stop the operation because workers feared to enter their work locations. They are worried there will be clashes with local protesters. We are concerned by the local residents' actions," he added. CPI manager Gery Fitzgerald said that locals are demanding jobs from CPI contractors operating in the area.

The blockade in Kopar had been followed by three other cases in which residents blocked access to CPI equipment at locations in Tanah Putih and Manday sub-districts in Riau, the Observer reported. "We can't move the equipment," Mr Fitzgerald said, adding that the company's operations had been halted temporarily.

He said there were blockades at four of the 107 fields operated by CPI in Riau. He added that police had tried, but failed, to persuade the locals to lift the blockades.

The company had informed other provincial and central government officials of the incidents but nothing much had been done yet, said Mr Fitzgerald. Although the company had earlier experienced the occasional blockades in Riau, "it has been escalating since last week". "If this is not stopped, we will have anarchy," he said.

Mr Fitzgerald said the company was "quite concerned" about the incident and estimated losses of between 15,000 and 30,000 barrels of oil production due to blockades that had happened so far this year.

Indonesians commemorate killings

Bandar Lampung -- Students from campuses around the city rallied and marched on September 28 to mark the first anniversary of the murder of two students, Yusuf Rizal and Saidatul Fitria, by the military during a political demonstration.

The 2000 students chanted slogans demanding an end to military intervention in politics and for a genuine investigation of those responsible for the killings. They marched from the former military post outside the University of Bandar Lampung, where the killings occurred, to the regional parliament building carrying the flags and banners of the 35 organisations sponsoring the commemoration, including the National Student League for Democracy, the Indonesian National Front for Workers Struggles (FNPBI), the People's Democratic Party and the People's Cultural Network.

Outside the parliament, Dita Sari, president of FNPBI, called on students, workers and peasants to remain united and demand that political leaders implement genuine social change. "We must make sure the struggle for change is not stolen from us", she said.

Fuel price rises spark protests

Pip Hinman -- Protests by tens of thousands of workers and students have rocked Indonesia since the government of President Abdurrahman Wahid and Megawati Sukarnoputri, under pressure from international creditors, decreed an average 12% increase in the price of domestic fuel on October 1.

In Makassar in South Sulawesi, police had used live ammunition and rubber bullets on thousands of students from various universities, according to reports in the October 4 Straits Times. Some 18 students were detained. The students in turn took six public servants hostage and demanded that the governor, Palaguna, apologise for the excessive use of force.

Following the release of the hostages, the rector of the Alauddin State Islamic University announced he would resign if the governor refused to apologise.

With the pressure on, Palaguna declared his opposition to the fuel price rise and asked for its delay.

"Increased fuel prices always result in increased prices of other goods, including staples", the Jakarta Post quoted him as saying.

Students organised in Front Padang, in the west Sumatra capital of Padang, and the National Student League for Democracy (LMND), in the central Java city of Semarang, also mobilised against the fuel subsidy cut.

In Bogor in West Java, hundreds of public transport drivers went on strike, blockading the main roads, demanding that city councillors approve a 40% hike in fares to offset the fuel price increase. The New Alliance for Democracy, which includes six student and worker groups, held days of protest in nearby Bandung.

In Jakarta, the 18 unions making up the Union Solidarity Forum (FSU) issued an October 1 statement calling on the government to cancel the rise and increase wages by 100%. The forum includes the country's most influential independent unions, including the Indonesian National Front for Workers Struggle (FNPBI), the Reformed All-Indonesian Workers Union (SPSI Reformasi), the Indonesian Prosperity Workers Union (SBSI) and the Confederation of Indonesian Labour Unions (Gaspermindo).

On the eve of the fuel price rise, the government announced it would launch several new social programs from the expected US$1 billion in funds saved. The money will be available for small business grants, village improvement projects and emergency cash for needy families.

In a statement issued by the FNPBI on October 1, the union's president Dita Sari said, "Nobody can dispute the fact that an economic recovery would need a lot more money injected into the economy, but cutting the fuel subsidies is not the solution".

The Indonesian mainstream media has backed the government's line, arguing that the fuel subsidy only benefited the rich and that cutting it will help the poor.

The Jakarta Post editorialised on October 2, "The government's policy of keeping domestic fuel prices as inexpensive as possible, all in the name of protecting the poor, must count as the biggest national conspiracy ever concocted by the country's ruling elite. The poor are the very last people to benefit from the cheap fuel subsidy which has been sustained for decades through a heavily subsidised system."

But Sari said, "The 12% rise in fuel has created panic-buying across society. This is despite the government saying there wouldn't be a [general] price increase following the fuel price rise. Clearly the industrial sector, which uses some 22% of the total fuel budget, is passing the increased costs on to the consumer and it exposes the lie that the fuel subsidy only advantaged the rich."

It's no wonder the protests are making some officials a little nervous. After all, it was the last fuel rise in 1998 which sparked the mass movement which culminated in the downfall of former general Suharto.

While the former ruling party, Golkar, has fully backed the government's neo-liberal measures, House of Representatives speaker and Golkar faction leader Akbar Tanjung is keen to appear sympathetic to the people's plight. He has called for the government's price control team, which has responsibility for keeping the inflationary effects to 3%, to release its findings and punish those profiting from the fuel price hike.

The minister of energy and mineral resources, Purnomo Yusgiantoro, also in a bid to deflect public anger, said that the decision to increase fuel prices had been difficult. He hinted that the government had no other option if it was receive credit from the International Monetary Fund and the Consultative Group on Indonesia (CGI), a body of the main Western donor countries.

On September 14, the IMF approved another US$399 million instalment from the US$5 billion loan program signed in February. However, in its review of the Indonesian economy, it warned that private capital was still nervous about investing in Indonesia due to political instability, and that an economic recovery would only take hold if public services and subsidies were reduced.

The Indonesian government is hoping to secure US$4.8 billion from the CGI to help reduce a projected 2001 budget deficit of US$6.23 million, caused by a budget blow-out associated with the IMF- driven bank restructuring and recapitalisation program.

The FNPBI says the fuel price rise is a consequence of the government's decision to push ahead with its neo-liberal austerity program, so as to satisfy the IMF and other international financial institutions, such as the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank.

"As is happening in other Third World countries, the IMF is forcing Indonesia to accept an austerity program, which it hopes will work magic on the economic crisis", said Sari.

She said the loan conditions include instructions to privatise state enterprises, liberalise investment and trade rules and remove subsidies on fuel and other basic necessities  all moves which will deepen the country's economic and social crisis.

The FNPBI argues that the foreign debt  built up by Suharto and his cronies stealing from the people  should be cancelled. "The foreign debt makes up one-third of the total national budget and this is the main factor limiting the country's ability to recover", said Sari.

The government had intended to cut fuel subsidies in April, when it cut subsidies to electricity, fertiliser and other basic essentials. But it backed down at the last minute, fearful of the political backlash.

With the opposition movement growing, it looks unlikely the government will be able to proceed with plans to further cut the fuel subsidy next year.

"It's impossible for us to make the government reverse their policy through discussions. That's why we have to go to the streets", Dita Sari said. "We will continue to stage rallies tomorrow, the day after tomorrow and so on", she warned. Workers and students are preparing a national day of action on October 10.

23 shot as military break blockade

Nurul Hidayati/PT & GB, Jakarta -- Civil unrest has flared in Bontang, East Kalimantan, Monday. Locals blockaded the American- owned Tanjung Santan Unocal Terminal oil refinery, clashed with security forces and 23 locals suffered gun shot wounds.

The injured were treated at the East Kalimantan Central Hospital in Bontang. All those "detained" in the Marangkayu Local Government Clinic were local residents. The victims were shot at by local security forces out the front of the terminal after a long standing blockade.

The blockade had been in place over 14 days after the Foreign Capital Enterprise from the United States was accused of reneging on a compensation agreement. Local residents were enraged after receiving lab results on the quality of their air which the company allegedly polluted. The results revealed that unacceptably high levels of toxic fumes such as sulfide and ammonia, to name just a few, were present in the air and were a danger to the local populace.

The incident came to a head when a spokesperson for Unacol, M Ramli stated that the Tanjung Sanen Terminal would stop production within the next two or three days but instead brought in the security forces. Ramli said that his main concern was over the shutdown of large scale production machinery. He said if this were to occur, it would take at least 40 days for production levels to return to some sort of normality.

"If fuel production stops then the function of the Santan Terminal will stop, as a result Unocal oil and natural gas production will stop because the oil and natural gas which is drilled offshore will be prevented from going to Badak Liquid Natural Gas Refinery in Bontang. Oil and natural gas will pile up in the Tanjung Sanatan terminal, and the terminal will soon reach maximum capacity," explained M Ramli.

Ramli had threatened to call on the help of local police and military forces to breakup the blockade if locals continued. Last Saturday night, Ramli carried out his threats and the police and military started to gather in front of the Tanjung Santan plant. A clash resulted and security forces opened fire on demonstrators resulting in 23 people sustaining gunshot injuries.

Unocal operates in Indonesia under the Unocal Indonesian Company (UIC) name and has had a production sharing contract with the state owned oil and gas enterprise Pertamina since 1968. The American Uniocal Group has 100% ownership over UIC which has concessions over 20,700 hectares of land in the Indonesian archipelago.

Unicol has two offshore drilling operations near North and Southeast Kalimantan with a further nine land based operations. On the whole UIC owns five KPS operations in East Kalimantan: East Kalimantan KPS (100% Unocol), South Makassar KPS (Unocal 50% and Mobil Oil 50%), Selulu KPS (Unocol 80% and Lasmo 20%). Their total petrol and natural gas production in East Kalimantan includes 58,651 barrels of oil per day, along with 222 million cubic feet of natural gas per day which is exported to Japan, Korea and Taiwan.

Protesters halt Caltex's Riau operations

Chaidir Anwar Tanjung/GB, Pekanbaru -- Villagers from the Sungai Rangau area, Tanah Putih subdistrict, Bengkalis, Riau province, Sumatra, have virtually taken over the local oilfields mined by international mining giant Caltex. After seizing 37 vehicles, the villagers moved on to occupy five oilfields, halting operations completely.

Speaking with Detik Monday, chief of the Riau Police, Maman Supratman, said the villagers and company have yet to settle their differences and confirmed that the confrontation had moved up a gear with the occupation.

Nevertheless, he said the Bengkalis police had assured him that the two sides would be meeting in the very near future. "I have already ordered the Bengkalis police to bring representatives of the two sides together today. I really hope the local people can restrain themselves," he said.

Meanwhile, according to Caltex's public relations officer Poedyo Oetomo, the company is losing Rp 2 billion per day per oilfield while production is at a standstill. "If this continues, losses to the state will mount up and the impact will influence the price of oil," he said.

He explained that the majority of oilfields in question were located near Sintong village, Bangko, Bengkalis, Riau. One oilfield was had also been taken over near the Sungai Rangau village "We were forced to halt operations because the workers weren't brave enough to go to the locations. They were afraid of clashing with the locals, we really regret the locals' actions," he said.

The tensions began after 70 locals demanded to be employed by the company or their contractors. Their demands were not acted upon at all and they then seized the 37 vehicles. Other locals have joined them in the protest action although there are no rough estimates on the numbers occupying the oilfields.
 

East Timor

Refugee action signals move to appease critics

Agence France-Presse in Jakarta -- The Government yesterday moved to convince the international community, including Jakarta's main donors, of its determination to resolve the violence and refugee problems in West Timor.

Authorities yesterday sent a large taskforce to the province to speed up the repatriation or resettlement of some 130,000 East Timorese still in refugee camps.

The Government also said it had invited the UN Security Council to send a delegation as police announced the arrest of a seventh suspect for the murders of three UN relief workers in West Timor last month.

A 47-member team of officials from 16 ministries and police and military agencies flew to the West Timor border town of Atambua from an air force base in East Jakarta early yesterday. Chief Security Minister Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said the team's main task was to re-register the tens of thousands of East Timorese refugees to determine who wanted to return home and who wanted to remain in Indonesia.

The refugees are the last of about 250,000 East Timorese who were forced across the border into West Timor when militias rampaged through East Timor last year, after the territory's overwhelming vote for independence.

"Indonesia is not playing around with this matter. For me, the solution to the refugee problems must not be delayed due to an international political problem," General Susilo said. He said the team would also further investigate the killings of the three UN refugee workers in Atambua on September 6 by rampaging militiamen opposed to independence.

International pressure has mounted on Jakarta since the killings to disarm and disband the pro-Jakarta militias who have lived among the refugees in squalid camps in West Timor and other parts of East Nusa Tenggara for the past 13 months.

General Susilo said Jakarta's invitation to a UN Security Council delegation to visit West Timor would enable observers to witness "the disarmament process, the investigation [of the UN workers murders] and the preparatory steps for the re-registration" of refugees. Indonesia had previously stalled on any such visit, saying it was not the right time and would not help solve the problems in West Timor.

Announcing the arrest of a seventh suspect in the murders of the UN workers, the police chief in the West Timorese border district of Belu, Superintendent S. M. Simatupang, said the man was a member of the pro-Indonesia East Timorese community in West Timor.

Jakarta rejects international tribunal

United Nations -- Indonesia rejected Nobel Peace laureate Jose Ramos-Horta's call for an international war crimes tribunal for East Timor, saying it wants to bring those responsible for last year's deadly rampage to justice and does not need outside help.

"I think our stance is clear that, as a sovereign nation, we can handle our problems by ourselves," Foreign Minister Alwi Shihab said on late Thursday. "We don't need any international tribunal as long as we can prove to the whole world that we can stand up to the responsibility of bringing to justice the perpetrators -- those who violate human rights."

East Timorese independence leader Ramos-Horta told a news conference earlier on Thursday that the time had come for the Security Council to establish an international war crimes tribunal for East Timor because Indonesia had lost all credibility in bringing those responsible to justice.

Mr Alwi said that it was "an exaggeration" to say Indonesia's credibility had been destroyed, noting that the government had said it would welcome UN prosecutors to visit Jakarta to question militia leader Eurico Guteres about two massacres last year.

The minister held a news conference after reporting to the Security Council on the probe into the killing of three UN aid workers in West Timor, the disarming of militias blamed for their deaths, and the restoration of security to refugee camps. Last month, Indonesia barred a Security Council mission from visiting West Timor to look into Jakarta's progress on these issues.

Mr Alwi invited council ambassadors to visit West Timor in the week of November 13 "to see with their own eyes what has been achieved by the Indonesian government with regard to solving the problem", but he stressed it was a trip to observe, not investigate. "Security is under control," he said, and the government would like the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, which pulled out after the September slaying of the aid workers, to return.

US Ambassador Richard Holbrooke said Jakarta had taken "an important step in the right direction" by arresting Guteres and inviting the council to West Timor. But he said US concerns about the refugees, the Indonesian army's support for the militias, and Jakarta's failure to disarm the militia, had not abated.

Jakarta 'losing will to disarm'

Hamish McDonald, Dili -- The United Nations refugee agency says Indonesian Government efforts to disarm militias controlling refugee camps in West Timor appear to have halted.

What appeared a week ago to be a gathering flood of East Timorese returning from camps across the border has dried to a trickle -- only eight people on Thursday and none by midday yesterday.

More than 120,000 people were deported across the border by pro- Indonesian militias after East Timor's vote for independence in August last year.

Since last month's militia attack on the office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees in the West Timor border town of Atambua, when three UNHCR staff were murdered, Indonesian militiary and police units have conducted a highly publicised crackdown on the militias.

But UNHCR spokesman Mr Conrad Kessler said yesterday "it appears the Indonesian Government efforts to disarm and disband the militias have seemingly ground to a halt". It was inconceivable that there were not tens of thousands wanting to return, he said. "No returns on some days and a handful on others are indicators that the militia remain in firm control in many areas."

One refugee told the UNHCR she was forced to pay more than 200,000 rupiah ($A45) -- a huge sum for near destitute refugees - in bribes and transport charges to go from Kupang to the border.

Jakarta under growing pressure

Marianne Kearney, Jakarta -- Pressure is mounting as the Tokyo meeting of international aid donors takes place this month to decide whether to provide Indonesia with US$4.8 billion in fresh aid -- or to launch economic sanctions against the country whose militia had killed three United Nations aid workers in Atambua.

