• Suharto's son eludes jail as turmoil grips Indonesia - Chicargo Tribune
• Bomb blasts a sign of escalating political instability - World Socialist Web Site
• Indonesia heading for 'new crisis' - Straits Times
• Jakarta's army of civil servants fears loss of status - Agence France-Presse
• President says four groups trying to topple him - Jakarta Post
• Indonesia embarks on historic decentralisation plan - Agence France-Presse
• Local power stalled by corruption - Sydney Morning Herald
• Police to separate from defense ministry - Jakarta Post
• Defense Minister accuses former military leaders - Mandiri
• Regional autonomy architect ready to resign - Straits Times
• Jakarta to relax its grip in bid to unite nation - South China Morning Post

• Nine die in Indonesia resort clashes - Associated Press
• Witch hunts in Java called a cover for murders - New York Times
• Tension grips Palangkaraya - Jakarta Post
• Terror used to convert Christians - South China Morning Post

• Rebels urge Mobil to leave Aceh for safety reasons - Agence France-Presse
• Eleven die in violence in Aceh - Associated Press
• Aceh talks to resume in Switzerland - Jakarta Post
• Irianese refugees to PNG increase due to fear of violence - Jakarta Post
• Seventeen killed during Islamic holidays in Aceh - Associated Press

• A missing Tommy embarrasses everyone - Straits Times

• Police warn of burgeoning blackmail by phoney journalists - Agence France-Presse
• Suspect says he learned to make bombs in Afghanistan - Jakarta Post
• PKB cant stop NU masses - Indonesian Observer
• Police baffled by bombers' tactics - Jakarta Post
• Prabowo denied US visa under torture agreement - Straits Times

• New law may spell doom for rainforest and rare animals - South China Morning Post

• Indonesian per-capita income in 2000 at 600-700 dollars - Agence France-Presse
• Central bank says it has no authority to seize Suharto money - Agence France-Presse
• Jakarta to delay mining autonomy up to five years - Indonesian Observer

Talks stall on Timor Gap oil profits

Robert Garran -- Australia and East Timor remain far apart in crucial talks over revenue from the Timor Gap oil and gas fields that could become a mainstay of the new country's economy.

Sources familiar with talks on the Timor Gap treaty say Australia is holding out against East Timor's claim for the lion's share of revenue from oil and gas produced in the jointly managed Timor Gap Zone of Co-operation.

So far it has offered about 60 per cent of revenue, which could total $US100 million a year. East Timor, represented by the UN Transitional Authority in East Timor, is arguing strongly for a 90 per cent stake in revenue, or alternatively for the boundary between the two countries to be redrawn at the mid-point between their coastlines.

It bases its claim on the view that under international law it may be entitled to all the revenue. The argument could mean a difference of up to $1.5 billion over 24 years in the revenue paid to East Timor.

Under an agreement reached in October 1999, mirroring an agreement 10 years earlier with Indonesia, East Timor and Australia have an equal share in revenue rights. But the deal only applies until East Timor reaches independence, late this year or early next year, and is being renegotiated.

The 1989 agreement with Indonesia was a compromise to allow development of the Timor Gap oil and gasfields without finally settling conflicting views about the legal boundary between Australia and Timor.

Australia argues the true boundary should be the centre of the Timor Trough where the two continental shelves meet. East Timor negotiators believe they have a strong legal argument for a new boundary at the mid-point.

But both sides recognise that delays and uncertainty in seeking independent arbitration could be highly disruptive to investment in the field, meaning the final agreement will be heavily influenced by political judgments.

Foreign Affairs Minister Alexander Downer has said publicly Australia should be more generous to East Timor than under the existing deal, but East Timor supporters believe the existing offer does not go nearly far enough.

The Opposition has backed a 90 per cent revenue share for the new nation, giving East Timor extra leverage and an incentive to hold out for a possible change of government in this year's federal election.

The Australian Council for Overseas Aid has called on the Government to ensure the new agreement gives the major share of revenue to East Timor.

So far East Timor has received one revenue payment from the Timor Gap treaty of $US3 million. Some analysts predict revenue from the field could exceed $5 billion over 24 years.

Trial of East Timorese militia leader opens in Jakarta

Jakarta -- A notorious former East Timorese militia leader went on trial here Tuesday charged with inciting criminal activities against the state during a weapons handover in West Timor.

Wearing army fatigues, a bandana in the red and white colors of the Indonesian national flag, sunglasses and black beret, Eurico Guterres was cheered by supporters as he walked into the North Jakarta District Court. "Long Live Eurico," his supporters packing the courtroom gallery shouted.

The leader of the Aitarak (Thorn) militia, Guterres was arrested at a hotel here on October 4 for allegedly ordering his men to snatch back weapons surrendered to police in West Timor during a ceremony in September attended by Vice President Megawati Sukarnoputri. He faces up to six years in jail if convicted.

Asked by the chief judge Suwardi whether he understood the charges, Guterres said: "I understand but I also do not understand." The judge agreed to a demand by Guterres' lawyer, Suhardi Sumomulyono to adjourn the hearing for a week until next Tuesday.

Earlier the crowd, including female rock singer Renny Jayusman, grouped under the Defenders of National Unity (FPPB), protested outside the courtroom demanding Guterres be freed. "Eurico is a patriot," said one of their posters. "Free Eurico," read another.

"I support Eurico Guterres, he is innocent. My husband died for his homeland so I will continue his struggle," said a woman whose husband died in the conflict during Indonesia's occupation of the former Portuguese colony of East Timor.

The crowd, many of them relatives of East Timor war veterans, sang Indonesia's national anthem for five minutes before the presiding judge declared the session open.

East Timor-based UN prosecutors have implicated Guterres in two massacres in East Timor in April 1999 and have formally asked Indonesia to hand the militia boss over to them.

Indonesian prosecutors in Kupang, West Timor are concurrently appealing a verdict issued by a court there that cleared Guterres of an earlier weapons possession charge.

He is also under investigation by Indonesian prosecutors as a suspect in one of the two April 1999 massacres in the East Timor capital of Dili.

The pro-Indonesia militias launched a frenzy of killing and destruction after the people of East Timor voted overwhelmingly for independence in a UN-held ballot in August 1999.

The post-ballot violence forced some 250,000 people to flee into West Timor and more than 100,000 others to hide in the forests of East Timor.

Timorese refugees returned after clashes with locals

Kupang -- Following a clash between East Timorese refugees and local residents, hundreds of East Timorese refugees were returned to refugee camps, officials said on Wednesday. The refugees were returned to Noelbaki and Tuapukan refugee camps.

Kupang Regent I.A. Medah said the evacuation has been taking place since last Tuesday on the request of the East Timorese refugees. "We transported the refugees on 15 trucks to Noelbaki and Tuapukan. At the refugee camps, we will build police posts as an anticipation for further retaliation," Medah said.

Causes of the clash were still being investigated but many said that the incident was sparked by a brawl between East Timorese youths and local youths which then ended with a massive brawl and acts of arson.

During the clash, a total of 159 houses, belonging to locals, were burned. It is estimated that the clash has inflicted financial losses of about Rp 5 billion.

The refugees, mostly fled their homelands after the proindependence side won in the self-determination ballot last year, and had been placed in local transmigration projects in Poto and Sulamu villages.

The homeless local residents were now sheltering with their neighbors and received donations of food from the local government. "Many of the local residents ran to the forests in fear of the violence. But they are now gradually returning," Medah said as quoted by Antara.

New year's message by Kay Rala Xanana Gusmao

Compatriots! Timorese!

This is not intended to be an exclusive message; the time for exclusive leaders playing the ungrateful role of addressing the people who fought and struggled is long past. A year after achieving the great victory of liberating our Homeland we have not lacked, nor will we lack, speakers on behalf of the people, from politicians to members of the civil society and from intellectuals to NGOs. This only means times are changing ... towards democracy!

The emerging awareness that we are all participants of a process is a social and political phenomenon inherent to processes similar to our own; there must never be a monopoly in the interpretation of the process and, consequently, one must allow the emergence of different opinions so that the process may gain a greater dynamic, a broader participation and be more democratic.

In every post-liberation war process, we have observed the mounting need of politicians to know which place he/she will occupy because, in general, politicians' aspirations for power are considered to be natural and legitimate. This is how politicians fulfil themselves. Political parties reflect this nature without which they would be yet another NGO alongside so many others established in East Timor attempting to cover every sector of development in the country, from education to agriculture, from health to fisheries and from sanitation to entrepreneurial projects.

Today, in East Timor, we are witnessing a move by politicians to affirm, or re-affirm, their position in society. Some try to defend points of view that are almost contrary to common sense just to recruit some followers because they claim to be the defenders of the "underprivileged". Others, resort to past memories, become untouchable and, because of this, become insensitive to the (real) facts of history. They live in and revisit the past as an alternative to confronting common sense and reality. They claim historic impunity, they surround themselves by angels of peace and heroes of a revolution ... that brought grief and left scars in our souls.

Others, living thousands of kilometres away from Dili, spout forth points of view as if they own a knowledge of their own, in a remote-control-style very much in line with the globalisation that turned each country into a larger or smaller village in this world.

We are witnessing another phenomenon in East Timor; that of an obsessive acculturation to standards that hundreds of international experts try to convey to the East Timorese, who are hungry for values:

• democracy (many of those who teach us never practised it in their own countries because they became UN staff members);
• human rights (many of those who remind us of them forget the situation in their own countries);
• gender (many of the women who attend the workshops know that in their countries this issue is no example for others);
• NGOs (numerous NGOs live off the aid "business" to poor countries)
• Youth (all those who remind us of this issue know that in their countries most of the youth are unemployed and that experience is the main employment drive apart from some exceptions based on intellectual skills)

What concerns me is the non-critical absorption of (universal) standards given the current stage of the historic process we are building. Old democracies are no longer like a smooth pavement or a linear social process where such standards slide along without the slightest friction. What concerns me is that the Timorese may become detached from their reality and, above all, try to copy something which is not yet clearly understood by them.

It is necessary that we are sincere and humble so that we do not lose track of the highest interests of our People. Democracy is not built overnight and it is by experiencing the system that democracy can be shaped. Some think that mere political party membership is a synonym of democracy and, therefore, it does not need to be cared for. School-aged youths think democracy empowers them with the right to protest, criticise and insult the teachers, to skip or disturb classes. Some adults share the opinion that democracy demands that everyone must decide on everything.

This process of preparation for independence is not an easy one when we discuss issues such as democracy, human rights and freedom.

There is some anxiety for self-affirmation which the international staff currently in East Timor try to enhance; they forget how unaware they are of the whole process of our people's struggle and, therefore, encourage the expression of various forms of difference as if this was the only way of ensuring democracy.

This natural need for self-affirmation, of parties and individuals, whether politicians or not, leads to a strong ill- feeling against the CNRT as if the CNRT was the main enemy of political parties and civil society. To a certain extent, this situation is encouraged by the perception shared by many international organisations that the CNRT is a political party. It is hard for us to believe that foreigners who come to East Timor to work do not have some knowledge of Timorese political reality. Foreigners should bear in mind that the essential condition for their operational success is to be aware that they do not come to save East Timor but rather to fulfil a mission of support; therefore, if they are not aware of this reality they will face the ungrateful mission of earning money for 6 months and returning to their homes, as so many have done, often revealing themselves to be less skilled than the East Timorese who can not find a job.

CNRT is looked at as an obstacle to the development of political parties. Those who fiercely attack the CNRT forget something. The CNRT is paving the way so that, in the near future, the parties may run for political power.

They also forget that CNRT is not a political party. We all know that if, one day, the CNRT were to turn into a political party, there would be no party capable of competing with CNRT. The CNRT is quite certain of this although it will not do it. The CNRT would like to say to the political parties and politicians that because the CNRT is more mature and better prepared than the parties, it will not exploit the current emotional condition of our People.

The CNRT is concerned with political stability during the post- independence period; the CNRT is concerned with the environment of peace and harmony that must be created amidst the population. Our People have that right: the right to live in peace and harmony!

Our political experience over the past 25 years alerts us to the possibility of violence amidst the people; we are observing manoeuvres by certain groups which are showing no respect whatsoever for our people's right to live in peace and the right to never again face a situation where Timorese kill other Timorese. The CNRT is extremely concerned with the feelings some groups may begin having when there is violence amidst the population; a feeling of euphoria of a victory over "the others who got what they asked for" or because "they even have more supporters than we do".

