Democratic struggle

`Colonial mentality' behind deportation

Green Left Weekly - June 20, 2001

Sean Healy -- The only one of the 32 foreign nationals detained after the June 8 raid on the Jakarta solidarity conference to be singled out for official deportation from Indonesia was Farooq Tariq, the general secretary of the Labour Party Pakistan.

Tariq returned home to Lahore on June 14 to a warm welcome from family, friends and supporters. There he told journalists that "the decision to deport me shows the colonial mentality of the Indonesian bureaucracy. The discriminatory decision against me has put my life ... in danger."

He believes that the decision to deport him, while all the other foreign nationals were free to go, was because "police authorities ... put a lot of pressure on the immigration authorities to do something to save [face] ... [and] give police some credibility".

The formal grounds was that he had "violated" the terms of his tourist visa. Police claimed that such visas do not allow their holders to attend conferences. All the other foreign nationals had short stay passes issued on entry; such passes are not available to Pakistani nationals. Tariq's passport was stamped that he had been deported.

`Catch them, kill them'

Green Left Weekly - June 20, 2001

Kerryn Williams, Jakarta -- "Since the police first arrived there was an increasing [number] of [militia] members and we predicted that after the police left, they would attack", said Yahgun, a member of the People's Democratic Party and one of the Indonesian participants in the Asia-Pacific People's Solidarity Conference raided by police on June 8. He was right.

After the conference's international participants were carted off to the Jakarta police headquarters, conference organisers sought to immediately evacuate the conference site and to remove everyone's belongings from the rooms.

"Before we had time ... sirens started blaring and the [militia] suddenly burst in, smashing the glass doors. They were blowing whistles and yelling `destroy communists', and `catch them, kill them'."

The thugs were members of the right-wing Islamic fundamentalist militia AMK, the Kaaba Young Generation, a wing of the Muslim United Development Party.

The militia then swept through the conference room, wielding swords and other weapons. The police stood behind and watched, refusing to intervene.

According to Yahgun, conference participants recognised some of the militia members as police officers who had changed into the AMK military-style uniforms.

"One police officer from Depok we recognised was at first dressed in civilian clothes when the police initially arrived, claiming to be a local and telling us we had no right to have a discussion here. Then later he appeared in AMK uniform.

"We also know that the area around the Sawangan hotel is not a base of the AMK so they must have been brought in from elsewhere. They arrived at the same time as the police."

The Indonesian conference participants were forced to run in panic through a shattered glass door. "My head was forced through the glass, and when I pulled it back I slashed my finger and neck on the broken glass", Yahgun explained.

People ran in all directions, directed by members of the conference security team to group together so no-one was left alone and then to head to safety.

"We were running from 6pm until 9pm, when we finally reached the main road", said Yahgun. "We had to crawl through the grass so we weren't seen. We went through golf courses, farm areas and villages, and hid in the trees when we needed to rest." They then managed to regroup with others who had fled in the same direction and they were able to get onto buses to leave the area.

Yahgun, bleeding severely, was taken by taxi to hospital. The following day he underwent surgery to remove the broken glass and repair a severed artery in his neck. He was discharged from hospital after four days.

Yahgun believes it was a deliberate tactic of the police to separate the foreign partipicants from the conference to minimise the international impact of breaking up the conference with militia thugs.

"This shows that there is still no democracy in Indonesia", he said. "The Indonesian elite continues to reproduce racial and religious prejudices so people will attack each other for the political interests of the elite. The police are clearly still on the side of the old forces, and they are always suspicious of the democratic movement."

The AMK defended their militia attack on the conference claiming that the discussion was one by leftists aimed at foiling the August special session of the People's Consultative Assembly, at which rightists are seeking to oust President Abdurrahman Wahid.

According to Yahgun, "the militia attacks on the democratic movement don't reflect the real aspirations of the Indonesian people. Members of these groups are paid, and they are fully supported by the miitary. Even their boots and belts are from the military.

"The military use the civilian militia as part of their quest to take over power and legitimise the military's role in politics."

Police frame-up collapses

Green Left Weekly - June 20, 2001

Peter Boyle -- At 6pm on Saturday June 9, 24 hours after the detained foreign participants at the Asia Pacific People's Solidarity Conference were first brought to Jakarta's central police HQ, the remaining 30 foreign detainees were allowed to leave. However, our passports were kept by the police and we were instructed to report back to the police HQ at 10am the following Monday.

The prospect of a shower, change of clothes and two nights and a day of relative freedom was very welcome.

The conference organisers provided us with a bus to our hotels and they had recovered most of our luggage from the conference site. Some detainees were hungry as the police had provided only one meal during those 24 hours (though our lawyers were able to purchase some snacks for us). Some opted for an early night while others couldn't resist going out for a drink.

During our day of freedom we were constantly watched by (not-so) secret police who noted down our comings and goings and our visitors. We didn't let them cramp our style. On Sunday night we took the conference organising committee out to dinner and later took over a small bar from its usual sleazy clientele.

The next day, just before we returned to police HQ, our spirits were lifted by the strongly supportive editorial in that day's Jakarta Post. "Democracy in peril!" it warned.

The paper reported that the director general of Indonesia's immigration department had said his department had nothing to do with the police raid, had received no report on the status of the foreigners attending, and doubted we had violated the visa rules. He pointed out that foreigners visiting Indonesia for special events such as conferences and business meetings were eligible for the visa-on-arrival facility.

Indeed, the multi-purpose "short-stay pass" that most of us had been issued on arrival in Indonesia states only two conditions: 1) we were not allowed to work and 2) the pass was not extendable beyond 60 days. Only one of the detainees, Farooq Tariq from Pakistan was actually on a "tourist visa" because that was all that was available to him. Another detainee had a visa that specifically allowed him to work as a volunteer for an Indonesian labour rights organisation.

It was becoming clearer that the real criminals were the police and the militia thugs who, as the Jakarta Post editorial pointed out "did not only seem to have the tacit approval of the police, but they finished off the police's job in dissolving the gathering".

"Like the raid itself, the use of thugs by the police and military to do its dirty job was normal practice during the Soeharto era", the editorial continued.

When we returned to police HQ, our lawyers demanded that the police give us copies of the short statements we had been made to sign. The police refused this elementary right. Instead, they showed us a copy of a letter that they were sending to the immigration authorities recommending that we be charged with violating our visa conditions. When our lawyers objected, one police commander began shouting at us that we were in police HQ and he gave the orders!

Since we were getting nowhere with the police, we agreed to board a police bus for the immigration department, authorising our lawyers to try to collect copies of the documents later.

The atmosphere at the immigration office was a lot more relaxed and our spirits were high. But the secret police had a few more tricks up their sleeve. They had set up their finger-printing and photographing kits in the immigration office and tried to trick us into consenting to be photographed and fingerprinted on the pretence that this was standard immigration department policy. Our lawyers refused on our behalf and the police had to pack up their gear.

Senior immigration officials took over and began returning passports to the detainees. Pierre Rousset (a research officer in the European Parliament) from France, Maire Leadbeater, a Greens' local councillor from New Zealand, and US citizen Paul D'Amato left to catch pre-booked flights. The rest of us resolved to leave together when all the passports were returned.

At about 1pm, after seven passports had been returned the processing came to a sudden halt. A group of police officers who we recognised from previous days had marched in and demanded to see the immigration department chiefs. We heard from the news reporters that the director general of the immigration had scheduled a 2pm press conference at which he was expected to confirm that we had breached no immigration rules and that the police were wrong to arrest us.

We waited tensely while negotiations took place behind closed doors. Our Indonesian friends brought in drinks and snacks and handed us conference T-shirts that had been saved from Friday's raid and militia attack. International and local media journalists took advantage of the break to do interviews and file stories. One Indonesian TV journalist apologised for our treatment by the police and said that many Indonesians were deeply concerned about four-year-old Zoe's detention.

The immigration chief's press conference took place at 3pm and it was announced that 29 of the remaining detainees had done no wrong and would have their passports returned immediately. But Farooq Tariq was singled out to be deported, though they gave him four days to leave on his own accord. This was seen as a face- saver for the police commanders.

After the press conference our passports were promptly returned and we were told we could leave or stay in Indonesia as we wished.

We left the immigration department flashing victory signs to the media picket and boarded a bus for the Legal Aid Institute of Jakarta (LBH). We were singing all the way and waving to the bemused crowds on the streets.

At the LBH offices a press conference was held. Kelik Ismunanto, director of INCREASE, and LBH lawyers Surya Candra and Daniel Panjatian slated the police for their anti-democratic actions. They said they were investigating suing the police commander for our wrongful detention. The detainees thanked their conference organisers and the lawyers for their incredible support and pledged to more vigorously take up the cause of democracy in Indonesia in our own countries.

`Like a scene from The Year of Living Dangerously'

Green Left Weekly - June 20, 2001

Pip Hinman -- For one and a half days, from the morning of June 7, the Asia Pacific People's Solidarity Conference, held a holiday resort outside Jakarta, had been proceeding relatively smoothly. Eighty Indonesian democracy activists and more than 30 conference participants from 12 other countries were exchanging views on the impact of neo-liberal globalisation on the peoples of the Asia-Pacific region.

The first day had been devoted to a series of plenaries describing the big picture: the impact of neo-liberal globalisation on the First and Third Worlds. Dita Sari, chairperson of the Indonesian National Front for Labour Struggles (FNPBI), and Budiman Sujatmiko, chairperson of the People's Democratic Party, had addressed the conference, alongside Philippines activists from the anti-debt campaign, Thai activists and a leader of the Labour Party Pakistan. The second day was more oriented to smaller workshops to discuss the impact of these economic policies on the peoples of the world.

Kelik Ismunanto, the director of the Indonesian Centre for Reform and Social Emancipation (INCREASE) which organised the conference, had spent two days dealing with harassment from the local police over their bureaucratic requirements for permits to hold the conference. The local police had pressured the hotel manager into providing accommodation for 18 Intel (secret police) agents to spy on the conference.

Then they forced the hotel manager to give INCREASE a letter withdrawing the use of the conference facilities. When lawyers acting on behalf of the conference organisers challenged this the hotel management backed off. By the second day, we were becoming more confident that the conflict would amount to nothing more than a war of words between the police and the lawyers.

The police raid

Suddenly, at a little after 3pm on Friday June 8, Dita Sari rushed to my side and said in hushed tones: "The police are coming". A few seconds later, about 50 uniformed police with rifles and tear gas canisters, plus a number in plain clothes, burst into the conference room. They blocked off the exits and switched off the power. More armed police were outside.

The conference organisers told us to sit calmly, and boosted our morale with songs and poetry from the movement to oust the dictator Suharto. At the same time, the conference organisers set about trying to negotiate with the police commanders and find out if the police had the proper warrants. They also called on us to write down the names and badge numbers of the police officers nearest each of us. I noticed that a couple of "journalists", who were acting very chummy with the police, were also suddenly in the room and eager to take statements from the foreigners.

The police officers barked a lot of instructions through their loud hailers. In the midst of this chaos, the resort staff suddenly began passing around the delayed coffee and cakes, all the time giving us reassuring smiles!

The police could not produce a warrant to disperse the meeting but claimed that there were missing documents from the conference permit application. The conference organisers offered to remedy this immediately. Then the police switched excuses, claiming that immigration authorities suspected that the foreign participants were breaching their visa conditions. They then tried to force Dr Helen Jarvis (from Australia) and then Paul D'Amato (from the USA) to produce their passports. The conference organisers intervened and stopped them.

The police then threatened to use force and moved in, aggressively sparking a brief scuffle with organising committee members who had ringed the foreigners for our protection.

It soon became clear that the police were not going to give in despite the heroic efforts of the organisers. One of the Australian participants, Max Lane, stood up and addressed the police in English on behalf of the foreign delegates. He requested that they push back a number of suspicious "civilians" who were abusing conference participants and trying to overturn tables and chairs at the back of the hall. This was then translated to the police commanders who were thrown off guard.

Lane insisted that if the foreigners were to vacate the hall, then it had to be done in an orderly manner and the police would have to provide protection from these threatening "civilians". Lane also negotiated for myself, my daughter Zoe and my partner Peter Boyle to be escorted out to a police car instead of being forced onto the open truck which was awaiting the rest of the foreigners.

We were not allowed to return to our bungalows to bring any of our belongings; some of the foreign participants had no chance to get their passports or essential medication.

The trip to the central Jakarta police headquarters was a diversion for the late afternoon rush-hour crowd. A convoy of police cars and trucks filled with white foreigners racing along with sirens screaming though the main streets was a curiosity for them. From my view from the car behind, the truck full of "prisoners" reminded me of a scene from the film The Year of Living Dangerously.

Detention

We reached the central police station in record time, overtaken at the last minute by an eager Indonesian TV news crew, and with us came the conference organiser, Kelik Ismunanto and a number of lawyers from the Legal Aid Institute of Jakarta (LBH). We gave a few doorstop interviews and the TV images of us, including my four-year-old daughter Zoe, were beamed around the world.

We were taken to the "crisis centre" of the intelligence section of the police department.

Soon afterwards, my partner, my child and myself were instructed to go to another office. We were under the impression that for humanitarian reasons, we would be the first to be processed and let out. In fact, the police conducted a fishing exercise, mainly trying to find out how Budiman Sujatmiko had come to be at the conference, who organised our participation, etc. The attempted "interview" lasted a good two and half hours.

We were then reunited with the other foreigners, but not without the police forcibly confiscating our passports. Following a group discussion with our Indonesian lawyers, we decided that under no circumstances would we be interviewed without the presence of a lawyer and an embassy official. Embassy officials from several countries turned up a few hours later -- some were called out from "happy hour" drinks at one embassy.

The mood inside the "crisis room" was generally calm, but tense. A number of police observers were stationed permanently at the back of the room and they walked in and out throughout the 24 hours of detention.

After hours of negotiation, we agreed to fill in a short questionnaire and hand in our passports. This process took until 1.30am and then those of who had passports to hand in were told we could leave for the night, and return at 10am the next morning for more questions.

However, since the police intended to interrogate Ismunanto and to keep in detention those whose passports were left at the conference site, we decided that apart from myself, Peter, Zoe and a couple of others, the rest of the foreigners would stay as an act of solidarity with Ismunanto and those without passports to hand over.

The next morning the police insisted on conducting individual interviews to "check" that they had correctly translated into Indonesian the replies to the questionnaires. This took most of the day as they had added new questions and invented answers! They were particularly annoyed that we insisted on keeping our lawyers and our own interpreters present.

One of the Australian embassy officials urged us to ignore the lawyers' advice and to "sign anything". If we had done this, we could have incriminated ourselves and been charged with trumped- up immigration offences and deported.

It has since been made clear, including by the Indonesian immigration department head and justice minister Marsilam Simanjuntak, that the short-stay pass we obtained on entering Indonesia allowed us to attend seminars or conferences.

The Australian embassy officials did push for my daughter and me to be released and allowed to return to Australia. But the police tried to delay this, even claiming that this would upset the other detainees. So we all got together and, in front of the TV journalists (who had by then been allowed in to film us), voted with a show of hands to support the early release of Zoe and myself.

At 4.15pm, 25 hours after the raid the two of us walked out of the police HQ together with an Australian embassy official. The other detainees were waving out of the windows. Freedom from the lock-up came with a bitter-sweet feeling at leaving the detainees. At 9.50pm we boarded the plane for Sydney.

Police spearhead right-wing comeback

Green Left Weekly - June 20, 2001

Max Lane, Singapore -- The police raid on the Asia-Pacific Peoples Solidarity Conference on June 8 was just one more in a string of actions taken by the Indonesian police, often working hand in glove with militia gangs, to push back the democratic space won by the student-led mass movement which forced the resignation of former dictator Suharto in May, 1998.

Repressive police actions have escalated since the DPR, the Indonesian house of representatives, on May 30 voted to convene a special session of the MPR, the People's Consultative Assembly, to hear a vote of no confidence in President Abdurrahman Wahid.

The first serious sign of this occurred in Wahid's main support base, East Java, immediately after the vote, when police in one area, Pasuruan, fired on unarmed demonstrators backing Wahid. One demonstrator was killed and another four wounded.