The United Nations Security Council has reportedly been horrified at the token efforts by Jakarta to disarm the East Timorese militias responsible for the murders and has called an emergency meeting to discuss the issue.

Jakarta's attempts to convince the world that it is serious about breaking up the militias has hardly been helped by bold accusations directed at the international community from its new Defence Minister, Mr Mohammad Mahfud.

The minister claimed that the recent violence in Atambua was the result of an international conspiracy to prevent the East Timorese from fulfilling their wish to reintegrate with Indonesia. He has pointed a finger at the United States and Australia as being the main culprits.

A State Department spokesman described the claims as an "insult", saying that "in truth, the violence in Timor is being staged from Indonesian territory under the eyes of Indonesian officials".

Yet West Timor is not the only region in Indonesia which is wraught with problems. Violence in the other conflict-torn provinces also threatens to flare up at any time. But Jakarta seems to have put these simmering problems on the backburner.

While the level of sectarian violence in Ambon and North Maluku had been at a low ebb since early July, there has been renewed fighting between Muslims and Christians in Ambon, and violence has also made a comeback in Aceh.

Analysts say that Ambon's recent calm is due more to a lack of Ambonese villages left to fight over rather than to the success of any kind of government policy for the area. Much of the island -- apart from a few pockets in Ambon city as well as some villages on the northeast -- are under the control of Muslim villagers, aid workers say.

Ambonese Christians allege that elements of the armed forces continue to back attacks against Christian villages, while Muslim groups complain of impartiality on the part of the police. A diplomatic source confirmed that the military, if not actively involved in attacks, had at least stood by and watched while attacks took place.

At least half a million people have fled Maluku for Sulawesi, Java, Nusa Tenggara and even to Holland. But there are no plans or attempts to allow these refugees to return or to settle them elsewhere in the country.

As one diplomat noted, Ambon is set to become another Beirut or Belfast -- a long-term conflict with any possibility of reconciliation between the warring sides being light years away.

Yet President Abdurrahman Wahid's right-hand man, Coordinating Minister for Security and Political Affairs Bambang Susilo Yudhoyono, reportedly told a recent Cabinet meeting that Ambon was now under control and that the two sides were talking and preparing for reconciliation.

His only evidence for there being an imminent peace was a report from Muslim leaders -- handpicked and brought to Jakarta by a general -- that they were ready for reconciliation.

But their handpicked Christian counterparts, brought to Jakarta by the same general, failed to "perform" and instead told the President that the only way to ensure peace in Ambon was to bring in United Nations peacekeepers.

Christian leaders, such as Hendrik Pattinama from Aliansi Maluku, say that they can no longer talk -- even to the more moderate Muslims -- because now that the Muslims have the upper hand in Ambon, and the fear of international intervention has faded, the Muslims have no reason to talk of peace.

And even though the thousands of refugees fleeing from Ambon and North Maluku have the potential to sow the seeds of conflict elsewhere, there is little sign of government attempts to contain such possible tinderboxes -- or even to provide aid for refugees.

Commentators point out that areas flooded with either Christian or Muslim refugees -- a development which then tips the balance heavily in favour of one religion -- could easily become the site of another conflict. Manado, in North Sulawesi, for instance, has been the favourite destination for Christians fleeing the violence, while thousands of Muslim refugees have made Makassar, in South Sulawesi, their new home.

The government has made more headway perhaps in Aceh, where violence between the armed forces and separatists has killed hundreds over the past year. A three-month ceasefire, which the government has now agreed to extend, appears to have helped reduce the previously-escalating scale of violence.

However, extending the ceasefire, a path strongly opposed by the armed forces, may be the result of international pressure rather than a result of domestic support for the ceasefire. The Indonesian government has been under considerable pressure to try to negotiate with the rebels rather than use force to quell them, particularly after the mysterious killing of a prominent New York-based Acehnese activist in Medan last month.

But the controversial ceasefire -- which the army says, with some justification, has allowed separatists to strengthen their position -- is only the beginning of a solution for Aceh. The success of the ceasefire hangs on whether Jakarta and the separatist forces are really prepared to engage in talks focusing on a political solution, or whether the recent escalation of violence and intimidation by both sides will continue.

As commentators see it, there are a lot of other measures that Jakarta can use to convince the Acehnese that remaining with Indonesia is a better option than independence.

Body count up and rising

Aceh

• Since the start of the ceasefire in early June, 40 civilians and 21 security force personnel have been killed, according to official figures. But non-government groups say the number of deaths and disappearances is much higher.
• On September 16, respected academic, Dr Safwan Idris, rector of the Ar-Raniry State Institute of Islamic Religion in Banda Aceh, was assassinated.
• On September 19, two student activists with Sira, a group that advocates a referendum on Aceh's political status, were allegedly beaten by security force members and threatened with knives after being seized at gunpoint in Banda Aceh.
• On August 27, three staff of Oxfam working in South Aceh were hospitalised after allegedly being tortured by security force members.

• Several thousand people have been killed in the sectarian conflict and 500,000 refugees have fled the area.
• A civil emergency was imposed in late May, and hundreds of Laskar Jihad members, blamed for the recent violence, were sent back to Java.
• The navy has managed to enforce a loose blockade around the island of Ambon but this has not stopped speedboats from moving groups of fighters from Ambon to outlying areas.
• The latest clash on the island of Sapura, near Ambon, saw villagers from Ambon island attack a Christian village, killing 13 and injuring 27.

Militia up in arms

John McBeth, Jakarta -- Lenders are likely to have harsh words for Indonesia when they meet in Tokyo on October 17-18, if a promise to disarm and dismantle pro-Indonesian militias in West Timor isn't kept. The signs are not good. It has been five weeks since militia members hacked to death three United Nations workers in the border town of Atambua. Since then, Indonesian security forces have gathered only 70 military-grade weapons among over 1,000 guns. Critics say the government isn't acting fast enough in response to a United Nations Security Council resolution calling for the disarmament and disbandment of the 2,000-strong militias. They also say Jakarta isn't fully aware of just how seriously the Atambua incident has eroded its international credibility. Of $4.8 billion pledged by donors, $1.8 billion of project financing is at risk.

The Indonesian army insists the militias held only 100-200 military weapons in the first place. But Western military officials and UN staff claim they have up to 1,000 automatic and bolt-action rifles and significant quantities of South Korean hand grenades of the kind lobbed at two outposts of Australian peacekeepers in East Timor some months ago.

It may be a moot point. The three aid workers were killed with machetes, not guns. And militiamen still control the two largest refugee camps, Betun and Haikesak. The UN says Indonesia has yet to conform with the September 8 Security Council resolution.

UN refugee officials acknowledge that military and police pressure is having some effect. Since early September, 500 refugees have returned to East Timor -- a significant rise in the rate of returns and evidence, officials say, that the militias' hold over settlements outside the two main camps is loosening. But 120,000 refugees remain.

Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs Bambang Yudhoyono insists the Indonesian government is committed to resolving the problem "once and for all" and says previous "uncertainty" over the military's attitude toward the militias has been cleared away. But Yudhoyono suggests Indonesia cannot be held solely responsible for preventing further violence.

"The government will increase the degree of protection, but of course we can't guarantee there is no threat towards humanitarian workers because of the situation in East and West Timor," he says.

Yudhoyono also acknowledges that some military officers still feel kinship with the militias. "To be frank there was a close liaison between the military and the militia in East Timor and because of that there has been a difference of opinion in the military over how we should deal with the militia," he says.

"The dispute to a certain degree exists now." Some in the military feel the militias have been treated dishonourably by the same senior officers who won promotions for leading them in East Timor. "They fought for us for 25 years and we should have taken care of them by providing pensions, plots of land, jobs, maybe even bringing them into the armed forces," says a retired general who helped form the original militia units in the early 1980s.

How else to explain why it took until October 4 to arrest East Timorese militia leader Eurico Guterres -- and then only, according to police, on allegations of interfering in the arms- collection process. Guterres has been accused by the attorney- general's office of inciting the murder of 12 people in April last year, but has not been formally charged. Several other people remain at large despite evidence of their culpability in at least three massacres.

The 27-year-old Guterres may be vilified as one of the main perpetrators of the violence in East Timor last year, but some Indonesians see him as an almost heroic figure who fought to keep the former Portuguese colony in Indonesian hands. Speaking to the Review the day before his arrest, Guterres described himself as an Indonesian and a full-time politician with Vice-President Megawati Sukarnoputri's PDI-P party.

Indeed, he sees himself in a future peace summit with independence leader Xanana Gusmao: "What needs to be done is for me to sit down with Xanana and find a way out of the problem." It isn't clear what there would be to discuss.

Ambivalence over East Timor

Jakarta -- Reactions by top politicians to last week's arrest of East Timor militia leader Eurico Guterres underscored Indonesia's policy ambivalence toward East Timor. While officially Indonesia recognizes, or rather grudgingly accepts East Timor's vote for independence last year, the government continues to nurture or support pro-Indonesia militias who still dream of aunification or an integration with Indonesia.

No less than Amien Rais, the speaker of the People's Consultative Assembly and Akbar Tandjung, the speaker of the House of Representatives, have asked the police to go easy on Eurico, whom both called a "true national fighter".

A day earlier, Eurico in a widely publicized media conference claimed that all his struggles for East Timor's integration with Indonesia were conducted for the red and white national flag.

What he did not tell the public, and what Amien and Akbar chose to neglect, was that the militias were responsible for many of the human rights atrocities which besmirched Indonesia's reputation even if they claimed to have fought for a national cause.

Because of their reprehensible actions, Indonesia earned international condemnations on two occasions these past 12 months. First, for the campaign of terror and violence by the militias after they lost the August 30, 1999 United Nations- sponsored ballot to the proindependence camp. That campaign, in which the Indonesian Military did little to prevent, forced almost the entire East Timor population to flee and saw the virtual destruction of the territory. The second international condemnation came last month following the deaths of three UN relief workers in Atambua -- a refugee town near the East Timor border -- by a mob instigated by the militias.

It is incomprehensible that a person who has caused so much damage to Indonesia's international credibility and image can still be regarded as a national fighter. But this policy ambivalence toward the East Timorese militias explains the government's reluctance, or unwillingness, to clamp down on the militias, even when it has the legal powers to do so. Until last month, the militias were about the only groups of people in the country outside the military and the police who could freely carry firearmsin the open. Other people would have been arrested immediately for illegal possession of firearms.

This ambivalence also explains why not a single militia member or their friends in the Indonesian Army have been tried in court in connection with last year's mayhem. Nearly one year since the investigation was launched, the government has yet to name a single suspect in the case. Even Guterres, who has been questioned by investigators, is under arrest for a recent and minor charge.

This policy ambivalence is not without its costs to the entire nation. The killing of the UN workers in Atambua could have been prevented had the government put the militias under control. The repatriation of the more than 100,000 East Timorese refugees would have moved faster were it not forthe constant disruptions caused by the militias. Allowing the militias to roam freely with their weapons was a sure recipe for disaster. If Indonesia is not careful, this ambivalence can cause even more damage to its international reputation.

Indonesia's inability to clamp down on the militias and to distance itself from the prointegration cause raises suspicions that certain quarters in Indonesia still entertain the idea of annexing East Timor again some day.

Remarks by Akbar Tandjung and Amien Rais, calling Guterres a national fighter, are not helping to dispel lingering suspicions of Jakarta's territorial ambitions.

With East Timor independence recognized internationally, the government's tolerance toward the militias, whatever service they have done for the country, must have its limits if Indonesia and East Timor were to get along as neighbors. We do not want to be accused of providing shelter to East Timorese in exile to fight their prointegration battle in the same way we do not want to see Acehnese in exile fighting their separatist battles from neighboring Malaysia or Irian Jaya separatist fighters launching their campaign from within the Papua New Guinean border.

It is time Indonesia takes a clearer stand with regard to the East Timor militias. They should be encouraged to return to their homeland and fight whatever cause they have democratically and peacefully from within, or if they chose to become Indonesians, they should pledge their allegiance to the country, start playing by the rules, and most of all, start protecting the honor of the national flag.

Extradition of Eurico opposed

Jakarta -- Speakers of the country's two legislative bodies urged the government on Thursday not to allow the extradition of former militia leader Eurico Guterres to East Timor.

Both House of Representatives Speaker Akbar Tandjung and People's Consultative Assembly Speaker Amien Rais were of the same opinion that sending Eurico back to his birth place would damage the nation's sovereignty. "If we surrender Eurico to UNTAET, we will humiliate ourselves," Amien said, in reference to the United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor.

Amien and Akbar were responding to a request filed by UNTAET for Eurico to be handed over for trial in the East Timor capital of Dili, based on a memorandum of understanding signed by the Indonesian government and UNTAET in April.

Attorney General Marzuki Darusman has rejected the request, but instead has allowed UNTAET officials to question Eurico here. The 27-year-old is being held at National Police Headquarters on allegations of ordering his followers to repossess arms which had already been surrendered to the security authorities. He has also been implicated in alleged human rights abuses in East Timor last year.

Amien said the nation should prevent Eurico's extradition since he had chosen to remain an Indonesian citizen. "If international players are unhappy with the way we handle Eurico's case, then so be it as we don't have to satisfy them. Let them live with their dissatisfaction," Amien, who is also a professor in international relations, contended.

Akbar echoed Amien's statement, saying that as a sovereign country, Indonesia should not be dictated to by UNTAET. He also agreed that as an Indonesian national, Eurico should be tried here. "We are still deliberating the human rights tribunal bill which later could be applied to alleged human rights cases. So I think this is enough to show to the world our commitment in dealing with this case," he remarked.

Marzuki reiterated on Thursday the possibility of UNTAET investigators questioning Eurico here. He said he had met with President Abdurrahman Wahid, Coordinating Minister For Social, Political and Security Affairs Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and National Police chief Gen. Surojo Bimantoro to discuss the issue. "The outcome of the meeting was that Eurico should stay in Jakarta," Marzuki told reporters before a Cabinet meeting.

In Denpasar, a routine meeting between the chief of the Udayana Military Command Maj. Gen. Kiki Sjahnakri and commander of the UNTAET Peace Keeping Force Lt. Gen. Boonsrang Niumpradith failed to decide on the planned repatriation of more than 1,200 former civil servants and their families toEast Timor.

Kiki said after the three-hour meeting that the repatriation issue was dropped from the original agenda after representatives of the UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) failed to show up.

Head of UNTAET Sergio de Mello did not permit the representatives of the two international organizations to attend the regular meeting, although they had expressed a wish to do so, Kiki claimed.

He said the repatriation of the civil servants' families is expected to mark the beginning of a successful exodus of East Timorese refugees back totheir homes. The first batch of 64 families made up of some 500 people are slated to head for Los Palos and Viqueque.

Some 130,000 East Timorese refugees, who fled their ravaged homeland after the people of the territory opted for independence last year, are living in camps across East Nusa Tenggara.

Legislators offer sympathy to Guterres

Jakarta -- Four members of the House of Representatives Commission I yesterday paid a visit to former pro-Jakarta militia chief Eurico Guterres, who is being detained at police headquarters in South Jakarta.

House Commission I Chairman Yasril Ananta Baharuddin said the visit was a show of support and sympathy to Guterres. We also want to back up police to resolve this case, said Yasril, who was accompanied by Asnawi Latief, Astrid Susanto and Paulus.

He said Commission I wants police to consider the courage and psychological determination of Guterres to defend East Timor as part of Indonesia. Not every person has that sort of readiness to maintain the red-and-white [national flag] like Guterres did.

Yasril said he visited Guterres in his capacity as an Indonesian citizen. This is not aimed at forcing police to release Guterres. We dont want to interfere in the investigation process being conducted by police, he added.

Guterres was arrested last week on charge of inciting his followers to take their weapons back from a local police office in West Timor. He is charged with violting Article 160 of the Criminal Code for provocation.

Dili asks Jakarta to return jailed militia boss Guterres

Vaudine England, Jakarta -- Authorities in East Timor have issued an arrest warrant for Eurico Guterres, the militia leader held by police in Jakarta.

"We're asking the Indonesian authorities to send Guterres over," said Barbara Reis, spokeswoman for the UN Transitional Administration in East Timor (Untaet). "We're waiting for feedback from the Indonesian Government."