CNRT is following the movement and the desire for affirmation or re-affirmation of leaders and politicians. In fact, what out people need now is leaders, new leaders who are wise, thoughtful and with a broad vision of the process. The CNRT only hopes that maturity resulting from 25 years of struggle may lead political parties to act with greater realism and objectiveness in their analysis on the complexity of the independence process.

Dear compatriots

January 1, 2001 will be the first day of the millennium. We are celebrating the most important New Year in modern history for we are about to enter a new millennium. In a few hours we will open a new chapter in the history of Mankind.

This unique event for Mankind will have a very special meaning for the Maubere People Timor Loro Sae will be engraved in the journals of history as the first independent country of this new millennium.

During the year 2000 many people celebrated the New Year as the beginning of the new millennium when it was actually merely the end of the old millennium. Similarly, many people tried to imagine which kind of an imprint would 2000 leave in the transition process. The year 2000 must be mostly considered as one of learning the numerous aspects of and the relationship with UNTAET, with the international institutions and with the International Community. If we do not understand this we will think of ourselves as able enough to rehabilitate everything overnight and to immediately do all that is necessary. This is being unrealistic. Budgetary constraints are not UNTAET's; budgetary constraints are part and parcel of this transition and in its relationship with the donor community.

Of course there are many unfortunate things happening, many perceptions which are not in tune with Timorese reality, there is a lot more money available to pay the hundreds and hundreds of foreigners rather than for reconstruction. There is bad management or inclusion of structures and a heavy bureaucratic apparatus that, in some cases, resorts to corruption.

International staff are of the opinion that the East Timorese simply lack capacity and this opinion is seconded by some sectors of our society. We do not call for a hasty transition period, an inadequate one "la Cambodia" where the international staff left a vacuum behind after leaving. For this reason, we defend a clearly phased strategy for the political process.

Rather than considering the success it may be for the UN we are concentrated on a process that may bring success to the suffering people of East Timor. And, eventually, the International Community will have assuaged its conscience for having assisted a martyred people.

Compatriots

We are about to commence a decisive year for East Timor and its People!

This year will be filled with political activity and, above all, activities that will involve the participation of the people. The two foundations that sustain the transition towards independence are, as we have often stated, timorisation and the political process.

We must speak in one voice so that UNTAET will begin the Timorisation process in a serious way. To appoint ministers is not to Timorise. To recruit Director-Generals or Heads of Departments and their staff will be our priority for the first quarter of 2001. If this is not to happen we will be convinced that the extension of UNTAET's mandate only aims at benefiting the international staff who are handsomely paid in East Timor.

But if we are to undertake an appropriate and genuine timorisation, UNTAET's mandate will be looked at as an extension of the East Timorese capacity-building process.

Some people expressed their opposition to the political calendar. We do not wish to discuss their reasons for differences of opinion are part of the democracy that all seem to so wisely put into practise. The timorisation process must evolve side by side with the development of the political process.

There will be a great number of political events during 2001. Civil Registration, as a database to be prepared for the Electoral Registration, will soon begin. The electoral system must be determined. In January, the Regulation on Political Parties must also be prepared and adopted by the National Council. This will enable the registration of political parties and give them a legitimate status to address the people; thus, we will hamper the activity by uncontrollable groups showing up as parties merely to create confusion amidst our people. We urge New York to understand the East Timorese political reality; it is profoundly different from that in the United States which has just experienced moments during the recent presidential elections that countries undergoing democratisation processes called "the greatest democracy scandal".

There will be civic education programmes throughout the territory to enable people to know the system to be set up in East Timor and to make people aware of the dimension of freedom, democracy, justice and peace, as basic conditions for progress and the well-being of every citizen.

A draft of a simple Constitution must also be drafted by the East Timorese whereby the fundamental universal principles, citizen's rights and the system of government will be clearly enshrined. The debate of this draft with the population throughout the territory will enable the people to know the foundations of the Timorese Nation.

The National Council will also debate the Electoral Law; and once it is adopted there will be an electoral education campaign so that our people may have a genuine awareness of the democratic values by the time the first elections are held in the free Timor Loro Sae. The East Timorese People must feel by then total freedom to vote, i.e., they will not feel any kind of fear of intimidation or threat of reprisals.

Having said this, we truly believe that the electoral campaigns will be held in an atmosphere of tolerance and mutual respect. Consequently, elections for the Constituent Assembly will also be held in a peaceful atmosphere. Those who do not believe that our people will achieve this ought to recall August 30, 1999. Those who feel sceptical about this process are those who were not in East Timor during the difficult and dramatic period experienced by our people.

If it is accepted that the Constitution should not be of a programmatic or ideological nature and that it should be simple and universal, the Constituent Assembly will not need a lengthy period of time to debate the first Constitution of Timor. It will only require enough time to fine tune the draft that will then be adopted as the Constitution and which will come into effect on the first day of Independence.

We do not want a chaotic transition whereby for purposes of "revenge" the East Timorese will re-initiate the whole process again. Once again, and to make it very clear, we wish to state that we defend a phased and orderly transition! Independence is not forged by simply choosing the colour of the national flag or the choice of the day it will be proclaimed. We understand independence as the system to be implemented and the capacity of the East Timorese to carry out their responsibilities even before independence is proclaimed.

The outcome of the elections will dictate the composition of the Constituent Assembly and may even be a reference for the setting up of the government. Consequently, political parties may (or may not) be called to debate this and to appoint members of the government. This is the way the East Timorese are preparing themselves to gradually receive the transfer of responsibility until independence, including at ministerial level.

Similarly, the Legislative Assembly, as an elected body emerging from the Constituent Assembly, will gain greater experience and will also initiate its legislative activity in the run up to independence.

This is our perspective for the preparation of the East Timorese for independence, at all levels of governance. There may be other and better ways. We perceive the elections, as the focal point of this political process for it will confer legitimacy to political acts. The reviewing of ETTA's legal status may be easier to achieve with the existence of elected bodies. This process will meet the demands put forth in Security Council Resolution nr. 1272.

Dear compatriots

I repeat that this is CNRT's opinion and might not be accepted by the Timorese democratic society. These thoughts are not being elaborated to serve CNRT's interests but rather the interests of the people which CNRT organised and mobilised to decide on their future and which the people has responded to with courage and determination.

As from January, the Timorese, political parties, politicians and intellectuals should initiate in-depth debates on the ideal Government structure (i.e, the minimum necessary one) to ensure that we do not inherit extremely heavy structures which are non- efficient and, above all, not sustainable. These debates should also include the issues of centralisation and decentralisation.

This will enable that, as from March, we will begin working on the budget for the next fiscal year from July 2001 to June 2002 because, in June 2001 the Donors' Conference will be held in Canberra to decide on it.

There are political parties, politicians and intellectuals who claim rights but forget their duty to think carefully about this process so that the contribution of each individual may contribute to a better perception of the complexity of this problem.

CNRT is, therefore, convinced that the elections will be the engine for change, above all, for a change of still distorted mentalities that exist both in foreigners working in East Timor and in the East Timorese who seek self-affirmation in our society.

Dear CNRT cadres

My last words are addressed to you.

Today we are being looked at as agitators of instability. August 30, 1999 would not have happened if it had not been for your commitment and dedication. A year later, you are still committed to serving our people, without any salary. Many of the East Timorese who criticise you are well placed now. The foreigners who look askance at you think you are about to take half of their salaries to provide for your families, build your homes or send your children to school.

They all forget that the fingers of one hand are too many to count the number of CNRT cadres who suffered in East Timor and are now working in the civil service. They also forget that none of the CNRT cadres are working as UNTAET local staff. I will give you just one example, not to mention those which apply to NGOs and International Agencies. In Oecussi, the local UNTAET staff were all pro-autonomy. And no one protests. However, any minor mistake by a CNRT cadre, where ever it may happen, is magnified to melodramatic proportions.

We were together during the extremely hard times of the struggle, when many of those who now arrive in East Timor, had no knowledge of our problem. I am aware of the difficulties each one of you is facing in your private lives. Your and my experience is solely one of resistance. We do not have the skills to hope for a job, and we acknowledge this with modesty. We have the CNRT imprint labelled on us and when others mention CNRT cadres, they are led to thinking of nepotism, corruption and lack of transparency.

We have often mentioned amongst us that CNRT cadres are today like an old shirt that is thrown away when it is worn out.

This year will be very demanding of you and in your work with the population. Do not give up working to educate our people, to serve our people. I will be with you in undertaking this noble task, as you have already done in the past, as you have worked during the difficult years of resistance to serve the people!

I will do my utmost and will bring down every obstacle so as to enable the establishment of a Credit Bank in East Timor. A private Bank detached from meaningless political assumptions often referred to when it comes to CNRT cadres; a Bank that may give new perspective to your lives.

I will struggle for you as you have struggled for our people! Let us not think about rewards, where ever they may come from! The best reward was the victory achieved by our people on 30 August 1999 and there is no one in East Timor who can take from you the success of your work!

We still have work ahead, namely to lead our people to defend their right to live in peace and in harmony and avoid a repetition of the past experience of political violence. In the meantime, we will organise ourselves in groups and learn the skills of management so that each one of you may be prepared to reconstruct your lives.

We will face new difficulties in this process but I know that you are always prepared to serve our People.

May 2001 bring success to your efforts in moving towards a genuine transition to independence and may it also bring you new prospects for the future.
 

Government/politics

Suharto's son eludes jail as turmoil grips Indonesia

Uli Schmetzer, Jakarta -- Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra loved fast cars and fast women, and at the peak of his playboy days he bought his own racetrack and a stake in Italian automaker Lamborghini.

He once showed up at a news conference in a royal blue Rolls- Royce to answer questions about why his Indonesian-made Timor, touted as the country's first family car, had been relegated to the dustbin of failed Indonesian ventures.

As the favorite son of ousted dictator Suharto, he has not lost the arrogance of the spoiled rich brat who believes he is untouchable and that his father's larger-than-life shadow will protect him.

With the same fixed smile that made his ruthless father famous, he scoffs today at efforts of the new democratic Indonesia to put him behind bars after his conviction on charges of defrauding Indonesia of $11 million. He quips: "It's a political case. Go and talk to the prosecutor."

In October the attorney general's office announced that Tommy was blocked for 12 months from leaving the country, the first time a member of the once omnipotent Suharto clan has been barred from traveling abroad.

All subsequent efforts to take Suharto's son to jail to serve an 18-month sentence have failed in a country where clandestine forces in the military and police remain quietly loyal to the old dictator and are blamed for stirring up the religious and ethnic violence that now rages across the country.

In monetary terms, the charges are mere drops in the ocean for a Suharto family fortune estimated at $14 billion. In legal terms, the family's best defense remains the rotation of judges, generals, prosecutors, governors and officials in a game of musical chairs that has made this nation of 214 million people nearly ungovernable and prevented the government from recovering even a single dollar of the Suharto wealth.

Suharto's old cronies are afraid Tommy's imprisonment could open a Pandora's box of prosecutions of their own dubious pasts. President Abdurrahman Wahid, who enjoys limited political and military support, has talked much about prosecuting the Suhartos but has managed to do little.

Tommy's lawyer, Nudirman Munir, one of a battery of 12 legal advisers, denies his client has any intention of leaving the country. "What we need is to buy time," he told the Tribune. "Over the next weeks the judges at the Supreme Court will be changed, especially the chief justice. Then we can clarify Tommy's case."

Nudirman speculates new judges will rule favorably on an appeal to keep the youngest Suharto son from the jail term imposed by the Supreme Court after a lower court dismissed the fraud charge.

The national logistics agency, known as BULOG, had given Tommy a block of prime property in exchange for a worthless piece of mud. His Humpuss conglomerate built a shopping mall on the acquired land.

In November, Tommy took the ultimate recourse and asked for a presidential pardon. It was denied.

Other judges might also reconfirm a dubious court ruling that Suharto -- Tommy's ailing, 79-year-old father -- is physically and mentally unable to face charges he used nearly $600 million in charity funds as handouts to cronies and political allies.

The choice of a judge in a corrupt judiciary is so tricky that Wahid admitted that in order to handle the Suharto case "we will have to find a judge who is clean, honest and brave and who is not afraid of anyone."

His statement could have been borrowed from the popular Javanese shadow-puppet plays encompassing a trove of intrigues reflected in the country's politics. Whether Tommy goes to jail or remains free could make or break the lingering power of the Suharto clan and determine the future of Wahid, and even Indonesia.

The Suharto family is fighting back. Political analysts say the family continues to enjoy the tacit support of large sectors of the police and military, whose shadowy special units were once employed to liquidate opponents of the regime.

The formidable power of a family running its multinational business empire like a state within a state is held responsible for many difficulties in a nation that has switched to democracy after 32 years of dictatorship.