The president immediately condemned the shootings and dismissed the police chief, General Bimantoro. The general refused to accept the dismissal, claiming that Wahid could not do so without the agreement of the parliament. He also stated the shooting had been carried out in accordance with procedure. Bimantoro received the backing of all the anti-Wahid factions in the DPR, including vice-president Megawati Sukarnoputri.

Since then the police, backed by the army, navy and air force, have issued repeated statements that they would not tolerate political interference in their internal affairs by anyone, implying that this also includes President Wahid. The police have even failed to provide office space to the new deputy chief of police appointed by Wahid to act in Bimantoro's place.

Then, on June 12, police violently dispersed a protest in Jakarta calling for Suharto's party, Golkar, to be tried and banned for corruption and crimes against humanity. Again Wahid condemned the police and apologised to the demonstrators. On June 13 and 14, the police also used violence to disperse thousands of workers at demonstrations in Surabaya and Bandung. The police actions resulted in the demonstrations turning into riots.

Right wants Wahid out

The May 30 vote to call a special session of the MPR was the work of a coalition which includes the parliamentary representatives of the police and armed forces, Golkar, the Central Axis of rightist Muslim parties and the parliamentary wing of vice- president Megawati Sukarnoputri's Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDIP). The MPR is the only body which can oust the president, which is exactly what this anti-Wahid coalition hopes to do.

The police repression is clearly motivated by a fear among the right wing that Wahid may accede to calls from liberal and left- wing forces and issue a decree dissolving parliament and calling new general elections.

Golkar in particular would suffer enormous electoral losses if it had to compete in elections while out of power -- it would be unable to cheat, as it did during the last general elections, held while Suharto protege BJ Habibie was president.

The right has been campaigning hard to depict any such decree as an authoritarian and unconstitutional act and to distract attention from the call for new elections. Most -- though not all -- liberal and democratic opinion is rejecting the right's propaganda.

A call for a decree and new elections has come from Wahid's National Awakening Party (PKB), from the radical People's Democratic Party (PRD) and from a range of liberal NGOs and human rights advocates. Most of these organisations are now represented, in one way or another, in the newly formed National Coalition Against the New Order.

Wahid is most likely to be emboldened to call early elections if there is visible mass support for such a call. This is what the police's latest wave of repression is aimed at stopping.

Targeting the vanguard

It has been clear since February that the right wing has been specifically targeting the PRD, a leading force in urging a united front against a comeback by Suharto-era forces.

In February, there was a spate of "Muslim" militia attacks on PRD-associated offices in Jakarta and Yogyakarta. This was followed on May 1 by an attempted assault on PRD chairperson Budiman Sujatmiko; while Sujatmiko was unharmed, another PRD leader, Jakobus Kurniawan, was injured.

Throughout May, right-wing figures made repeated statements accusing the PRD of being communist, still a crime under a Suharto-era law.

Then the Anti-Communist Committee (KAK) stormed several bookshops, stealing left-wing books and burning them. They announced that on May 20 they would sweep all bookshops to confiscate left-wing books.

Sukarnoputri, Golkar and the Central Axis parties remained silent, while liberal NGOs and others protested. The Wahid government banned any such actions and, on May 19, the KAK backed down. On May 29, the day of the DPR began meeting, the National Coalition Against the New Order organised demonstrations outside the presidential palace and the parliament building demanding new elections and the trial of Golkar.

Again the police took the lead, making statements attacking the PRD and Sujatmiko, threatening to "hit them" if "Bud" tried anything.

The attempt to find a justification for re-arresting Sujatmiko or banning the PRD surfaced again in the aftermath of the police raid on the international conference on June 8.

Sujatmiko, who was a participant at the conference, was detained for questioning. On June 13, a delegation of 51 NGOs who protested the police raid and the follow-up violent militia attack on the Indonesian participants, were told by General Bimantoro that he thought the raid was justified because of suspicions that Sujatmiko was a "follower of communism".

In the meantime, the police are still seeking to "interview" Kelik Isminanto, the director of INCREASE, the conference organiser, and a PRD member.

Galvanising resistance

The police and militia repression has started to galvanise democratic public opinion.

Since the raid on the international conference, the police have been condemned by a wide range of organisations, including INFID, the International Indonesian Forum for Development, which represents scores of NGOs in Indonesia. The high-profile environmental organisation, WAHLI, also has criticised the government, as has the Coalition for Freedom of Speech and Opinion, which includes high profile publishers such as Goenawan Mohammad. Many media outlets have also been critical.

A similar response is emerging to police attacks on anti-Golkar student demonstrators. The campaign against the police has now also broadened to target another key element of the Suharto-era forces.

After the foreign participants in the conference were taken away, the Indonesian participants were attacked by between 25 and 50 members of the Kaaba Young Generation, thugs affiliated to the United Development Party (PPP).

The PPP was the official Muslim party during the Suharto dictatorship and is now a part of the Central Axis coalition. INFID, WAHLI and other organisations are now demanding that the head of the PPP, Hamzah Has, be held accountable for the actions of his party's thugs.

In addition, trade unions are planning further strikes and demonstrations to protest the police violence against them on June 13. The potential is being created for a revival of the mass action democratic movement -- for the first time possibly including trade unions.

August stand-off looming

The political situation is increasingly polarising between, on the one hand, the coalition between Megawati's PDIP and the Suharto-era forces, including the police and military, and, on the other hand, an alliance between the PRD and the radical student movement, liberal and democratic organisations and Wahid's PKB.

The right-wing parliamentary majority has clearly decided that, in any power-sharing deal within the elite, there will be no political liberalisation and no attempt to reduce or end the role of the military in domestic politics.

This also appears to be the position of Sukarnoputri and a majority of the PDIP members of parliament, although there are strong reports of dissent with her party.

For the time being, Golkar and the military are willing to accept a Sukarnoputri presidency. They have no choice if they wish to continue playing the game that everything they are doing is "constitutional". Golkar, the Central Axis and the military will all gain positions in a Sukarnoputri government.

Both the military and the Golkar-Central Axis forces have made it clear -- for now -- that the People's Consultative Assembly will continue no matter what Wahid says or does. For his part, the president has stated that he will not resign even if the military attacks the parliament.

Between now and August 1, the crucial question will be what level of unity develops among all the forces opposed to a comeback to power by the Suharto-era Golkar-military combination and how much democratic public opinion can be mobilised on the streets.

Indonesia-Australia relations - back to the bad old days

Green Left Weekly - June 20, 2001

The raid by police on the Asia-Pacific Solidarity Conference in Jakarta on June 8, the brutal militia attack which followed it and the detention of 32 foreign participants has revealed two disturbing returns to the past.

It has revealed that the real motive behind mounting threats to the presidency of Abdurrahman Wahid is the desire by those who ruled Indonesia during Suharto's 33 years as president to get back into power. It also revealed that the Australian government has quietly slipped back into its similarly long "wrong policy" (in John Howard's own words from 18 months ago) of accommodating the anti-democratic Indonesian ruling elite -- as if the 1998 ouster of Suharto or the 1999 East Timor crisis had never happened.

Indonesian democracy is in serious trouble. Democratic and progressive forces around the world cannot remain neutral, they must take sides against the anti-democratic and deeply corrupt New Order forces, who are gathered behind the push for vice- president Megawati Sukarnoputri to replace Wahid as president.

While maintaining their political independence, the progressive and democratic forces in Indonesia are giving Wahid their critical support in this struggle, because the interests of the great majority of Indonesians will be seriously set back if the anti-Wahid forces prevail.

The People's Democratic Party, one of the components of the newly-formed National Coalition Against New Order, has urged Wahid to mobilise all supporters of democratic reform and to dissolve parliament and call new elections. The coalition has been at the forefront of organising popular protests, even in the last week, against the reactionaries.

Given the urgency of the situation, the knife edge that Indonesia teeters on, the stance of the Australian government is nothing short of shameful.

The federal government gave credence to the police raid on the conference. Even as 20 Australian citizens, including a four-year-old girl, were being wrongfully detained by Indonesian police, it persisted in issuing statements that implied that the police raid was based on the "visa irregularities" of the foreign participants in the conference.

It was only when political pressure was brought to bear on Canberra, and when the Indonesian media and Indonesian immigration officials had made clear statements that it was the police who were in the wrong, that Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs began to change its tune.

Even the Murdoch and Fairfax press, normally far from critical of Australian policy on Indonesia, editorialised against the federal government's stance during this affair.

In his comment in the June 12 Sydney Morning Herald, Hamish McDonald asked: "Did our officials have to give an implicit OK to the police action? Especially when Indonesian human rights groups, and the Jakarta Post in an editorial yesterday, have condemned the raid as an attack on freedom of expression and assembly."

On June 14 the Australian editorial commented: "Whether the police were simply mistaken in their belief that the foreigners attending the conference were violating their visa conditions or looking for an excuse to use their muscle power, Australia should demand an apology.

"The excessive use of force, the prolonged detention of participants and the delay in informing immigration officials demands that Australia takes the Indonesian police to task.

"The Department of Foreign Affairs should also explain why it accepted the police version that the participants were guilty of visa violations when some Indonesian immigration officials say this was never the case. The cause of democratisation in Indonesia will not be served by Australia turning a blind eye to human rights violations."

Indonesia's minister for foreign affairs and its minister for justice have now both expressed their regret at the incident. But has the Australian government changed its position? All the evidence suggest otherwise.

The Australian government is obviously still trying to cultivate a "special relationship" with undemocratic elites in Indonesia -- even when this puts its foreign policy in relation to Indonesia to the right of that of the US State Department and other Western governments. In doing so it acts against the clear wishes of the people of Australia and Indonesia.

Jakarta's police fire tear gas at student protesters

Reuters - June 21, 2001

G. K. Goh, Jakarta -- Indonesian police fired teargas to disperse a total of 500 student protesters in two separate locations in Jakarta on Thursday in the latest demonstrations over a hefty fuel price hike. The increase at the weekend, by an average 30 percent, has triggered several protests in major cities across the troubled archipelago.

In one incident, police fired volleys of tear gas at 300 students from a Jakarta university after the protesters showered them with rocks. One policeman also shot at the students, although it was unclear if he was using rubber bullets or blanks.

Witnesses of the first incident said 200 students had to run to a separate campus to take shelter when police moved in but they returned to the streets after police pulled back. Earlier, the students burned tyres near a petrol station and blocked a major thoroughfare. No injuries were reported in either incident.

President Abdurrahman Wahid has warned police not to use excessive force in dealing with the protests, which have not reached the level of demonstrations over fuel hikes in 1998 that helped bring down former President Suharto.

Bus drivers this week also went on strike after the fuel price rise, forcing local authorities to allow them to increase fares. Raising fuel prices has always been politically risky in poverty-stricken Indonesia where the majority of people depend on cheap public transport.

Police arrest eight after clash with students

Jakarta Post - June 20, 2001

Jakarta -- Central Jakarta Police arrested eight people on Tuesday, following a clash between police and protesting students outside the campuses of the Indonesian Persada University (UPI) and YAI accounting school on Jl. Diponegoro, Central Jakarta.

The clash started when police officers blocked the path of the student demonstrators, who had planned to march to the vice presidential palace on Jl. Medan Merdeka Selatan in Central Jakarta. Despite the blockade, the students kept trying to break through the police barricade.

Students from the nearby Indonesian Christian University (UKI) campus also on Jl. Diponegoro joined the protest against the 30 percent hike in fuel prices, causing heavy traffic. Police on motorcycles arrived at the scene and immediately cleared Jl. Diponegoro, which resulted in a clash between students and police officers.

Some students inside their campuses helped fellow students on the street by pelting stones at about 200 police officers. The angry police officers chased the students on their motorcycles while other officers fired tear gas, causing the students to run into their campuses and Cipto Mangunkusumo General Hospital to take refuge. The clash caused heavy traffic when the road to Jl. Salemba from Jl. Diponegoro was closed for two hours.

One student, Aji, who was seriously wounded above his right eye by shattered tear gas shell, said he did not know about the students actions. "I just wanted to take some pictures when an officer suddenly pointed his weapon at my head in my campus," he said at the emergency ward of RSCM.

Under the supervision of Central Jakarta Police chief Comr. Mathius Salempang, police detectives searched each car leaving UPI campus, and detained six students: Didit, Yori, Aditya, Ricky, Bram and Roy. "The six students had been under police surveillance since Monday's clashes here," Salempang said. Two UKI students were also later picked up, and beaten by police before being hauled off to the Central Jakarta Police station.

Separately, city police spokesman Sr. Comr. Anton Bachrul Alam said on Tuesday that since Saturday's student protests on the hike in fuel prices, police had so far detained 40 people for questioning, some of whom had been released.

Meanwhile, students of Moestopo University burned tires in protest over the rise in fuel prices on Jl. Hang Lekir in South Jakarta on Tuesday. The students were seen stopping public minivans and demanding drivers ask their passengers to get out of the minivans.

The drivers were then asked to join their protest. Some were even threatened that their minivans would be burned if they did not join the protest. The demonstration caused a traffic jam in the area, particularly on Jl. Asia Afrika.

Student protests also continued at the State Institute of Islamic Studies (IAIN) campus in Ciputat, Tangerang, where the worst clash between students and police occurred on Monday. Students were seen demanding donations from drivers of passing vehicles to fund their protest. The protests on Tuesday ended peacefully.

Indonesian police fire warning shots as strikes hit cities

Reuters - June 19, 2001

Achmad Sukarsono, Jakarta -- Indonesian police fired warning shots and tear gas at more than 700 students protesting over national fuel price hikes in Jakarta on Monday as bus drivers went on strike in eight cities across the country.

Police shot students with rubber bullets after they refused to stop burning tyres and blocking streets in a south Jakarta suburb near their university. Police said a dozen students were injured in the clash, which also involved local residents.

"We had to shoot at them with rubber bullets because they were attacking us. We paralysed 12 of them ... we aimed at their legs but one also got shot in the lower back," Jakarta police spokesman Anton Bahrul Alam told Reuters. "After that they agreed to stay off the streets and we were able to clear the site and get traffic flowing again," he added.

During a later clash near a university in central Jakarta, students hurled Molotov cocktails and stones at police. No injuries were immediately reported.

Police and soldiers are on high alert in Jakarta and two other key Indonesian cities, although the capital has only been sporadically affected by striking bus drivers who have targeted other parts of the troubled archipelago.

Most of the protesting drivers have demanded an official increase in fares following the 30 percent jump in fuel prices late last week, which has already triggered some unrest and put more strain on the country's millions of poor.

"The police, backed up by the military, have put 42,000 personnel on high alert in Jakarta. They are being deployed at economic centres, public places, gas stations and other places which are considered hot spots," national police spokesman, Brigadier- General Didi Widayadi, told Reuters. "If strikes go ahead and protests turn into anarchy we will take all necessary steps," he said, without elaborating.

Military and police assist

Military and police trucks have been parked near bus terminals in the capital in anticipation of a full-blown strike. No violence has been reported from the eight strike-hit cities.

Officials in the oil port city Pekanbaru in Riau province on Sumatra island said the city's bus drivers were protesting in front of the local parliament.

Police in the eastern city Sumbawa Besar on Sumbawa island had to deploy trucks and buses to move stranded commuters to offices and schools after all bus drivers went on strike. "We are now the public's transportation," a Sumbawa Besar police sergeant told Reuters by telephone.

The Antara news agency reported bus strikes were also under way in at least four cities in eastern Sulawesi island and at two cities in central Java.

Violence over fuel prices and a decree that abolished severance pay has added to pressure on President Abdurrahman Wahid, facing impeachment in August over his erratic 20-month rule. Fuel prices are a thorny issue in Indonesia, and sparked riots that helped topple former President Suharto in May 1998.

High alert

Besides Jakarta, police are on high alert in Bandung in West Java, scene of some of the most recent unrest. Authorities there on Monday allowed bus fare increases, local media said.

Police in the commodity centre Medan in North Sumatra on Monday also went on high alert, which requires all personnel to report to their barracks for immediate duty. "Medan is on alert one. We have deployed personnel to guard vulnerable areas," North Sumatra police chief Ansyaad Mbai said.