East Timor's special panel for serious crime, set up by the UN, wants Guterres arrested over the attack on April 17 last year on the house of independence supporter Mario Carrascalao, which left 12 people dead, and the Liquica massacre on April 6, when militiamen attacked a church and butchered scores of unarmed adults and children.

Commenting on the arrest warrant, a police spokesman said government authorities might refuse to turn Guterres over because of pending legal matters against him in Jakarta. "They could just as well try [to seek the repatriation], but it's not a correct thing to do," Brigadier General Saleh Saaf said.

Pro-Jakarta militias, backed by Indonesian military and police, waged a campaign of terror in the lead-up to East Timor's independence vote, and ravaged the territory after a massive majority voted to end Jakarta's rule.

Guterres is being grilled in Jakarta over the destruction of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees' office in Atambua, West Timor, and the murder of three of the agency's foreign staff last month.

"I'm ready to be tried wherever, even in a court of hell," said a defiant Guterres from his Jakarta cell. "But let me emphasise I am an Indonesian citizen. I don't want to be tried in East Timor and I'm sure the Indonesian Government would not surrender me to East Timor because I have been fighting for the side of Indonesia."

The arrest warrant for Guterres surprised officials in Jakarta. Sources said Indonesia had yet to catch up with the fact that East Timor has its own functioning judiciary, including the special panels for serious crimes. "This is not a United Nations international human rights tribunal, but it is not an ordinary court either," Ms Reis said.

Indonesia insists it will try its own people first -- to fend off calls for an international rights tribunal. But Jakarta is also bound by a memorandum of understanding on co-operation signed by Indonesia and East Timor, which says such matters "should be guided by the principle that individuals shall generally be held responsible in the jurisdiction where the crime at issue was committed".

The memorandum commits both states to "undertake to transfer to each other all persons whom the competent authorities of the requesting party are prosecuting for a criminal offence". Jakarta can refuse the transfer request "if the carrying out of legal proceedings by authorities of the requesting party would not be in the interests of justice".

UN sources in Dili said it was a coincidence that their arrest warrant for Guterres was issued after he was detained in Jakarta. Asked why it was not issued earlier, one source said the work simply had not been completed on the relevant cases until now.

Meanwhile, an Indonesian citizen now in a UN jail in Becora, East Timor, is at last receiving medical attention following concern that a gunshot wound to his stomach could kill him in detention. Taryono was remanded in custody on March 31 after wounding two people. Though charged, he has yet to go on trial, and UN officials say East Timor's judicial system is failing to take proper care of its prisoners. Questions have also been raised about the willingness of any hospital in East Timor to accept the prisoner, but sources now say steps are being taken to save Taryono.

Refugees caught in stand-off

Vaudine England, Jakarta -- Despite government claims that pro- Indonesian militias have been disarmed in West Timor, United Nations staff fear the fate of more than 100,000 East Timorese refugees still in the western half of the divide d island will be determined without UN help.

Security Minister Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has been briefing diplomats over the past two days about Indonesia's efforts to comply with international demands for an end to militia terror in West Timor.

"We've done everything we can do. There has been a lot of progress," said Foreign Ministry spokesman Sulaiman Abdulmanan. "I hope everyone is satisfied because this is the best we can do." Foreign Minister Alwi Shihab is on his way to brief the UN Security Council on Jakarta's work, which includes the arrest of notorious militia leader Eurico Guterres and the detention of six murder suspects in West Timor.

Minister for Resettlement and Regional Development Erna Witoelar said yesterday her office planned to register, repatriate and resettle the refugees, but that Jakarta needed foreign funds to complete the task. The donor and diplomatic communities remain sceptical amid fears that the refugees will still be deprived of a free, safe and fair choice about where they go.

"The spectre still looms of Indonesia getting fed up with the refugees and the attendant problems and just forcibly closing the camps," a UN source said. "There's a really strong possibility that all this could happen without the UN's involvement. There is nothing in writing to insist on a UN presence and the only bargaining chip we have is the money."

Before the murder of three foreign UN aid workers in Atambua, West Timor, on September 6, the United Nations and other agencies were providing extensive aid to refugees and trying to register refugees, who could then choose whether they stayed in Indonesia or were helped back to East Timor.

The complete withdrawal of foreign staff on security grounds following the murders has produced an uneasy stand-off: the UN will not return until all is safe in West Timor, but it remains unwilling to take blanket assurances from Indonesia about security.

"The Indonesians are patting themselves on the back, saying how many weapons they have collected from militias without any violence or disorder," said a Western diplomat. "But we think it's premature to congratulate them yet. They haven't opened up the process [to international scrutiny]." Another diplomat said: "Deep down I would guess they've done very little."

Indonesia says it is ready to start registering the refugees and international observers would be invited to witness the process to ensure its credibility. "We are aiming to solve the refugee problem totally," said Ms Witoelar. "By the end of 2001 there will be no more refugees."

But Indonesia can only provide housing for about one-eighth of the refugees, or 4,000 families, and must balance the refugees' demands against those of local residents, said Ms Witoelar. Raising fears of a continued exclusion of foreign aid workers, she also said a fresh registration process would begin in a month.

In September, 332 refugees returned home to East Timor, an increase over the 190 repatriated the previous month. Recent returnees cite several reasons for returning, including the reduced level of help in the camps.

Some reported that militiamen had left some refugee sites, while others said militia had tightened their control. They said militiamen patrolled the sites at night, undertake a weekly roll call of refugees and only allowed the displaced East Timorese to leave the settlements to shop if they left some family members behind, who were effectively kept as hostages.

Crisis in classroom as teachers quit in droves

Mark Dodd, Dili -- East Timor is facing an acute shortage of qualified teachers, with teacher-pupil ratios in some schools as high as 100 to one, according to the country's independence leader, Mr Xanana Gusmao.

Mr Gusmao said teacher staffing levels were unacceptably low and warned that teacher salaries would have to be cut from $US123 ($230) a month to $80 for primary school teachers and from $150 to $110 for secondary school teachers so that savings could be used to employ more teachers.

Already many teachers have left the profession to accept better paid jobs with foreign aid agencies or the United Nations working as translators and office workers. One former Portuguese language teacher said she quit to work as a barmaid at the Turismo Hotel because of a bigger salary.

Australian opposition backs East Timor on Gap Treaty

Canberra -- The Labor Party and Australian Democrats are urging Australia to change its national boundaries with East Timor to help the struggling country gain financial independence.

Negotiations began today in Dili between Australia and the United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor (UNTAET) over the Timor Gap treaty.

The treaty, which was originally struck between Australia and Indonesia without East Timorese input, divides up the rich gas and oil resources of the gap.

But East Timor, dependent on foreign aid for its entire budget, would benefit by hundreds of millions of dollars if it gained more access to the gap's resources by a shift in the boundary between itself and Australia. Already UNTAET has warned it will take Australia to International Court of Justice if negotiations do not favour East Timor.

Labor foreign affairs spokesman Laurie Brereton said it appeared the government was going to take a less than generous approach to the negotiations. He said Labor backed a boundary between Australia and East Timor equi-distant from both nations. "Such a settlement would place major gas and petroleum reserves within East Timor's maritime boundaries and constitute a just outcome consistent with the law of the sea," he said in a statement.

Democrats' foreign affairs spokesperson Vicki Bourne said she favoured a proposal which would give 90 per cent of all revenue from gap development to East Timor. "Revenue from the resources in the Timor Gap will contribute a substantial and long-term income to the East Timorese economy," she said. "The Timor Gap negotiations provide Australia with a timely opportunity to make a meaningful and tangible commitment to East Timor's future economic viability."

But backing a boundary based on the law of the sea would throw out Australia's international boundaries with Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. It may also pave the way for challenges to Australian fishing waters. A spokesman for Foreign Affairs Minister Alexander Downer said Australia was entering into the negotiations in good faith.

[On the same day, Reuters news service quoted Downer as saying that Australia could tie the issue of royalties in the Timor Sea to the future level of development aid it has earmarked for the emerging country. "The extent to which East Timor itself is able to get the royalties, or a share of the royalties, the size of its share, plays into the overall size of the Australian aid programme in East Timor and so on," Downer said. "So there are a lot of issues tied up together here." - James Balowski.]

`TNI involved in training and sharing weapons'

Kupang -- The existence of pro-integration militia now joined in Forces for the Integration Struggle (PPI) appear to have been a TNI initiative. At least 1,200 PPI member were trained in Ailiu before the referendum. There were also given standard fire arms from TNI.

Meanwhile, the Foreign Minister and Minister of Defense along with Udayana TNI Commander has asked that the confession be completed with evidence.

This confession was made in dialogue with Foreign Minister Alwi Shihab and Minister of Defense, Dr. Mahfud, on Sunday in Atambua. The meeting, which was also attended by staff of the two departments and Udayana Commander, Maj. Gen. Kiki Syahnakri, was held in the framework of gathering field data as material for the report of the two ministers who are to meet with the UN Security Council at UN Headquarters in New York on Thursday.

Militia representative from Untas, Juanico, explained to reporters that the statement was made to the Minister of Defense and Foreign Minister after militia were no longer willing to stand the suffering as a result of being cornered by the Indonesian government. Not even one of the sweet promises made when they signed up to be militia members through to following training and being given weapons had been fulfilled. "Now it is precisely the militia who are seen as the ones who incite chaos and are let to wander just like that," he continued.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Defense of Commander Kiki, who were asked for confirmation, asked that the militia not just speak but to indicate evidence of TNI involvement and breaking of their promises. This was immediately responded to positively by Juanico who promised he would immediately put forward a request to TNI Headquarters to ask for explanations from former army commanders in East Timor, from the level of the infantry to the city and regencies.

"The militia were certainly trained and given weapons," he said while pointing to evidence that organic weapons that have been surrendered and confiscated during the Komodo I sweeping operation are the same type as used by TNI. According to the Minister of Defense, ex-East Timor militia must put forward evidence that they were trained and armed by TNI because with that evidence, all TNI members who were involved in this deviation will be processed according to the law. "We need a legal subject and object to process this further," he said.

Guterres accuses Indonesian government of disloyalty

Jakarta -- In a meeting marked by blood and tears, detained East Timorese militia leader Eurico Guterres wept Monday as he accused the Indonesian government of failing to appreciate his efforts to keep East Timor within Indonesia, police said.

An unshaven and bleary-eyed Guterres was brought out of his police cell to meet 30 of his supporters who had travelled from West Timor to demand his release, local television showed.

The usually confident leader of the feared "Thorn" militia wept with his men, who in turn pricked their fingers and sprinkled drops of blood over a white cloth which they handed to Eurico as a pledge of loyalty, national police spokesman Senior Superintendent Saleh Saaf said.

"Eurico cried because one of his supporters presented him with a red and white [national Indonesian] flag as a sign of solidarity," Saaf, who was present at the meeting, told AFP. "He was very moved and wept and said he didn't want them to give him a flag because he has fought so long to defend the red and white flag, to keep it flying in East Timor," Saaf said.

The Satunet online news service quoted Guterres as saying he was not crying because he was under arrest. "I'm crying because right up to this moment, the government has not acknowledged our struggle. The Indonesian nation is large but it would seem its courage is small," Guterres said.

Guterres was arrested Wednesday on charges of ordering his men to take back weapons they had earlier surrendered during a handover ceremony in West Timor presided over by Vice President Megawati Sukarnoputri Monday. The charge is unconnected to his implication in last year's human rights crimes in East Timor.

After Monday's meeting with his supporters, Guterres was quizzed for a second time by state prosecutors from the Attorney General's office who are probing the East Timor atrocities, Attorney General spokesman Yushar Yahya told AFP. Police spokesman Saaf said Guterres, before leaving his supporters, entreated them "to be calm, not to make enemies with the police, not to riot, and not to fight."

Indonesian military trained, armed us: Militias

Pro-Indonesia East Timorese militia leaders in West Timor told two key Indonesian ministers Sunday they would tell the United Nations how the Indonesian military trained and armed them last year if their leader Eurico Guterres, who is currently being detained in Jakarta, is not released.

"Two hundred of my men were trained in Aileu and in Cijantung," Joanico Cesario, former chief of the Alfa Sera militia group based in East Timor's Baucau town, told Foreign Minister Alwi Shihab and Defense Minister Mahfud Mahmodin. Aileu is north of East Timor's capital Dili while Cijantung is the headquarters of the Indonesian army's elite unit, the Special Force Command. Cesario said the military also armed some 1,500 of them with automatic and semiautomatic guns.

Shihab and Mahfud visited refugee camps in West Timor and the town of Atambua on Sunday. They stopped for a brief dialogue with about 20 East Timorese, including the militiamen, in Kupang town, the capital of East Nusa Tenggara Province which includes West Timor.

In response to the threat, Mahfud said it was "just fine" for the militias to do that, but legally the militias would have to be specific about how the military had armed them.

"We have to go by the law here, who gave, what kinds [of weapons] and when," he said. Cesario claimed he and 13 militia battalion commanders have agreed to send on Monday their letter, in which they stated their intention to reveal "the Indonesian military's support to the militias." He said they were disappointed with the Indonesian security forces over the arrest of Guterres last week over weapons offenses. "They [Indonesian police and soldiers] treated us like honey in East Timor, but poison here in Indonesia," Cesario later told reporters.

The Indonesian military has repeatedly denied supporting the militias, mainly in the wake of last year's orgy of violence by militias and Indonesian soldiers after the announcement of the result of a UN-organized referendum on independence.

Meanwhile, Shihab earlier told reporters he has witnessed an improvement in the security situation in West Timor. He said he was sure Indonesia could convince the UN on Thursday how his government has implemented the resolution issued last September 8, which, among other things, calls for disbanding and disarming of militias and arresting militia leaders. On September 6, some 5,000 militias and refugees attacked a UN office in Atambua and killed three UN aid workers.

Dili braces for flood of refugees

Mark Dodd, Dili -- Indonesian authorities have told the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees that thousands of refugees are likely to be repatriated amid unconfirmed reports that militia gangs are losing control of the border refugee camps.

A Dili-based spokesman for UNHCR, Mr Peter Kessler, said Indonesian authorities in West Timor had told him that 2,000 refugees would cross this week at a remote site in the country's south-west corner near the hamlet of Belulik Leten, an area controlled by New Zealand peacekeepers.

This is the first sign Jakarta may be bowing to international pressure to take action against paramilitary gangs holding about 120,000 East Timorese refugees hostage in the camps. The news follows conflicting reports by returning refugees of action against members of the gangs by Indonesian soldiers and police.

Supervising the arrival of 22 refugees on Saturday, UNHCR official Ms Anna Wiktorowski said returning refugees claimed restrictions were being eased, allowing them to leave camps near Turiskai and Hakaesak.

"They say permission is easier to get. Two or three days ago TNI [Indonesian military] entered the camps and there was shooting and firing and most of the militia fled into the hills," she said.

One of the refugees, Mr Daniel de Olivieira, a former government employee returning home to Maliana, said the border town of Atambua, where three UN international staff were murdered by a militia mob on September 6, had been secured by Indonesian police and soldiers.

Major John McAffrey, the senior Australian Army officer at the Malibaka checkpoint, six kilometres from Maliana, said five UN military observation posts on the border had called to report heavy gunfire inside Indonesia near Hakaesak on October 5, suggesting a clash between Indonesian troops and militia.

Mr Kessler warned that the shortage of food in the camps was becoming critical, and many refugees might be preparing to break out of the camps in desperation.
 

Labour struggle

Oil field blockade could damage the economy

Jakarta -- Indonesia warned yesterday that protests disrupting production by one of the country's largest oil producers could damage the budget and the economy. Jobless locals demanding work have blocked the entrance to PT Caltex Pacific Indonesia (CPI) oil field in Riau province on Sumatra island, hitting operations.

"Caltex oil production should be maintained," Mines and Energy Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro told reporters in Jakarta. "If the production is affected then it would affect the national budget and then affect our economy," Reuters quoted the minister as saying.

Lawlessness is on the rise as Indonesia lurches through its transition to democracy. Foreign companies operating outside the main island of Java are a particular target because of their wealth.

A small bomb yesterday exploded at the Mataram office of copper- gold miner PT Newmont Nusa Tenggara on the eastern island of Lombok, blowing a hole in a wall but injuring no one, a company official said. But the blast did not affect the company's mining operations, which are on a neighbouring island.