With Suharto debilitated, allegedly by three strokes, the family's economic affairs are run by daughter Hardiyanti "Tutut" Rukmana, 51, the oldest of his six children, heralded once as the dictator's successor. State prosecutors say the clan's "defense portfolio" is in the hands of Tommy, 37, who gave up his race cars to become the family's buccaneer.

Wahid -- a blind and ailing Muslim cleric -- holds only a tiny minority in parliament. Real power remains in the hands of the Golkar Party, formerly the democratic facade of the Suharto regime.

Wahid must pacify members of other political parties by appointing them to important posts in order to maintain his strained multiparty coalition. He also needs financial support from abroad because coffers at home are empty. Worse, he has to placate public opinion but do little to annoy the elite.

In today's Indonesia, Suharto cronies scheme to hang on to pockets of power. Even reformers, flying the flag of democracy, try to carve out their share of the spoils. The military, once the brutal whip that kept Suharto in power and the archipelago united, has split into factions. Rogue units, maverick soldiers and secret services within secret services stoke regional and religious conflicts, infiltrate democratic organizations, and create a sense of uncertainty and frustration. Ordinary people already grumble: "Life was better under Suharto."

As old and new interests neutralized each other, Muslim fundamentalists, separatists and rogue army units have enflamed simmering regional conflicts in Timor, Aceh, the Moluccas and Irian Jaya. Christian churches were bombed in recent days.

In less than three years Indonesia has become like a slab of glass with a spider web of cracks. A few more taps and the glass could shatter.

"The system is procrastinating and we feel the inertia can only be solved by revolution and not by mere talk of reforms. We ousted Suharto by peaceful demonstrations but we might have to become more violent and more radical.

We might have to learn how to make Molotov cocktails and how to use guns," said Yervis, the chairman of Jarkot, the left-wing umbrella organization of the Indonesian student movements.

Indonesia's student movement has remained on the streets for three years. It brought down a dictator and his anointed successor and maintains an almost daily street level pressure to try Suharto and jail his son.

"Our first priority is to drag Suharto into court, but not one of these corrupt courts here, but a Peoples' Court, similar to the one that ended Romania's dictatorship," Yervis added. "If the Peoples' Court decides to hang Suharto in front of City Hall then that must be done."

But even students are now split into factions. Some have taken money to demonstrate in favor of the former dictator. Two pro- Suharto student demonstrators were beaten to death.

"You are poor and prices go up. Then someone gives you 50,000 rupiahs [$6] a day to hold up a poster saying `Save Suharto' or `Suharto is the father of development.' What do you do? I am not interested in politics. All I want is my degree, and 50,000 rupiahs will buy me a week of food and bus fares. So I hold up the poster," said a university student who refused to give his name.

Student leaders allege the money for these pro-Suharto demonstrations comes out of the Suharto family fortune and is controlled by Tommy. He allegedly channels the funds to professional organizers who are willing to raise a mob on any issue and in anyone's favor -- in return for hard cash.

Eddy Siswoyo's downtown office has no telephone, no company sign and no license. But from its small space he has organized more than 100 demonstrations, capitalizing on the growing reservoir of the poor and unemployed willing to take to the streets on any issue for the free soft drinks, cigarettes and the $2 daily allowance he pays.

"There are dozens who do this kind of work. You can have any number of people in the streets depending on how much you are willing to pay," the rent-a-crowd entrepreneur said.

"Uncle Eddy" began his career as an activist in the anti-Suharto demonstrations that forced the dictator to step down. Now he is making a living earning his 10 percent cut from what he calls "allowing people to express their democratic rights."

Poverty, instability, terror and the durable old boys' network operates in favor of the Suharto clan.

In September, Wahid ordered Tommy's arrest in the bombing of the Jakarta Stock Exchange that killed 23 people on the day his father was supposed to, but did not, appear in court.

Within an hour Tommy was released by national Police Chief Gen. Rusdihardjo, who once was Suharto's aide. Wahid then fired the police chief.

"Tommy is not worried. He believes in God and says there is nothing to lose," said his lawyer, Nudirman.

Bomb blasts a sign of escalating political instability

Peter Symonds -- A series of bomb blasts at churches in Jakarta and other cities across Indonesia on Christmas Eve underscores the country's political fragility and the tenuous character of President Abdurrahman Wahid's grip on power.

At least 15 people died and dozens were injured in the attacks aimed at Indonesia's Christian minority. According to police, 18 bombs were placed in eight cities. Some were found and defused. Others went off, all around the same time, indicating a co- ordinated campaign of terror.

Two people were killed in a blast at the Santo Yosef church in East Jakarta. In Sukabumi, West Java, a woman, a young boy and a baby died when a bomb exploded in their car after they attended a church service. In Pekanbaru in the province of Riau, three church officials were killed in a bomb blast along with two police officers guarding the church.

In Mokokerto in East Java, a member of Banser, the youth group of the Islamic organisation Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), was killed trying to take a bomb away from a church. Members of Banser and Vice- President Megawati Sukarnoputri's Indonesian Democratic Party- Struggle (PDI-P) voluntarily guarded churches in the city on Christmas Eve.

In Bandung, three people were killed when a bomb exploded in a small welding factory. Police claim that the workshop was being used to manufacture bombs and two of the survivors have been detained. No group has claimed responsibility. Both the Islamic extremist organisation, Laskar Jihad, notorious for having dispatched armed militia to the Malukus to fight Christian groups, and the separatist Free Aceh Movement (GAM) have publicly denied any involvement.

President Wahid said that those involved in the bomb blasts were aimed at destabilising his government. "They want to undermine the government, to instill fear and panic among the people so that the government cannot work. Several groups are out to create a chaotic situation," he said.

While Wahid did not indicate who might be responsible for the latest blasts, in September he publicly accused former president Suharto's son Tommy of being behind the bombing of the Jakarta Stock Exchange.

Other groups went further. Indonesian Legal Aid and Human Rights Association (PBHI) chairman Henardi accused the military, the Suharto family, and its supporters. "Elements of the old political forces are the ones who have the most at stake in undermining the political situation towards democracy. And they are also the ones who have the foremost means to carry out such a despicable act," he said.

There is no direct evidence of the Suharto family's involvement in the blasts but the timing of earlier bombings appeared to coincide with the trial dates of Suharto on corruption charges. The attack on the stock exchange, for instance, came a day before the former military strongman was due to appear in court. The charges against Suharto were eventually dismissed on the basis that he was too sick to stand trial.

Moreover, the police have been unable to halt the bombings, fueling widespread speculation that sections of the security forces are directly involved in an attempt to undermine the government. Plenty of people have an axe to grind with Wahid.

Political conflicts are raging, not simply between the president and the old Suharto apparatus, but within the government itself -- an unstable alliance of parties and factions that includes sections of the armed forces and Golkar, the ruling party during the Suharto era. Wahid has been heavily criticised for his erratic public statements and partiality for overseas trips.

He also faces the threat of impeachment proceedings in parliament over a financial scandal involving his former masseur.

On December 21, Golkar chairman Akbar Tandjung launched a broadside against Wahid describing his administration as ineffective and "starting to lose its legitimacy". Asked if Golkar was setting a deadline for the government Akbar said that the party would wait until the annual parliamentary session in August before taking any action. But he added that Golkar would reject positions in the cabinet in the upcoming ministerial reshuffle unless the president changed his management style.

Sharp differences exist over the government's attitude towards separatist movements in Aceh and West Papua. Under pressure from Megawati and her allies to protect national unity, Wahid has been taking a tougher line. Last month he was forced into an embarrassing backdown after he twice ordered the release of arrested Papuan separatist leaders only to be ignored by the police.

Bowing to his opponents, Wahid, during a visit to West Papua over Christmas, affirmed that Papua Presidium chairman Theys Eluay would remain in custody "because of his actions against the law". He also stated: "I will allow the people here to freely express their opinions but if there is any attempt to declare independence, I will take action against it. Irian Jaya must remain part of the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia"

The divisions surfaced again on Tuesday when Administrative Reform Minister Ryass Rasyid, the architect of the government's decentralisation policy, resigned, saying he had "irreconcilable differences" with the president. The regional autonomy plan, which came into effect on January 1, is aimed at undercutting secessionist movements by giving greater financial and administrative powers to the provinces.

Rasyid, who several months ago was stripped of the responsibility for the plan's implementation, has criticised its potential for creating corruption and inefficiency. Similar criticisms have been made by the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and Megawati.

Underlying this political instability lie growing concerns about the state of the Indonesian economy. Its limited recovery since the Asian financial crisis has been largely dependent on exports that are threatened by any downturn in the US and Europe. The corporate sector is heavily indebted, to the tune of about $US65 billion, the rupiah dropped by about 25 percent against the US dollar in late November, and share values have also been falling. Foreign investment has been stagnant.

The Wahid government is under pressure from the IMF to press ahead with a range of measures including bank restructuring and the privatisation of state-owned assets. Discussions with the IMF in Washington are due to go ahead in mid-January over the signing of another letter of intent which will undoubtedly set out a fresh series of demands.

An acerbic comment entitled "What a Mess!" in the New York Times several months ago spelled out the dissatisfaction in international ruling circles with the Wahid government over its failure to create the necessary political and economic climate for foreign investment. After categorising Indonesia as "a messy state" along with Russia and Pakistan, the writer went on:

"[I]n messy states you never know -- when arms are sold, people murdered or payoffs demanded -- whether this is by design of those ostensibly in charge or because no one is in charge. Indeed, we are going to have to retrain US diplomats to deal with messy states. The first course would consist of film of a US ambassador going to see a senior official of a messy state and asking him to do X. The official of the messy state agrees, gets up and pulls the lever the US ambassador wants, and the lever comes right off the wall. In messy states, levers get pulled but they come off in your hand."

The article articulates the frustrations building up in Washington over the failure of Wahid to stabilise Indonesia following the downfall of Suharto and his evident lack of control over the state bureaucracy, the security forces and his own cabinet. As the latest spate of bombings indicates, the tensions within the ruling elites, far from lessening, are intensifying.

Indonesia heading for 'new crisis'

Shefali Rekhi -- Indonesia is lurching towards another crisis given the vulnerability of the economy and differences among the political elite, the head of a prominent Indonesian think-tank warned yesterday.

"This crisis will be triggered by a banking or a fiscal crisis and looms on the horizon," Dr Hadi Soesastro, executive director of the Jakarta-based Centre for Strategic and International Studies, said at a regional seminar in Singapore.

He said the seriousness of the economic and political situation was not being realised by the leadership, and they were holding the country "hostage". The bickering among the elite would only contribute to the crisis and, in the process, there would be disastrous economic-policy decisions, he told participants of the Regional Outlook Forum 2001 organised by the Institute of South- east Asian Studies.

Dr Hadi said the weakening of the rupiah in recent months was, in part, due to this bickering and the attempts by some legislators to unseat President Abdurrahman Wahid.

Admitting the shortcomings in the current state of the economy, he said that "Indonesia's scorecard on structural reforms is still much in the red ... The agenda for reform and recovery is largely unfinished three years after the first IMF-supported programme had been in place".

It also did not surprise him that last year's economic recovery was, at best, fragile and its sustainability was an issue. Recovery thus far was driven by domestic consumption, exports and an increase in investments. But the current year's outlook was not encouraging.

Noting that recovery was "selective" and limited to a few sectors -- construction, transportation and communication -- he said "while Singapore will talk of a new versus old economy ... in Indonesia, we continue to talk about the sick versus the healthy economy".

Turning to the critical banking and fiscal sectors, he criticised the reforms now in place. Indonesia's banking structure was "not different from what it was pre-crisis", he said, adding that the system remained fragile and vulnerable to a crisis.

Critical reforms such as a clear division between bank owners and users had not taken place. There has been little injection of fresh capital, and privatisation of state-owned banks was yet to be taken up.

He was also alarmed over limited spending on development that would have severe long-term repercussions, and the problems with managing the fiscal deficit. Looking ahead, he felt that "politically, there was no way out until 2004, when elections take place again".

Nearly 400 people attended the seminar to discuss the outlook for the various regional countries.

Jakarta's army of civil servants fears loss of status

Jakarta -- Millions of Indonesian civil servants are pressing for new regional autonomy laws to be changed, fearing they will lose their salary ratings and promotion system, a report said Friday.

Regional governments were ill-prepared to manage civil servants working for them, the head of the Civil Servants Employee Affairs Agency, Priyono Tjiptoherdanto, told the Jakarta Post.

He said the agency wanted five of the relevant autonomy laws, which came into effect on January 1, changed so that the 2.3 million civil servants slated for transfer to the regions will not suffer.