Witnesses said public transport appeared to be operating normally in Bandung, Medan and the industrial city Surabaya in East Java province, although some sporadic strikes were reported. Witnesses in those three cities and Jakarta said although buses largely opted to keep running, some drivers forced passengers to pay more than the official fare. Most people in Indonesia depend on public transport.

Indonesia's cabinet agreed to push ahead with the fuel price increase on Friday. The rise is part of measures to stem a gaping 2001 budget deficit that threatens to spiral out of control. Indonesia's director general for oil and gas, Rachmat Sudibyo, told reporters that oil subsidies were still high despite the price increases. The subsidy for 2001 is 53.8 trillion rupiah ($4.78 billion).

Media on Saturday said Jakarta had also agreed to postpone implementing a labour decree that abolished severance pay for retiring and resigning workers following violent protests last week over that regulation.

Police arrest three Forkot activists

Jakarta Post - June 19, 2001

Jakarta -- City Police arrested on Monday three activists of the umbrella student group City Forum (Forkot) for allegedly provoking public transportation drivers to go on strike following the fuel price hike. The three students are Mixil, Arif Wardoyo and Miftahudin.

They allegedly provoked and threatened public transportation drivers in Ciputat, South Jakarta, to stop their operations, a move that caused thousands of commuters to be stranded during a heavy downpour in the area on Saturday.

Jakarta Police chief Insp. Gen. Sofjan Jacoeb said they would be charged with violating Articles 160, 170 and 212 of the Criminal Code for persuading or forcing people to commit unlawful acts, to commit violent acts against the public interest and using violence/coercion towards on-duty civil servants, offenses that carry maximum sentences of between 16 months to seven years imprisonment.

The general also said that the police had coordinated with the state-owned Damri bus company in dealing with the lack of public transportation services.

Three alleged provocateurs were also arrested in East Jakarta's Klender area on Monday, as they were caught red-handed forcing the public minivan drivers to stop their operations.

It was also reported from Bandung, the capital of West Java, that a total of five activists from the Democratic People's Party (PRD) had been arrested for allegedly masterminding the mass public transportation strike in Bandung. Two of them, Anton and Wanti, were arrested in the Cicadas area on Sunday, while threeothers, Didin, Asep and Doni, were netted at the Kebun Kelapa bus terminal, also on Sunday. Two more PRD activists were reportedly arrested on Monday, police said. Their identities, however, have not yet been revealed.

Police arrested five PRD members

Detik - June 17, 2001

MMI Ahyani/HD, Bandung -- Five members of Democratic People's Party (PRD) for West Java were arrested by police following unrest in Bandung last 13 June. Those PRD's members were arrested at Kebun Kelapa station Bandung and at Cicadas at noon on Sunday.

Speaking to Detik, according to Natalia Scholastika Ch, PRD's leader for West Java, those PRD's members were arrested following workers' protests at West Java Proovincial Legislative Council (DPRD). "Police arrested in random way. As far as any indication involving the PRD's members, they were directly arrested," She said.

Besides arresting them, Nathalia further said that PRD's office on Jl Rajawali had been "encircled" by intelligent security. "We didn't know, what they were looking for whereas our office was empty," she said.

Five PRD's members arrested are Anton, Wanti, Didin, Asep and Doni. Anton and Wanti were arrested in Cicadas while three others arrested at Kebun Kelapa station, Bandung. Nathalia herself admitted she cannot yet confirm the arrests of her friends to Bandung police. "Actually East Bandung police head Pradopo is planned to meet with us. But with this arrest, we become suspicious that that is a part of their plan. We still see the development of this arrest and try to keep contact with Bandung police head," she said.

Nathalia also said though there's such arrest we will remain to stage an action on Monday against fuel hikes. "It has become our party's policy to oppose over fuel hikes across Indonesia," she said.

Till news being reported, there has no further confirmation over the arrest because East Bandung Police Head Pradopo and Middle Bandung Police Head Edward Pernong have still been contacted yet.

East Timor

No recognition of US firm's Timor Gap concession claims

Lusa - June 22, 2001

Dili says it does not recognize claims by an American petroluem company that it obtained concession rights to exploit oil and natural gas in the Timor Gap from Portuguese colonial authorities in 1970s.

The economy minister in East Timor's transition cabinet, Mari Alkatiri, confirmed Friday to Lusa that contacts had taken place between Dili and the Petro Timor company. "But we are not working with them in the context of the concession granted in 1974. There is no recognition nor will there be any recognition of the concession", said Alkatiri, who co-leads East Timor's delegation in negotiations with Australia to revise the Timor Gap Treaty, signed in 1989 between Canberra and Indonesia.

Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer had been ruffled at news of contacts between Dili and the US company, saying that "recognition of such claims" could delay the bilateral negotiations for "several years".

Petro Timor, Alkatiri said, had tried to sweeten its claims by promising to build a natural gas pipeline to the south coast of East Timor, in contrast to current plans by operator Phillips Petroleum to construct the pipeline to Darwin, Australia.

On the drawn-out negotiations with Canberra, Alkatiri said Dili "hopes that things will improve and Australia ceases to be so stubborn and inflexible on some aspects". He said Australia was trying to hurry the negotiations into achieving a interim "first step" in accord with the interests of oil operators, who have set a July 15 deadline to advance with planned multi-billion dollar investments in the offshore fields.

"We are in a phase of bilateral negotiations between states and Australia seems almost to be defending the interests of (private) companies", criticized Alkatiri.

US Senate condemns sentences given Atambua killers

Lusa - June 21, 2001

The United States Senate approved Thursday a resolution condemning the "disproportionate" sentences an Indonesian court recently applied to the self-confessed killers of three UN aid workers.

The three employees of the UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), who had been involved in efforts to repatriate East Timorese refugees, were killed last September in Atambua, a border town in Indonesia's western half of Timor island.

The Senate resolution, approved by consensus, notes that one of the victims was a US citizen. It also urges Jakarta to indict and bring to trial the high-ranking Indonesian commanders described in a government statement of 1 September 2000 as being suspects in the mass killings that followed the August 1999 independence referendum in East Timor.

The text also indicates that representatives of the US Department of State should use all meetings with Indonesian counterparts to "underscore the importance of putting an end to the climate of impunity that protects these individuals".

Revealed: When Australia was forced onto war footing

Sydney Morning Herald - June 22, 2001

Hamish McDonald -- Indonesian submarines and combat aircraft shadowed so closely ships carrying Australian and New Zealand troops into East Timor in 1999 that escorting warships went onto full battle stations alert, it has been revealed.

The "aggressive probing tactics" by Indonesian aircraft against the Australian-led intervention force, Interfet, led to Australia placing F/A-18 fighters on readiness to patrol over Timor and having F-111 strike aircraft "bombed up" to knock out Indonesian communications as far back as Jakarta.

Revelations about the tensions caused by Indonesian deployments of submarines, missile-boats and fighters during the first two weeks of the operation cast a new light on the approach by Interfet's commander, the then Major-General Peter Cosgrove.

They should help dispel lingering resentment in Indonesian military and political circles that Interfet took an unnecessarily "aggressive" and "arrogant" posture during the transfer of control in East Timor.

Many details of the Indonesian manoeuvres are made public for the first time in the forthcoming issue of the journal Contemporary Southeast Asia, by the New Zealand defence expert Dr David Dickens, director of the Centre for Strategic Studies in Wellington.

His article cites highly placed Australian and New Zealand defence sources, and the Herald has independently confirmed some aspects of his account, including submarine movements.

Dr Dickens argues that despite the co-operation General Cosgrove received from the army and police when he landed in Dili, the naval and air threats meant "a show of overwhelming force was still necessary".

The Interfet force, which set off for Dili on September 19, 1999, initially comprised about 5,000 troops, mostly from Australia and New Zealand. It was transferred and protected by ships from Australia, New Zealand, Britain, France and the United States.

General Cosgrove flew into Dili ahead of his troops without a personal bodyguard or weapons, determined to strike a co- operative relationship with the Indonesian ground commander, Major-General Kiki Syanakri.

Indonesian forces in East Timor were about 15,000, outnumbering the Interfet force by three-to-one. When the forces arrived by air and sea the next day, General Cosgrove succeeded in making it seem like a routine exercise, despite the Indonesian-directed operation to raze the territory's buildings and infrastructure and deport its population.

At the same time, he aimed to show determination by bringing in his forces quickly, and immediately beginning security operations in Dili. "The shock generated by this force, professional and well-equipped, and deployed with speed, made it appear larger than it was when deployed," Dr Dickens notes. Behind the scenes, the Australian Defence Force made contingency plans in case the Indonesian military, the TNI, decided to contest the landing. The Indonesian Navy's two German-built Type 209 submarines appeared around East Timor and the air force deployed aircraft, including a small number of fighters, to West Timor, from where they adopted "aggressive probing tactics". "These tactics raised questions about the intentions of the TNI," Dr Dickens writes. "Various Interfet ships went to action stations during these incidents."

The submarines shadowed the Interfet fleet, with one of them detected by the frigate HMNZS Canterbury close to the landing of New Zealand soldiers at Suai. The submarine contacts were passed on to defence headquarters in Canberra, which took them up with Jakarta. "In response, and once the Australian higher level commanders had provided information on the location of the submarines that was convincing, the appropriate TNI commander admitted his submarines had been deployed and agreed to retire them from the area," the article said.

The air threats were tracked by the cruiser USS Mobile Bay, while the RAAF put combat units in northern Australia on a "very high" state of readiness. As well as preparing the F/A-18s of the RAAF's No 75 Squadron and New Zealand's Skyhawk fighters at Tindal air base to provide air cover and ground strikes, contingency plans included higher level threats.

Dr Dickens was told by defence sources, although he has not included this in his article, that the alert also involved the F-111 strike aircraft at Amberley air base, near Brisbane, which were "bombed up" and ready to knock out communications as far back as TNI headquarters on the outskirts of Jakarta if necessary.

The pattern of aggressive movements by Indonesian submarines, missile craft and fighters tapered off within two weeks. By September 28 the TNI had only 1,200 troops in East Timor. With the threat ebbing and Interfet gaining control outside Dili, the RAAF took its squadrons to a lower level of readiness, and several warships were withdrawn.

Dili backs international war crimes tribunal

Sydney Morning Herald - June 22, 2001

Mark Dodd, Dili -- East Timor's de facto government, the National Council, has backed the formation of an international war crimes tribunal to prosecute leaders of anti-independence militias and their Indonesian army supporters.

The council voted overwhelmingly in support of the tribunal and also endorsed legislation to establish a South African-style Truth and Reconciliation Commission. The moves were initiated by council member, Mr Aniceto Guterres, East Timor's best known lawyer, who also heads the country's Yayasan-HAK human rights foundation.

While it is expected a truth and reconciliation commission could be successful in East Timor, diplomats and human rights lawyers said they anticipate efforts to establish an international court would run into serious international opposition.

A truth commission could see militiamen involved in less serious crimes facing a community-based system of justice, rather than a court of law.

"This is in no way a move away from providing justice to those most heavily implicated in the crimes of 1999, but a means of providing a workable mechanism to bring communities together to deal with tens of thousands of minor offences that took place," said Mr Patrick Burgess, the United Nations head of human rights in East Timor.

Those who appeared before the commission would be required to undertake community service, pay restitution and make a public apology. "This commission will have the power to look into and hear testimony about human rights abuses dating back to 1974," Mr Burgess said. It could deal with crimes which included involvement in the destruction of private property or low-level intimidation but not serious crimes of murder, rape, torture and organised violence. Those are being investigated by a Serious Crimes Unit, he said.

Human rights groups claim up to 1,500 East Timorese independence supporters were murdered in a reign of terror that followed the UN-brokered referendum held on August 30, 1999. Indonesia has promised an ad hoc tribunal of its own to try those responsible but its terms of reference are restricted to violence which occurred after the ballot and does not include a series of bloody massacres committed in the lead-up to the vote. The UN warned it reserves the right to establish an international tribunal if Jakarta fails to bring those responsible for the violence to justice but increasingly that looks like a hollow threat.

PST will campaign for Tetun as the national language

Suara Timor Lorosae - June 20, 2001

The secretary-general of the Socialist Party of Timor (PST) Avelinho Coelho said Tuesday if the party gets majority seats in the 30 August election it will make Tetun the national language of the country.

"Firstly we have to realize that Portuguese was made the official language on the recommendation of the recent CNRT Congress. That recommendation is not binding," said Avelino. He said most of CNRT resolutions, passed at the Congress, had not been implemented -- even till the date of the grouping's dissolution.

"We have to be consistent in our attitude. Our independence struggle to free the Timorese people must not lead to another form of colonization through language," said Avelino. He added the identity of a nation was reflected in its national language.

The PST secretary-general said reporters were already using Tetun in radio and TV broadcasts and the standard of the language in the media was improving daily. "Because of this PST will campaign for the use of the Tetun as the country's official language and we will make sure it is enshrined in the constitution," added Avelino.

East Timor HIV spills over to Australia

Australian Associated Press - June 19, 2001

Rod McGuirk, Darwin -- The HIV virus had taken hold in East Timor and spread into Australia, a Dili-based doctor said today. As many as 15 foreign workers, mostly Africans, evacuated from East Timor for treatment at the Royal Darwin Hospital, have tested positive to HIV, Dr Dan Murphy said.

A Darwin woman contracted the virus that leads to AIDS from having sex with an East Timor -based expatriate. "There was a case of transmission from an expatriate in East Timor to a woman in Darwin," the American volunteer general practitioner said.

Territory Health Service confirmed one of the five cases of HIV reported among Darwin residents since the United Nations moved into East Timor in 1999 was contracted through heterosexual contract with a foreigner based there. That woman then infected another local.

Darwin has become a popular recreation destination for East Timor workers. Darwin sex workers report African clients refusing to use condoms.

Dr Murphy said the HIV-positive expatriates detected in Darwin had probably been infected before they reached East Timor. But these same UN and non-government organisation workers were also patronising a clandestine sex industry flourishing in East Timor.

"It's [HIV] a problem but no-one knows how extensive because we don't do testing," Dr Murphy said. While the extent of HIV remained invisible, Dr Murphy said his Bairo Pite Clinic frequently treated men suffering the more obvious sexually transmitted diseases from prostitution such as gonorrhoea.

Unchecked, Dr Murphy feared a major blow out in HIV among the conservative Catholic population resistant to condom use and sexual discussion. AIDS would prove devastating with the high rate of tuberculosis among the East Timorese, he said. "TB will become more active and it'll attack more strongly because with AIDS, you don't have any resistance," Dr Murphy said.

Three injured in market mob stoning of UN police

Lusa - June 19, 2001

An angry mob of street vendors stoned UN police and administrative personnel at a Dili market Tuesday, injuring three people and damaging three vehicles.

"Two or three agitators, displeased with the slowness in attributing new stalls, provoked the crowd into stoning police and functionaries" at the recently renovated Taibessi market, UN police spokesman Luis Carrilho told Lusa.

"Three Timorese were injured and three vehicles damaged", he added, without identifying the injured or making reference to any arrests in the East Timorese capital.

Since early this year, the UN transition administration has been preparing the dismantlement of Dili's chaotic municipal market, the scene of much of the city's crime and street violence, and the transfer of vendors to three new neighborhood markets, including Taibessi.

Timor Sea gas projects bustle to centre stage

Sydney Morning Herld - June 19, 2001

Brian Robins -- From being only rank hopefuls among offshore gasfields, Timor Sea projects backed by Phillips Petroleum and Woodside are racing off the starting blocks. Both are pushing into the east coast gas market, to emerge as replacements for the Cooper Basin as its reserves decline this decade.

In the process the long mooted $6 billion PNG-Queensland project backed by Exxon Mobil, Chevron, Oil Search and others may be delayed even longer, if not derailed altogether.

Delivering East Timor gas into the domestic market will involve investing $1.5 to $2.4 billion on new pipelines on top of the likely $2.5 billion cost of developing the offshore component -- an all-up cost of as much as $5 billion.

Linking Timor Sea gas to the east coast grid would go some way towards former Federal Minerals and Energy Minister R.F.X. (the "Strangler") Connor's dream of a trans-Australia gas pipeline linking gas reserves in Western Australia with the east.