Mr Yusgiantoro said he had taken the security problem up with Vice-President Megawati Sukarnoputri and Chief Security Minister Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and security forces would be ordered to do more to protect businesses.

Caltex produces about half Indonesia's oil output, but unrest in Sumatra has hit its operations. Caltex's output was 690,000 barrels per day (bpd) in September, compared with a target of 740,000 bpd.

Indonesia, the only Asian member of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec), produces about 1.30 million bpd. Indonesia's Opec quota is 1.36 million bpd. "Our economy still relies on oil," Mr Yusgiantoro said. "Therefore, we have to keep our oil production working and even increase it to meet our Opec quota."

The latest trouble follows a series of incidents that have plagued the oil company, jointly controlled by Chevron Corp and Texaco Inc. According to a report in the Indonesian Observer yesterday, Riau villagers have been blocking the entrance to the oilfield for a week.

One group has occupied a water treatment plant run by the company, the area's only source of clean water. Most villagers demonstrating against CPI said the company should employ them, rather than outsiders. But the company pointed out that its workers must have certain skills and qualifications.

"Although we are unable to predict the outcome, CPI remains hopeful that discussions will lead to a win-win solution for all parties," the company said. It is appealing to the protesters to cease the blockade as their action is affecting its business.

Indonesian workers protest against fuel price hike

Jakarta -- Hundreds of Indonesian workers protested outside the presidential palace on Tuesday to demand that a recent fuel price hike be cancelled.

The protestors, organized by the Indonesian Unions' Solidarity Forum, also asked for a 100-percent increase in minimum wages nationwide. "Eighty percent of Indonesians are laborers but they have been made objects by the power holders and businessmen just to enrich themselves," the protestors said in a statement.

Labor leaders Muchtar Pakpahan and Dita Indah Sari, jailed by former dictator Suharto for establishing independent trade unions and organizing labor protests, led Tuesday's demonstration. During Suharto's rule only one government-sponsored trade union was allowed to exist.

Speaking at the event, Pakpahan said the fuel price hike had led to increases in the prices of other commodities, hitting Indonesians doubly hard as they sought to emerge from the economic crisis that hit the country in mid- 1997. The 12-percent fuel price rise came into effect on October 1, after global oil prices surged to ten year highs.

House Speaker Akbar Tanjung was quoted by the Suara Pembaruan evening daily on Tuesday as saying the fuel hike has already led to a corresponding rise of other products over a three precent ceiling set by the government. The Indonesian government has said that the 12 percent average rise in fuel prices should only lead to a rise of up to three percent in other goods.

Fuel prices in Indonesia have long been heavily susbidized and the previous attempt to lower subsidies in 1998 resulted in mass riots which contributed to the fall of former president Suharto after 32 years in power.

Under the new price scheme, one liter of premium gasoline has jumped from 1,000 rupiah to 1,150 rupiah (0.13 dollars), kerosene from 280 to 350 rupiah, diesel from 550 to 600 rupiah and fuel oil from 350 to 400 rupiah. Trade unions and citizens' groups say the rise will impact heavily on the poor, who rely on kerosene for cooking.

The government and the International Monetary Fund have argued the main beneficiaries of the subsidies were industry leaders and smugglers who routinely sent thousands of tonnes of fuel to neighbouring Malaysia and Singapore, where prices were much higher.

Workers occupy mayor's office in East Java

Budi Sugiharto/Hendra & AP, Surabaya -- Labor action is disrupting Surabaya, with around 15 thousand laborers demanding to directly speak to the Mayor of Surabaya. The laborers, who took over the mayoral offices today at 10.30am, are demanding an increase in the minimum cost of living allowance.

The deputy mayor of Surabaya, Bambang DH, previously decreed that the minimum wage should be set at Rp 297,000. However, laborers are saying that Rp 330,400 is a more realistic amount.

Laborers, gathering under the banner of the Indonesian Labor Union Federation, want to speak directly with the mayor, Sunarto Sumoprawiro. However, as this report goes to net, they have so far been unsuccessful.
 

Government/politics

Female politicians form caucus

Jakarta -- Several female politicians have established a caucus that aims to raise public awareness of the role that women can play in running the affairs of state.

We come from various political parties. But here [in the caucus], we abandon our parties interests, and focus on women as a whole, Female Politicians Caucus leader Miranti Abidin was quoted as saying by Antara yesterday.

Miranti, a member of the National Mandate Party (PAN), said the caucus was established because the reform movement had failed to empower women. This is an effort to empower women. to make them more active, particularly in the political arena, she said.

Miranti said the nations strong patriarchal culture is still adopted by society and has caused Indonesian women to be marginalized.

Caucus Deputy Chairwoman Juniwati Masjchun Sofwan said the right of women to be involved in politics must be respected, especially when Indonesia implements the district system in the 2004 general election.

Thus, women will not only be active at the central government level. There are many cases in the regions, where women intending to take an active role in politics have been obstructed by society, or even by their husbands, said Sofwan, who is a member of Golkar Party.

The Female Politicians Caucus is to be officially inaugurated by Vice President Megawati Soekarnoputri and Womens Empowerment Minister Khofifah Indar Parwansa. The caucus consists of a number of departments, which include education, legal affairs and advocacy, culture and social affairs, and public relations. Our focus will be education and training, especially in the provinces, said Sofwan.

Although it is called the Female Politicians Caucus, membership is open to all women, making it possible for non-politicians to join, including women from non-governmental organizations.

Even men are eligible for membership, so long as they are gender- sensitive, said Miranti. She has invited prominent male figures including political analysts Arbi Sanit and Andi Alfian Malarangeng, and film director Garin Nugroho to join the Caucus Council of Experts.

Government system requires major reforms: World Bank

Jakarta -- The World Bank will tell foreign aid donors set to decide on fresh loans to Indonesia that the country's government system needs major reforms, according to advance briefing notes for a conference next week.

"The government must change the way Indonesia governs itself -- from its political process, to its legal system and its civil service, the role of the military to the way it handles its finances," the Bank concludes.

The brief was prepared for the conference of the Bank's Consultative Group on Indonesia (CGI) next Tuesday and Wednesday in Tokyo. It will be presented to CGI donor nations and non- government organisations before they discuss their loan commitment to Indonesia. Indonesia has been seeking 4.8 billion in loans from the CGI for this year.

The Bank says there has been "some progress" in improving governance in the sprawling island chain republic. "But the rule of law in Indonesia is still far from assured," the brief's executive summary reads. It calls for a "credible, comprehensive plan ... with strong leadership, and early actions that signal commitment," a process it declares "is due".

The Bank's Vice President for East Asia and the Pacific, Jemal-ud-din Kassum, said here Friday donor nations were looking for real progress in restoring security to West Timor before pledging full support for release of the loan.

The situation in the half-island province was placed under world scrutiny last month when three foreign UN staff were killed by East Timorese militiamen, who are hampering the repatriation or resettlement of 130,000 refugees still living in squalid camps there.

Indonesia is under intense pressure from the international community to disarm and disband the militias. "It's clear that continued visible progress in this area will be very important to secure the support of some donors," Kassum told journalists.

He also pointed to restructuring of the banking sector as a key to lifting the confidence of foreign investors. These have remained wary of Indonesia despite positive economic indicators such as controlled inflation, high export rates, real wage growth and boosted revenue from high oil prices.

They were looking for signs of sustainability, Kassum said. "To get sustainable growth, restructuring is important ... that is why the reform agenda remains critically important," he said. "Political conditions, regional unrest, and periodic outbursts of violence combined with ... policy slippage on the restructural reform agenda can still hurt the recovery process," he warned.

The Bank's Jakarta representative, Mark Baird, cited violence, political uncertainty and the role of the military as factors that were destroying investor confidence in the otherwise positive-looking economy. "That element colours everybody's perception of Indonesia both domestically and externally," Baird told journalists.

The briefing report also emphazises the need for visible results in decentralisation and fiscal consolidation, poverty reduction and good governance.

Positive moves cited in the report were the separation of the Indonesian police from the military, the establishment of watchdogs of the government and judiciary, and the delivery of some bankruptcy judgements. "Emerging political debates inside and outside parliament promise more such actions to come," the executive summary said.

Wahid rejects MPs' summons to explain financial scandals

Lindsay Murdoch, Jakarta -- President Abdurrahman Wahid has rejected a summons to be questioned by MPs over two palace financial scandals, creating a new threat to his government.

Challenging the authority of a 50-member panel of MPs, Mr Wahid said he would refuse to answer questions about the scandals and would only clarify the issues in a written statement. He said that under the Constitution only a full sitting of parliament's 500 members could force him to answer questions on allegations of treason, nothing else.

But the House Speaker, Mr Akbar Tanjung, said yesterday that a parliamentary summons was protected by the law. "Therefore, anybody who is summoned by the DPR [parliament], including Gus Dur, must come," Mr Tanjung said, using Mr Wahid's nickname.

The panel had said it planned to call 30 witnesses, including Mr Wahid, in sessions starting next Tuesday over the alleged theft by his personal masseur of $US4.2million from the state food agency Bulog and a $US2million personal loan from the Sultan of Brunei. MPs say there has been no accounting for the sultan's money, which was earmarked for humanitarian aid in the violence- hit province of Aceh. The masseur has not been seen since the Bulog money was discovered missing early this year.

Mr Wahid's stand-off with parliament will further heighten political uncertainty in the country of 210 million people as his presidency faces mounting criticism at home and abroad.

Mr Wahid's international standing is at its lowest ebb since he took office 11 months ago, particularly in the wake of his failure to rein in pro-Jakarta Timorese militias waging a campaign of terror in West Timor.

MPs from Mr Wahid's National Awakening Party have argued strongly against the investigating panel summoning him. But the panel chairman, Mr Bachtiar Chamsyah, said if there was sufficient evidence Mr Wahid would be called to testify.

He quoted a 1999 law that stipulated that all citizens should answer a parliamentary summons or face 12 months' jail. Mr Wahid has had a stormy relationship with parliament since taking office.

Parliament faction leaders questioned Mr Wahid for six hours on Tuesday over a range of issues, including his dismissal of the national police chief last month without consulting MPs, continuing violence in troubled provinces, and a 12per cent rise in fuel prices.

Devolving Jakarta's hold on power

Adam Schwarz -- It's not as if the administration of Indonesia's President Abdurrahman Wahid doesn't have enough on its plate already. Unfortunately for the beleaguered Mr. Wahid, his plate is about to get more crowded. In less than three months the deadline arrives for Jakarta to begin implementing one of the most ambitious political projects ever attempted: the rapid devolution of political and economic power from the capital Jakarta to hundreds of provinces and districts across the vast Indonesian archipelago, home to 220 million people.

The task is certain to be every bit as daunting as recovering from the political upheavals that followed the ouster of former President Suharto in May 1998, or recouping the economic ground lost in the dark days of the financial crisis. The risks involved in the decentralization campaign are huge. The World Bank, not given to hyperbole, calls it a make-or-break issue for Indonesia. Given these stakes, one might think the government in Jakarta would be intently focused on the issue. Worryingly, it isn't.

As it stands, the plan is to extend wide-ranging political powers and revenue-collecting rights to the country's 346 districts and municipalities beginning in January. Although the country's 26 provinces are not the principal targets of the decentralization program, they too stand to be further empowered. (Little wonder, then, that Jakarta has already received 68 applications for new districts and eight applications for new provinces.) In theory, decentralization is a fine idea. Most everyone agrees that the current heavy concentration of power in Jakarta is neither politically viable nor economically efficient. The devil, as always, is in the details. Former President B.J. Habibie passed two laws in mid-1999, which set the decentralization process in motion. Among other provisions, it gave resource-rich provinces the right to keep much higher percentages of revenues generated locally: 30% of after-tax revenues from gas, 15% of after-tax revenues from oil, 80% of after-tax revenues from forestry and general mining, and so on.

Partly because he was trying to curry favor from political elites outside the island of Java, Mr. Habibie insisted on giving the decentralization program an absurdly short implementation schedule of just two years. This was despite an acute shortage of human-resource talent and functioning institutions in the regions to which power is supposed to be devolved.

Mr. Wahid, who inherited these laws, was in a tough spot. He had to choose between the economic risks of implementing the laws on schedule, which raises the possibility of tremendous fiscal strain on Jakarta and the lack of service delivery across the country. Or he could choose the political risk of delaying implementation, and incur the wrath of regional elites already skeptical of Jakarta's intentions. In some areas, it is feared, delay could even result in heightened separatist sentiment.

Much to the chagrin of many mainstream economists and international donor agencies, Mr. Wahid has decided the political risk is the greater of the two and thus is intent on forging ahead with Mr. Habibie's timetable. Mr. Wahid's recently sacked finance minister, Bambang Sudibyo, put the case in particularly stark terms at a conference two weeks ago. "We have to start regional autonomy in January 2001," he said. "We are in the process of rotting and, if we don't do something, we will break up." Oddly, in the same cabinet reshuffle in which Mr. Sudibyo lost his job, the home affairs post was not given to Ryaas Rashid, the cabinet minister most closely associated with the decentralization campaign.

Some concluded that Mr. Rashid's removal from the decentralization brief implied a slowdown in the process. But in an interview in late September, Mr. Wahid firmly denied this was the case.

Yet even at this late date, it remains far from clear how decentralization will work in practice. It is not clear just what powers the districts are supposed to receive, or quite what their responsibilities are, or how the district governments will interact with provincial administrations. There are no procedures for arbitrating disputes between districts.

Although the districts are not allowed to pass laws that violate national laws or Indonesia's international treaty commitments, it is not obvious how Jakarta can stop them, or how it would go about disciplining wayward districts. Foreign investors, especially those active in regions outside Java, are justifiably nervous.

Only a handful of Indonesian provinces, most with abundant natural resources, are economically self-sustaining. Unless Jakarta is able to collect enough tax revenue from the resource- rich provinces and distribute it efficiently to the resource-poor provinces, the result is likely to be a sharply widening wealth gap. And that, in turn, may prove as harmful to Indonesian national unity as an excessive concentration of power in Jakarta.

The bureaucratic and logistical obstacles still to be overcome are mind-boggling. Experts say some 1,200 pieces of legislation need to be changed to conform to the decentralization laws. As many as 100,000 civil servants (and possibly many more) will have to physically move from Jakarta to various provinces and districts.

The central-government bureaucracy in Jakarta will have to be downsized dramatically to avoid a major, and expensive, overlap with provincial and district-level administrations. None of this has yet begun in a serious way. In fact, there are rising concerns that redundant workers in Jakarta-based ministries will simply be reassigned to work in state-owned enterprises. This could further stretch Jakarta's cash-strapped treasury and inevitably slow down the privatization program.

Jakarta is facing the real danger of getting the worst of both worlds: A badly implemented decentralization program will achieve neither economic efficiency nor political harmony. Common sense suggests that what is needed is a prudent scaling back of the over-ambitious implementation schedules laid out in the 1999 laws.

There is still a lot of homework to be done before decentralization can be attempted with a reasonable hope of success. The homework includes both a readying of the political ground as well as putting the adequate bureaucratic structures in place in the provinces and districts.

Indonesia's military continues to be profoundly concerned that a hurried, poorly prepared decentralization program is more likely to rip the country apart than bind it together. Mr. Wahid's vice-president, Megawati Sukarnoputri, is said to share the military's unease on this issue. A lack of support from the military and Ms. Megawati's party, the largest in parliament, will make it that much harder for the decentralization campaign to succeed on its current implementation timetable.

There is still a way for Jakarta to push back the implementation targets without irreparably alienating regional elites. But there will need to be a much more robust series of dialogues between Jakarta and the regional governments on the rights and duties of each. The key will be keeping the districts and provinces convinced that Jakarta remains committed to the decentralization of power, and that a delay in implementation is just a delay, not an indefinite postponement.

This is a task that cannot be left to the bureaucrats in Jakarta working on the decentralization program. This is fundamentally a task of political leadership and it falls to Mr. Wahid to provide it. There is little time to waste.

[Adam Schwarz is the editor-in-chief of AsiaWise.com, a Hong Kong-based finance and investment Web site.]