"We cannot have different standards of promotion, ranking, pension, transfer and other principle matters affecting civil servants' salaries," Tjiptoherdanto was quoted as saying.

"This could turn into disadvantages for the employees because under the existing regulations, the regions can make up their own rules for promotion, transfer and other management matters."

The agency has asked the presidential office to ensure that national civil servant management is handled by the central government.

"There have been cases where people in the regions were promoted for no clear reason," Tjiptoherdanto said. "Next thing we know the regions will have different standards and they can send people to early retirement."

Under the massive decentralisation program, local administrations will be responsible for the management, welfare and salary of the transfered civil servants. The salaries will be bankrolled through a general allocation fund from the state budget.

Meanwhile, Jakarta's City Subdistricts Administration Office said the city administration was still running behind on drafting structural changes to accommodate the new autonomy arrangements.

"The structural changes should have been made before the draft city budget of 2001 was endorsed if regional autonomy was to be implemented now," director Koesnan Halim was quoted as saying.

He cited hold-ups in the transfer of central government money- making assets in the capital to the Jakarta government. "It seems the central government remains reluctant to hand over assets to the city administration."

Halim said the Jakarta government would propose a management- sharing scheme with the central government regarding the assets, which include toll roads, recreation parks and ports.

"We will discuss the sharing arrangements further, but it is important that current operators of these assets acknowledge our existence as the host of the capital."

The regional autonomy laws took effect, without fanfare but with much criticism as incomplete and premature, on January 1. Almost immediately afterwards, one of its main architects, administrative reform minister Ryaas Rasyid submitted his resignation. Rasyid argued that the directorate charged with implementing the autonomy process had inadequate clout to ensure the cooperation of all government ministries.

Former president Suharto, an ex-army general who stepped down after 32 years in power in 1998 amid mass protests, enfored a rigidly centralized system of governance in the huge archipelago.

President says four groups trying to topple him

Jakarta -- President Abdurrahman Wahid revealed on Saturday that there were four major groups trying to unseat him from his presidential chair, citing that systematic attempts have been launched by the groups starting from January 2000.

The groups consist of people who have personal ambitions, people who are scared of being punished for past mistakes, people who want to keep the status quo and people who often used Islam, Abdurrahman said, as quoted by Antara. He did not name the four groups.

"They are trying to topple me, for example, with an issue that I had a relationship with a woman whose initials are AS, Aryanti Sitepu. I'm afraid AS means Amerika Serikat [the US] or Alwi Shihab [foreign minister]," he said with a burst of laughter.

Abdurrahman also maintained that he was innocent of all the allegations thrown at him, from the misuse of donations to the extramarital scandal, saying the allegations were attempts launched by anti-Gus Dur (as the President is popularly known) groups.

He denied the misuse of US$2 million donated by Brunei Darusssalam's Sultan Hasanal Bolkiah. "There is nothing, please check it," he said without elaborating. Abdurrahman was also alleged to have knowledge of Rp 35 billion in funds disbursed from an employee's cooperative of the State Logistic Agency (Bulog). A former presidential masseur, Suwondo, said he asked for the money from Bulog after receiving an order from Abdurrahman.

Indonesia embarks on historic decentralisation plan

Jakarta -- Indonesia on Monday began an unprecedented devolution of power to its regions in a momentous move aimed at keeping the vast archipelago -- already fraying at the edges -- together.

As of January 1, Indonesia's 29 provinces and some 300 districts become empowered to decide on their own budget and administration, leaving the central government with foreign affairs, monetary and defence affairs as well as 40 percent of the provincial tax revenues.

The move represents a dose of autonomy the government hopes will placate growing demand in the provinces for more say and in some resource-rich areas, more income.

Regional autonomy was initiated during the government of autocratic former ruler Suharto in 1997 with 68 model districts given limited financial autonomy.

But the legal foundations were only laid down in 1999 under Suharto's successor, BJ Habibie who issued a law on regional autonomy and another on the shares of revenues between the central government and the regions.

They have since been criticized as being too hastily prepared, with plenty of loopholes that may encourage corruption and nepotism in the regions.

It has also vexed foreign investors and lending institutions, including the World Bank and the IMF. They warn that, once unleashed, inexperienced provincial governments angered by the decades they have seen their wealth milked by a rapacious government in Jakarta, will equally-rapaciously drain foreign oil, mining and timber companies dry.

In the three years since Suharto's fall, foreign mining companies have already had their fingers burnt. Some have had to shut down for months as peasants whose land was forcibly appropriated by Suharto's military, swarmed back onto "their" land.

But the government of the country's first democratically-elected president, Abdurrahman Wahid, says decentralization is the only option.

Alarmed by virulent rise of separatist movements in Aceh and Irian Jaya, especially after last year's overwhelming independence vote by which East Timor broke away, Jakarta says it has no choice.

"Regional autonomy is a process of democratization in the government, moving from centralization to decentralization ... [we] do not want to fail in democracy building," Home Affairs Minister Suryadi Sudirja said last week.

His director general for regional general government, Sudarsono Harjosukarto, brushed away fears of overly greedy district and provincial authorities.

"If there are local regulations that go against the law or against public interest, facitilies exist to correct these regulations," Harjosukarto told the SCTV television.

If the regulation was issued at the district level, the governor could cancel it and if it was at the provincial level, Jakarta could overule it.

The government readily admits that it is ill-prepared for the transition. "It is a process, we will be able to do repairs along the way," director general of budgeting at the finance ministry, Anshari Ritonga told SCTV.

The Tempo weekly, in an analysis of the autonomy package, said the lack of supporting regulations could open the door to conflict between central government and the provinces. "The spirit of autonomy is giving rise to confusion, fights for authority and conflicts," Tempo said.

Without the support of central government subsidies, authorities in poorer regions may resort to heavy taxes as a way of making up budget shortfalls.

Deddy Supriady Bratakusumah, a regional affairs expert formerly with the National Development Planning Board, said that survival of regions with no meaningful natural resources would now depend on their "ability to dig into the potentials of levies."

Attempt have already been made. Provincial authories are already clamoring for a bigger slice of revenues from giant nickel mining company PT INCO in South Sulawesi amd from oil company PT Caltex Pacific Indonesia in oil-rich Riau province.

In an effort to reassure sorely-needed investors -- including the vital oil and gas companies -- the Mines and Energy ministry in Jakarta has already promised that all existing contracts will be honored.

Local power stalled by corruption

Lindsay Murdoch, Jakarta -- When district administrators in the Indonesian province of Kalimantan, on Borneo, were asked to launch pilot projects for autonomy, they spent most of the money on luxury offices and official residences.

They also issued hundreds of new concessions to cut timber in rapidly diminishing rainforests, raising suspicions of more corrupt deals in a multi-billion-dollar industry where corruption is already endemic.

Indonesia's enfeebled Government, worried about holding the fractious archipelago together, has promised to start sweeping decentralisation measures from yesterday.

But the implementation of 15 hastily passed autonomy laws is in doubt amid concerns they will encourage corruption, deter foreign investment and lead to overspending and excessive borrowing or taxation by local authorities.

Mr Andi Mallarangeng, a former adviser to the Government on autonomy, and now a consultant to the United Nations Development Program, says regional autonomy is vital to hold Indonesia together.

But many local authorities, and even a number of central government ministers, are ill-prepared to put it into operation.

Many of the local legislators ... "think autonomy means a chance for them to impose taxes on everything, be it dead or alive," Mr Mallarangeng said.

Many of the laws still do not have government regulations to back them up. "There will be many areas that do not know how much their budget is and how to draw up a regional budget," Mr Mallarangeng said.

All of the country's 364 regencies, or districts, have been promised control of health, education, co-operatives, forestry, trade, agriculture and mining from January 1. Jakarta will maintain its authority on foreign affairs, defence, the economy, justice and religion.

But companies with businesses in the provinces are worried that regional officials will be even more corrupt than those they have had to deal with in Jakarta.

The International Monetary Fund last month delayed a $US400 million loan to Indonesia because it wanted Jakarta to take tougher action to prohibit local governments from borrowing directly from overseas. The World Bank warned recently that the devolution of large amounts of money to inexperienced local government is open to abuse.

The mining industry is so worried about having to deal with corrupt local officials that exploration throughout the country has virtually stopped and the viability of existing projects is in doubt.

In South Kalimantan corruption has reached such a staggering level that illegal mining is almost as big an industry as legal operations. "The corruption taking place now makes dwarfs the Soeharto era," said one mining industry expert, who asked not to be named.

The Government's main aim in passing the autonomy laws is to try to placate growing separatist sentiments. But it has failed to produce promised special autonomy packages for the most troubled of its provinces: Aceh and Irian Jaya, also known as West Papua.

Police to separate from defense ministry

Jakarta -- The National Police will remain a nationwide institution despite the implementation of regional autonomy, which started on Monday.

"Police authority will not be delegated to provincial administration despite the inception of regional autonomy," National Police Chief Gen. Surojo Bimantoro said on the sidelines of a New Year celebration in the early hours of Monday morning.

His remarks came in connection with the separation of the National Police from the Ministry of Defense, effective January 1. From now on it falls directly under the President's supervision, as stipulated in Presidential Decree No. 89/2000 on the Structure of the Indonesian National Police.

The status caps the two-year transition period which was initiated by the changes in the Indonesian Military (TNI). The military has had its function reduced to defense only.

Bimantoro also disclosed a plan to modify the police ranks terminology and insignia as part of the separation program. The new rank for senior superintendent will be changed into police high commissioner and superintendent will become adjutant to the police high Commissioner, while assistant superintendent is now commissioner.

Senior inspector will be adjutant to commissioner, while chief sergeant will be called adjutant to inspector. First sergeant will be brigadier while second sergeant will be called private. Several ranks will be omitted in the new structure, including first and second adjutants, sergeant major and corporal.

Bimantoro did not elaborate when the new ranks will take effect and the impact of the changes since many officers will likely lose their rank echelon as a result of the omission of several ranks.

Among the significant changes is that police will have full authority in national security matters, an officer who is working on the revision of Law 28/1997 on National Police told The Jakarta Post.

When asked whether police officers who committed crimes would be prosecuted in the Military Court since they are already separated from the military, Bimantoro said it would depend on the amendment to the police law.

Defense Minister accuses former military leaders

Jakarta -- Defense Minister Mahfud MD yesterday brushed off suggestions he would step down, which came from local legislator and ex Finance Minister, Fuad Bawazier, "Unless it is requested by the President or the cabinet is dissolved,"

Always relaxed in his hometown, Mahfud was speaking at a meeting with reporters from Yogyakarta newspaper Wawasan. He said neither he nor the Minister of Justice and Human Rights Affairs Yusril Ihza Mahendra would leave the cabinet.

He did admit he had met with the legislator and Fuad had asked him to resign, saying that his (Mahfud`s) "boat" was about to sink. "Fuad said I was a good man. But because the boat was sinking, I should resign so that I could save myself," he said.

He said Fuad`s request was just emotional and that Fuad himself had been on a sinking boat when he was Finance Minister during the New Order era.

"The [boat] was sinking because it was holed by its passengers," he said whilst adding that Fuad hadn`t stepped down, preferring to offer various excuses whilst 13 other cabinet ministers had tendered their resignations. "He was the only minister who didn`t resign at the time," Mahfud said

Mahfud went on to say that the recent acts of terror including the "Bloody Christmas" tragedy could not be separated from the involvement of former Indonesian military (TNI) strongmen.

Besides still wielding influence, said Mahfud, they also had huge funds to buy supporters and mastermind various acts of terror. "They have much influence and money to buy supporters,"

Mahfud also stated that among the TNI strongmen, most of them were retired generals and no longer in the military organic structure. Their presence and involvement, according to him, could only be felt although to penetrate through the legal process remained very difficult.

When asked whether ex president Soeharto was among them, Mahfud said that the former President no longer had any such thoughts. But clearly, said Mahfud, most of them were in the first circle.

Their motivation to perform such acts, according to Mahfud, was to prevent legal efforts to disclose the crimes of corruption as well as human rights abuses which they had perpetrated in the past. "Therefore, some acts of terror were common when Soeharto was about to be investigated, or during corruption investigations involving his cronies," Mahfud reasoned

He said it was wrong to accuse the Indonesian military (TNI) of being behind all these cases. "The TNI are ready to leave the political ring and they are even willing to become fire fighters," he concluded.

Regional autonomy architect ready to resign

Susan Sim, Jakarta -- As the architect of the regional autonomy laws that take effect throughout Indonesia today, Professor Ryaas Rasyid used to tell district officials that if he believed Jakarta was not serious about devolving its powers to them, he would resign his Cabinet post. He is about to do so.