That ambitious plan, outlined in the mid-1970s, may yet come to pass, although it will take a little longer until the economics of linking gas in the North-West Shelf to the east coast stack up.

And as the dominant marketeer of gas in NSW, AGL is expected to be central to the ambitions of the Timor Sea project promoters, especially as its long term contracts with Santos start to expire over the next few years.

The kick-off for developing Timor Sea gas is the so-called "framework agreement" between Australia and East Timor, which is due to be in place by early next month, opening the way to develop both the Bayu Undan and the Sunrise gasfields.

Bayu Undan lies fully within the zone of co-operation between Australia and East Timor, as does 20 per cent of Sunrise.

Bayu Undan has estimated gas reserves of 3.4 trillion cubic feet. Phillips Petroleum is the operator. Sunrise, operated by Woodside Petroleum, has 9.16 trillion cubic feet. In round terms, if the two gasfields are pooled, East Timor is entitled to royalties covering half the total.

The final framework agreement will involve either an 85:15 revenue split (favoured by Australia) or a 90:10 split (favoured by East Timor) between the two countries. A 50:50 split had earlier been agreed with Indonesia.

The revenue split in favour of East Timor will take pressure off future aid donors, giving the former Indonesian colony a prime source of income to fund its reconstruction.

Backers of the PNG-Queensland project may argue Australian foreign policy interests are at work in seeking to develop Timor Sea gas projects over PNG, but there are fundamental differences.

For a start, the PNG proposal is plagued by civil unrest, with 25 killed in a dispute along the proposed pipeline route earlier this month. As well, the PNG Government needs a soft loan to cover its part of the project financing, which it is having trouble finalising. Exxon Mobil, operator of the PNG project, denies the recent civil unrest has had anything to do with the project, although few take its comments at face value.

As Oil Search chairman Trevor Kennedy told shareholders earlier this month: "Continued mismanagement and waste at provincial and local levels are significant influences on instability in project areas ... We now see regular evidence of corrupt practices in various areas of our business."

With the Timor Sea projects, East Timor's leaders, such as Jose Ramos Horta, have consistently said the new Timorese administration would not impose conditions more onerous than those put in place during the Indonesian regime, providing comfort to the projects' backers.

But East Timor is anxious to secure some of the spin-off investment, while ensuring that Timorese are employed in the project. Supply bases could be located in East Timor, which lies much closer to the gasfields.

Phillips Petroleum and Woodside are co-operating with the offshore component of the Timor Sea project, but are competing to find domestic buyers to get sufficient tonnage to make it viable to push gas onshore.

There is sufficient demand in export markets and also from groups planning processing plants in Darwin for the project to be up and running by 2004. The difficulty remains the extent of domestic demand for Timor Sea gas.

The PNG-Queensland gas project involved selling a hefty 200 petajoules of gas into the Queensland market alone, mostly in Townsville and Gladstone, although the lack of firm demand has sent it back to the drawing boards.

The rival Timor Sea groups are hoping to put less than half that volume into the domestic market, which would be easier to absorb, but still significant.

AGL, for example, sells about 95 petajoules of gas in NSW and the ACT, so that any sizeable new gas demand would have to be unlocked in Queensland either in new markets, or by targeting big new projects such as Comalco's long-awaited new alumina refinery planned for Gladstone. It had signed up to take PNG gas, but delays in delivery have seen it turn to coal, at least for now.

Woodside scored a minor coup by signing a letter of intent to supply up to 19 petajoules a year of gas to the Yabulu nickel refinery in Townsville, which is owned by BHP-Billiton.

Woodside officials concede it would not be economic to build a pipeline from Mount Isa to Townsville just to supply Yabulu and want to win other large customers. A minimum of 30 to 35 petajoules of demand would be needed to justify a pipeline.

The Queensland Government is committed to generating 13 per cent of the State's electricity from gas -- a policy inducement initially aimed at finding enough gas to get the PNG pipeline project off the ground, but which will probably aid the Timor Sea plans. A gas-fired power station, for example, is planned for Townsville.

But pricing is uppermost. "Studies I've seen show that gas could be landed at 40c/gigajoule in Darwin," says JP Morgan analyst David Leitch. "If it can put 100 petajoules of gas into Moomba at $2.60 a gigajoule, it could compete with Cooper Basin. Cooper Basin is running out, and while there is a lot left, it will take a lot of capital to get it out." AGL's original take-or-pay contracts for gas from Moomba start to run out from 2002, and expire fully in 2006.

A new source offering gas competitive with Cooper Basin gas, and also with new gas supplies now emerging in the Otway Basin, would be of clear interest.

Pivotal to selling Timor Sea gas into the eastern states is the stance of AGL, whose pipeline affiliate, Australian Pipeline Trust, has proposed a $2.4 billion pipeline linking Timor Sea gas to Townsville and the Moomba grid. The idea is staged and partners would be sought.

Epic Energy has outlined an alternative involving a pipeline of around 100 petajoules, primarily linking Darwin with Moomba. But how AGL in particular would react to that volume hitting the market in one move is the key.

"Its purchasing power has the ability to make or break potential gas supply deals," argues JP Morgan's Leitch. "AGL faces risks, however, if competing gas supplies are looking for markets. Notwithstanding that the Duke Victoria to NSW pipeline has not greatly changed the NSW market, it has created new potential for price pressure."

Already Phillips has a letter of intent with El Paso -- which has a one third of Epic Energy -- to supply 4.8 million tonnes annually of liquified natural gas from 2005. The North-West Shelf exports 7.5 million tonnes annually. Phillips is also negotiating with GTL Resources for a gas to liquids project to be sited near Darwin.

Similarly, Woodside has a letter of intent to supply Methanex Corp with 100 petajoules annually. Methanex is soon to launch an environmental impact statement into its venture, a $1.5 billion synthetic gas project.

Timor's lost children

Melbourne Age - June 18, 2001

Lindsay Murdoch -- Antonio da Silva rarely smiles. His left ear has been cut off, his fingers broken and he has seen some of his militia friends killed during his fight to keep East Timor part of Indonesia.

But 41-year-old da Silva insists that his East Timor homeland will again become part of the Republic of Indonesia. "East Timor cannot stand alone," he says. "It cannot survive because it doesn't have the economic resources. Even with the help of the international community it has now there are serious problems."

As the United Nations makes the final preparations for East Timor to emerge as the world's newest nation when elections are held on August 30, da Silva says he is making sure that a new generation of Timorese children see things the way he sees them -- from Indonesia's perspective.

Defying UN conventions protecting children, da Silva last month helped separate 46 children aged between six and 12 from their parents in refugee camps in West Timor and escorted them by ship and bus to a privately owned dormitory in the hills above the Indonesian city of Yogyakarta in central Java.

Humanitarian workers suspect that pro-Jakarta Timorese living in Java want to indoctrinate the children as activists to push for East Timor's eventual reintegration with Indonesia. The Hati Foundation, an organisation led by a prominent Timorese activist, Octavio Soares, has now transported almost 200 Timorese children from the camps since 1999 and placed them in orphanages or institutions across Java.

Death threats that Soares made early this year to UN officials forced them to abandon efforts to reunite some of the children with their parents, who have returned to East Timor from the West Timor camps controlled by pro-Jakarta militiamen, including da Silva.

Surrounded by the newly arrived children at the Yogyakarta dormitory, Soares says he "doesn't give a damn" about the UN or the Indonesian Government, which never gave him permission to take them from West Timor. "My responsibility is to the [Timorese] community," he says. "The more money I have, the more children I will bring out. I will bring 10, hundreds or thousands if I can."

Almost two years after militiamen, backed by Indonesian police and troops, rampaged through East Timor in an orgy of violence and then forced 250,000 Timorese across the border, alarm bells are ringing about the possibility of a sustained campaign to destabilise East Timor.

Indonesian officials this week released the results of a two-day canvass showing that 98.02 per cent of 113,794 Timorese refugees stranded in West Timor had opted not to return home. Foreign observers greeted the results with scepticism, pointing out that the camps are still under militia control, leaving anyone who opted to return open to reprisals.

"People who may not have given up hope of seeing East Timor join Indonesia have access to 100,000 people to use for whatever purpose," says a UN official who asked not to be named. "These people are not returning as we thought most of them wanted."

Unless the camps are cleared UN peacekeeping troops -- many of them Australians -- will have to stay dug in along the East Timor side of the border, diplomats and analysts say. Soares, an Indonesian-educated medical doctor who speaks four languages, skirts the question when asked whether his motive for taking the children out of the camps is part of a plan to capture East Timor back for Indonesia.

"That's a very sophisticated story about me," he says. "Oh, so I can indoctrinate some person? For 23 years, Indonesia never succeeded in indoctrinating all the East Timorese. How come a stupid, ordinary person like me can indoctrinate people?"

Soares says that "maybe some journalists think that because I'm Indonesian, I would indoctrinate the kids ... But you know what? It's not that easy to indoctrinate them. Even Jesus Christ can't make every man believe in him, right?"

Soares says that if East Timor again became part of Indonesia, he would not go back. He says his Portuguese ancestors did the wrong thing by East Timor and he would like to help the Timorese, especially the children, as an apology.

Calling the children he has brought out from the camps "my children," Soares becomes agitated when told that parents interviewed by The Age who have returned to East Timor want their children returned. "Yes, I read that," he says. "But it's a stupid thing. I wasn't that stupid when I first came to them [the parents] and informed them about the kids going to study in Java."

Soares dismisses the stand of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees that children should never be separated from their parents in times of conflict or upheaval, except in extreme circumstances.

Referring to 120 children he left at Catholic orphanages near the Indonesian city of Semarang in late 1999, Soares says: "The children can decide for themselves how they would like to live. They can hear. They can understand. The children have already been knitted to the environment. They can feel it. They will say, 'I want to stay here [at the orphanages] in good condition. I'm healthy. I'm safe. Why should I go back? Okay mother, if you love me, why don't you just come and see me here?'"

Soares admits that he has lost his temper during talks with UN officials. "I am a bad guy," he says. But he then asks: "What do they say about me? Do they think I am a lunatic?"

Bearded, wiry and hyperactive, Soares produces pro forma documents he says have been signed by the parents of the 46 children at the Yogyakarta dormitory that has just been opened by a 70-year-old retired Indonesian Education Department lecturer. Soares denies claims that forms supposedly signed by parents of the other children were fraudulent. "Yes, all the parents gave their approval. They need to declare their approval openly in front of the community."

UN officials who have been trying to reunite some of the other children with their parents were not aware that a new group had left the camps until contacted this week by The Age. The UN has banned its officials working in West Timor since three UN aid workers were murdered by militiamen in the border town of Atambua in September last year. This has prevented them asking the parents of most of the children who have been brought to Java whether they would like to be reunited with their children.

Officials and humanitarian workers are worried that the longer the children stay under Soares' influence, the more traumatic it will be to reunite them with their families. Some have already forgotten their parents' names. Catholic nuns caring for the 120 children at five orphanages near Semarang say many of them are deeply traumatised and confused and sceptical about UN assurances that their parents want them to return.

Friends of Soares have confiscated letters sent by many of the parents, humanitarian workers say. The nuns too, have been unsure of UN assurances that it is safe for the children to return to East Timor and that the parents want them back, placing them at the centre of a tug-of-war between Soares and the UN.

In an attempt to convince the nuns, the UN recently flew three of them to East Timor meet the parents. But Soares seems to think he knows best about the children's future. "The nuns came to me when they returned," he says. "They said to me, 'sorry, we signed something in East Timor.' But I know that the UN blurred the situation. It is not as they saw it. Not as it was explained to them."

Soares then launches into a tirade against some of the parents, accusing one father of rape and others of being "too stupid" to take care of their children. "If I gave the parents money, they would spend it all in one day," he says. "My aim is clear ... I'd like to do a little bit for the East Timorese because they are stupid, poor and neglected. So when I die, my great, great grand-children will remember me as a good person ..."

Soares, whose uncle, Abilio Soares, was the former Jakarta- appointed governor of East Timor, left the territory at the height of the militia violence in September 1999 and has not returned. He says he has read reports that international non- government-organisations want to quit East Timor because of the situation there. "There's no hope for East Timor to live," he says.

"Because the big countries that said they would help, like Australia, did nothing. People sit in Darwin, Sydney and Melbourne and look at East Timor and say, `die you East Timor, die you'."

Whenever Soares speaks, the children have been told to stop whatever they are doing and listen carefully.

Labour struggle

Government caves in to drivers' fare-hike demand

Straits Times - June 20, 2001

Jakarta -- Indonesian authorities have given in to demands for transport fare increases as thousands of commuters were left stranded because of a strike by public minivan drivers.

While not nationally-organised, minivan drivers in cities across the country have held demonstrations to protest against the government's decision to increase the price of fuel by 30 per cent.

To avoid a further suspension of transport services, city administrations on Monday separately agreed to raise the public transport fares by an average of 20 per cent. In the capital, the Jakarta administration also looked set to increase public transport fares after the city's Land Transportation Owners' Association (Organda) proposed the raise on Monday.

Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Purnomo Yusgiantoro yesterday said the government would not review its decision to raise fuel prices, despite protests against the hike. President Abdurrahman Wahid also defended the price hikes yesterday, saying they were crucial to Indonesia's economic recovery.

Aceh/West Papua

Indonesia's state oil company shrugs off human rights suit

Agence France-Presse - June 22, 2001

Jakarta -- Indonesia's state oil company Pertamina on Friday described as misguided a human rights case filed in Washington against US oil giant ExxonMobil over its operations in Indonesia.

"All matters regarding the protection of vital installations is Pertamina's responsibility based on our production-sharing contract agreement with ExxonMobil," Pertamina president director Baihaki Hakim told reporters at a press conference here.

Hakim was responding to questions on a lawsuit filed by the International Labor Rights Fund against ExxonMobil in Washington on Wednesday. The fund charged in its suit that ExxonMobil had paid and directed government security forces who had committed atrocities on the civilian population in gas fields operated by ExxonMobil in North Aceh.

But Hakim said Pertamina was responsible for security at the gas fields. "I think it's inappropriate to say that ExxonMobil has paid [government forces] because people have no idea of the relationship between Pertamina and ExxonMobil, they are our subcontractors," Hakim said. "When it comes to matters of payment, it's Pertamina's responsibility, so feel free to file a lawsuit," Hakim added.

The suit was filed on behalf of 11 residents of Aceh, an oil and gas-rich province on the northern tip of Sumatra province, under the Alien Tort Claims Act, which allows US jurisdiction over acts committed outside the United States.

The suit charges that Exxon Mobil provided logistical and material support to Indonesian troops operating in Aceh province during the 1989-1998 period when former president Suharto declared Aceh a "military operational area" in order to combat a separatist movement.

During that period Mobil Oil, which has since merged with Exxon, provided logistical and material support to Indonesian troops. This included building barracks where elite military units carried out torture, and providing excavators used to dig mass graves, the suit charged.

Hakim said that for a long time, Pertamina had asked for assistance from either the Indonesian armed forces or the National Police whenever security at any of Pertamina's facilities across the country came under threat.

He said Pertamina had provided the army and police in Aceh with "transportation and housing facilities," but said that they gave "no financial support" to the troops.

"We are not paying their salaries because they are being paid by the government ... however we provide them with housing and transportation facilities because they are securing our areas," Hakim said. North Aceh, where most of ExxonMobil's gas operations are located, is one of the districts worst hit by the activities of separatist rebels of the Free Aceh Movement, who have been fighting for a free Islamic state since the mid-1970s.

In March ExxonMobil was forced to close down its natural gas fields in Aceh due to rapidly deteriorating security conditions there, costing the government 100 million dollars a month in lost liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports to Japan and South korea.

PT ExxonMobil Indonesia, which suspended operations in three of its gas fields in March for security reasons, is preparing to resume oil and gas production in Aceh in early July, the company's spokeswoman told AFP Thursday.

Violence claims at least 12 more lives in troubled Aceh

Agence France-Presse - June 21, 2001

Banda Aceh -- At least 12 people have been murdered or found dead over recent days in Indonesia Aceh province amid violence pitting separatist rebels against government forces, aid workers and residents said Thursday.