Wahid and the military struggle for supremacy

Michael Richardson, Jakarta -- When the Indonesian armed forces commemorated their 55th anniversary recently, the display was less elaborate than in past years. There were no air force jets screaming low overhead, no parachutists dropping from the sky for precision landings in front of the military brass and VIPs. Even the marching bands had been cut back.

President Abdurrahman Wahid, who become Indonesia's first democratically elected leader a year ago this month, did not mince words in addressing the gathering in the military's sprawling headquarters at Cilankap, on the eastern edge of Jakarta. "The military has been politicized, not to serve the state and the people, but to serve the power holders," he said. "The military has been used by individuals to further their own interests and this must stop."

Mr. Wahid has cut the power of the army within the military hierarchy and gradually removed army hard-liners and Suharto loyalists from top positions, replacing them with officers he can work with. Another reshuffle of commanders was announced Monday.

Yet the result is not progressive reform but a breakdown in the chain of command and a widespread collapse in military morale and discipline, Indonesian and foreign military officials and analysts say. "The struggle for civilian supremacy is still perilous and uncertain," said Kusnanto Anggoro, an analyst at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Jakarta. "It remains a big struggle for the president because some officers in the military still reject him."

Long used to being at the center of power in the world's fourth most populous nation, the military has suffered a major loss of political influence since President Suharto was forced to resign amid anti-government riots and economic chaos in 1998, ending 32 years of authoritarian rule backed by the army.

Under pressure from domestic opinion and foreign aid contributors critical of past repression and abuse of power, Mr. Suharto's presidential successors -- working with reformers in the armed forces -- have sought to make the military more accountable and professional and bring it under civilian government control. The ultimate aim is to get the armed forces to concentrate on defense and leave internal security and law enforcement to an enlarged and better trained police force.

There have been some significant changes already. The military's representation in national and regional legislatures has been reduced.

Serving officers have been barred from taking positions in government, the bureaucracy or state-owned companies. The police have been separated from the military in an attempt to reduce the army's still extensive internal security role. The armed forces have also agreed not to take sides in party politics.

After agreeing to go along with a certain amount of reform, the military establishment is now digging in its heels and refusing to budge, officials and analysts say. "The army is the rotten part of the Indonesian military," said a Western official, speaking on condition of anonymity. "The army has retrenched to protect its money, power and position. That's what it's really all about."

Some officials have accused unnamed reactionary elements in the military linked to supporters of former President Suharto of trying to weaken Mr. Wahid's government and prevent it from bringing to justice military and civilian officials involved in serious corruption or human rights abuses in the past, including Mr. Suharto himself.

Some analysts say that elements in the military old guard are promoting violence in an effort to show that the army is still needed as a major component of the government to maintain stability and prevent national disintegration.

Defense Minister Mohammed Mahfud warned recently that if the military felt "cornered" by unremitting domestic and foreign attacks on its status and reputation, there could be a dangerous backlash. The result appears to be a stalemate in which neither the reformers or the conservatives will gain the upper hand any time soon.

With violence, lawlessness and uncertainty about the future increasing, the private large-scale investment -- both foreign and domestic -- that is critical to the country's economic recovery remains on indefinite hold.

Indonesia army printed cash to fund subversion

Lindsay Murdoch, Jakarta -- Indonesian army chief General Tyasno Sudarto has been replaced only weeks after court evidence implicated him in an alleged multi-million-dollar counterfeit operation to finance clandestine military operations in East Timor last year.

President Abdurrahman Wahid gave no reason for replacing General Tyasno in an imminent shake-up of the country's beleaguered security forces. He was replaced by his deputy, General Endriartono.

Witnesses told Jakarta District Court last month that $A3.8million worth of counter-feit 50,000 rupiah notes were printed by military officers on the orders of General Tyasno when he was the military intelligence chief.

Second Lieutenant Ismail Putra testified the money was to be used to support military intelligence operations in East Timor, including militia activities. "I should be rewarded, not sacrificed before the court," Ismail told the court before he was sentenced to seven years' jail on counterfeiting charges.

Ismail claimed in court that General Tyasno was acting on orders from the then armed forces commander, General Wiranto, whom Mr Wahid sacked from cabinet early this year. Serial numbers used for the counterfeit money were provided by Bank Indonesia, the court heard. The court refused to call General Wiranto or General Tyasno, who denied the allegations to Indonesian journalists. "It is an example of thief shouting thief, throwing accusations at other figures," General Tyasno said.

Tempo magazine quoted Judge Poerwanto as saying the truth of the general's involvement in the case was within the jurisdiction of the military and not the public courts.

Unconfirmed media reports in Jakarta say General Tyasno was one of 45 generals who recently signed a document opposing Mr Wahid's promotion of a reformist army officer, Lieutenant-General Agus Wirahadikusumah. General Agus was sacked as chief of the Army Strategic Reserve Command (Kostrad) in August as he pushed an investigation into allegations of corruption in the command of his predecessors.

General Tyasno and the other generals who signed the document had threatened to resign en masse if Mr Wahid appointed General Agus army chief. General Tyasno said he was summoned by Mr Wahid at the weekend and told he was losing his job.

Mr Wahid is known to be unhappy about the military's failure to end violence that continues to rock the Indonesian archipelago from Aceh in the west to the Maluku Islands in the east.

But diplomats and analysts are worried that Mr Wahid appears to be backtracking on his promise made when he took office to reform the armed forces, including winding back its role in civilian affairs.

The latest Far Eastern Economic Review magazine quotes a senior army officer, Lieutenant-General Agus Widjoyo, as saying military leaders "still have problems" absorbing the principle of civilian supremacy. "This should not be seen negatively," General Agus was quoted as saying. The resistance to civilian control, he said, "grows out of concern about the survivability of the Republic of Indonesia".

Gus Dur blinks in clash with generals

Derwin Pereira, Jakarta -- President Abdurrahman Wahid blinked first in the standoff with hawkish generals after being forced into a compromise over the choice for the coveted post of army chief. Whatever hopes there were of civilian supremacy over the military in post-Suharto Indonesia took a step back.

The Muslim cleric lost another round in his long-running battle with an army that appears to be fighting back with support from the President's political rivals. The generals got their way not just by getting him to approve Lt-General Endriartono as replacement for General Tyasno Sudarto as army chief.

More significantly, they forced him to sideline the reformist general Agus Wirahadikusumah and his allies to stop them from holding any significant appointments in the army.

Palace insiders said that Mr Abdurrahman was "furious that he was not allowed to get his own way". While he did not make any public statements to that effect, his address at the swearing-in ceremony of the army and navy chiefs in the state Palace yesterday alluded to an underlying distrust of the armed forces (TNI) and their role in Indonesia. He said: "We need a strong power to defend our large country. But that does not mean that we want to return to being a military state."

The President has tried hard since coming to power to rein in the generals by imposing civilian supremacy over the embattled military institution. Periodic shake-ups in the TNI over the last year had allowed him to consolidate his grip on the military by putting in place generals whom he felt could push forward the reform process.

But political observers believe that he might have lost this round in his long-running battle with the TNI and rival civilian politicians. His ties with the army have alternated between confrontation and rapprochement, depending on the political dynamics at play and the intervention of other civilian politicians.

The first phase of the relationship, in the early months of his presidency, was one of confrontation. He asserted dominance over former security chief Wiranto and then antagonised the army's top brass by appointing the controversial Lt-Gen Agus as chief of the Army Strategic Reserve Command (Kostrad).

Observers said he also made the TNI uncomfortable with his policies on Aceh and Maluku and his stand on human rights. The generals found themselves being forced increasingly into a corner with the constant threat of being prosecuted over matters such as the East Timor saga.

The second phase saw both sides groping towards some kind of accommodation. The dismissal of Lt-Gen Agus and a much more hands-off approach to TNI appointments suggested the President was stepping back from confrontation.

The decision to allow the TNI to hold on to its 38 seats in Parliament suggested some sort of crab-like rapprochement was taking place. The strategic context of this arrangement was, of course, the threat of impeachment hovering over Mr Abdurrahman during the national assembly session in August.

With that threat receding and against a background of army- instigated violence in the country, relations once again entered a contested phase. The President sacked two of his top generals in recent weeks and made clear that there would be another shake-up of the TNI that included replacing military chief Widodo A. S. and General Tyasno.

He might have miscalculated by assuming that he could push through Lt-Gen Agus as army chief. The Harvard-trained general had burnt whatever currency he had in the army with his reformist zeal and by exposing widespread corruption in Kostrad.

In a show of force, more than 45 army generals gathered in Bandung recently to sign a document that would force Lt-Gen Agus and his supporters to face an Honour Council at which they were likely to be discharged from the army for violating "the military code of ethics".

Caught on the back foot, the President decided to give Lt-Gen Agus the deputy army commander's post. Lt-General Endriartono rejected the proposition outright. Against a backdrop of coup rumours and Vice-President Megawati Sukarnoputri's support for the generals, Mr Abdurrahman caved in and struck Lt-Gen Agus' name off the list.

He could also not go ahead with his plan to replace Admiral Widodo as TNI commander with air force chief Hanafie Asnan. The generals, with the backing of Ms Megawati again, contended that Admiral Widodo should stay on for a while, despite reaching his mandatory retirement age of 55.

He also faced pressure from national assembly chairman Amien Rais and parliamentary Speaker Akbar Tandjung. Both of them maintained that Parliament should have the last say in the appointment of the next TNI chief.

Having already offended legislators by abruptly sacking the police chief last month, it was unlikely that the President was going to risk even more resentment by going ahead with his appointment of Air Chief Marshal Hanafie.

The leading Tempo news weekly suggested that Mr Abdurrahman might have calculated that it was too dangerous to drift further away from legislators with policies that could undermine his political standing and perhaps invite a special MPR session which some, such as Dr Amien, had threatened.

Obviously, who gets the top military position and the deputy army chief's post in the coming months will indicate more clearly the balance of power between the President and his generals. It is unclear how the face-off will end.

Much also depends on how other changes in the Indonesian military will tilt the balance. The civilians want a TNI that they can control rather than to allow the military to point a dagger at the heart of the reform process. It seems fashionable to be a reformer in Indonesia these days.

The generals, too, want to wear the badge of reform -- but not when it eats into their core political and economic interests. This only suggests more battles with the Palace in the months ahead.
 

Regional conflicts

Malukus emergency is still on

Jakarta -- The government will maintain the state of civil emergency in the strife torn islands of Maluku as sectarian riots are still raging, Indonesia's top security minister Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has said.

"The civil emergency in Maluku and North Maluku is still needed because the situation is not stable yet. Once the situation improves, then we can consider lifting it," the Indonesian Observer quoted him as saying.

He said the best solution to end the prolonged bloodshed in the Spice Islands is to facilitate reconciliation among, and rehabilitation of, warring gangs. "Neither reconciliation nor rehabilitation can be done if the situation does not improve," he said.

His statement followed the latest clashes between Muslim and Christians in the main city of Ambon on Thursday, which killed at least five and wounded 17.

Mr Bambang, who is Coordinating Minister for Political, Social and Security Affairs, had said that the government was reviewing whether to lift or extend the civil emergency in the Malukus.

In East Java, Marine Corps Commander Major-General Harry Triyono suggested the civil emergency should not be removed until the security situation returned to normal. Maj-Gen Triyono said two battalions and two companies of marine troops were deployed currently in Maluku at the request of the civil emergency administrators.

National Police Chief General Suroyo Bimantoro has promised that he will send one battalion of Mobile Brigade troops to the violence-wracked islands. "In the near future, they will arrive here," Maluku Police Chief Brigadier-General Firman Ghani was quoted by Antara as saying on Friday.

Fresh unrest in Indonesia's riot-torn Ambon city

Jakarta -- Unrest broke out again in the Malukan city of Ambon on Thursday, with houses torched and unconfirmed reports of deaths and casualties, residents there said.

"It started shortly after dawn, with the attackers coming from the Galunggung area," said a resident living in the Galala area on the eastern border of Ambon city, one of the areas targeted by the assailants. The attack also targeted nearby Halong, where the navy has its base, he added.

The resident said that several houses were torched in Galala, but added that they were mostly empty houses or ruins which had already been burned in previous incidents of violence.

"I have not been able to confirm any death casualty, but I saw myself one platoon commander wounded in the stomach and two soldiers wounded on the shoulder and on the buttocks," the resident, who declined to be identified, told AFP by telephone from his home in Galala. He said the soldiers were wounded by shrapnel from handgrenades.

The state Antara news agency said one person was killed and at least 14 others were injured in the violence. An employee of the state general hospital declined to say whether any dead or injured had been taken there.

The resident said that the attack began with the noise of exploding hand grenades, later followed by the sound of mortars. He said that about one hour later the gunshot sound dominated as security forces tried to break the attack and disperse the assailants.

Most of the injured were shot by security forces who quickly came to the site to repel the attackers, the resident said. "I did not see police deployed, but instead there were soldiers from several battallions, including infantrymen from Sumatra and Makassar and Marines," he added. He said the Marines had also brought two armoured cars with them.

Antara said the commander of the Eastern Navy fleet taskforce, Rear Admiral Joko Sumaryono, had ordered the deployment of two navy ships in Ambon Bay to stay on standby and help restore security in the area.

Reverend Max Siahaya from the Christian Maranatha church said that the sounds of shots and bomb explosions had also begun in downtown Ambon later in the day. He said that one Christian schoolboy had been shot in the rib in downtown Ambon and has since been rushed to the Bakti Rahayu private hospital. The violence broke out as a delegation from the European parliament was due to arrive in town.

Muslims attack Christian village on Ambon island

Ambon -- Muslims from two villages on Ambon island Tuesday attacked a nearby Christian hamlet, torching empty houses, residents here said.

"Suli Bawah, where most of the houses have already been vacated by their occupants, was attacked early this morning," a local journalist said from Ambon, some 20 kilometres west of Suli.

The journalist said the attackers were from Tulehu and Tial, two nearby Muslim villages. There was an unconfirmed report that a soldier had been killed. "About 40 empty houses were set on fire in Suli," he said.

At least two armoured cars and four trucks of soldiers and police were dispatched to Suli to reestablish order, the journalist said. The security contingent had managed to leave Ambon through a road cleared of barricades. But elsewhere in Ambon, roads leading east had been blocked by barricades of stones, timber and sometimes vehicles to prevent the forces from reaching Suli.

After a lull of more than a week, blasts of mortar or homemade bombs could be heard again in the city on Tuesday, the journalist said.

Meanwhile, the secretary of the Maluku Protestant Church PG Manopo was quoted by the Jakarta Post daily as saying eight bodies, three of them soldiers, were found in the rubble near Sirisori village after clashes between two neighbouring villages -- Sirisori and Ulath -- on Sunday.

The five dead civilians were clad in Muslim outfits and were identified later as members of the Jihad militant Muslim force while three other bodies wore military uniforms. The military command spokesman in Ambon could not immediately confirm the death of the three soldiers.

Violence continues in Maluku province

Ambon -- Sporadic attacks occurred at several locations across Saparua and Ambon islands in Maluku province over the weekend, leaving one dead.

Secretary of the Klasis Maluku Protestant Church, P.G. Manopo said here on Sunday afternoon that the first of the clashes occurred on Saturday morning in Ulath village, Saparua Island, where armed gangs reportedly attacked using bombs and mortars.

The first attack was stopped by security personnel. However, an attack was launched later in the afternoon against Sirisori village. No security personnel were on hand to deter this attack which reportedly destroyed 15 houses and left one dead.

The latest attacks continue the spate of offenses launched against several villages in the area since September. The attacks have usually targeted villages which are religiously homogeneous. Saparua island is located about 100 kilometers east of Ambon.

On Sunday morning, Manopo added, another clash broke out in the same area. Maluku Police chief Brig. Gen. Firman Gani confirmed on Saturday evening the attack that occurred on Saparua island.

He said he would suggest to Governor Saleh Latuconsina and Military commander Brig. Gen. I Made Yasa the establishment of a joint police and military unit in all riot-prone villages on Saparua island to improve security.

Separately, on Sunday evening in Ambon, violence broke out in the Mardika, Urimessing, Waititar, Batugantung, and Karangpanjang areas. No casualties were reported in the brief conflicts.

Meanwhile in Ternate, visiting House of Representatives Speaker Akbar Tandjung suggested that the state of civil emergency that had been imposed on North Maluku since June be revoked.