Four months after his Regional Autonomy Ministry was folded into the Interior Ministry, at his suggestion, but then handed over to another colleague while he was shunted aside as the Administrative Reform Minister, Prof Ryaas is voting with his feet on his fears that the decentralisation process will be unnecessarily chaotic.

"I have professional reasons for resigning," he told The Straits Times on Saturday. "If I cannot be an effective minister and cannot contribute my ideas for reform, then what is the point of staying in the government?"

It is understood he wants to meet President Abdurrahman Wahid tomorrow to hand in his resignation. But it is not clear whether the Indonesian leader will accept his resignation immediately given the objections of Vice-President Megawati Sukarnoputri.

Sources suggest the minister's fate has become a battleground between the two estranged leaders, with the Vice-President trying to persuade Mr Abdurrahman to reverse some of his recent vetos which have led to Prof Ryaas' decision to resign.

One measure proposed by Prof Ryaas was meant to ensure that ministries in Jakarta could coordinate and supervise more efficiently the delivery of public services in all 350 districts and cities after today. He had also suggested the establishment of an independent central audit board to keep corruption in check.

Mr Abdurrahman has rejected both proposals despite previously endorsing them at a Cabinet meeting. But a source close to Ms Megawati told The Straits Times that an emissary she had sent to speak to Mr Abdurrahman reported that the President now appeared "open to accepting Pak Ryaas' ideas".

Although it is unlikely that an open rupture will appear if the President refuses Ms Megawati's request and accepts Prof Ryaas' resignation, it would become increasingly difficult to paper over their differences.

"I'll feel very, very unhappy if a breaking-off between the two leaders happens," Prof Ryaas said. "I might feel guilty all my life. But I'm in a very difficult position now."

Despite widespread speculation, there are no indications that the departure of this popular minister from South Sulawesi will trigger more Cabinet resignations.

But the President's opponents will certainly use it to showcase the weaknesses of his leadership, especially since Prof Ryaas is widely regarded as one of the few ministers with the requisite professional skills for his job.

Said a Western diplomat: "Ryaas is one of the finest ministers around. Frankly I'm surprised he even accepted the Administrative Reform post when the President did not make him Interior Minister in August."

Jakarta to relax its grip in bid to unite nation

Vaudine England -- The Government will keep control of foreign, defence, monetary, judicial and religious policy but devolve many other powers to legislatures at the district level under a law that comes into effect today.

In what is heralded as a new stage in the country's democratic transition, much authority is to be transferred to the 364 districts, deemed more accountable to local wishes.

"Regional autonomy is a process of democratisation in the Government," said Home Affairs Minister Suryadi Sudirja. "We don't want to fail in democracy building."

Officials said it was the only way to hold the nation together in the face of frustration with the failures of central Government and the injustice of Jakarta soaking up most of the wealth generated by the provinces.

But critics said the law was precipitate: the districts were not prepared for their new powers, and there were not enough supporting rules in place to cope with the plethora of disputes. Instead of decentralising power and keeping the far-flung population happier at home, the law could decentralise corruption and further splinter communities.

Andi Mallarengang, a former adviser to the Government on devolution, said that without regional autonomy, "there's no way to hold Indonesia together", but he added: "Many of the local legislators don't understand what regional autonomy is about. They think autonomy means a chance for them to impose taxes on everything, dead or alive."

Speaking about the law, which was initiated by his predecessor, Bacharuddin Habibie, President Abdurrahman Wahid said: "To be honest, the legislation has happened too quickly. I've tried to question whether the regions are ready for this. There are some that want this to be slowed down. But what can I do? It has already been decided.

"First, [we must remember] the desire to base all matters on a balance between rights and obligations. So, don't just demand the rights. Second, the regions cannot ride roughshod over international commitments, especially in terms of trade."

Ministers conceded that no matter how ill-prepared the law was, the decentralising process would continue, and would involve many messy test cases. In lengthy reports by the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and others, one key question was who would mediate such disputes and how they would do so, given the deplorable state of the country's judiciary.

Another issue was who would control the legislatures and who wield authority in the kabupaten (districts). "With its continuing presence in the regions, the military will maintain its stronghold in the civilian domain," Australian academic Ross Worthington warned.

With or without the new law, locals have been taking their fate in their own hands. Land has been taken back forcibly by people who say it was misappropriated by Jakarta's rich and powerful.

Mr Mallarengang said the most important consideration in implementing regional autonomy was whether there was the will to minimise negative effects, such as the creation of "little kings" (warlords).

The Government must show skill -- hitherto little in evidence -- in managing the physical removal of hundreds of thousands of civil servants from Jakarta to regional posts, and the many more already in district offices who face redundancy. "We have suggested gradual decentralisation, because this problem is related to contracts signed with international players," said Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Purnomo Yusgiantoro.

Conflicts are already under way over revenue from such projects as the PT Inco nickel mine, in South Sulawesi, and the oil mined by PT Caltex Pacific Indonesia.
 

Regional conflicts

Nine die in Indonesia resort clashes

Jakarta -- Rival villagers fought with guns and machetes in clashes that killed nine people on a resort island packed with tourists, police said Thursday.

The fighting on Lombok, 25 miles east of Indonesia's main tourist destination of Bali, broke out Wednesday when residents of Perampuan village attacked the hamlet of Bongor, killing one resident, police Capt. Tri Budi Pangastuti said.

Fighting with homemade guns, machetes and other weapons followed, leaving at least eight more people dead. Three people were injured.

Police sent in three platoons to guard the villages, restoring order on the Indian Ocean island whose coastline hotels are still packed with holiday makers. Police said no resorts were affected.

Police said there was no religious element involved in the clashes -- only rival gangs in each village. But the fighting added to Indonesia's woes.

A civil war in Aceh province has left 6,000 dead this year; fighting between Christians and Muslims on the Maluku islands has killed more than 4,000 in the last two years. A guerrilla war by Muslims on Aceh trying to secede has killed 6,000 in the last 10 years, while there is an escalating guerrilla war in the nation's easternmost province of Irian Jaya.

The fighting was a potential major blow to the tourist industry on Lombok, one of the up and coming resort islands, 670 miles east of Indonesia's capital, Jakarta.

Lombok's thriving tourist industry has been in a slump for the past year since riots by Muslim radicals shook the island last January. Churches and businesses belonging to the island's Christian minority were ransacked or burned in sectarian attacks.

That violence erupted after thousands of Muslim protesters demanded the government put an immediate end to Christian-Muslim fighting on the Maluku islands, in Indonesia's east.

Police said Thursday they have arrested two more suspects in connection with a wave of Christmas Eve bombings that claimed 17 lives across Indonesia.

The two, identified only as Usman Musa and Umar, were arrested Wednesday in Sukabumi, 60 miles south of Jakarta, local police said. Two people died in the blasts in Sukabumi.

The arrests brought to five the total number of suspects detained in the bombings, which targeted Christian churches in nine cities across this overwhelmingly Muslim archipelago nation. Most of the bombs were placed in cars parked near churches, including the Roman Catholic cathedral in Jakarta. No one has claimed responsibility.

Witch hunts in Java called a cover for murders

Calvin Sims -- Cianjur -- In this verdant farm belt of West Java, where sorcery and superstition have deep roots, few were surprised last September when an angry mob decapitated a 70-year-old woman accused of casting spells that made people ill. Before lopping off her head, witnesses said, the crowd gouged out her eyes and severed some of her limbs, which they tossed into the street.

Beheadings of suspected witches are not uncommon in rural towns and villages of Java, Indonesia's most populous and perhaps most mystical island. The local police estimate that there were at least 100 witch killings in Java last year. Still, few people seemed upset by the killings, which typically occur in Indonesia's backwaters and are committed under the guise of wiping out evil.

But indifference to the killings may now be changing after 21 people accused of practicing black magic were beheaded or chopped to death between July and October in one district alone -- Cianjur, about 60 miles south of Jakarta, Indonesia's capital. Because of the high concentration of witch murders in one area, the police suspected that there was more to the killings than just fear of sorcery.

This month, the police announced the arrest of 28 suspects linked to the killings, which they said were driven less by fear of evil forces than by personal gain. In most cases, the police said, the suspects had falsely accused the victims of practicing witchcraft and then either killed them or incited or paid others to do so. Their motives were mainly revenge, rivalry and extortion, although some of the suspects may have indeed been driven by genuine terror, the police said.

So far, there is no direct evidence linking the victims -- who were mainly farmers, Muslim teachers and elderly women -- to the practice of witchcraft, which is not illegal in Indonesia.

While some of those arrested were bit players caught in the hysteria of a bloodthirsty crowd, the police said that many suspects were connected to a well-organized syndicate that for a fee cleverly engineered murders to look like witch hunts.

"Many of these were premeditated murders arranged by a network of experienced witch hunters who preyed on the fears of ordinary citizens and convinced them to kill," said Agus Nugroho, Cianjur's senior police inspector. "This case shows just how real black magic is in the minds of the people of this region."

Mr. Agus said that for about $100 syndicate gangs would persuade someone in a village to accuse the targeted person of being a witch. Once the village became convinced that there was a witch in its midst, the gang carried out the killing, usually with the help of townspeople who had been whipped into a frenzy.

Typically, the witch-hunting syndicate found clients in local businessmen seeking to get rid of competitors and candidates for village offices who sought to eliminate political opponents, the police said. People with grudges or seeking an early inheritance also contracted with the syndicate.

At least two of the 21 victims were casualties of a highly competitive local election. In September, two men who were candidates for administrative chief of the local mosque in Hegar Sari in southern Cianjur were suddenly branded as witches and killed, the police said.

Of the 24 suspects now in custody, the police said, a pivotal role in the witch hunts was played by Apih Barma, a 53-year-old farmer and part-time healer. He was the man who judged whether or not a person was in fact a witch.

For 50,000 rupiah, or about 50 cents, Mr. Barma administered what the police called a "medical" test to determine if a person was a black magic practitioner. They said Mr. Barma had effectively condemned to death many of the people brought before him by declaring them witches. He has been charged with practicing medicine without a license.

In an interview at the Cianjur jail where is being held, Mr. Barma said that he was innocent and that he knew nothing of a network to frame people as witches.

Mr. Barma, who has spiky hair and a fixed, piercing stare, at first admitted to administering the witch test to dozens of people brought to him by local community leaders. He said the test consisted of reading from the Koran and observing how the accused reacted. Later in the interview, Mr. Barma denied that there was any witch testing and said that he simply read scriptures to try to free people under the sway of the devil.

"I didn't give any instructions or permission for anyone to be killed," Mr. Barma said. "Those people who were killed died because they were witches and deserved it."

In these poor and undeveloped areas of Indonesia, where education and medical care are scarce, people are prone to believe in the power of supernatural forces to influence sickness and health.

A person can be branded a witch by being the last to have contact with someone who fell ill or suddenly died. Even common ailments like rashes, allergies and the flu are attributed to black magic. In some instances, healers are accused of being witches if they fail to rid clients of disease.

Cianjur residents recount, with evident belief, stories of people vomiting nails, snakes and paper clips, and of bloated stomachs the size of giant balloons that cause people to float around a room.

In the case of Jumsih Canak, her problems began in early September when she tried to do a good deed by feeding her sick neighbor a piece of fish. The neighbor's condition worsened and she eventually died. Other villagers recalled becoming ill after contact with Mrs. Jumsih, and she was labeled a witch. Five men stormed her house and severed her head with machetes, the police said.

Witch hunters are considered heroic in most villages because they rid the community of evil forces. When the police first began detaining and questioning suspects in the killings, local residents staged huge protests demanding that the suspects be freed. In one case, villagers overpowered several police officers and held them hostage until the suspects were released.

Hiday, a 36-year-old farmer who is also being held at the Cianjur prison, said in an interview that he had taken part in the killing of three witches in southern Cianjur, which he said was overrun with witches who had cast "evil spells" on many people there.

"The only way to get rid of witches is to kill them," he said. Before going on a witch hunt, Mr. Hiday said, he and his colleagues would prepare themselves psychologically.

"It's hard work killing a witch, but you just have to keep telling yourself over and over again that they are evil and that you are helping to save innocent people from their curses and spells," he said.

Tu Bagus Ronny Nitibaskara, a University of Indonesia anthropologist, said witch killing in the region dates back centuries, at least as far back as the Dutch colonization of the islands that eventually became Indonesia. Although legally unjustifiable, the witch killing has long served as a mechanism for rural villages to expunge antisocial behavior.