The body of an unidentified man, bearing gunshot wounds and torture marks, was found in Gunong Cut village in South Aceh on Thursday morning, a village resident told journalists. He said witnesses in the area had seen the victim's body being thrown out of a military truck.

In South Aceh's subdistrict of Blang Pidie, a bullet-ridden corpse was found on Wednesday, the resident added. Another three unidentified bodies -- all bearing gunshot wounds -- were separately evacuated by local Red Cross workers from three different areas in West Aceh district, one of the workers said Thursday. And in Bireuen district 18-year-old Zul Abdul Gani was found dead of gunshot wounds in a forested area on Wednesday, a resident in the area told journalists. Gani was believed to have been killed by Indonesian troops during a massive search operation for Free Aceh Movement (GAM) rebels on Monday, he told journalists on condition of anonymity.

Residents in Pidie district said five civilians were also killed Tuesday by troops during a similar search operation there. The victims, all peanut farmers, were shot when they tried to flee the troops entering their farm, they said.

On Tuesday, an elementary school principal, Zainal Abidin, was shot dead by unknown gunmen while he was sitting in a bus in Dewantara subdistrict.

Meanwhile, a local GAM commander in North Aceh, Teungku Amri bin Abdul Wahab claimed that his troops had killed three military personnel in an ambush on Thursday morning. The three were among six soldiers who had been threatening local villagers in the district's Jungka Gajah subdistrict, Wahab told AFP. The military in North Aceh could not immediately confirm the GAM claim.

Also in North Aceh on Wednesday, GAM deputy commander in Pase district, Sofyan Daud, claimed his men had shot dead eight government troops in an armed skirmish in Alue Bungkoh village in Matangkuli area.

However TNI military operations spokesman in North Aceh, Lieutenant Colonel Firdaus, told journalists the claim was not true.

Jakarta in April branded GAM an outlaw movement and sent more than 1,000 troops to Aceh, leading to in a sharp escalation in violence. The government and the GAM are scheduled to resume peace talks in Geneva next month. Previous talks, facilitated by the Swiss-based Henri Dunant Center, broke off last year after a series of failed truces.

The oil-rich province on the northern tip of Sumatra island has seen rising separatism since the mid 1970s. More than 800 people have been killed in Aceh this year alone.

Exxon Mobil sued for alleged rights abuses in Indonesia

Reuters - June 22, 2001

Letitia Stein, Washington -- A human rights group has filed suit against Exxon Mobil, accusing the world's largest oil company of rights abuses in Indonesia. The company has denied the allegations.

The International Labour Rights Fund filed the suit in federal court on Wednesday, alleging that Exxon Mobil knowingly abetted human rights violations against villagers in Indonesia which were committed by local security forces hired to protect its natural gas fields.

According to the suit, Exxon Mobil hired the forces to protect its gas fields in the rebellious province of Aceh, where separatists have been seeking independence for decades. The company blamed security incidents for its March decision to close three fields there.

The rights group sued on behalf of 11 villagers in Aceh, who said Exxon Mobil complicity aided in genocide, murder, torture and sexual abuse at the hands of local security forces employed by the company. The lawsuit alleged that Exxon Mobil provided equipment for the digging of mass graves and supported the construction of facilities where the villagers were interrogated and tortured.

"This is the first time we actually have evidence that the oil company has supported the instrumentality for the human rights violations," said Terry Collingsworth, general counsel of the International Labour Rights Fund.

Exxon Mobil rejected the charges and said it condemned human rights abuses in any form. "Our company rejects and categorically denies any suggestion or implication that it or its affiliate companies were in any way involved with alleged human rights abuses by security forces in Aceh," a company statement said.

Exxon Mobil Indonesia, a unit of the US-based Exxon Mobil Corp., is Indonesia's second-largest producer of liquefied natural gas with total output of 1.66 billion cubic feet per day. The company planned to reopen the fields in Aceh as soon as possible.

The lawsuit against Exxon Mobil follows similar legal action against oil companies including Unocal, and Dutch Royal/Shell for alleged human rights abuses in the developing world.

Irian Jaya figures decry distrust of Papua bill

Jakarta Post - June 21, 2001

Jakarta -- Irian Jaya leaders renounced on Wednesday the unenthusiastic response by legislators and government officials to a draft bill on special autonomy for the province, arguing that the bill was drawn up within the context of the unitary state.

Anton Ririhena, representing Irian Jaya Governor J.P. Solossa, said his delegation was very disappointed with the suspicion, which he claimed was reflected in the tepid response to the draft bill. "The cool response is a reflection of both the House of Representatives and the government's suspicious of the bill," he said here on Wednesday.

House Deputy Speaker Soetardjo Soerjogoeritno said on Wednesday the House could not adopt the bill proposed by the Irian Jaya provincial administration because it contained at least 15 points deemed to be contrary to the principle of the unitary state.

These controversial points include the province having its own flag, symbol, anthem, police force answerable to the governor, House of Representatives and People's Consultative Assembly.

Anton complained that his 10-member delegation has been in Jakarta for two months, but as yet no official from the Ministry of Home Affairs and Regional Autonomy had made themselves available to discuss the draft bill.

He further lamented that certain legislators, particularly from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan), had outrightly rejected the draft bill.

He urged that both the draft bill submitted by the Irian Jaya administration and the one submitted by the Ministry of Home Affairs and Regional Autonomy be considered during deliberations of the final autonomy bill. Anton pointed out that the draft bill submitted by the provincial administration had been drawn up in full consultation with numerous political and economic experts, both in Jakarta and Irian Jaya.

Agus Sumule, another member of the team, said it was important for legislators to consider all proposals, especially since the bill was designed to placate growing separatist sentiment in the province. "The House and the government can drop our bill, but they must bear in mind that the Papuan people can resort to their own solution, namely independence, if they do so," he warned.

Agus, an expert on rural sociology, said his team was ready to discuss the draft bill and to include any changes that might be necessary to uphold the principle of the unitary state. "Both the House and the government are allowed to drop certain crucial points in the bill provided it is done so based on rational reasons, scientific analysis and the Papuan people's aspirations," he said.

Another team member, G.M. Satya, underlined the importance of weighing the bill proposed by the province, saying it contained seven basic points the people of the province had demanded. "The bill stipulates Papuan indigenous people's basic rights -- democracy, morality, ethics, human rights, supremacy of law, pluralism and equality," he said.

Spiral of violence continues in Aceh

Jakarta Post - June 19, 2001

Banda Aceh -- The cycle of violence in Aceh seems unending as witnesses and officials reported the death on Monday of at least another eight people in various locations in the province.

In the Babah Dua tourist resort in Lhoknga district, Aceh Besar regency, three bodies, all family members, were found dead with gunshot and stab wounds found all over their bodies, Ikhsan, a local Indonesian Red Cross official said. The resort is located some 18 kilometers west of Banda Aceh.

Ikhsan identified the three as Ali Basyah, 65, his wife Nurmala, 53, and daughter Nuraida, 18. The three were originally from Geurugok village in Dewantara district in North Aceh but had moved to Ajun district in Aceh Besar last year.

A relative of the 65-year-old man, Nurdin Yusuf said the three were taken from their home by unknown gunmen on Sunday. The motive of the killing is unknown.

Meanwhile in West Aceh, at least five people were killed and 11 others injured in a fierce gunfight in front of a high school on Sunday. The fatalities were identified as Tarmizi, 16, Azhar Iskandar, 18, Lukman, 18 -- all students at the state-run Krueng Sabe high school -- First Brig. Andreas Sigalingging and one other unidentified resident. Of the 11 injured, three are in a critical condition.

Witnesses said the incident was sparked when a group of motorcyclists attacked two police Mobile Brigade (Brimob) personnel passing in front of the high school on Sunday. The attackers made off with two guns belonging to the policemen.

Minutes later, dozens of Brimob personnel came to the high school and stormed into the school compound. Witnesses, asking for anonymity, said they searched the students, undressed them and told them to lay down on the ground.

Dozens of other students and two deputy school principals were brought to the nearby Brimob post for questioning. Three of the students were killed during the arrest. Several people, bus passengers on the Meulaboh-Banda Aceh public bus, who happened to pass the location at the time, also admitted to witnessing the torture of high school students when policemen stormed the school.

When asked to comment, Aceh police deputy spokesman Police Comr. Sudharsono confirmed the death of one Brimob personnel and other casualties but said: "GAM [the separatist Free Aceh Movement] attacked our officers in front of the school. And the dead students were probably hit by stray bullets," he told reporters.

Separately GAM spokesman for the West Aceh area Abu Chaidir confessed that his group was responsible for attacking Brimob officers in front of the high school. "We attacked them but why did they [police] arrest school students and kill them? If they dare, they should chase GAM," he charged.

At least 18 killed in Indonesia's Aceh province

Agence France-Presse - June 17, 2001

G.K. Goh, Banda Aceh -- At least 18 people have been killed in violence pitting separatist rebels against government forces in the oil and gas-rich province of Aceh, the Indonesian military and residents said Sunday.

Five men suspected of being members of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) were shot dead during a clash with soldiers in Central Aceh on Saturday, Deputy Military Commander Colonel Jali Yusuf said. "The clash took place when soldiers were raiding a house sheltering GAM members," Yusuf said.

North Aceh GAM commander Teungku Amri bin Abdul Wahab told AFP he was yet to receive reports of the incident. But he said his men had killed at least eight soldiers in several armed clashes across Aceh on Saturday but gave no details. The casualty figure was not confirmed by the military.

In West Aceh, a clash in the Woyla subdistrict on Saturday left four suspected rebels killed, including a local commander identified as Teungku Musdian, 33, Aceh military spokesman Major Edi Sulistiadie, said. The encounter, he said, took place after soldiers raided a house in Trans Alur Tumaron village. Sulistiadie also said soldiers arrested five suspected GAM members from a house in Alue Bilie vilage, in West Aceh Saturday.

Villagers in Alue Keumuneng, near Trans Alur Tumaron, on Friday found three dead men with bullet wounds, a journalist in the district town of Meulaboh said. Sulistiadie had no information on the three bodies found in Alue Keumuneng.

Another three bodies, also with gunshot wounds, were found in separate locations in Banda Aceh on Saturday, staff at the general hospital said. GAM spokesman Ayah Sofyan said one of those killed had been arrested by the security forces during a sweep near Banda Aceh earlier on Saturday.

In East Aceh, three civilians were found dead with gunshot wounds in the Idi Rayeuk area on Saturday, another GAM spokesman Ishak Daud said. "The three had been arrested by security forces during a sweep in the area earlier Saturday," Daud said in a written statement obtained by AFP.

Jakarta in April branded GAM an outlaw movement and sent more than 1,000 troops to Aceh, leading to in a sharp escalation in violence. The government and the GAM are scheduled to resume peace talks in Geneva next month. Previous talks, facilitated by the Swiss-based Henri Dunant Center, broke off last year after a series of failed truces. The oil-rich province on the northern tip of Sumatra island has seen rising separatism since the mid 1970s. More than 700 people have been killed in Aceh this year alone.

Elite power struggle

Megawati needs to sandbag Bali support

South China Morning Post - June 23, 2001

Vaudine England, Denpasar -- Bali is supposed to be a powerhouse of support for Vice-President Megawati Sukarnoputri, but interviews with activists and members of the local elite suggest such support can no longer be assumed.

"Some of us are really disappointed," said Putu Suasta, a well- connected community organiser who leads the Forum Merah Putih, or Red and White Forum, named after the colours of the Indonesian flag. "Megawati still has mass support here but her party and organisation have failed to deliver. They are not effective," said Mr Putu, formerly a strong supporter of Ms Megawati.

She has long been popular among the masses of Bali. Family ties through her mother's side have helped, as has the Balinese tradition of seeking a path that is separate from the influences of larger, more powerful and more Islamic Java to the west.

When Ms Megawati campaigned for the presidency in 1999, Bali was a "sea of red", reflecting vast parades and banners in the red and black symbols of her Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P). When she failed to grab the top seat in October 1999, losing to Abdurrahman Wahid, her Balinese fans went on the rampage, blocking roads, felling trees, burning tyres and vandalising public buildings, banks and shops.

There is now less than two months to go before a bruising special session of the country's highest constitutional body, the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR), which will decide whether to oust Mr Wahid in favour of his deputy.

Asked if Bali would erupt once more in violent support of their idol, if she again fails to become president, several people interviewed said the passion to provoke such anger had passed. "I believe nothing will happen. People don't care now," said Mr Putu. "Even if they love Megawati, people know that the PDI-P doesn't work here. It doesn't function for them, so they don't care. There will be no violence."

The problem, agreed a political analyst, was that the PDI-P had grown too large, too fast and had failed to consolidate its gains. In contrast to the approach of former ruling party Golkar, which co-opted feudal and royal symbols and individuals to perpetuate the party's power, the PDI-P has focused on the lower-class masses.

"PDI-P is populist. We call it the cock-fighting party because it collects support from the uneducated and the poor," said the analyst. "It encourages gambling to keep people happy. It does not try to educate and uplift the people."

After almost two years of greater openness under Mr Wahid, some Balinese sentiment has shifted towards the Muslim leader who dared to admit and apologise for the murderous excesses of Muslim gangs that sparked widespread killings of alleged communists in Bali in the mid-1960s. "My father was killed in those times. So when Wahid apologised, even people like my grandmother decided they could now love Gus Dur [Mr Wahid's nickname]," a Balinese intellectual said.

Beyond the emotions about a now-emerging recent past, Ms Megawati's support in Bali has been damaged most by her failure to manage her political party. "You can go to the head office of PDI-P here and you will find only mosquitoes. You won't find anyone ready to help you or meet your needs," said Mr Putu.

He said party offices should be grappling with basic problems facing Bali -- environmental chaos, land disputes and the growing confusion about how to implement regional autonomy.

"The party should be serving its constituents. But PDI-P people don't understand administration and are too busy fighting each other," he said. "Most PDI-P people here have no brains and there are lots of 'guests' in the party," said Mr Putu, referring to people who have joined the party recently to get ahead, without contributing to local politics and problem management. Such comments suggest that if Ms Megawati wants to be sure of support in the MPR in August, personal charisma may not be enough.

Greater scrutiny of politicians through a freer press and an upsurge in problems caused by efforts to exercise new local powers through regional autonomy suggest the goalposts have moved. In a province such as Bali, where the PDI-P swept the elections, the party's inaction has been noted.

Amien: No early impeachment session

Straits Times - June 22, 2001

Jakarta -- The chairman of Indonesia's Upper House of Parliament Amien Rais yesterday ruled out bringing forward a special assembly session, that could impeach President Abdurrahman Wahid, from its scheduled date of August 1.

Dr Amien said that preparations for holding the special session of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) were done. "Therefore, let us all just wait for August 1," he said.

The special session will demand that Mr Abdurrahman account for his rule. If the MPR rejects his account, he could be impeached. MPs from the main parties had tried to bring the session forward to early next month, citing worsening political and economic conditions.

On Tuesday, the Indonesian Democratic Party-Struggle (PDI-P) retracted its demand for an accelerated session of the MPR. Leaders of Golkar, the United Development Party and the National Mandate Party had made the same decision earlier.

Indonesian general pessimistic on Wahid compromise

Reuters - June 21, 2001

Dean Yates, Jakarta -- Indonesia's military said on Thursday it saw little sign of a political compromise that might save President Abdurrahman Wahid's floundering rule and warned it would not tolerate any violence linked to his fate.

Lieutenant-General Agus Widjojo, military chief for territorial affairs, said the worst-case scenario when the top legislature holds an impeachment hearing against Wahid on August 1 was if politicians brought Indonesia's masses onto the streets.

Widjojo did not mention any names, but one of the few cards the president has left to play is the threat of protests by his fanatical supporters who mainly come from East Java. "At the moment there is not much indication the political elite will give concessions and come to a compromise, but on the other hand we should not underestimate the capability of Indonesians to compromise," Widjojo told a business luncheon.

Should the masses be mobilised by politicians over Wahid's political future, that could cause chaos that would trigger an "all-out response" from the security forces, added Widjojo, tipped by some analysts as a possible future armed forces chief.