Akbar said during a visit to the province on Sunday that conditions had improved and there was no longer any need for the area to be designated with such an emergency classification, adding that he would discuss the matter with President Abdurrahman Wahid once he returns to Jakarta.

"Community and religious leaders, political parties, the youth, have all succeeded in creating a conducive climate," he said as quoted by Antara.

[On the same day the Straits Times reported that in South Sulawesi, three students were shot by an unidentified group of assailants in front of the Satriya Makassar University during a protest on Friday. Eyewitnesses said that the assailants were on motorcycles and in uniforms commonly worn by riot police - James Balowski.]
 

Aceh/West Papua

Papuan Council chiefs take conciliatory steps

Jakarta -- Police said that the Presidium of the Papuan Council (PDP) onFriday has begun to take conciliatory steps following the government's decision to crackdown on pro-independence forces in Irian Jaya.

"The PDP in Wamena has announced seven points on last weeks bloody incident [in Wamena] which basically states their wish to support legal action against the perpetrators of the October 6 fray," Irian Jaya Police Operation and Control chief Sr. Supt. M. Kusnadi told The Jakarta Post by phone from Jayapura. A total of 35 suspects, mostly pro-independence supporters from the Satgas Papua task force, have been detained in relation with the riot in Wamena.

"They also promised not to repeat their wrongdoing and to no longer threaten the migrants. Members of Satgas Papua have gradually retreated to the jungles but we are still tightly monitoring the situation," he said.

According to Kusnadi, authorities are also proactively conducting routine patrols around migrant settlers to avoid possible disputes. "By the end of this month we hope there are no longer activities such as hoisting the separatist flag ... [But] we're still anticipating the possibility of a dispute ahead of December 1 since that was the PDP's planned date to declare Irian's independence. Basically there is still a latent danger from this separatist movement, especially since they fled into the jungle," the officer added.

Military and police sources have said that Wamena is known as the biggest base camp of the Papua taskforce. Unofficial estimates put their total number at up to 10,000.

The town of Wamena was engulfed in a bloody riot last week after securityforces pulled down the separatist Morning Star flag.

At least 30, mostly migrant settlers, were killed in the bloody fracas inWamena, located some 290 kilometers southwest of the provincial capital of Jayapura. Thousands of migrants have fled their homes and are seeking shelter at military and police posts.

It is also reported that some 45,000 students from elementary to secondary schools have been abandoned since most of their teachers have fled the regency. Antara reported on Friday that as a result the quarterly examination has been postponed.

In Bandung, Papua New Guinea Ambassador to Indonesia Taricius Eri stressed on Friday that his country would not interfere with the problems in Irian Jaya. "The upheaval in Irian Jaya will not affect the relations between Papua New Guinea and Indonesia," Eri said on the sidelines of a joint border committee meeting between officials of the two countries.

Jakarta bans hoisting of separatist flag in Irian Jaya

Devi Asmarani, Jakarta -- The Indonesian government, toughening its stance against separatists in Irian Jaya yesterday, officially banned the hoisting of the Bintang Kejora (Morning Star) flag because it had been "misused to symbolise struggle to secede" from the unitary state.

The move came as police began its crackdown on pro-independence movements in the troubled province, following last week's riots in the remote town of Wamena, Irian Jaya, that killed at least 30 people.

The decision was made in a Cabinet meeting headed by Vice- President Megawati Sukarnoputri. "The flying of the Bintang Kejora was tolerated before, given that it was not used as a symbol of independence from Indonesia," said Cabinet Secretary Marsilam Simanjuntak. "But in practice, it has been misused for exactly this purpose, therefore we now prohibit it from being hoisted."

The government also warned other similar separatist movements in the country that it would not tolerate any other flags flown as an emblem of separatist cause. In future, only flags with "cultural" significance could be hoisted, Mr Marsilam said.

Last Friday, supporters of the pro-independence Papuan Council clashed with troops in Wamena. Police and soldiers pulled down five separatist flags, angering mobs of people, who then attacked local migrants in the area.

Meanwhile, police in the provincial capital of Jayapura said it would give the separatists one week to pull down all the Bintang Kejora flags in the area. Jayapura Police Chief Superintendent Daud Sihombing said the police would forcibly take down the flags if the group did not heed the order. Those who insisted on flying the flags would be arrested, he added.

Late last year, President Abdurrahman Wahid further revived separatist movements in the province when he said during one of his visits there that he would allow the Bintang Kejora to be hoisted.

Mr Marsilam said yesterday that the Papuan Council had no mandate from the Irianese people to seek independence. Its role is merely to facilitate reconciliation between Jakarta and disgruntled Irianese.

He said the government would also curb the activities of the pro-independence militia, the Papuan Taskforce, to prevent it from being used as a secessionist instrument.

People in the resource-rich Irian Jaya have long resented Jakarta's policy of bringing in settlers from other islands there and dominating the local economy.

West Papua: Situation will worsen, says Melsol

Port Moresby -- Human rights lawyer and Melanesian Solidarity (Melsol) activist Powes Parkop has warned that West Papua will soon erupt into a more explosive and bloodier war than East Timor.

The Papua New Guinea government must deal with the West Papua issue with urgency and honesty, he said.

In September, PNG's prime minister, Sir Mekere Morauta, issued statements stressing that his government regarded West Papua as an integral part of Indonesia and emphasised PNG's position to his Australian counterpart, Prime Minister John Howard, when they met in Sydney.

Parkop told PNG's National newspaper that the position of the government was despicable and was a continuation of the policy of previous governments of sweeping the West Papua issue "under the carpet".

He said, "The government may continuously try to bury the West Papuan issue but everyone knows that it will not go away. West Papuans have unanimously called for independence and nothing will stop them. The long term solution is to facilitate the will of the people instead of turning a blind eye."

Parkop said that regional security would never be guaranteed until the West Papua issue was addressed sincerely.

"Long term security of the region will be better guaranteed if the West Papua issue is put on the negotiating table and addressed to the satisfaction of the West Papuan people", he said.

Troops restore order in Irian Jaya after clashes

Jakarta -- Settlers sought refuge at military and police posts yesterday as the Indonesian police, with orders to shoot on sight, began restoring order in a remote Irian Jaya town following the slaughter of 40 people in the latest violence.

Mobs beheaded or burnt some victims to death in the fighting in Wamena in the restive province on Friday and Saturday, Antara news agency reported. Many of the dead were given a mass burial late on Saturday.

Order had been restored by yesterday, provincial police chief Brig-Gen Silvanus Wenas said in a telephone interview from the provincial capital, Jayapura. "It is safe and quiet now. There are many troops on the streets," he said.

Pro-independence Irianese also released 22 migrants they had held hostage since Saturday after negotiations between local leaders and representatives of the police, the military and the local administration, officials said.

The private SCTV network quoted police as saying at least 40 people had been killed. Antara put the toll at 28 dead, but said the figure was expected to rise as many families had reported relatives missing.

Police said most of the dead had been settlers from elsewhere in Indonesia who were killed by angry separatists and indigenous villagers. However, local human-rights activists claimed many of the victims had been shot to death by police.

The violence in Irian Jaya was the worst in the province in years and erupted when police pulled down outlawed rebel "Morning Star" flags on Friday. The flying of rebel flags has become a symbolic and provocative act of defiance against Indonesia's central government and military, which has rejected calls for independence for the resource-rich, but largely undeveloped region.

Villagers attacked police with bows and arrows and machetes, but after being repelled by gunfire they turned on newcomers in the town. Indigenous Papuans have long resented the presence of settlers from other parts of the country who dominate commerce and industry, as well as the security forces.

Hundreds of frightened settlers sheltered in local army barracks and police stations yesterday. "The situation is now under control. We have called on the settlers to go back to their homes," the police chief said.

Meanwhile, Antara news agency said the hospital in Wamena was in dire need of more doctors because eight out of 10 there had fled to Jayapura following the violence. District Secretary Yason Mabuay was quoted as saying volunteer doctors were needed to treat 41 people injured in the clashes as well as other patients in the hospital.

Local military chief Lt-Col Agus Sularso in an announcement aired by the official radio RRI yesterday said that settlers should not panic because the situation had been brought under control. However, further violence was feared after the police chief announced that security forces would continue to pull down rebel flags.

Police said they had detained 59 people and had charged 15 of them in the killings. The province has been wracked by separatist violence since Indonesia annexed it in 1963 after generations of Dutch colonial rule.

Troops patrol remote valley after rampage

Vaudine England, Jakarta -- Troops with shoot-on-sight orders were yesterday patrolling a remote valley in Irian Jaya, where 40 people are believed to have died in violence triggered by the killing of two indigenous people by police at a separatist flag- raising ceremony.

Senior police officers claimed yesterday that peace had been restored to the Baliem Valley, but thousands of non-Papuan migrants were trying to flee the town of Wamena, most doctors there had fled, and other residents were sheltering in churches and mosques.

Authorities in Jayapura, the capital of Irian Jaya, Indonesia's easternmost province, sent a Hercules transport plane to Wamena airfield, but the plane will only be able to ferry out about 80 people.

Mobs of indigenous Papuans are reported to have raped, lynched and beheaded migrants, but human rights groups say many victims were shot by police and buried in mass graves.

"It's safe and quiet now. There are many troops on the streets," said provincial police chief Brigadier-General Silvanus Wenas. National police spokesman Saleh Saaf said: "The situation in Wamena is slowly getting back to normal. We have pushed the attackers to the mountains. They burned some of the victims alive and raped women."

Contact with Wamena, the capital of the highland Baliem Valley, is difficult, but rights and church groups dispute the official claims, saying the fighting was provoked by police.

Conflict flared when police tried to pull down the last pro- independence flag in Wamena on Friday, despite official policy that one flag is allowed to fly in each district at least until October 16, sources said.

"The whole attack by Brimob [Mobile Brigade riot troops] was unprovoked, so of course the people in Wamena were angry," a source in Jayapura said. "The fighting went on into Saturday night." Most victims were of non-Papuan background, mainly traders from Sulawesi or Java who have migrated to Irian Jaya in recent years.

"I wept in front of the police, telling them not to pass on the order from Jakarta [to remove the flag], but they wouldn't listen," said Herman Awom, a spokesman for pro-independence umbrella group the Papua Presidium.

He said migrants became a target of Papuan rage as police tried to hide among them. "We don't hate the migrants. The Papuans in Wamena don't hate them. But the police ran for cover to the houses of migrants," he said. Separatist leader Theys Eluay said he would meet President Abdurrahman Wahid today.

A foreigner who lived in the Baliem for a dozen years said: "Baliem people's weapons are spears or lances and bows and arrows. It's certainly not normal to behead or rape their victims -- which doesn't mean it can't be happening now." This source and others concur in seeing the outbreak of mob killing as predictable and provoked.

Economic competition alongside growing independence fervour have been fomented in a province where the indigenous Papuans have been excluded from development and marginalised by increasing numbers of non-Papuans. At the same time, troop levels have increased.

One local source said: "There has been a lot of build-up to this outbreak in Wamena, and it suits some groups like the military to create a conflict which they then blame on so-called separatists. This is provoked, it is surely provoked."

Three dead, three missing in Aceh

Banda Aceh -- Indonesian police shot dead three civilians Monday in the village of Julok in East Aceh Regency in Aceh Province, the representative of a joint committee set up by the government and a major separatist group said Tuesday.

Amni bin Marzuki said police in East Aceh shot dead civilians in a bid to provoke Free Aceh Movement (GAM) rebels there to appear as they failed to find GAM hideouts during a sweep for rebels.

Amni is a representative from the GAM side to the Joint Committee on Security Modalities that was set up under the peace agreement between Jakarta and the GAM rebels in May.

Separately, Aceh Besar Regency police Chief Supt. Saqyed Husaeni accused GAM of kidnapping three police officers in the regency. The policemen have been missing since last Thursday. "I don't know if the three officers are still alive or dead already," Husaeni said. GAM denied any role in the incident.

More than 200 people have died since May when Jakarta and GAM agreed to extend a cease-fire until January 15 to find a negotiated solution to end the conflict in Aceh where thousands have died in a 24-year insurgency.

Wahid pressed to impose civil emergency in Aceh

Jakarta -- Indonesia's President Abdurrahman Wahid is expected to come under mounting pressure from the country's largest political party to impose a state of civil emergency in restive Aceh province when he meets parliament this week, a report said Monday.

The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) believed the emergency status was needed in at least three of the eight regencies in the oil-rich province at the northern tip of Sumatra island, the Jakarta Post reported. "PDI-P will press the government to impose a state of civilian emergency," PDI-P parliamentary secretary Heri Achmadi was quoted as saying on the eve of a planned meeting between Wahid and parliament.

Achmadi named East Aceh, North Aceh and Pidie as the regencies where violence betweeh government and rebel forces had been on the rise. "The tension will mount unless a state of civilian emergency is imposed and security personnel given a legal basis to act in restoring security and order in the region," Achmadi said.

An official truce between the Indonesian government and the Aceh Merdeka (Free Aceh) separatist movement (GAM), is now in its fifth month in Aceh. More than 181 people have been killed since it began on June 2.

As Jakarta was considering whether to extend the truce, officially labelled as a "humanitarian pause", some military commanders have called for a state of civil emergency instead, alleging that the truce had only allowed separatist rebels to strengthen their forces.

In mid-September, Jakarta went ahead and signed an agreement with rebel representatives in Europe to prolong the truce by another three months, this time with unprecedented political dialogue on the future of the province.

The second largest party in Indonesia's parliament, Golkar, also expressed opposition to the truce at the weekend, alleging that GAM had turned the truce to its advantage. "We worry that GAM has used the humanitarian pause to continue the violence in an effort to draw international attention and discredit the Indonesian government," Golkar's parliamentary secretary Syamsul Muarif told the Jakarta Post.

The Free Aceh has been fighting for a free Islamic state in Aceh since 1976. Military brutality during a nine-year long government operation there that ended in 1998, and the perceived exploitation of Aceh's oil and gas reserves by Jakarta has fed separatist sentiment.
 

Human rights/law

Abdurrahman rejects Tommy's review plea

Jakarta -- Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid yesterday revealed he had personally rejected a request by the youngest son of former President Suharto for a review of his 18-month Supreme Court sentence for corruption.

The Supreme Court last month overruled lower court verdicts and sentenced Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra for corruption over a land scam. Tommy has since sought a presidential pardon.

"I met him at the Borobudur Hotel and he asked for a review of the Supreme Court verdict," Mr Abdurrahman told journalists on the sidelines of a meeting of the Nation Awakening Party here. Under Indonesian law, a presidential pardon or review of cases are the only avenues by which a Supreme Court verdict can be overturned.

"I told him that it was the Supreme Court's business and none of mine," he said. "So there is no KKN here," he said, refering to the Indonesian acronym for corruption, collusion and nepotism.

However, he admitted the final decision on whether Tommy would see the inside of a prison cell would still take time and involve consultations with various state institutions. He said a demand for a review of a Supreme Court verdict had to be supported by new evidence that could show the verdict was in error.

Tommy, a 38-year-old business magnate, and his partner Ricardo Gelael were convicted of causing losses to the state logistics agency (Bulog) by swapping a plot of swampy land in north Jakarta for prime Bulog property in the plush Kelapa Gading area where they later built a superstore.

Tommy remains free pending a separate application to Mr Abdurrahman to pardon him. Although Mr Abdurrahman has said he will not grant clemency, officials say Tommy cannot be arrested until the application has been formally processed.

Rights panel implicates 23 military personnel

Jakarta -- State human-rights investigators yesterday implicated 23 military personnel in the massacre of 33 Muslim protesters in 1984 at the height of the New Order government under Mr Suharto.

The National Human Rights Commission submitted its findings in a report to the Attorney-General's Office and recommended that the 23 be made the focus of a criminal investigation.

"The perpetrators must be brought to justice," said Mr Djoko Soegianto, who headed the commission's inquiry, which included the exhumation of the bodies of eight victims and checks of medical records. Despite this, he refused to name those implicated, saying prosecutors must first declare them suspects.

The massacre at Jakarta's Tanjung Priok port district is regarded as a landmark case of human-rights abuse during the former President's 32-year rule. He was forced to step down in 1998 amid riots and protests.