Asked why witch killings are so sadistic, Mr. Nitibaskara said: "They are killed in such a savage way because people believe that they are witches and that they can come back to life. That is why they separate the head from the body or chop the body into pieces."

Abdul Halim, chief of Cianjur's Council of Islamic Teachers, said that although Islam forbids the belief in and practice of black magic, many pre-Islamic traditions and superstitions are widely followed in Indonesia, which has the world's largest Muslim population. Mr. Halim said that while a lack of education led many people to believe in witchcraft, many well-educated people also dabbled in the spiritual world.

According to persistent reports he has never denied, President Abdurrahman Wahid regularly consults spiritualists, as do many prominent Indonesian political and social figures. Even among the educated class in Indonesia, black magic is often a convenient explanation for one's own shortcomings.

A senior government official whose house was recently ransacked and robbed by his domestic help said that his workers had been hypnotized and ordered to steal by a witch hired by the political opposition. Close friends of the official said the workers had robbed his house because he had refused to pay them the customary year-end bonus.

"My greatest fear is that this trend will spread to other regions of Indonesia," Mr. Halim said of the use of witch hunts as a cover for murder or threatening to identify people as witches to squeeze money from them. "You must understand that rural villagers who are not very educated are very easily provoked and moved by rumors so we must combat people using witchcraft for extortion."

The police said they have some leads as to who is behind the syndicate but are still searching for the organizers.

Tension grips Palangkaraya

Palangkaraya, Central Kalimantan -- Brandishing sharp weapons, dozens of native Dayak tribesmen in the Tangkiling subdistrict here took to the Trans-Kalimantan highway on Monday following rumors of an impending attack by migrants.

There was no violence as negotiators from the National Police's Mobile Brigade persuaded the Dayaks to quit the highway and come to the nearby Mobile Brigade office for discussions.

The head of the local police station, Supt. Dwi Prayitno, told Antara the police were searching for the person believed to be responsible for the incident. This alleged provocateur is believed to be hiding in a transmigration settlement camp near the subdistrict.

He said the suspect had spread rumors that a group of migrants were on their way to Tangkiling to take revenge for arson attacks on five buildings in the resettlement area.

Ariya dismissed the report, saying the buildings were just empty huts. "The owners had abandoned the huts some days before [they were burned down]."

Terror used to convert Christians

Chris McCall, Jakarta -- Church investigators have detailed a catalogue of horrors perpetrated on Christians by Islamic militias in the Maluku Islands.

Hundreds of circumcisions were carried out with a single razor blade, they said, causing heavy bleeding and infection. Some women were subject to genital mutilation. Victims were sent into the sea for "disinfection".

The investigators accused jihadis (holy warriors) of using lies and intimidation to prevent their captives from leaving on rescue ships after they were forced to change their religion.

Catholic investigator Father Agus Laritembun described the circumstances in which the Christians had "chosen" to convert. They lived, he said, under permanent threat of slaughter. Their villages were looted and razed, their crops and fruit trees destroyed.

"The choice to become Muslim under such circumstances cannot be called 'free'," he said in the report, released by the Catholic diocese of Amboina.

The evidence was gleaned from witness testimony after the third of three rescue missions finally succeeded in bringing 172 people out of Kesui and Teor islands, to the southeast of the large island of Seram. Among them were seven Muslims.

Some 2,000 to 3,000 assailants first attacked Kesui, burning a different village every day and killing at least nine residents, the report said.

Many Christians fled the island, but others took to the woods. These were later approached by local Muslims, who took them to mosques. There they were told: "By order of the Jihad, now you have come down from the woods you have to embrace Islam. If you are not willing to do so, we have to separate you from the others and you will be killed."

Two Protestant teachers, named as E. Rumatora and David Balubun, were abducted and murdered for refusing to convert, the report said. Attacks on Teor to the southeast followed. Former Christians were seen among the attackers there.

A first attempt to rescue the "converts" in early December was rebuffed by militiamen on the grounds that no one wanted to leave. "This was [obviously] a lie," the report said. A second attempt also failed.

The make-up of the rescue team was overwhelmingly Muslim, with only two Christian representatives. Questioning was carried out within earshot of Muslims. Although the interviewees said they did not want to leave, they were frightened.

A third attempt, with a more balanced team and choosing a neutral location, was partly successful but was also marred by intimidation.

Indonesian security forces did little to prevent Muslims entering the boat along with the forced converts, while women and children were kept onshore while men came on board.

"Immediately after their coming on board, turmoil erupted on the shore," the report said. Fearing for the lives of their family members that had been left behind, they chose to get off the ship again immediately."
 

Aceh/West Papua

Rebels urge Mobil to leave Aceh for safety reasons

Banda Aceh -- Separatist rebels in Indonesia's Aceh province said Wednesday they had warned Mobil Oil Indonesia, a subsidiary of US-based Exxon Mobil, to leave the region for its own safety.

"We have urged the top management of Exxon Mobil to leave Aceh immediately because we cannot guarantee their safety if Jakarta imposes a state of emergency in Aceh," Abu Sofyan Daud, North Aceh-based army commander of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM), told AFP.

"We cannot be held responsible for any damage suffered by Mobil Oil in the event that we attack Indonesian soldiers in the company's complex," he added.

Daud said foreign investors in the resource-rich province on the northern tip of Sumatra could come back to Aceh once it had gained independence from Jakarta.

GAM has been fighting for an independent Islamic sultanate of Aceh for 25 years. Mobil runs the huge Arun Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) production complex in Aceh.

"We call on them to stop exploiting Aceh's land for the benefit of the colonialist government in Jakarta while our people are starving and killed by Indonesian security forces," Daud said.

He charged that Indonesian soldiers and police had misused "facilities" provided by Mobil Oil, ostensibly for the company's security, to quash separatist rebels.

In the past two years GAM guerillas have mounted many attacks on government security guards posted at Mobil Oil, causing disruption to the company's activities. The government and the rebels signed a three-month truce in May, which was extended for another three months in September.

However officials in Jakarta have said the truce will not be extended again as it had failed to stop the violence. More than 850 people were killed in the violence in Aceh last year despite the shaky truce.

Jakarta, determined to reach a political solution to the dispute, has said talks with GAM's exiled leadership will resume in Europe next week.

Separatism in Aceh has been fuelled by Jakarta's failure to ensure the province benefits from its natural wealth and by years of harsh military repression aimed at wiping out the rebellion.

Jakarta, still smarting over the loss of East Timor in a UN- supervised ballot in 1999, has ruled out independence for Aceh promising broad autonomy instead.

Eleven die in violence in Aceh

Banda Aceh -- Separatist violence flared in Indonesia's troubled Aceh province, leaving 11 people dead, police and witnesses said Saturday. Friday's deaths -- nine civilians, one police officer and a separatist rebel -- bring to 24 the number killed this year.

They come as negotiators from the Indonesian government and rebel forces prepare to meet in Switzerland on Monday for a new round of peace talks. The talks are aimed at extending a fragile and largely symbolic cease-fire that is due to expire on January 15.

Security forces said the police officer was shot and killed in a battle with a separatist gang in the south of Aceh, a province located on the northern tip of Sumatra island.

The rebel was killed during a military raid on a rebel hide-out in southern Aceh, said Capt. Sultan Depok Samandoko, who led the assault. He said six other rebels were captured and two other escaped. On Saturday, villagers found three bodies near the rebel hide-out, officials at the local hospital said.

Elsewhere, two men were shot and killed by an assailant on a motorcycle in the town of Lhokseumawe. Four others died in separate attacks in the province's east.

Police have blamed the rebels for all the killings, but Syaiful Bachri, a volunteer for a local refugee organization, claimed that two of those killed in eastern Aceh were shot by soldiers in a busy marketplace. The separatist Free Aceh Movement took responsibility only for the police officer's death.

The guerrilla group has been waging a low-level insurgency against Indonesian rule for the past 26 years. At least 6,000 people have been killed in the past decade in the province. About 1,000 died last year.

Monday's peace talks in Geneva could prove to be a turning point in the conflict. Some Indonesian Cabinet ministers and hard-line army generals are pressing President Abdurrahman Wahid to launch a major crackdown against the insurgents, while rebel leaders have warned of civil war if the truce is not extended.

Wahid has offered to keep negotiations with the rebels open and plans to give greater self-rule to the province. But he has rejected demands for outright independence.

Since the cease-fire came into effect in June last year, at least 525 people have died and another 325 are missing.

Aceh talks to resume in Switzerland

Jakarta -- Make or break talks on Aceh will commence in Davos, Switzerland, on Saturday with Indonesian government negotiators likely to make one final offer to Free Aceh Movement (GAM) representatives for special autonomy in the province.

Failure to make headway will likely doom the Humanitarian Pause signed last year as Cabinet ministers have said that Jakarta does not wish to extend the accord that expires January 15.

Indonesia's lead negotiator Hassan Wirajuda said on Friday that the special autonomy offer and an end to separatist demands will be high on the agenda.

"We will talk about substance and discuss what will happen after January 15. But we will stick with our offer and wait for GAM to state their demands, Hassan told The Jakarta Post. "Let's hope the discussions work out," he added.

Hassan remained hopeful of a possible extension of the accord he signed in May if certain agreements can be reached. He maintained that Jakarta has yet to conclude anything, whether to extend the accord or not.

Earlier on Thursday, Vice President Megawati Soekarnoputri said in a meeting in Geneva with the Henry Dunant Center's (HDC) Director, Martin Griffiths, that all parties should abide by the agreement to create conducive conditions for talks on substantive matters to help resolve the Aceh problems.

Megawati said the government has every intention to settle the Aceh problem through dialog, but underlined that talks must be based on Aceh being part of Indonesia, Antara reported.

In what looks like a carrot-and-stick approach to the Aceh issue, the chief of the Indonesian Marine Corps, Maj. Gen. Harri Triyono, asserted that he was ready to deploy one-third of the corps' 8,000 soldiers to the troubled province if the Indonesian Military Chief orders it.

"We are following the government's policy in Aceh, but if we have to add more troops, we are ready to send one-third of our marines," Harri told reporters on Friday as quoted by Antara, adding that currently there are 600 marines in the province.

In Banda Aceh a local religious leader, during Friday prayers at the Baiturrahman grand mosque, called on the people of Aceh to pray for the success of the talks between the Indonesian government and GAM.

"Let us pray to God for the success of the dialog as it will bring peace in Aceh," councillor Muhammad Nasir Djami said in front of thousands who had gathered to pray.

Meanwhile latest reports reveal that fighting between security forces and separatist rebels has left at least six dead, police and hospital workers said Friday.

East Aceh Police chief Adj. to Chief Comr. Abdullah Hayati said four people, including one police officer, were killed in clashes with rebels in eastern reaches of the province on Thursday afternoon.

Hospital officials said two unidentified bodies were also found in other parts of the region on Friday. The latest deaths brings to 13 the number of people killed so far this year.

Separately, Aceh's Coalition of Human rights NGOs lead by Maimul Fidar demanded the provincial police grant city arrest status for Muhammad Nazar, chief of Aceh Referendum Information Center (SIRA). "Nazar won't escape or remove any evidence against him," Maimul, who is also Nazar's lawyer, said on Friday.

Nazar is being charged under Article 154 and 155 of the Criminal Code for showing hostile intentions/treason against the state, which carries a maximum sentence of seven years in jail. He is currently being detained at Aceh Besar Police Precinct, pending trial.

Irianese refugees to PNG increase due to fear of violence

Jakarta -- At least 500 Irianese are seeking refuge in Papua New Guinea (PNG) due to fear of erupting violence from clashes between rebel groups and the Indonesian security authorities, Antara reported on Saturday.

The people were mostly residents of Jayawijaya, the hinterland of Jayapura, which is located close to the border with the neighboring country.

The news agency said that the increase has been reported since December 1, 2000, during the commemoration of the unrecognized Papuan independence day. Around 288 people were reported leaving their villages and heading for Papua New Guinea during that time.

Thousands of security personnel were deployed to safeguard the commemoration to anticipate violence from the hard-liner separatist guerrillas.

An official from Irian Jaya's administration border affairs, F.X. Suryanto, confirmed the increase and said that the residents took alternative ways to leave Irian Jaya because the usual exit was tightly guarded by military personnel.

"The military will suggest that people return to their villages and guarantee their security so now people take an alternative way. They use a motorboat to enter Papua New Guinea which takes about 2.5 hours," Suryanto said.

According to Suryanto, the government and the people of Papua New Guinea have strongly objected the illegal arrivals of the Irianese.