Ministers are trying to strike a deal between Wahid and his estranged deputy Megawati Sukarnoputri, whose party controls the most seats in parliament and the top legislature, that might avert ousting Indonesia's first democratically elected leader. The signs are not promising.

Megawati underlined her displeasure with Wahid by snubbing another cabinet meeting on Thursday while the Muslim cleric has repeatedly said he would not account for his rule at the August hearing in the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) as required.

Wahid has also threatened to declare a state of emergency and call snap elections to stave off impeachment, although he has backed off partly after public objections from the military. Indeed, the once-reviled military has found itself almost cast as saviour in Jakarta as the crisis rolls toward the August hearing, especially by standing up to Wahid.

Widjojo declined to comment on the possibility Wahid would declare a state of emergency and call fresh elections. But he reiterated the president's role as supreme commander of the armed forces only covered defence affairs, and did not extend into the political or social arena, hinting the military would not carry out any state of emergency order.

Military reform to take time

Widjojo denied the military was stalling on reforms aimed at removing it from politics as Indonesia moves uneasily towards democracy, saying it must be accompanied by civilian reforms. "If we leave the political scene totally and too quickly then that is a concern for the destiny of the nation," Widjojo said. "The changes in the military will influence and... will also reflect the success of the reform process at the national level."

For three decades Suharto used the military to enforce his tough policies, leaving a legacy of widespread human rights abuses that prompted resounding calls for the generals to relinquish their political influence when Suharto fell in 1998.

Part of that involved splitting the police from military control in 1999, something Widjojo said happened too quickly. "The police are actually not ready to assume all those roles in internal security... Police are generally reluctant to ask for assistance from the military," he said.

The poorly equipped and undermanned police force has struggled to maintain security in the troubled country. Elements in the police -- and the military -- have also been accused of fanning some of the country's unrest.

Indonesia's Wahid repeats warning of early election

Reuters - June 22, 2001

jakarta -- Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid warned on Friday he could call early elections and take other measures if the top legislature insisted on making him account for his rule at an August impeachment hearing.

Addressing worshippers at a mosque in Jakarta, Wahid rattled off a list of things the supreme People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) should not do, including calling him to account for his erratic 20 months in power.

Wahid's comments keep alive his previous threat to declare a state of emergency and call snap elections to stave off his ouster, which many analysts expect to occur at the MPR session.

"There are many options that I do not need to state here. It could start from having an accelerated election among other things," Wahid said. "In my hands are a number of options which can be utilised if political parties violate the constitution," Wahid said. He reiterated that requiring him to account for his rule went against the constitution, although legislators say it forms the critical component of the impeachment hearing.

Megawati to skip another cabinet meeting

South China Morning Post - June 21, 2001 (abridged)

Reuters in Jakarta -- Popular Indonesian Vice-President Megawati Sukarnoputri will skip another cabinet meeting on Thursday in her latest snub to the besieged president.

Ms Megawati has increasingly distanced herself from floundering President Abdurrahman Wahid, especially since he sacked a number of ministers earlier this month without consulting her in last- ditch attempts to stave off impeachment.

The vice-president normally chairs the regular cabinet meetings but an official at her office said she was in East Java province to open a reservoir instead of attending the gathering at 11.30am (HK time). "I don't know, maybe it's because this agenda has already been scheduled," the official said, when asked why Ms Megawati would not chair the meeting.

In the past month Ms Megawati has shunned two cabinet meetings and three swearing-in ceremonies for new ministers that she would normally have been required to attend.

Indonesia's top legislature will hold impeachment hearings against Mr Wahid on August 1 over his erratic 20-month rule, and Ms Megawati has given hints she is ready to take over the battered country should her erstwhile friend be ousted.

Ms Megawati and Mr Wahid both attended ceremonies marking the anniversary of the death of founding President Sukarno in East Java on Wednesday evening that were marked by constant heckling of the Muslim cleric. Mr Wahid has since returned to Jakarta.

Thousands of Megawati supporters, shouting out her name and those of her revered father, urged a clearly irritated Mr Wahid to get off a stage so Ms Megawati could speak."People over there, please stop! Please be quiet! If you continue yelling, its means you humiliate the name and the image of Mega," Mr Wahid said angrily, pointing his finger at the crowd mainly wearing the red colours of Ms Megawati's political party.

Party backs off early impeachment: paper

South China Morning Post - June 20, 2001

Reuters in Jakarta -- Indonesia's biggest political party has backed away from efforts to bring forward an impeachment hearing against embattled President Abdurrahman Wahid, local media reported on Wednesday.

Some MPs in the Indonesian Democratic Party-Struggle (PDI-P) of Vice-President Megawati Sukarnoputri had said the impoverished country was too volatile to wait until the August 1 impeachment session, the date originally planned.

But the party had since decided there was no firm constitutional basis for speeding up the hearing, called to consider Mr Wahid's ouster over two financial scandals and his erratic 20-month rule, the Jakarta Post newspaper reported.

That follows a decision by other parties to rule out trying to accelerate the session of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR), which gives Mr Wahid just over a month to try and wriggle out of the crisis over his faltering leadership. "We are sticking to the original schedule of August 1," the Post quoted Roy Janis, deputy chairman of the party, as saying.

The supreme MPR is likely to oust Indonesia's first democratically elected leader when it meets in August unless Mr Wahid can strike a political compromise. But that depends on Ms Megawati, who has been increasingly cool toward her erstwhile friend and mistrustful of his offers to share power.

Both are expected to visit East Java on Wednesday to take part in events marking the death of founding President Sukarno, Ms Megawati's charismatic father.

Regional/communal conflicts

Four injured in fresh Poso violence

Jakarta Post - June 22, 2001 (abridged)

Poso, Central Sulawesi -- A band of armed men wearing ninja outfits wounded two villagers during their assault on a minivan in the village of Pinedapa as tension continued to escalate here on Wednesday. A retaliatory strike followed later in the afternoon, seriously wounding two locals. No deaths were reported in the latest outbreak of violence to hit the Central Sulawesi coastal regency.

In the morning ambush, the attackers, wielding knives and guns, attacked and shot at two residents of Tokorondo identified as Anto, 39, and Sudirman, 35, who were on their way to Poso. Sudirman sustained minor wounds, while Anto was severely injured and immediately rushed to the Poso hospital for emergency treatment.

Security forces responded promptly to control the violent clashes and disperse crowds to prevent the violence from spreading. The provincial police claimed to have arrested two men in Pinedapa and seized three firearms.

Human rights/law

Agus says TNI rejects human rights training

Jakarta Post - June 22, 2001

Jakarta -- The international workshop on crimes against humanity ended on Thursday in controversy over the need to adopt human rights principles in the military.

It was the Indonesian Military (TNI) chief of territorial affairs Lt. Gen. Agus Widjojo who sparked the debate, saying that soldiers do not need human rights training since it could create "confusion" while undertaking their duties.

Speaking at the workshop, Agus rejected suggestions coming from the floor, that supported the adoption of an international convention which allows soldiers to refuse "unlawful orders" from their immediate commander, allowing them to escape prosecution for violating any laws.

"Soldiers cannot refuse to carry out an order from their commander because they are not trained to think. All thinking is done by their commanders," he told the workshop which began on Wednesday. "What we need to better the situation is to create regulations which limit the military by imposing perimeters on each military operation. The military always complies with the law."

TNI, as well as National Police, has added human rights to the curriculum for military cadets. Indonesia has partially adopted the convention in Law No. 26/2000 on Human Rights Tribunals, which stipulates that commanders can stand trial for crimes against humanity for any human rights violations committed by their troops.

Agus was speaking in a session discussing the military command responsibility related to human rights violations. Also speaking in the session were Indonesian lawyer Todung Mulya Lubis, Judge Lennart Aspegren of Sweden, Maj. Gen. Arne Willy Dahl of Norway and law professor Francoise Hampson of Britain.

They concluded that commanders -- both in military and civil institutions -- are to be held responsible for any rights abuse perpetrated by their men and that such cases should be brought to human rights tribunals. But they acknowledged that in Indonesia, the military command responsibility always refers to military law which gives impunity to the commander regardless of the law on human rights tribunals.

Upon opening the workshop on Wednesday, President Abdurrahman Wahid renewed his condemnation of human rights abuses, many of which involved military and police.

In response to Agus' view, secretary-general of the National Commission on Human Rights Asmara Nababan underlined the fact that soldiers have been equipped with human rights pocket books. "Soldiers are human, they need to think. I think there should be a balance between a firm chain of command and acknowledgement of the soldiers' humanity," he said after the closing of the workshop.

The workshop also ended with a proposal to form a working group comprising police, military, judges, prosecutors, lawyers and the rights commission members to work on an addendum to the law on human rights tribunals. Rights activist Soetandyo Wignjosoebroto said the result of the workshop would be submitted to the government for further implementation, including the ratification of the International Criminal Code statute on the prosecution of human rights atrocities.(

Indonesia police question new suspects in Manulife case

Agence France-Presse - June 20, 2001

Jakarta -- Indonesian police have named as fugitive suspects the heads of two companies involved in a multi-million-dollar share sale dispute with Canadian-based insurance company Manulife, a Manulife lawyer said Wednesday.

President of Roman Gold Assets, Haryono Winarto, and former director of Dharmala Sakti Sejahtera, Suyanto Gondokusumo, were summoned by police for questioning in the case but failed to appear, lawyer Hotma Sitompul said.

"The police are acting based on our report. They have now declared them fugitive," Sitompul told AFP. Sitompul said police had asked Winarto's lawyer Syamsul Arief to bring his client in for questioning, but that he had been unable find him.

The declaration of the two as fugitive suspects marked a dramatic turn in the Manulife case, which has dragged on for seven months, despite cries of foul play by the Canadian government and warnings by the IMF that the handling of the case was hurting Indonesia.

The share scam began in November last year when Manulife purchased a 40 percent share in its joint venture Asuransi Jiwa Manulife Indonesia (AJMI) in a government approved auction. After the auction, Roman Gold Assets, a virtually unknown British Virgin Islands-based company, alleged that it had bought the same 40 percent stake in Singapore one week before the Jakarta auction through a power of attorney signed by Suyanto.

Roman Gold filed criminal charges against the insurance company, alleging AJMI had duplicated its shares to enable its Canadian parent Manulife to acquire the 40 percent stake in the Bankruptcy Court auction from the now bankrupt joint venture partner PT Dharmala Sakti Sejahtera.

Police arrested the Manulife joint venture company's vice president Adi Purnomo Wijaya shortly after the Canadian company won control of the shares, but President Abdurrahman Wahid intervened 20 days later to secure his release.

The 16.7 million dollars Manulife had paid for the shares was also seized. Wahid's intervention followed concerns aired by Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien over the case. Manulife charged that Roman Gold was being used by Suyanto to block the sale of assets in his bankrupt company.

Then-Attorney General Marzuki Darusman said last month his office planned to halt its investigation into the dispute, saying it had no case to prosecute. Foreign investors and aid donors have complained the Manulife case illustrates Indonesia's slow progress in legal reform.

The case also discussed in April by representatives of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and government officials when reviewing pledges made by Jakarta to improve its legislative system.

Military and police cannot be blamed for rights abuse: Wahid

Agence France-Presse - June 20, 2001

Jakarta -- Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid on Wednesday said blame for past and present human rights abuses by the country's police and military should be attributed to rogue elements, and not to the institutions.

In an address to participants of an international human rights workshop here, Wahid admitted that the Indonesian armed forces (TNI) and national police (Polri) had carried out massive human rights abuse in the past.

"Indeed there were a lot of [cases] of human rights abuse carried out by officers in the past, maybe they still exist until now. But basically, these institutions were used by rogue elements to carry out [human rights] abuse ... and yet, the institutions themselves are not guilty," said Wahid, who has since his election in 1999 tried to tame the once all-powerful armed forces.

But despite their track-record of rights abuse, Wahid said Indonesians both needed and should strengthen the police and the military. "We also need to strengthen the TNI for national defense and Polri for security protection," he said.

Since the fall of former president Suharto, himself a retired army general, foreign and local human rights activists have been vocal in their condemnation of "arbitrary killings and torture" carried out for decades by the police and armed forces, especially in the troubled regions of Aceh, Maluku and Irian Jaya.

The military and police have also been blamed by rights groups and foreign governments for the orgy of violence in East Timor by the military-trained pro-Jakarta militias after the former Indonesian territory voted for independence on August 30, 1999. The East Timor violence led to US military-equipment purchase sanctions on Indonesia that remain in effect.

On May 30, Amnesty International said in its annual report that the human rights situation deteriorated in Indonesia last year, with killings and torture by the security forces undermining efforts to investigate past abuses.

"Positive initiatives, such as efforts to investigate some past violations of human rights, were outweighed by a marked deterioration in the human rights situation in areas such as [the provinces of] Aceh and Papua [Irian Jaya]," the London-based watchdog said.

"Human rights violations by the security forces also took place in other contexts, including land and labour disputes, political demonstrations and in the areas of religious or ethnic conflict ..." it said.

Maluku students demand Made Yasa trial

Jakarta Post - June 20, 2001

Makassar, South Sulawesi -- A student rally in Makassar welcomed the latest Indonesian Military (TNI) reshuffle on Tuesday, with some 100 Maluku students studying in the South Sulawesi capital demanding that outgoing Pattimura Military Commander, Brig. Gen. I Made Yasa, be tried for human rights violations.

At one point the students, grouped in the Maluku Muslim Students Alliance (AMMM), attempted to block access to the Sultan Hasanuddin airport but police pacified the group and allowed them to protest near the airport's entrance. The two-hour rally only caused minor congestion along the airport route.

AMMM spokesman Rafiq Arifuddin said the replacement of Yasa was not nearly enough considering the human rights violations he had committed during his term in the troubled Malukus."If necessary he has to be dismissed from the military," Rafiq said in his speech.

Another protest related to Yasa was also conducted in Yogyakarta, where some 100 Maluku students studying in the sultanate accused the military commander of treating Muslims unfairly and doing nothing to combat the separatist movement fighting to establish a South Maluku republic.

"Twenty-two civilians and one soldier were killed in a raid by the TNI Joint Battalion on Thursday. It is just a small example of Made Yasa's unfair policies as the military commander in Maluku," Syamsuddin Swasamu, representing the Yogyakarta Maluku Muslim Students Association (HIPMAMMAYO), told local councillors on Monday.

Yasa was among 111 military officers involved in a major reshuffle of the Indonesian Military (TNI) announced on Tuesday. Yasa is expected to fill an educational post at the Bandung-based cadet school, leaving his post to Brig. Gen. Mustopo, the current chief of staff at Wirabuana Military Command overseeing Sulawesi.

The TNI headquarters announced on Tuesday the retirement of 30 high-ranking officers, including Air Force Deputy Chief Vice Marshal Mudjiono Said, chief of the Siliwangi Military Command overseeing West Java Maj. Gen. Zainuri Hasyim and Military Academy Governor Maj. Gen.M. Noor Aman.

Several officers will also be promoted as a result of the reshuffle, including Col. Noer Muis. Muis is a former East Timor military commander who has been named as a suspect in human rights violations occurring after a UN-sanctioned popular consultation in the former Indonesian province in August 1999. Muis will be promoted to brigadier general following his appointment as the Military Academy Deputy Governor.

Nine policemen charged over students' deaths

South China Morning Post - June 19, 2001

Vaudine England, Jakarta -- A military tribunal yesterday charged nine police officers with the 1998 murder of anti-government student protesters, an event which triggered widespread riots that contributed to the fall of former president Suharto.

But students and human rights activists believe the tribunal, which opened yesterday and charged the nine junior officers with opening fire without orders, is unlikely to stop a cover-up.

The tribunal comes after a parliamentary committee conducted hearings into the killings. It heard a series of senior military and police officers give standard denials of any wrongdoing.

The four students who died on May 12, 1998 -- Elang Mulia Lesmana, Heri Hertanto, Hendriawan Sie and Hafidin Royan -- were from Jakarta's Trisakti University and were hailed as martyrs by the reform movement that ousted Suharto.