Since then, pro-democracy groups and the current reformist government have attempted to redress past atrocities committed by the military. Mr Soegianto called on the government to apologise and pay compensation to the families of the victims.

Muslim activists have long accused General Try Sutrisno, a former Suharto-era vice-president, who was then Jakarta military commander, and then armed forces commander General Benny Moerdani, of ordering troops to shoot protesters.

Both generals, who have since retired, have denied the allegations. Analysts quoted by the Indonesian Observer said "the two generals still wield influence in the military and are therefore untouchable, despite the government's efforts to put the armed forces under civilian supremacy".

Muslim activists claim that scores of protesters were killed by troops. However, the commission said it had established that 33 people had died. At the time, the military said seven people were killed.

The shootings occurred after Muslims protesters took to the streets in Jakarta's impoverished Tanjung Priok port district after hearing anti-government sermons at a mosque.

Yesterday's findings represent the second time the commission has investigated the killings. In June, it found no evidence to support claims that soldiers slaughtered hundreds of people deliberately.

Officers could be tried in civil court under a new bill

Yogyakarta -- Minister of Defense Mahfud M.D. said his ministry in cooperation with the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights and the Attorney General's Office is currently drafting a bill to enable military personnel to be tried under a civil court if they are indicted for violating civil laws.

Mahfud said the plan was in line with People's Consultative Assembly Decree No. 7/2000 on the Role of the Military and the National Police, which underlines the necessity for soldiers to answer to a civil court if they commit civil crimes. "The decree stipulates that civil crimes committed by military personnel should be tried in civil court, not in a military court," he told reporters here.

Once the bill is passed by the House of Representatives the military court would only have to deal with cases occurring on military bases or related to military operations, such as desertion. "The police, the military auditor and the Attorney General's Office will handle any civil crimes by military personnel," he explained. Mahfud highlighted the importance of the police and the Attorney General's Office in being prepared to probe crimes committed by members of the military, something rarely done.

"Past failures to investigate made many criminal cases involving military personnel just fade away," he said. Nevertheless, Mahfud called on the public not to admonish the Indonesian Military (TNI) despite its past record, often held in poor regard due to numerous alleged criminal and rights violations.

"I agree that we should take any military personnel committing civil violations before a civil court, but we should not ruin TNI as an institution. We need a strong military institution to protect us from the threat of disintegration," Mahfud said.

He said there were groups of people and non-governmental organizations which unceasingly and sometimes unnecessarily condemn TNI. Without elaborating Mahfud suggested they might be part of a conspiracy to destroy Indonesia. "Imagine Indonesia without TNI for just two hours. I'm sure the country would be torn to pieces," he said.

Mahfud remarked that similar strategies of undermining the military institution had been effected in certain big countries by other countries without undertaking a frontal war, such as the case in Russia and Yugoslavia. "They were destroyed without waging war as the people were provoked to attack their own military institution," he said. "We should all be aware of this. We have come to an analysis that we may be heading in such a direction," he said, while noting that growing public demands for independence in Aceh and Irian Jaya were embraced by certain foreign parties.
 

News & issues

Wahid's masseur arrested

Jakarta -- Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid's former personal masseur, a suspect in a scam involving billions of dollars, has been arrested after months on the run, reports said today.

Police arrested Alip Agung Suwondo, 43, in a raid on one of his villas in the hill resort area of Cisarua south of Jakarta on Saturday, Senior Superintendent Harry Montolalu told the Kompas daily. Suwondo is suspected of using Wahid's name to embezzle 35 billion rupiah ($A7.39 million) from an employee fund of the state national logistic agency (Bulog) in January.

Montolalu declined to give further details on the arrest. But the Media Indonesia daily said the arrest was the culmination of a week of observation by detectives who hired a house next to a villa believed to have been bought by Suwondo in the middle of this year. It also said that the arrested man only admitted to being Suwondo hours after he had been questioned and brought to Jakarta.

The case has dogged Wahid, with a parliamentary committee seeking to question the president over his possible role in the scam, popularly known here as "Buloggate". Wahid, who has repeatedly stated his innocence, has defiantly said he will not answer the summons.

Suwondo had approached the Bulog deputy chief Sapuan saying that Wahid needed funds to cover humanitarian relief in the restive province of Aceh. Wahid has said that he had initially sought such funds from Bulog but desisted after being told that the process was complicated and would need a long time.

But Sapuan allegedly issued a check for the amount to Suwondo from the Bulog employee funds, not the proper funds of Bulog itself. The money was split with several other individuals, some of whom have since returned their share to the police. At least 15 billion rupiah has been recovered.

Suwondo was still under police questioning, Montolalu said, without giving details on where he was being detained.

Batam a gateway for weapons smuggling

Chaidir A. Tanjung/PT & GB, Pekanbaru -- The island of Batam in Riau province is thought to be a major gateway for the illegal trade in firearms in Indonesia. "Batam's close proximity with other nations has been exploited to smuggle in firearms," said a spokesman for the Riau police.

The island is located off the island of Sumatra in one of the world's busiest trade routes and has been promoted as a special trade zone in recent years as a means to facilitate trade between countries flanking the Malacca Straights.

"At the very least, Batam with its geographical location so close to other countries has been exploited as a western regional gateway for arms smuggling," said Riau Police spokesman Superintendent S Pandiangan to Detik Friday.

The island is already famous within Indonesia as a major point in the illegal trade in luxury cars and electrical goods. Many have suspected that weapons were also brought in and distributed amongst the underworld and separatist movements, particularly in Aceh, on the northern- most tip of Sumatra.

The police no longer deny this. "We are not denying that the proximity of Batam with other nations has been used to smuggle weapon," Pandiangan reiterated.

The police in Riau also acknowledge that the hundreds of islands which fall within the province may also be used in weapons smuggling activities. However, Pandiangan was reluctant to discuss just how serious the smuggling had become in the province.

When questioned on the source of the weapons, Pandiangan agreed with popular speculation that the hardware possibly originated from Thailand due to relatively low prices in that country and proximity to Indonesia. "It's possible that the weapons are coming from Thailand. But what is clear, the Riau Police have sent a team to the areas in question especially to deal with weapon smuggling," Pandiangan said

Pandiangan said that the possibility of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) using this route to obtain weapons was quite small. He said that, for GAM members to use this route, "the weapons then have to be sent over land to reach Aceh." Nevertheless, Pandiangan said the police were on the look out and would not be complacent because an over land route could well be used.

Riau Police chief apologizes to students over clash

Jakarta -- The police chief of Riau province yesterday apologized to university students for a clash that erupted earlier this week when security forces resorted to violence to disperse a protest against vice.

I apologize to all people, especially to Riau students for the October 11 incident, Brigadier General Maman Supratman was quoted as saying by Antara.

Thousands of student protesters in Riau clashed with police on October 11 after the demonstrators had attacked three hotels that allegedly offered prostitution and gambling services. At 20 students had to be hospitalized after the clash and 3 were classified as being seriously wounded.

Supratman, who was appointed Riau Police chief four months ago, said he would learn from the incident and make sure that his subordinates will not repeat such acts of brutality. Im very concerned by the whole incident and I promise to take stern measures against my subordinates who violate standard procedures. I hope this was the last incident.

Provocateurs provoke police-Islamic students clash

Nuriddin Lazuardi/PT & GB, Jakarta -- Dozens of police clashed with students from the Jakarta branch of the Association of Islamic Students (HMI) during an anti-Israel and America protest in front of the American Embassy, Friday.

According to Detik observations, the demonstration began after Friday prayers when more than 100 students arrived at the United States Embassy on Jl Medan Merdeka Selatan, Central Jakarta. Protestors then tried to enter the grounds by climbing the embassy's fence although police successfully blocked their attempts.

The trouble started when someone among the students let off fire crackers while the police were warding off students from entering the Embassy and pushing them from the fences and gate. The demonstration then suddenly turned out of control and police failed to stem the unrest. A group of students fled the short distance to the grounds surrounding the "Monas" National Monument in the heart of Jakarta.

However, at 3.35 local time, the dozens of HMI students gathered peacefully at Monas were set upon by police despite the fact they had apparently surrendered after fleeing from the main demonstration which had turned violent. The police gave chase after the fleeing protestors and caught and detained them in the middle of the Monas grounds. Shortly afterward, the sounds of beating police battens could be heard.

For their part, the police are attempting to explain their behaviour by claiming that they were provoked by non-HMI students who had infiltrated the demonstration. "The students were infiltrated by a provocateur," related the Head of the Central Jakarta Police's Operational Control Center, Major Ricky F Wakano.

"The HMI students would never behave like this. This was definitely the fault of a provocateur," Wakano reiterated. HMI demonstrators who escaped the police seemed undaunted and continued their demonstration to the State Palace.

Two more officers detained for selling weapons

Arifin/GB, Jakarta -- Two more active military servicemen have been detained for selling weapons based on evidence obtained from a suspect in the Jakarta Stock Exchange (JSX) bombing. The two officers were actually detained last Monday but their detention was only confirmed Thursday.

The national news agency Antara reported that the two are "provost" or military police concerned with the daily discipline of troops although it is not yet clear whether they are Navy, Army or Air Force servicemen. They were stationed at the Jakarta Military District Command at the Headquarters in Cilangkap and were detained while carrying out their regular duties.

Commander of the Jakarta Military District Maj. Gen Slamet Kirbiantoro confirmed the detentions. Meanwhile, Commander of the Jakarta Military District's police division, Colonel CPM Mungkono Mursidi, refused to mention the identities or rank of the officers in question.

The arrests were made based on information given by "Kopda S", one of the officers from the Indonesian Armed Forces (TNI) detained on suspicion of involvement in the JSX bombing on 13 September. Mungkono said the aforementioned officer was found to be implicated in illegally selling weapons after extensive investigations.

Indonesian asylum-seekers leave Swiss embassy in Jakarta

Bern -- Six Indonesian Christians, who have been holed up in the Swiss embassy in Jakarta since September 27 to press for political asylum, have left the premises, the Swiss foreign ministry said Thursday.

One of the Indonesians left Wednesday evening and the five others stepped out late Thursday afternoon, said the statement which gave no further details.

The five men and one woman climbed over a fence into the downtown embassy compound two weeks ago to demand political asylum and international intervention in the sectarian conflict in their home province.

Fire destroys evidence of cases of band banks

Jakarta -- A fire badly damaged the Audit and Development Supervisory Agency (BPKP) building in Central Jakarta yesterday, destroying documents on the huge liquidity loans given by the central bank to ailing banks.

There were no reports of injuries in the blaze that started on the third floor of the building, where important records of debts owed by private and state banks were kept. Although several fire engines were deployed to the blaze on Jalan Hayam Wuruk, they were unable to save most of the third floor records.

Also severely damaged was the office of BPKP Chairman Arie Sulendro, and an office where investigations into bad loans were conducted. Police were late yesterday still investigating the cause of the fire, which started at about 2.15pm and was extinguished four hours later.

BPKP Administration Chief Chatim Baidaie said arson was the most likely cause of the blaze. I suspect sabotage because the third floor was full of documents and it housed the office of a special deputy who deals with bad loans, Baidaie said. He said the arsonist aimed to disrupt investigations into insolvent banks that have failed to repay liquidity assistance loans from Bank Indonesia, the central bank.

BPKP is involved in inquiries being conducted by the National Audit Agency (BPK). Auditors have been investigating the loss of billions of dollars that were lent to prop up troubled banks in the dying months of the reign of former president Soeharto, who quit power in May 1998. Economists and other critics claim much of the money was misused by the banks owners to save the rest of their struggling business empires.

Wiranto declares UN guilty of `vulgar fraud'

Lindsay Murdoch, Jakarta -- Indonesia's former armed forces chief, General Wiranto, has intensified his criticism of attempts to prosecute military officers over last year's violence in East Timor, declaring them innocent and accusing the United Nations of "vulgar fraud".

"I know they are innocent," he said of officers named by the Attorney-General as suspects. "They were my best men, appointed to carry out a difficult mission there. Instead of being rewarded, they are named as suspects. It makes me very sad." General Wiranto's comments, in Tempo magazine, coincide with reports that President Abdurrahman Wahid this week buckled under pressure from anti-reformist factions in the military opposed to the appointment of an outspoken reformist, Lieutenant-General Agus Wirahadikusumah, to a key army post.

Buoyed by their win, anti-reformist generals are moving to discipline General Agus for publicly criticising corruption within the armed forces and making an allegedly unauthorised trip to the United States.

Asked about the deaths of East Timorese and the forced relocation of up to 200,000 people after last year's referendum, General Wiranto said: "The violence that took some victims occurred after the referendum was carried out with vulgar fraud." General Wiranto, whom prosecutors have not named in a list of 23 suspects over the violence, said that morally he had to be responsible for what soldiers did under his command but "legally speaking is another matter".

General Wiranto said: "Institutionally the TNI (armed forces) is innocent. There were some individuals who committed unlawful acts and they have been punished." General Wiranto's comments are likely to fuel moves in the UN for the prosecution of senior officers and pro-Jakarta militia leaders outside the country, possibly in East Timor's newly established courts. UN investigators believe General Wiranto should be held accountable for what happened in East Timor.

General Wiranto dismissed speculation that he has been behind attempts to destabilise Mr Wahid's administration. "My name is in the news every day but there is some rubbish news that does not deserve a response," he told Tempo.

Analysts see Mr Wahid's decision not to appoint General Agus either chief of the army or deputy chief as a devastating blow to his attempts to reform the armed forces.

Adding to Mr Wahid's humiliation, General Endriartono Sutarto, the new army commander, told journalists only moments after being sworn in on Monday that General Agus had violated the officer's code of ethics. General Agus is held in high regard by Mr Wahid but is despised by officers opposed to efforts to push the military out of civilian affairs and crack down on endemic corruption.

Forty-five of the military's most senior officers last week attended a meeting in the West Java city of Bandung where they agreed in a signed letter to oppose Mr Wahid appointing General Agus to any key post. Reports say General Endriartono refused a compromise to appoint General Agus his deputy.

Australia renews invitation for visit by Wahid

Sydney -- Foreign Minister Alexander Downer renewed an invitation Sunday to Indonesia's President Abdurrahman Wahid to visit Australia after the Indonesian parliament last week vetoed the trip.

The speaker of Indonesia's House of Representatives (DPR), Akbar Tanjung, announced the veto on Friday, saying it was because Indonesians were pained by Australia's constant criticism of their country.

Downer said Wahid would be warmly welcomed any time, but shrugged off complaints about Australian criticism. He urged Indonesia to adopt restraint in dealing with Irian Jaya amid reports that 26 people had died in renewed violence there.

Indonesia had learned from East Timor that acts of violence against local people "inevitably breed enormous resentment and tend to be counter-productive", Downer told Channel Nine's Sunday program.

Tanjung said on Friday that the decision was made by faction heads in the DPR that a long-delayed visit by Wahid should not take place unless Australian Prime Minister John Howard first visited Indonesia.

However, Howard has already visited Indonesia three times and seems unlikely to do so again until Wahid visits Australia, as he has promised to do several times already this year, only to change his mind later.

Downer said Wahid had managed to visit plenty of other countries, though not Australia. "As we have said all along, the president is from our side very welcome to visit Australia," Downer told commercial television here.

"We have had no presidential visit from a president of Indonesia to Canberra since Indonesian independence in 1949 and only one visit to Australia. There have been 12 visits by Australian prime ministers to Indonesia since 1975, including three by Prime Minister Howard."

Downer said the Indonesian parliament had no power of veto over presidential travel arrangements. "When I went to Jakarta myself at the end of January, President Wahid said he would like to come to Australia," he said.

"So that is the process being put in place. For what it's worth, that is also the protocol, President Wahid being the newer head of government and that has been reflected in his visits to a number of other countries. The last time I talked to the Indonesian foreign minister last week, he made it clear to me the president was certainly intending to come soon."

Downer said there had been no movement on a proposed meeting between Howard, Wahid and East Timorese independence leader Xanana Gusmao. That meeting was suggested for the West Timorese capital of Kupang. "There is a general feeling that such a meeting should take place," he said.

"Of course we don't want the relationship with Indonesia to be completely dominated by the issue of East Timor, important as that issue is in the relationship. There are a vast range of other issues."