Seventeen killed during Islamic holidays in Aceh

Banda Aceh -- At least 17 people have been killed during the Muslim Eid Al-Fitr holiday in Indonesia's troubled province of Aceh, police and human rights workers said Sunday.

The continuing violence bodes ill for upcoming peace talks between the government and leaders of the separatist Free Aceh Movement. They are tentatively scheduled to take place January 5 in Geneva.

Three civilians died Saturday when police opened fire in Seuneubok Rawang, East Aceh, said Muhammad Dahlan, a rights worker. Supt. Yatim Suyatmo, a spokesman for the security forces accused them of being separatist guerrillas. "The rebels started shooting first when police conducted operations in the village," he said.

But a rebel commander, Ishak Daud, denied that the victims were guerrilla fighters. "The casualties were employees of a shrimp farm, which was looted by the police after the shooting," he said.

Two unidentified bodies were found in the provincial capital, Banda Aceh and in North Kluet district Saturday, hospital workers said. In South Aceh, villagers said police shot to death four men.

Meanwhile, seven bodies were found with gunshot wounds in Pidie, a town 80 kilometers east of the provincial capital of Banda Aceh. "Those people were kidnapped and killed by the rebels," Suyatmo said. One police officer was stabbed to death in West Aceh Friday, he added.
 

Human rights/law

A missing Tommy embarrasses everyone

Jakarta -- Two months after former President Suharto's youngest son was ordered arrested, the ease with which he has evaded capture is causing increasing embarrassment to the country's beleaguered President.

Police yesterday said they had no idea of the whereabouts of Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra, who has been sentenced to 18 months in prison for a 1997 real estate scam that cost the government US$6 million.

After a bizarre series of events that preceded the arrest warrant -- including two secret meetings with head-of-state Mr Abdurrahman Wahid -- Tommy suddenly vanished and has not been seen since.

On November 2, Mr Abdurrahman denied a plea by Tommy for a Presidential pardon. A day later police issued a warrant for his arrest.

"Both Mr Abdurrahman and the police are looking stupid," said political analyst Benny Subianto. "The President is still desperately trying to convince people that Tommy will be caught."

Last week, Mr Abdurrahman said police officers had caught up with Tommy at an undisclosed location in eastern Java, Indonesia's dominant island. But Tommy managed to get away while commanders proceeded to check with the Presidential palace whether to detain him, he said.

Mr Abdurrahman insisted that the authorities still knew Tommy's whereabouts. "We know where he is and when the timing is right, he will be detained," he said.

But police denied they had captured the millionaire playboy, who has a passion for fast cars. "Don't say that the national police spokesman is saying that the President is wrong. But no single policeman has ever arrested Tommy," police Brig-Gen Saleh Saaf said.

Mr Abdurrahman has come under fire for his failure to put Tommy behind bars. The case has exposed flaws in Indonesian law enforcement and added to worries that the President is unable to clean up graft in the country.
 

News & issues

Police warn of burgeoning blackmail by phoney journalists

Jakarta -- Police in the Indonesian capital have warned the public against a burgeoning blackmail racket in Jakarta run by groups posing as journalists who prey on government officials and businessmen.

Police spokesman Adjutant Commander Alex Mandalika urged victims to lodge immediate reports with the police to enable them to nab the culprits, the Jakarta Post reported Friday.

"The Criminal Code Procedures stipulate that police investigators could not arrest a person posing as a journalist without any report from the victim," Mandalika said.

He said the "pseudo-journalists" had even been "operating" inside city police headquarters, including the notoriously corrupt driving license division.

Mandalika told the Post that one group, calling itself the Gabungan Wartawan Indonesia (the Alliance of Indonesian Journalists), had several months ago reportedly demanded money from the police.

They had threatened to reveal the alleged involvement of police in supporting gambling houses in the city. "But the threat was only a hoax," he added, without explaining further.

The Post quoted a source in "close contact with the group of impostors" as saying they operated in three groups of between 25 and 40 members who met regularly at three locations in the city -- a hotel, a coffee shop, and a market.

"They are very convincing and well organized. They have high solidarity, such as donating money to their members who are sick," the source told the Post.

He said the operators usually selected their victims -- officials or businessmen -- by reading newspapers. They would then visit the victims and demand money. "They never visit their victims alone, but in small groups consisting of between five and 10 people," the source said.

He said the impostors each earn between 100,000 rupiah 200,000 (10 to 20 dollars) per day from their operations, which they often describe as a "news investigation."

The Post said Jakarta police had last year detained a "pseudo- journalist" who, along with associates, had allegedly blackmailed several governors attending a meeting at the Ministry of Home Affairs. The detained man has denied the accusations, and claimed to be a bona fide, accredited member of the press.

The Indonesian press, which was muzzled under the former authoritarian president Suharto, has long operated on a system of "Uang Jalan" (travel money) under which any company holding a press conference hands out white envelopes.

After Suharto's fall amid mass protests in May 1998, scores of banned publications reappeared alongside new tabloids, dot.com news services and magazines.

Many foreign news organizations in the capital have also had to cope with the "pseudo-journalists" posing as members of their staff to extract money from figures in the news.

Suspect says he learned to make bombs in Afghanistan

Jakarta -- A senior police detective revealed on Friday that one of four suspects in the Christmas Eve bombing case has confessed to having received explosives training in Afghanistan.

"Dedi Mulyadi, a 31-year-old suspect from Pangandaran, West Java, has told police that he and his dead colleague, Yoyo, had both received military training in the making of bombs in an Afghan militia camp," National Police chief of detectives Insp. Gen. Engkesman Hillep said on Friday. Engkesman confirmed that the death toll from the bombings stands at 18.

Dedi was driving a motorbike on Christmas Eve heading for one of five destinations, including churches and a discotheque, which he and his friend Yoyo intended to blow up. "His motorcycle lurched, which activated the time bomb his friend Yoyo was carrying. Yoyo died. He [Dedi] lived," Engkesman told reporters at the National Police Headquarters.

"Dedi has said that, like him, Yoyo and Holis, another suspect who remains at large, were members of the militia group from 1990 to 1992." Doubting the statements Dedi gave to his detectives, West Java Police chief Insp. Gen. Yuyun Mulyana has asked Interpol to confirm their validity.

"Dedi has claimed to detectives that he received military training in Afghanistan, as well as the other fugitive in this case 31-year-old Holis, alias Udin," Mulyana told reporters in Bandung, West Java, after a briefing with the provincial council on the bombing case.

Dedi was transferred to Sartika Asih Police Hospital in Bandung, from his previous detention cell at Ciamis Police Precinct, after suffering burns from the bomb explosion.

Dedi, along with two others suspected of responsibility for the explosion in a welding shop on Jl. Terusan Jakarta in Bandung -- Roni Miliar and Agus Kurniawan -- is currently being treated at the police hospital.

Police have found documents and other incriminating papers in a house used by the Bandung suspects, Engkesman said. "The documents, among other things, contain telephone numbers. Eleven numbers are from Malaysia, two from Australia and there are others from Yogyakarta, Bandung, Jakarta, Aceh and Medan," Engkesman said.

West Java Police sources have revealed that the single group behind the Christmas Eve bombings had established links with underground movements in other countries, such as Malaysia.

While stating that four suspects were already in police custody and another 19 witnesses were potential suspects, Engkesman identified three other suspects whose whereabouts are unknown as: Haji Aceng Suhari, 56; Iqbal, alias Aceng Idin, alias Iyep, 43; and Holis.

Engkesman added that the police have asked the Directorate- general of Immigration to issue travel bans on the three fugitives.

Although Army Chief of Staff Gen. Endriartono Sutarto has claimed that no Army members were involved in the bombings, a list containing details of the three fugitives identifies Aceng Suhari as a retired employee of state-owned weapons manufacturer PT Pindad, which is under the supervision of Army headquarters.

The lists, issued and signed by Adjutant to High Comr. Edward Syah Pernong, have also identified Aceng Suhari's last address as Jl. Atlas Dalam No. 11 RT3/RW13, in the Babakan Surabaya subdistrict of Antapani Kiaracondong in Bandung. An address where he was also last seen is Jl. Terusan Jakarta No. 45 in Antapani, Bandung, West Java.

The list identifies Iqbal as an Ustad (Muslim teacher), whose last address was in Cidahu, Singajaya, Garut. The last address of Holis, a Sundanese, was in Cikoneng Ciamis, and in the Panyingkiran Cikalong village in Tasikmalaya.

The facts revealed in the media conference held by the National Police headquarters, however, showed that the National Police and the West Java Police had established limited joint coordination over the handling of the case.

This was evidenced when National Police deputy chief of detectives Brig. Gen. Sudirman Ail stated that Bandung Police have suspected a man, identified as Musa, as being involved in the bombings.

Ail's statement was contradictory to actions of the West Java Police, who on Thursday night released two key witnesses, namely Syekh Musa and Umar, who were taken into custody on Thursday at approximately 6pm in Sukabumi, about 50 kilometers away from Bandung.

"We found no links between them and the Bandung [bombing] group. Musa, who is a traditional healer, said that members of the group once asked him for treatment, but it was quite a long time ago. So, we returned them to their homes," West Java Police chief Insp. Gen. Yuyun Mulyana said.

The detectives also returned two pistols and five bullets, as well as an axe and a sickle, found after a search at a foundation office belonging to Musa in the Warungkondang area in Cianjur. Musa and Umar, however, still remain witnesses in the case and must report to Police in Sukabumi twice a week.

PKB cant stop NU masses

Jakarta -- The National Awakening Party (PKB) says it can't ban thousands of East Java Muslims from coming to Jakarta to stage rallies in support of embattled President Abdurrahman Gus Dur Wahid.

All that we can do is to persuade them not to be easily provoked by anti-Gus Dur groups. We have no power to ban them, PKB Secretary General Muhaimin Iskandar told the press in Jakarta yesterday.

Muhaimin, a loyalist of Gus Dur, said he sees no constitutional basis for the president to be ousted. Therefore, he added, the Muslim masses from East Java need not respond emotionally to taunts and acts of provocation.

More than 200,000 members of the Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) Muslim organization in East Java will next week leave for Jakarta to counter a huge anti-Gus Dur rally scheduled for January 15.

Muhaimin, who is also deputy speaker of the House of Representatives, said anti-Wahid statements made by the political elite are normal in the democratization process.

But he warned that certain groups may attempt to manipulate the public to create internal conflicts. He suggested that all political groups must be aware of this that possibility.

Muhaimin said mobilizing the masses for the sake of political goals is all right, as long as the constitution is upheld. The NU is planning to come to the defense of Wahid following rumors of the huge protest that will take place in Jakarta on January 15.

The NU youth wing, Ansor, claims hundreds of thousands of its cadres from East Java are ready to be deployed to Jakarta to uphold the constitution and support Gus Dur.

East Java Ansor Secretary Chusnul Huda on Tuesday said in Surabaya city that at least 215,000 members of Banser the NUs security force want to go to Jakarta to counter the anti-Wahid movement. January 15 is the anniversary of the so-called Malari incident of 1974, which involved massive street demonstrations by student protesters against the corrupt regime of then president Soeharto.

Elements of the military allegedly encouraged the students to transform the demonstration into an anti-Japan protest.

Rumor has it that Wahids opponents many of whom are connected to the Soeharto regime will use the anniversary of the Malari incident to demand the removal of Gus Dur. Huda said Banser will do its best to keep Gus Dur in power, as his term in office is not due to finish until 2004.

Police baffled by bombers' tactics

Jakarta -- Jakarta Police admit that the simple methods used by the Christmas eve bombers have baffled investigators in their quest to uncover more evidence.

Jakarta Police Chief Insp. Gen. Mulyono Sulaiman said on Sunday that "the method is simplistic and effective enough to make things very difficult for police to identify those who carried and placed the bomb." It was the effectiveness of the technique that allowed the bombers to evade a policemen deployed to guard several churches.

Speaking to journalists at Jakarta Police Headquarters, Mulyono pointed out that the criminals could carry the bomb in "just any bag, drop it at the desired location and run off." Seventeen people were killed in the Christmas eve bombings in six provinces. Almost all the bombs were placed in the vicinity of a church.

In Jakarta, bombs exploded outside the Katedral and Kanisius Church in Central Jakarta, Santo Yosef Church and Coinonia Church in the Jatinegara district in East Jakarta, Oikumene Church on Jl. Komodor Halim Perdanakusuma in East Jakarta and the GKPI Church in Kayu Ringin, Bekasi Selatan. The explosions all occurred within the space of one hour on Christmas Eve as churches held worship services.