Most reformists and commentators say the four were killed by plain-clothes snipers from the military's special forces, in a deliberate provocation intended to create chaos in the struggle for power surrounding Suharto's fall.

Suharto's son-in-law, then Lieutenant-General Prabowo Subianto, who was competing for influence with then armed forces chief General Wiranto, was blamed for instigating the riots, which included anti-Chinese violence. Mr Prabowo denies any hand in the killings.

Student groups have regularly denounced both the parliamentary committee investigating the incident and military efforts to ignore accusations of dirty tricks.

Their claim that the armed forces was using Parliament's investigation to absolve themselves was supported by a former MP. "Members of Parliament only attend such committee hearings if they are paid and you can be sure the military is spending a lot on this committee in particular," he said.

Instead of a handful of junior policemen being tried by a military body, the senior officers who allegedly ordered the extra-judicial killings should be tried by ad hoc judges in a civilian court, rights leaders say.

The Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) said a military tribunal could not be expected to be objective. It also fears a similar whitewash in another student killing, known as the Semanggi case, in which five people died after security officers opened fire on a demonstration.

"We suspect that there must be a conspiracy between the House of Representatives and the TNI [Indonesian military] not to try the Trisakti and Semanggi cases through an ad hoc trial because the House will need the TNI's support for its proposal for a special session of the People's Consultative Assembly to impeach [President Abdurrahman] Wahid," Kontras secretary Usman Hamid said.

News & issues

Suharto's son saved $576 million in tax thanks to lost papers

Agence France Presse - June 23, 2001

Jakarta -- The Indonesian government wants to collect 3.2 trillion rupiah in unpaid taxes from the fugitive youngest son of former president Suharto but has lost the paperwork. "He has not paid 3.2 trillion rupiah but he is very clever... not only is he missing, even the documents of the supreme court ruling have disappeared," Finance Minister Rizal Ramli said yesterday.

The loss of the original supreme court ruling on the back taxes meant the government had no legal power to force Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra to pay up, he said.

Mr Ramli was speaking after a special meeting of economic and political ministers at Vice President Megawati Sukarnoputri's office. He said the letter had gone missing while being delivered some time ago to the office of the director general of taxation in Jakarta.

"Therefore we cannot execute the order to collect the unpaid taxes ... but we're still looking for the original documents," Mr Ramli said. He did not specify whether he was referring to company or income taxes.

Tommy, a 38-year-old millionaire businessman, has been on the run since November 3 of last year when he failed to turn himself in to serve an 18-month jail sentence for graft.

Family friends say Mr Suharto's son has remained in Jakarta. One of Tommy's lawyers, Nudirman Munir, said he had not heard about his client's unpaid taxes, adding that he had no idea of Tommy's whereabouts.

Since taking up his role as finance minister, Mr Ramli has been waging war on tax evaders in his efforts to put money into the state's coffers.

MPs' lavish allowances `an insult to the poor'

South China Morning Post - June 23, 2001

Agence France-Presse in Jakarta -- Indonesia's MPs came under fire yesterday after it emerged each is entitled to a 5.8 million rupiah allowance to buy washing machines as part of a package of generous perks.

Asmara Nababan of the National Commission on Human Rights called the perks "an insult to the suffering of the country's poor". "On a daily basis, we can see beggars ranging from children to elderly folk living and sleeping on the streets yet the Government is paying for washing machines for the MPs," he said.

The Kompas Daily demanded to know why the MPs needed a washing machine allowance or an annual 35 million rupiah special "communications" allowance for work trips during parliamentary recess.

For the country's 500 members of the House of Representatives (DPR), the combined total of the two allowances was 20 billion rupiah, Kompas reported. The newspaper asked why MPs should be given the perks when the basic monthly wage for Jakartans was 286,000 rupiah and an MP's average monthly salary minus perks was 12 million rupiah. On top of their base salaries and the two allowances, the MPs also received free electricity, water and phones in their homes.

House Speaker Akbar Tandjung was quoted as saying the purchase of the washing machines would "keep the DPR members' clothes clean".

Explosion injures five in Jakarta suburb

Reuters - June 19, 2001

Tomi Soetjipto, Jakarta -- A powerful bomb exploded at a boarding-house in the Indonesian capital Jakarta around dawn on Tuesday, seriously wounding five people, and police later found several unexploded devices in the building.

The blast destroyed much of the two-storey building in a south Jakarta suburb and also damaged nearby homes in the latest bomb explosion to hit the capital.

"It was a high explosive bomb but at this stage we are still investigating the type of bomb, whether it was homemade or not," Jakarta police spokesman Anton Bahrul Alam told Reuters. "We also found several unexploded bombs in a room next to the one where the exploded bomb was planted," Alam said.

The five wounded people have been taken to hospital. Alam said police had questioned 29 people, including residents of the boarding house, but they had yet to name any suspects. "We are hunting the tenant of the room where the bomb exploded. He is a student," Alam said.

A series of bomb blasts has rocked Jakarta and other cities across the troubled archipelago in the past year, adding to the problems facing the beleaguered administration of President Abdurrahman Wahid.

The spate of largely unresolved bomb blasts has underscored Indonesia's stumbling efforts to pull itself out of more than three years of crisis. Police often report finds of unexploded crude bombs and fake devices in public places.

Residents said Tuesday's explosion triggered panic in the usually quiet neighbourhood. One resident said he heard two blasts, although police have only reported one. "I was in a deep sleep when suddenly I heard two explosions and the roof tiles of my house fell near my bed. Straight away I ran out of the house with my grandchildren," neighbour Sumariyoto told Reuters.

Another neighbour, who gave her name as Ita, said about 20 students and workers lived in the boarding-house. "The explosion was very loud but we were too frightened to go out until the head of our neighbourhood association came out and shouted 'There's a bomb'. So we ran out and there was a lot of confusion," she said.

Two people were killed in Jakarta in May when a bomb destroyed a dormitory housing students from the restive province of Aceh. Police have said the dormitory might have been used as a makeshift bomb factory. Violence also hit Jakarta on Monday, when students clashed with police over sharp increases in fuel prices.

Tycoons under siege

Straits Times - June 17, 2001

[Derwin Pereira looks at how these cukongs are adapting to the new political environment and who are next in line to take their place.]

Bob Hasan once had the ear of the most powerful man in Indonesia. Today, he is keeping his ear close to the ground in a prison cell, awaiting news of President Abdurrahman Wahid's downfall -- news that could spell freedom for him. The inmate on the desolate island of Nusakambangan was put behind bars by Mr Abdurrahman for corruption.

In his glory days, Mohamad 'Bob' Hasan was trade minister, presidential golfing buddy and a timber tycoon -- one of the many cukongs (Indonesian Chinese businessmen with palace links) who prospered under Mr Suharto's patronage and protection.

For 30 years, sweetheart deals in forestry, mining and infrastructure projects flowed their way. But the pipeline ran dry following the onset of the Asian financial crisis in the late 1990s and the Indonesian leader's fall from power soon after. The withdrawal pains were acute but they were not enough to kill off the cukong influence in the country. With billions of dollars in overseas bank accounts and bourses, they continue to oil the wheels of politics in Indonesia. As they fight to claw back their assets and breathe life into their dwindling businesses, they have emerged -- next to the legislators and the generals -- as key players in the evolving power struggle.

The famed Salim Group, for example, had been forced to sell huge chunks of assets to pay the state for funds lent to support its Bank Central Asia. While haggling with the government over the outstanding amounts, Salim's Liem Sioe Liong and company have at the same time sought to forge links with Vice-President Megawati Sukarnoputri as an alternative route out of trouble.

Others have done the same, including timber baron Prajogo Pangestu, property developer Ciputra, textile king Marimuthu Srinivasan, and the Gajah Tunggal group's Sjamsul Nursalim. Nearly all of these tycoons, who were regulars on Mr Suharto's invitation list, are on Mr Abdurrahman's blacklist.

Megawati the next target

The President inspired hope 20 months ago when he succeeded the much-maligned B. J. Habibie. That is no longer the case. With policies increasingly targeting the old Suharto cronies, several of them are placing their bets on Ms Megawati's ability to restore their former wealth. Sunday Review understands that they are seeing in her husband, Mr Taufik Kiemas, the perfect conduit to convey their support for her, even as they seek her help and protection.

Mr Taufik, an influential businessman and politician with the Indonesian Democratic Party-Struggle (PDI-P), has emerged over the past year as a key figure in Indonesian politics. His link with Ms Megawati and his desire to shore up the PDI-P's power base has made him a prime catch for the cukongs.

Despite opposition from within the PDI-P, especially from stalwarts Kwik Kian Gie and Laksamana Sukardi who argue that the party needs to "stay clear of the corrupt past", sources say that Mr Taufik has had meetings with several businessmen in recent months. Acting on the orders of Mr Liem, and through the mediation of PDI-P elder Roy Janis, son Anthony Salim was despatched to see Mr Taufik in May this year to gather intelligence on the state of political play and to pledge support for Ms Megawati.

Mr Salim has been engaging in plenty of quiet diplomacy of late. Besides meeting PDI-P elders, he has also been talking to Golkar's elite, such as Mr Theo Sambuaga and Mr Agung Laksono. Said a senior member of the PDI-P: "The message to all of us is very clear -- that the Salim Group finds it difficult to prosper under the current government, which sees it as a Suharto crony."

Mr Prajogo and Mr Nursalim, once in Mr Abdurrahman's good books with favourable debt-restructuring terms, have also sought refuge in Ms Megawati's camp as things soured. Mr Prajogo's links with Mr Abdurrahman did little to ease the pressure from the President's Nation Awakening Party (PKB) to bring him to book for graft. So he switched sides, turning to Mr Taufik, elites in Golkar, the United Development Party (PPP) and former army chief General Tyasno for help.

Mr Taufik reportedly told him during a meeting in April this year that he could not guarantee him "permanent amnesty:. Mr Sjamsul Nursalim's arrest in April over accusations of misappropriation of billions in state bank credits raised all manner of speculation that it was the palace's way of reminding the tycoons of its power, and that they had better think twice before jumping ship. The detention came after the PKB got wind of his US$100,000 (S$182,000) funding of Golkar as it pushed for impeachment proceedings against Mr Abdurrahman. He was detained for a day, and then released on medical grounds. He subsequently left the country for treatment and has yet to return.

For some, like Mr Srinivasan of the Texmaco Group, taking sides with several power brokers is the only way to survive politically. The textile tycoon admitted as much on the need to be close to the political elite when he told Forum magazine in an interview last year: "Every big organisation must have links to the power centre. We need to have links with people in power." He maintains a delicate balancing act between the palace, the PDI-P and Golkar.

A probe into a questionable multi-billion-dollar state loan was ordered shut down last year by Mr Abdurrahman on the grounds that the country could not afford to close down Texmaco, one of its biggest export companies. Still, the ethnic Indian businessman is not taking any chances. He has sent his brother to touch base with Mr Taufik and to pledge support for Ms Megawati if she takes over the presidency.

Gus Dur's tycoons

Mr Abdurrahman does have some faithful backers in the business community, albeit an amorphous group in the minority. One person who stands out, however, is Mr Edward Soeriadjaya. In a country well known for its corporate dynasties, he is famous as the scion who broke his family's bank and cost his family the car company his father founded in 1957, Astra International.

Mr Soeriadjaya blames the Suharto regime for punishing Astra, long known for being independent of the powerful Suharto clan. Mr Suharto was also reportedly less than appreciative when, in the mid-1990s, his Bank Summa built a network of banks for rural Muslim communities with a powerful cleric called Abdurrahman Wahid.

With Mr Abdurrahman as President now, the fortunes of the Soeriadjaya family are rising from the ashes. Mr Soeriadjaya was reinstated as a board member of the Jakarta International Trade Fair. His father, William, was made chairman. The younger Mr Soeriadjaya has also returned to the corporate stage as a high- technology entrepreneur planning to build a stable of dot.coms and turning Jakarta's old airport into Indonesia's Silicon Valley.

Of course, the family comeback has led to accusations that the Soeriadjayas have become neo-cronies. Legislators say that palace support from the Soeriadjaya family and Texmaco now pose an effective counterweight to the backing they are getting from the other conglomerates. Says an influential Golkar legislator: "The next few weeks might see a lot of money changing hands to affect political outcomes." For most other businessmen in Indonesia, however, there is little attraction in being drawn into battle between the palace neo-cronies and the tycoons of yesteryear.

Notes Mr Sofjan Wanandi of the Gemala pharmaceutical group: 'The ones that are pushing the hardest to change the regime are the ones who are trying to save their companies from total collapse. They are a minority but include some of the biggest players. "It is very natural for them to want to support someone else when the government has taken over 60-70 per cent of their assets. They want to survive."

Concerned about bottomlines

Sunday Review spoke to several others who echoed Mr Sofjan's sentiments. One Indonesian-Chinese, who runs a successful palm- oil export business despite the political and economic upheavals, has this to say: "Sure, the current government does not inspire much confidence for some who stand to lose a lot if they lose their assets. A few others will not want to rock the boat if they have been receiving special privileges. But for most of us, we just don't care. We are only concerned about our financial bottomlines -- not the fear of going to jail."

The cukongs still have a well-stocked battle chest even if the patronage system is less reliable than in the Suharto years. Gemala Group's Mr Sofjan reckons that Indonesian businessmen have parked up to US$20 billion in offshore accounts in Australia, Singapore and the United States. Others estimate that the figure could be as high as US$50 billion. That financial clout has given Indonesia's old elite the chance to make a bid for assets they lost to the Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency (Ibra), the outfit tasked with cleaning up the country's economy. Ibra is having a difficult time selling off the assets in the face of opposition from the conglomerates. Last year, for example, bowing to public pressure against Mr Liem's attempts to buy back assets taken over by the agency, the government blocked him from any more bidding. But this was not before he repurchased a company called Karimun Granite and a piece of QAF, a Singapore-listed food company that had been handed over to Ibra. There was widespread speculation that the Salim Group might also be using other companies as fronts to recover its assets.

Bhakti Investama is a case in point. The media went wild after this low-profile Surabaya conglomerate started pouring out millions of dollars to buy Salim's assets that included Oleochemical and Bentoel. Salim had to deny allegations that Bhakti was doing its bidding -- a point backed by some observers who believe that foreign companies were the ones funding Bhakti. Still, what prompted such rumours in the first place is the perception that, hobbled as they are, the Salims and other cukongs are not yet a spent force.

Arms/armed forces

`Unlawful orders can be disobeyed'

South China Morning Post - June 21, 2001

Agencies in Jakarta -- The army chief has weighed into a politicised controversy over what constitutes insubordination in the forces, saying soldiers have the right to disobey unlawful orders. "In certain cases, disobeying an order is justified," said General Endriartono Sutarto in an article published yesterday.

The article, in the leading Kompas daily, came exactly a week after an accusation by Defence Minister Muhammad Mahfud that the military and police were guilty of insubordination to embattled President Abdurrahman Wahid.

Mr Mahfud, a civilian, was commenting after the country's police chief refused to step down when asked to do so by Mr Wahid, arguing he could not be replaced without the consent of Parliament.

His comment also came after military and police leaders came out publicly against Mr Wahid's plan to impose a state of emergency, which would have allowed him to disband Parliament before it could move to impeach him in a special session of the Upper House, set for August.

Yesterday, Mr Wahid diplomatically laid the blame for past and present human rights abuses by the police and military on rogue elements, and not the institutions themselves.

A 1997 military law demanded unquestioned obedience of the military and the police to the President, who is the military's supreme commander according to the 1945 constitution, Mr Mahfud said. Under the law, those guilty of insubordination face up to 28 months in jail.

But in yesterday's article, General Sutarto said the soldier's oath and regulations on military discipline state that although troops are obliged to obey their superiors, certain orders are exceptions.

He cited these as orders to engage in crime, to take action against the interests of the public or military, those impossible to implement because of conditions and overlapping orders. "Obedience to an order is justified if the receiver of the order has the conviction that it is for the sake of the nation and the military and not otherwise," he said.