Downer said Australia believed Irian Jaya, or West Papua as it is known to independence activists, should remain part of Indonesia. "We don't want to see the Balkanisation of Indonesia," he said. "We hope that the differences that exist between Jakarta and various community leaders in West Papua can be handled in an appropriate and peaceful way."
 

Environment/health

Smoking lights up revenues, not health

Jakarta -- Many Indonesians are dying each year of tobacco- related diseases, but the country's heavy dependence on revenues contributed by the clove cigarette industry is hampering efforts to curb the smoking habit.

In fact, cigarette consumption in Indonesia within the past decade has drastically risen from 2.7 percent of the world's total in 1990 to four percent in 1999. "Even during the economic crisis, the number of smokers in Indonesia increased," says Mulyatim of the directorate of health promotion of the Ministry of Health.

Many Indonesians particularly like the locally produced clove cigarettes known as "kretek." These are mild on the throat, but they present more of a health risk than the regular 'white' cigarettes because they contain more nicotine and tar. In Indonesia, though, there is neither a health warning or a public information campaign on the dangers of smoking cigarettes -- 'kretek' or otherwise.

Officials say the huge contribution of the clove cigarette industry to government coffers as one reason why that is so. "The tobacco industry gives a huge amount of tax revenues to the government," says Enny Setiasih, head of school-age health of the Ministry of Health. "That is our dilemma."

Indeed, the 'kretek' industry contributes around 11 trillion rupiah or 1.3 billion US dollars in foreign exchange every year to the government. It also employs at least 10 million Indonesians, from tobacco and clove farmers to factory workers, many of whom still roll the cigarettes by hand.

Argues Setiasih: "Killing the cigarette industry would be to kill the goose that lays the golden eggs." But he also admits, "The people lack knowledge on the health risks of smoking. They think cigarette smoking does not cause death."

Official figures show that each year, some 6.5 million Indonesians die due to tobacco-related diseases such as lung cancer, coronary heart disease and stroke. Health officials also estimate at current patterns, smoking will kill some 10 million people in Indonesia by 2020.

The World Health Organization says that tobacco would soon be the leading cause of death in the world, linked to diseases like tuberculosis, heart attack, and bronchitis.

"Smoking stunts your physical and intellectual growth," comments Clare Urwin, a nutritionist and health advisor here. "It steals your youth and kills you off before your time."

She adds, "Being a smoker means being addicted to nicotine and nicotine is a drug. So, like any other addict, when you continue to smoke, all you are doing is stopping the withdrawal pangs, topping up the nicotine and re-hooking yourself."

The health ministry has found that the average smoker is poor, but is spending as much as 40 percent of his or her paltry income for cigarettes instead of buying more nutritious food. The United Nations Children's Fund has also pointed out that Indonesian men average 10 cigarettes each a day. This means about 3,500 rupiah (40 cents) per smoker daily -- enough to buy eggs, for instance.

Indonesian Association of Lung Specialists chair Tjandra Yoga Aditama estimates that at least 30 trillion rupiah (three billion dollars) is burned out on cigarette consumption each year. This figure, he says, does not include the amount spent treating smoking-related diseases.

But 70-year-old factory worker Agung says, "Smoking is a good way to fend off hunger pains and relieve stress." He also says that no doctor has ever told him to stop his 55-year-old habit.

According to the Ministry of Health, most Indonesian men start to smoke at the age of 15 and women at the age of 16. Youthful respondents in a recent national survey conducted by the ministry said they smoked because of peer pressure as well as the "delicious" taste of cigarettes.

At present, 60 percent or 36 million of Indonesia's male population above the age of 15 smoke, while four percent or three million of women above 15 light up.

Says Urwin: "The Indonesian people are constantly exposed to clever advertising campaigns, which through cigarettes sell an idea of a seductive lifestyle far removed from reality."

Indeed, smoking regulations -- much less warnings on the hazards of tobacco use -- should perhaps not be expected in a country where the local cigarette industry happens to a pillar of the economy. Instead, what cigarette producers get are incentives.

Effective September 17, for instance, the government granted firms that export cigarettes or cigars at an amount of at least 25 percent of their domestic sales a six percent reduction from the excise tax payable.

The government imposes excise taxes mainly on cigarette producers at a rate of 12 to 40 percent of the retail price, depending on the output amount and the level of technology used in producing the cigarettes.

For this year's budget, the government's target for excise tax revenues is 10.2 trillion rupiah (1.1 billion dollars), almost seven percent of the budget's total revenues.

On June 7, the administration of President Abdurrahman Wahid also issued Government Regulation No. 38, allowing cigarette producers to advertise their products on print, electronic and outdoor media.

The regulation amended Government Regulation No. 81 issued on October 5 last year by the administration of then President Bacharuddin Jusuf Habibie, which banned cigarette producers from promoting products on electronic media but not on print and outdoor media.

Interestingly enough, Government Regulation No. 81 also tried to limit nicotine and tar levels. It noted that each cigarette had to contain not more than 1.5 milligrams of nicotine and 20 milligrams of tar.

While a few activists took some consolation from that stipulation, cigarette producers warned that enforcing the regulation would result in massive unemployment since local cigarettes, which usually contain cloves, would be unable to meet the minimum tar and nicotine levels.

"It seems that the government stops at the point of reducing the tar and nicotine levels in cigarettes," Aditama says. "Other programs outlined in the regulation such as controlling cigarette advertising and promotions, and stronger warnings on cigarette packs, are still being ignored," he added.
 

Arms/armed forces

Experts warn of low morale in TNI

Jakarta -- Political and military analysts warn of declining morale among many middle and high ranking Army officers who have found themselves without a job, thanks to the withdrawal of the Indonesian Military (TNI) from the political arena. More than 170 officers, including 13 generals, have no posts in the Army structure at present.

Competition for the few available posts in the Army's top leadership therefore will likely become even fiercer. Only the best, or at times thosewith the right connections, can expect to further their career in the military. The rest, according to the experts, should consider retiring early into civilian life.

J. Kristiadi of the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) said the growing ranks of officers without a post can be demoralizing not only for those affected but also for the entire military. "They can feel dejected and frustrated. Later, they might become apathetic to the nation's problems, or even to their duty of defending the country. This is dangerous because we need the TNI to guard this nation," Kristiadi said.

Legislator Ade Komaruddin of the Golkar Party said a solution should be found quickly. "We don't want the TNI to be angry and hold a grudge against civilians. This will only make things worst, and possibly lead to a military coup," Ade said.

Lt. Gen. (ret.) Sayidiman Soerjohadiprodjo, a prominent military thinker, proposed that these officers be given training in business to prepare them for early retirement. But they should be retained in the reserve forces of the Army for a few more years in case their services were needed.

The jobless officers include three four-star generals: Tyasno Sudarto, who lost his job as Army chief of staff on Monday, his predecessor Subagyo Hadisiswoyo and Fachrul Razi, who was removed from his job as TNI deputy chief last month when President Abdurrahman scrapped the post.

Among the two lieutenant generals without a job is Agus Wirahadikusumah, former chief of the Army's Strategic Reserves Command (Kostrad) whose nomination for Army chief of staff by the President was rejected by most ofthe top Army generals. The President is said to be insisting that Agus now be appointed deputy chief of staff to fill the shoes of Gen. Endriartono Sutarto, who has movedto the top Army job. The other unemployed lieutenant general is Suady Marasabessy whose last post was TNI chief of general affairs.

There are six major generals without any posts: Saurip Kadi, Kivlan Zen, Muchdi PR, Zacky Anwar Makarim, Slamet Suprijadi and Yayat Rohadiat. Three of their peers -- Affandi, Syamsul Ma'arif, and Sutadji -- are more fortunate, having recently been appointed as legislators representing the TNI faction. The three brigadier generals without any posts are Idris Gassing, Eddy Budianto and Romulo Simbolon.

In addition, more than 150 middle ranking officers, including dozens of colonels, have no posts or are waiting for their next assignment. Most middle-ranking officers lost their jobs after the dissolution of Bakorstanas, the coordinating agency for national stability and resilience, in Jakarta and the regions, this year.

Some had also served as councilors or regency chiefs but these career options too have been closed with the TNI now pulling out from practical politics under the new political paradigm. The problem is not as severe in the Navy and the Air Force.

The TNI has also ruled since last year that any officer intending to takeup civilian posts must first resign from active service. The ruling has been applied rigorously without any exceptions, applying even to officers serving in the Cabinet.

Sayidiman said the officers' career planning in the Army has been distorted by the constant intervention by then president Soeharto. An officer should ideally spend between three and four years in a position before receiving a rank promotion but because of the political interference, many got theirs after only a few months, he said. He recalled that Soeharto often personally recommended rank promotions for officers who were seconded to non-military jobs during the height of the military's "dual function" concept.

"If President Abdurrahman Wahid now wants to promote professionalism in the military, he must pay more attention to the personnel management aspectof the Army," Sayidiman said. He said many middle-ranking officers have few prospects and that they should consider retiring early.

"We suggest they go into business," he said, adding that the government could provide them with the necessary training and maybe even the capital. "Small and medium scale enterprises will be suitable for them" he said.

Kristiadi proposed revamping the career system in the TNI to one based onmeritocracy and free from political intervention. He agreed that the career planning system in the military had been turnedupside down by Soeharto who gave rapid promotions to many young officers inthe 1990s.

Many officers held their jobs for a mere few months before they were moved to their next assignment, he said. This not only affected their professionalism but also the units they wereentrusted to lead.

"How could an officer lead Kostrad for only few months. He should serve at least two to three years," he said, referring to one of the top Army posts which has seen its commander changing almost constantly. In the past year alone, Kostrad has seen three different commanders.

Ade said that with fewer jobs available for senior and middle ranking officers, most of them should consider early retirement. He believed that the number of generals in the Army must be curtailed in the future according to needs. The Council for High Ranking Promotions and Duty Rotations (Wanjakti) must revise its system accordingly, he said.

Indonesia's Wahid names new army, navy chiefs

Jeremy Wagstaff and Puspa Madani, Jakarta -- Indonesian president Abdurrahman Wahid swore in new army and navy commanders after failing to persuade increasingly assertive generals to accept one of his favored officers as deputy commander of the army.

Monday's appointments marked the end of a days-long tussle between the president and his generals, according to officers familiar with events. Mr. Wahid's supporters have presented the standoff as military resistance to civilian control, while some generals say the president is using his reform agenda as an excuse to assert more influence over the military.

On Monday, Gen. Tyasno Sudarto was replaced as army chief by his deputy, Gen. Endriartono Sutarto, while Admiral Achmad Sutjipto was replaced as navy chief of staff by his deputy, Adm. Indroko Sastro Wiryono. The appointments marked a victory for senior officers increasingly impatient with what they see as Mr. Wahid's growing interference.

Military officers said Mr. Wahid had failed on Saturday to persuade Gen. Sutarto to accept -- as a condition of his promotion -- the appointment of Lt. Gen. Agus Wirahadikusumah as his deputy. Gen. Wirahadikusumah, an outspoken reformist and a Wahid loyalist, was removed as head of the army's important strategic-reserve division, Kostrad, in August in what was also seen as a defeat for the president.

Military analyst Salim Said said the army's blocking of Mr. Wahid's choice for deputy chief indicated a strong display of unified military defiance. "This is very unnatural that so many officers send this message to the president," he said. "They are really saying, 'Take care.'" The latest confrontation revealed something of how entrenched the two sides have become, raising questions about whether the differences between Mr. Wahid and his military brass may erupt into public conflict. While the military as an institution isn't suspected of involvement in fomenting unrest in some Indonesian provinces or in recent terrorist bombings, such as last month's attack on the Jakarta Stock Exchange building, there are signs of growing army hostility toward Mr. Wahid. "This is a conflict between the military and civilian [government]. This is a sign it is not going to stop," said one senior officer sympathetic to Gen. Wirahadikusumah.

Resistance to Gen. Wirahadikusumah's rehabilitation was strong, according to military officers and diplomats. They said the outgoing army chief, Gen. Tyasno, had lobbied hard at several meetings of senior officers in the Java towns of Bandung and Solo to ensure his replacement wasn't Gen. Wirahadikusumah. The US- trained Gen. Wirahadikusumah is seen by many officers as too outspoken and his motives suspect.

"It's feared he would be busy looking for support for his political ambition in the name of the reform," said Indria Samego, a military affairs specialist at the Indonesian Institute of Sciences.

His military rivals have moved to discipline Gen. Wirahadikusumah and his supporters for alleged infractions of military regulations, according to officers familiar with the affair. Last Tuesday, Gen. Tyasno summoned Maj. Gen. Saurip Kadi, a protege of Gen. Wirahadikusumah who himself was removed as assistant to the army chief of staff in June. At the ensuing meeting, Gen. Saurip was accused of publishing a recent book on military affairs without seeking permission, something his supporters deny.

Separately, Gen. Wirahadikusumah was accused of making an overseas trip without obtaining written permission. His supporters say he did obtain clearance, but didn't consider obtaining a signed release order necessary. Gen. Sutarto, the newly appointed army chief, confirmed on Monday that action would be taken against Gen. Wirahadikusumah, including being "summoned before the officers' honor council or other sanctions." Gen. Wirahadikusumah's supporters present the internal military struggle as a battle between loyalists to former president Suharto and a new generation of reform-minded officers. But the reality, military analysts say, is more complicated. While the once-powerful armed forces is still smarting from its diminished role since the fall of Mr. Suharto, analysts believe most generals accept the inevitability of reform. Opposition to Gen. Wirahadikusumah and his allies has more to do with the generals' outspoken attacks on the military as an institution and his lack of field command experience, they say.

This week's shuffle is unlikely to end the strains between the president and his generals, or to foster greater stability at a time when many parts of Indonesia face unrest. Violence broke out in the West Papua town of Wamena Friday, when police thwarted attempts by independence activists to raise their flag. At least 40 people died in the clashes, mainly between local people and migrants from other Indonesian islands.
 

Economy & investment

Fuel subsidies for the poor still not in place

Budi Santosa/Hendra & GB, Jakarta -- The government has admitted that cash transfers to be used as fuel subsidies have not been distributed uniformly. Not only have some areas missed out altogether, but even those allocated funds have yet to receive them. Furthermore, the operational costs are to be taken from existing social security programs and only half the families classified as "poor" will receive the payments.

Director General for Rural People's Empowerment from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Regional Autonomy, Suratman, revealed the discrepancies to journalists at the "Fuel Sosialisation" team's secretariat office on Jalan Plaju, Jakarta, Thursday. He said that the subsidy scheme, hatched in response to the public outcry after a recent 12% price hike, would be in place by November.

According to Suratman, every head of a family would eventually receive a cash payment of Rp 10,000 per month. He also said that the Rp 200 billion set-aside for cash transfers would not have one cent deducted for operational costs.

"Operational fees for distribution will not be taken from the cash transfer funds. However, the operational funds will be taken from, for example, the PMDKE program, the family welfare movement (PKK) and other programs which are already in place," he said.

Suratman further said that 6.6667 million families would receive the cash transfer. However, according to national population growth studies in the year 2000, the number of poor families which classify as `poor' and should thus be eligible for the subsidy number 13.8 million. Suratman admitted that the existing Rp 200 billion could not fully cover this number of poor families. "If all the heads of poor families wanted to get the cash transfer, it is estimated that Rp 405-410 billion would be needed," he said.

He also said that, of Indonesia's 341 regencies/cities, 321 would receive the cash transfer while 20 would miss out. These 20 regencies/cities were considered to have fewer poor families. The regencies/cities which will not receive the cash transfer for fuel subsidy are for province: Sibolga, Tanjung Balai Karo (North-Sumatra province), Dumai (Riau), Solok, Padang Panjang, Paya Kumbuh, Bukittinggi (West Sumatra), Sukabumi (West Java), Magelang and Salatiga (Central Java), Blitar, Mojokerto and Madiun (East Java), Denpasar, Tabanan Regency, Badung Regency (Bali), Berau Regency, Nunukan Regency (East Kalimantan), Pare- pare (South Sulawesi).

The provinces that will receive the bulk of the funds are East Java, Central Java and West Java while Yogyakarta receives the least on Java. In Aceh, West Papua, East Nusa-Tenggara, Maluku and Southeast Sulawesi, almost all areas, right down to the subdistricts are to receive the subsidies.