At least three people were killed in the Jakarta bomb attacks. Jakarta Police managed to defuse another bomb found outside the Anglican church near Canisius Church on Christmas Eve.

Citing the bombs near Coinonia Church in East Jakarta and the Katedral in Central Jakarta, Mulyono said the bombers simply placed the bags and ran off. "There was one bomb in the backyard of the Katedral set for 9.01pm which did not explode. Another exploded at 9.10pm just outside the church. We suspect that the carrier of the bomb that exploded just slipped off into the heavy traffic unnoticed," he said.

Mulyono said that police were intensifying questioning of 63 of the 135 witnesses. "Of the 63, some are liable to become suspects," he remarked.

According to Mulyono, police had taken precautionary measures by deploying "security forces in and around 17 of about 900 churches in Jakarta on Christmas Eve." Of the 17 churches, only the Katedral was bombed," Mulyono said without elaborating on the blasts near the other churches.

City Police Detectives Chief Sr. Supt. Harry Montolalu said on Sunday that the methods used by the bombers here were different from those in Bandung, West Java, in which cellular telephones were used to communicate.

"In Jakarta it was simple. The carriers met at a point in the capital where they were given directions as to which locations were to be bombed. No cell phones were used here," Harry said.

As reported earlier, a senior military intelligence officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, was pessimistic that police would be able to unravel the bombings.

"The actors were using a cell-system so that none of the users, the makers, and the executors of the bomb attacks knew each other," the officer said on Friday.

Meanwhile in Bandung, West Java Police Chief Insp. Gen. Yun Mulyana said on Sunday that police saw a definite link in motive in connection with the explosion on Jl. Terusan Jakarta in Bandung and in the one in Pangandaran, Ciamis.

"We are intensifying questioning of Dedi Mulyadi, 31, a resident of Tasikmalaya and the primary suspect in the Pangandaran bombing. He is currently detained at the Ciamis police precinct," Yun told reporters.

According to police sources, Dedi and an accomplice named Yoyo were on their way to place bombs at six locations in Pangandaran on Christmas Eve. They were riding a motorcycle when the explosive devices exploded, killing Yoyo.

Prabowo denied US visa under torture agreement

Susan Sim, Jakarta -- A son-in-law of former President Suharto, retired Lt-General Prabowo Subianto, has made legal history in the United States as the first person to be denied entry under the provisions of the United Nations Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.

A senior US official told The Sunday Times that a combination of foreign policy considerations, a reasonable belief that he was involved in the riots which devastated Jakarta in 1998 and coincidental timing worked against the former special forces general once lionised by his American counterparts as a future national leader.

"He was denied a visa in the middle of the year under the formal category of foreign policy," the official said. "The real reason is he is the first case of someone denied a visa subsequent to the United States ratifying the Torture Convention."

Witnesses, he added, had testified to his involvement in the torture and organising of rapes during the May riots, both crimes covered under the convention. Washington decided to make his case a precedent after "considerable deliberations". Such a ban would tend to be permanent.

But Lt-Gen Prabowo, who has a son studying in Boston, was never given a reason why his visa application was turned down. Nor did Washington have any obligations to share the witness testimonies with ongoing probes in Jakarta into the riots.

The probes, first conducted by a human rights panel led by Attorney-General Marzuki Darusman, has never been able to find conclusive proof against Lt-Gen Prabowo, generally suspected by many to be the mastermind. Victims and rape investigators, on the other hand, were subject to intimidation when they tried to testify.

The general, who was forced to retire after a military honour court here found him guilty of exceeding orders in the kidnapping of anti-Suharto activists in 1998, later went into voluntary exile in Jordan before returning to Jakarta in May.

With a public still fascinated by him, he has given several interviews in efforts to clear his name. Running into The Sunday Times last week when he made a lightning visit to the home of his academy classmate from the Class of 1974, Chief Security Minister Susilo Bambang Yuhdoyuno, he said he had never found out why he had been banned from the US.
 

Environment/health

New law may spell doom for rainforest and rare animals

Vaudine England -- Near Jember, deep in East Java, is the Meru Betiri National Park, home to near-extinct panthers and one of the last great rainforests. But this park could be wiped out as a result of the new regional autonomy law.

Yusuf Merukh, a former member of the House of Representatives, heads a metal company based in the city of Jember. He wants to mine for gold and copper throughout the 56,000-hectare park, as well as in an adjoining 100,000 hectares. And his power at the local level could see that permission granted due to a key plank of regional autonomy -- the granting of mining rights through local legislatures, instead of through the central government Department of Energy and Mineral Resources.

Mr Merukh, who also holds a stake in Newmont's gold mine in Minahasa, North Sulawesi, has already convinced the legislative assembly in Jember to support his mining project.

Signs have been erected along all roads leading to the park, featuring slogans such as "From grandchildren to grandparents, everyone can apply for a job at the gold mine" and "Jember will soon become an international city with global networks". At the same time, doubts have been cast on whether any gold lies under the forest. The head of the national park, Indra Arinal, said it would be a catastrophe if the local regent granted the tycoon's wish. "No matter how much gold or copper is contained in the park it could never compensate for destruction of the rainforest, or for the extinction of endangered species such as the Javanese tiger and leopard. Furthermore, major alterations to the ecosystem would cause all of the springs here to run dry," he said.

One major risk of Indonesia's new regional autonomy is that local power-brokers, more easily able to control local legislatures, will cause a dangerous expansion of resource exploitation. "With the authority to manage natural resources lying with regencies, the competition to utilise natural resources will depend on ethnic rivalry. Competition among regents in improving their economy will occur, and this will result in increased exploitation of natural resources," said the Indonesian Forum for Environment.

It is not only the habitat which is at risk but at least 50,000 local families who would have to be moved if the mining went ahead. "The springs will dry up, and we will no longer be able to find the deer and wild buffalo that we are accustomed to hunting," a resident said.

The question is whether local control means control by local residents or only the passage of power from central to local tycoons. The trees of Jember may be among the first victims.
 

Economy & investment

Indonesian per-capita income in 2000 at 600-700 dollars

Jakarta -- Per-capita income in Indonesia in the year 2000 stood at between 600 and 700 dollars, almost no improvement over 1999, according to a senior government economist.

"We are still computing the per-capita income of the Indonesian population, but it is estimated to range around 600 and 700 dollars," Kusmadi Saleh, the deputy chairman of the Central Statistics Bureau, told the Media Indonesia daily.

The figure for the year 2000 would not be much different from that in 1999, which was at 690 dollars, he said.

Indonesia's per-capita income took a drastic blow with the onslaught of the financial crisis that swept Asia, including Indonesia, in mid 1997.

Per-capita income in 1997 as the crisis began to bite into the economy was at 1,095 dollars. In 1996, the figure was at 1,155 dollars. When the crisis peaked in 1998, per-capita income plunged by more than half to 508 dollars.

Saleh said that with a per-capita income of about 700 dollars, Indonesians would earn an average of some 58 dollars per month. "This income is still low compared to before the crisis, but better that in 1998," he said.

The chairman of the Central Statistics Bureau, Sudarti Surbakti, meanwhile said that the preliminary results of a population census showed that there were at least 203.45 million Indonesians registered in the year 2000.

But he indicated that there were large gaps in the census information. "For this census, we were unable to register the data of people living in critical conflict areas such as the district of North Aceh and Pidie, Sambas [in West Kalimantan], Posom in Central Maluku, Ambon and in the Jayawijaya district [in Irian Jaya]," Surbakti said.

The ratio of men to women were almost balance, the census results showed with men numbering 101.64 million and women at 101.81 million, Surbakti said according to the Media Indonesia.

The census also showed that the country's population growth in the decade that ended in 2000 stood at an average of 1.35 percent, or lower than the average for the previous decade of 1.97 percent.

She said that Java remained the island with the highest population density, with 59.167 percent of Indonesians living on the island, and an average population density of 946 people per square kilometre.

The special territory of Jakarta had the country's highest population density with 12,628 people per square kilometre, she said.

Indonesia is the world's fourth largest nation in terms of population after China, India, and the United States of America.

Central bank says it has no authority to seize Suharto money

Jakarta -- Indonesia's central bank has refused an order to freeze the bank accounts of a fugitive son of former president Suharto, saying it has no authority to do so, the state Antara news agency said Saturday.

"Under the Bank Indonesia (BI) law, the central bank only has the power to permit judicial authorities to examine someone's bank accounts but not to freeze them," the agency quoted the bank's director of legal affairs, Sys Abadi, as saying on Friday.

Abadi said BI was currently preparing a reply to the attorney general's office stating that it had no legal power to freeze anyone's accounts.

The attorney general's office had asked Bank Indonesia to freeze the accounts of Suharto's youngest and favorite son, Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra, who has been on the run from the law for more than two months.

Prosecutors have already seized two downtown Jakarta houses owned by the 38-year-old millionaire businessman, who since November 3 has been dodging police trying to arrest and jail him on corruption charges.

BI Governor Syahril Sabirin told Antara earlier that he had received the written request from the Attorney General.

Tommy disappeared without a trace on Novmber 3 after President Aburrahman Wahid refused to grant him a pardon on a Supreme Court verdict sentencing him to 18 months in jail for a corrupt land- swap deal. The fugitive son's relatives say he has not fled the country despite the search.

If jailed Tommy would become the first member of the Suharto family -- all of whom are wealthy business magnates -- to go behind bars since his father's fall from power amid mass protests in 1998.

Jakarta is also trying to bring the elder Suharto to trial for massive corruption in connection with the tax-free charities he ran while in power.

On Wednesday Switzerland said it was willing to help Indonesia investigate whether the former dictator had moved billions of dollars in funds through Swiss banks.

But Foreign Minister Joseph Deiss said Bern was still waiting for details from Jakarta, after a first Swiss request for more information in the summer of 1999 went unanswered.

"We haven't received anything yet, but my counterpart assured me he will make sure the process moves forward," the Swiss minister said after meeting Indonesian foreign minister Alwi Shihab.

Suharto has been accused of stealing 571 million dollars from the state by allegedly funnelling money from the charity foundations into the businesses of family and friends.

US magazine Time reported in May 1999 that Suharto and his six children had amassed a fortune of 15 billion dollars, of which nine billion dollars were allegedly transferred from Switzerland to Austria before he stepped down.

Jakarta to delay mining autonomy up to five years

Jakarta -- Mining and Mineral Resources Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro said yesterday that a presidential decree will soon be issued to delay handover of mining autonomy to the provincial administrations across the country for up to five years.

Purnomo told the press in the West Java capital of Bandung that that the duration of five years is to give the regions time to prepare before they are authorized to control their lucrative mineral resources.

A presidential decree will delay the handover to regions for a maximum of five years. But if the regions are ready in one year, they can go ahead, Purnomo told the press.

Although Purnomo did not say that the delay is aimed at calming foreign investors, as well as protests from donor countries, it is believed that it will ease the fears of the countrys remaining foreign investor groups.

Purnomo admitted that many foreign mining companies had expressed concern over the autonomy laws, because the regions were ill- prepared, lacked enabling legislation and the necessary personnel.

We dont want investors to worry. We dont want investors to run away from Indonesia because they are important for our revenues, Purnomo added. And he warned that investors might seek international arbitration if their contracts were threatened by the regional autonomy laws.

New regional autonomy laws, which took effect on January 1, have worried foreign investors who have invested their capital in the countrys mining sectors. They believe that the transfer of authority from the central government to regional administrations will create various problems for them.

What it will mean to mining investors is not clear yet. We havent seen a lot of regulations which will govern the implementation, Richard Ness, president director of gold miner PT Newmont Minahasa Raya, was quoted as saying by Reuters recently. Newmont Minahasa, a subsidiary of Denver-based Newmont Mining Corp, operates in North Sulawesi.

The decision may be good news for investors, but the central government may find difficulty in explaining it to the mineral rich-regions like Irian Jaya, Aceh, and Riau which have urged the government to immediately surrender a large part of their resources.

Purnomo said that a joint team comprising central and local officials along with foreign investors would be established to determine whether or not regions were ready to take control of mining resources. Purnomo also promised that existing contracts with mining companies would be respected.

For the moment, Indonesias huge oil and gas operations will also stay under Jakartas control, although regional authorities will get a cut of the earnings under the new laws which are designed to speed up the transition to democracy in the giant archipelago, long used to autocratic central rule.

These industries represent about the only ones left in Indonesia with any sizable foreign investment. Other investors mostly fled during nearly three years of still-unresolved political and economic mayhem and show no sign of returning anytime soon.

Indonesia had previously said it might need up to five years to give regions increased control over mining operations, but until yesterday nothing concrete had been announced.