International solidarity

New Zealand: Protests greet Jakarta arrests

Green Left Weekly - June 20, 2001

Susan Price & Viv Miley -- One of those detained by authorities after the June 8 raid on the Asia-Pacific Solidarity Conference in Jakarta was Auckland city councillor Maire Leadbeater -- prompting a statement from New Zealand foreign minister Phil Goff following her release seeking a formal explanation from the Indonesian government for the police action.

"I am concerned by allegations that local Indonesian people attending the conference were assaulted and if this was the case want to know what action will be taken against those responsible", Goff said in the June 11 statement.

"I have asked their embassy for a full report on the events of the past weekend and will be asking the Indonesian government formally for an explanation and justification of their actions."

The New Zealand Greens' foreign affairs spokesperson Keith Locke, who is Leadbeater's brother, was critical of Goff's failure to register a political protest until after Leadbeater's release.

"If a New Zealand delegate to an Asian Development Bank meeting had been treated in this way I am sure there would have been an immediate protest", he said. "Because Maire was at a conference critical of corporate globalisation, she hasn't had the same political backing."

Nevertheless, Goff's statement contrasts with the silence to date by Australian foreign minister Alexander Downer.

United States: Labour leaders condemn Jakarta crackdown

Green Left Weekly - June 20, 2001

Ahmed Shawki, Columbia, South Carolina -- Top US labour leaders gathered for a workers' rights rally here responded immediately to the police crackdown on the Asia-Pacific Solidarity Conference in Jakarta.

An international outpouring of support came soon after from other labour leaders, human rights activists, academics and others.

In South Carolina, the March and Rally for Workers Rights and Racial Justice on June 10 drew more than 7000 union members and supporters to defend five dockworkers who are under house arrest and face trial on serious riot charges following a massive police attack on their picket line in the port of Charleston last year.

The predominantly African-American union, the International Longshoremen's Association Local 1422, had been targeted for its role in a massive protest to take down the Confederate flag, a symbol of racism, from the South Carolina state capitol.

At the pre-march rally, Lee Sustar, a journalist for Socialist Worker newspaper, gave a brief speech highlighting the international solidarity action for the five -- including the threat of industrial action by Danish and Swedish dockers.

"When I then appealed for solidarity for the detained Indonesian labor activists and their international supporters, everyone cheered", Sustar said.

"Immediately, John Poulsen of Dockers Freeport, Copenhagen, Denmark, came forward to sign the statement, as did Bob Ashton, President, International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) Local 500 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada."

The leaders of the South Carolina struggle -- including ILA Local 1422 president Kenneth Riley -- also signed on, as did Donna DeWitt, the South Carolina president of the US union confederation, the AFL-CIO.

Larry Adams, president of Local 300 of the Laborers International Union (Mail-handler) in New York City, told Sustar, "I am proud to sign".

At the main rally on the steps of the state capitol, AFL-CIO executive vice-president Linda Chavez-Thompson -- the third- highest ranking labour official in the United States -- also endorsed the statement.

United Mineworkers of America president Cecil Roberts -- himself fresh from jail following a sit-in at an employer's office -- enthusiastically gave his backing.

Yu Kwang Jun, director of the policy planning department of the Daewoo Auto Workers Union, endorsed the statement following his speech against the repression of labour rights from South Carolina to South Korea.

The labour rally was not the only place in which support for those detained in Indonesia was organised.

A similar statement circulated by several groups in the US and internationally has managed to garner widespread support. Signatures will be collected and the complete list will be sent to the Indonesian authorities.

As a statement by the organisers of the effort said in the most recent appeal: "The safe release of the conference guests is a tremendous victory. But we remain very concerned about the fate of Indonesians who attended the conference, other trade union and democratic activists, and their supporters."

Pickets and press conferences were also held in Boston, New York, Washington, DC, Chicago and San Francisco on June 11.

[Ahmed Shawki is the editor of International Socialist Review and a member of the National Writers Union (UAW Local 1981).]

Worldwide support for Jakarta conference participants

Green Left Weekly - June 20, 2001

Viv Miley & Susan Price -- Progressive forces from around the world spoke out and took action as soon as news of the police and militia raid on the international solidarity conference spread.

In Canada, snap protests were organised across the country in solidarity, according to Paul Kellogg, who was one of those detained in Jakarta.

"On June 10, protests took place in Vancouver and Victoria on the west coast, Halifax on the east coast, Montreal in Quebec and in the central province of Ontario, in Ottawa and Toronto. Another protest was held in Kingston the following day on June 11", he reported. "The largest action was in Toronto, where between 80 and 100 people rallied outside the Indonesian consulate."

Kellogg, who is editor of Socialist Worker, the newspaper of the International Socialist group in Canada, said that many of those in attendance at the Toronto rally were people who have also been campaigning against police brutality in the city.

Speakers at the Toronto rally which included Dudley Laws, a leader of the Black Action Defence Committee, highlighted the need to continue to build solidarity between Indonesian activists and those campaigning against police brutality in Canada.

"It is not just in Indonesia where police with guns drawn attack people", said Anna Willats from the Committee to Stop Targeted Policing, highlighting a recent raid by armed police in a working-class area of Toronto, which terrorised local residents.

In Spain, a statement was read out at a rally of 100,000 people in Madrid protesting the visit to the country by US President George W. Bush. The statement was signed by representatives of progressive political parties and NGOs, including Spanish Socialist Party MP Joaquin Leguina and Workers Commision leader Joaquin Nieto.

In Pretoria, South Africa, Patrick Bond reports that a demonstration organised by CANSA, the Campaign Against Neo- liberalism in South Africa, was held on June 11 outside the Indonesian Embassy.

In the Philippines, reports Rasti Delizo of the Socialist Party of Labour, a rally was held in front of the Indonesian Embassy in the Makati business district in Manila which condemned the "bloody dispersal by the Indonesian police and paramilitary groups" of the conference.

SPP representatives participated in the previous Asia Pacific Peoples' Solidarity Conference in Sydney in 1998. It called for the repeal of all repressive laws still in force from the time of the ousted Suharto regime.

Also in the Philippines, the secretariat of APCET, the Asia Pacific Coalition for East Timor, issued a statement on June 13 condemning the attack on the conference and the apparent collusion between police and militia thugs, stating "This is a grim spectre for the democratic forces inside Indonesia and the solidarity groups.

"The attack is reminiscent of the November 9, 1996 break-up and closure of the second APCET conference in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia by youth thugs employed by the ruling ... coalition. We also remember strongly the violent May 2000 attack on the office of APCET's Indonesian affiliate, SOLIDAMOR, by armed thugs affiliated with the right wing.

"If Indonesian police acted that way towards an academic conference discussing the impact of economic policies on the Indonesian people, then we fear their actions on more `political' forums and activities inside Indonesia, even if these are legitimate expressions of the Indonesian people and their support groups.

"We are also concerned that these developments represent a drift in Indonesia towards the right wing. APCET is supporting campaigns for the demilitarisation of Indonesia, as we recognise that a resurgence to power of the right wing in Indonesia will also present security threats to the independent East Timor nation."

In India, the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) sent a letter of protest to the Indonesian embassy, signed by the party's general secretary, Dipankar Battacharya, expressing shock at the repressive measures used to crack down on the conference and the "violation of human rights and elementary norms of democracy".

In Britain, a picket was held and a letter of protest sent to the Indonesian minister for foreign affairs via the Indonesian ambassador in London. It was signed by veteran Labor MP Tony Benn, journalist and film-maker John Pilger, peace activist Bruce Kent, columnist Paul Foot, prominent academic and leader of the Socialist Workers Party Alex Callinicos and Mike Marquesee and Liz Davies of the Socialist Alliance.

In Scotland, the Scottish Socialist Voice, newspaper of the Scottish Socialist Party, carried reports on the attack and detentions, and several prominent members sent letters of protest to the Indonesian authorities.

In the US, David Finkel and Dianne Feeley sent a message on behalf of the editors of Against the Current magazine to the Indonesian embassies in Washington DC and Canberra. The statement condemned the actions of police as "a violation of basic rights [which] clearly represent an escalation of the assaults on the recent democratic gains" of the people of Indonesia.

In Mauritius, a protest letter was sent by the left-wing Lalit to the Indonesian ambassador in Australia, condemning "This blatant disregard for elementary democratic rights" by the Indonesian government.

In Hungary, Tamas Krausz and the Left Alternative Association sent a message of solidarity with the detainees and the Indonesian democratic forces.

In Hawaii, ADBwatch, which organised May protests against the Asian Development Bank, released information about the detentions and attack on its email networks, and linked the crisis with the need to sever US military ties with Indonesia.

In Germany, left-wing journalist Wolfgang Pomrehn translated materials about the raid into German and mobilised independent media activist support for the detainees.

In Belgium, Eric Toussaint, a leading figure in the Committee for the Cancellation of Third World Debt, sent a message of solidarity, as did activists from Hong Kong, Taiwan and Poland.

Emergency demonstrations helped free detainees

Green Left Weekly - June 20, 2001

Sue Boland -- Once the news broke in Australia about the police and militia attack on the Asia Pacific People's Solidarity conference in Indonesia on June 8 and the detention of conference participants, friends and relatives of the detainees in Australia moved into action to publicise what had happened.

With the 22 Australian detainees coming from six different cities, friends and relatives of the detainees began organising solidarity actions in all of the capital cities. Emergency demonstrations were held in Adelaide, Brisbane, Canberra, Darwin, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney on June 10 and in Hobart on June 11. Despite most of these demonstrations being organised with less than 18 hours notice, around the country 240 people attended. In addition to those who attended the demonstrations, messages of support and offers of assistance began coming in from people who were shocked at the brutal attack on the conference.

However, not everyone was supportive of the solidarity actions. ABC Radio news bulletins on June 10 and the June 11 Sydney Morning Herald reported that Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) officials were opposed to the demonstrations, warning that these actions might jeopardise the release of the Australians detained by Indonesia's secret police.

This "advice" from DFAT was disputed by the detainees after their release. One of the detainees, Pip Hinman, who is also national secretary of Action in Solidarity with Indonesia and East Timor (ASIET), told Green Left Weekly on June 11 that "because the Coalition government and the Labor "opposition" remained silent about the closing down of the conference and the detention of international participants on trumped-up charges, the solidarity actions in Australia and other countries were crucial in securing the release of the detainees and exposing how little democratic space exists for activists opposing neo-liberal policies in Indonesia".

According to Hinman, "if it wasn't for the solidarity actions and the press conferences with the detainees on their return to Australia, it is unlikely that the Australian media would have publicised the viscous attack by armed militia thugs on the Indonesian conference participants"

"It is startling", she said, "that despite the illegal detention of more than 20 Australian residents, foreign minister Alexander Downer has not made a single criticism of the Indonesian police for its illegal attack on the conference.

"The emergency demonstrations attracted widespread media coverage of the detentions and questions in the media about why the government has been so silent. The government's double standards were exposed. If the Indonesian police had detained a group of business people on similarly trumped-up charges, Downer would have immediately denounced the detentions and the attack on the conference.

But when those detained are concerned about alternatives to neo- liberalism and improving the lives of workers, peasants and the urban poor, as the Asia Pacific People's Solidarity conference participants are, then the Australian government doesn't give a stuff about their illegal detention."

International relations

Wahid's visit: last waddle of a lame-duck leader

Sydney Morning Herald - June 23, 2001

Lindsay Murdoch -- There will be a banquet in Parliament's Great Hall hosted by the Prime Minister, a Governor-General's dinner, red carpet, effusive speeches, toasts and an exchange of carefully chosen gifts.

Abdurrahman Wahid is about to receive a welcome to Australia on Monday as elaborate as the one the Howard Government rolled out for the former United States president Bill Clinton when he visited Canberra in 1996.

Not since Soeharto lied to Gough Whitlam about not invading East Timor when they met in Townsville more than 25 years ago has a serving Indonesian president visited Australia.

But much of the significance of the visit will be lost because 19 months after taking office, the 60-year-old Wahid has become a tragic figure in Indonesian politics whose days running his country of 210 million people are almost certainly numbered.

John Howard had encouraged Wahid to make the trip at any time of his choosing and ordered he be given the grandest welcome despite most of Jakarta's political elite wanting to see him booted out of office as quickly as possible.

But adding to the pall over Wahid's trip will be the possibility that Howard, too, will soon lose office at the Federal election that must soon be held. The joke doing the rounds of Jakarta's diplomats is that their Canberra encounter will be one of two dead men walking.

Little of substance is expected out of Wahid's two-day visit to Canberra and Sydney, followed later in the week by a 24-hour stopover in Darwin en route to the Philippines from New Zealand. "The important thing is that the visit is taking place," the Australian Ambassador in Jakarta, Ric Smith, said on Thursday after meeting Wahid to discuss arrangements. "We see this as a historic visit and we will welcome him on that basis."

Unlike usual visits by heads of government, no formal agreements will be signed, no significant joint declarations made. Officials in Jakarta say the most Wahid will seek from the visit is a reassurance from Australia about respect for Indonesia's sovereignty no matter how bad things may get in provinces such as Irian Jaya (West Papua). He will quickly get it.

Howard and his Cabinet have many issues of concern they would like to discuss at length with Wahid as his country goes through a difficult transition after 32 years of Soeharto's corrupt and repressive rule.

These include growing concerns about the security of Australian mining operations in the country, people-smuggling syndicates, continuing militia thuggery in West Timor and the military killings in Aceh and the Malukus.

But what's the point? The security forces are in revolt against Wahid, refusing to impose a state of emergency or accept his sacking of senior commanders. The Government is in paralysis.

Desperate to avoid impeachment, Wahid promised to hand daily running of the Government to his Vice-President, Megawati Sukarnoputri. Even if Wahid escapes impeachment at a special session of the People's Consultative Assembly, the highest parliament, within weeks he will be, at best, a figurehead with little or no authority.

Palace sources say that during his last days in power Wahid is stubbornly refusing to compromise any longer on issues he strongly believes in, among them the need for the Australian visit -- which he has cancelled five times previously because of fierce opposition to it in Jakarta.

Greg Barton, a Melbourne academic who has written Wahid's biography, said yesterday the President has no illusions about what can be achieved from the visit. "It will be big on symbolism -- a case of pushing through the barriers that have held the relationship back and putting it on a solid footing," said Barton, who will be in the presidential entourage.

Jusuf Wanandi, a board member of the Jakarta-based Centre for Strategic and International Studies, said although Wahid will soon lose power, he remains the best person to "more or less patch up the emotional side" after the souring of the bilateral relationship over East Timor. "It is possible for the President to make the first step in restarting the relationship as long as he can remain sensible and not get carried away by any stupid advice."

Wahid's decision to make the visit has given his political rivals and critics even more ammunition to fire at him, not that they needed any after he spent months visiting more than 50 countries while problems festered at home.

They are citing the estimated cost of $1.4 million at a time that Indonesians face steep rises in fuel and power charges amid galloping inflation and a dangerously ballooning Budget deficit.

Sophan Sophiaan, one of Megawati's MPs, said Wahid's determination to make the trip shows he lacks awareness of the urgent problems at home. "It's true that Indonesia's relationship with Australia needs significant improvement," Sophiaan said. "But the timing is just not right."

Dewi Fortuna Anwar, an adviser on foreign affairs to the former president, B.J. Habibie, said that in normal circumstances Wahid's trip to Australia would be a watershed in repairing the relationship. "But given the situation in Indonesia, many people feel that his going to Australia is not timely," she said.

Wahid should be focusing on problems at home such as civil unrest, violent conflicts and his uncertain future, she said. "The Parliament is not happy about his frequent absences. He has not paid much attention to the internal problems."

Anwar also said that given the uncertainty about the President's future, it is doubtful that anything substantial could be achieved from the visit. "It would be better if he postponed until after the special assembly sitting," she said.

An Australian official, who asked not to be identified, said that despite the criticisms, the trip would be an important circuit breaker in a diplomatic stand-off between the leaders of the two countries. "If Kim Beazley wins power you can bet he will be on the plane up to Jakarta as soon as he reasonably can," the official said. "Likewise, if John Howard is re-elected, the way will have been cleared for him to visit to Jakarta for the first time since the relationship collapsed."

It will not be all business for Wahid. In Sydney on Tuesday he will catch up with old friends such as Curtis Levy, who makes film documentaries. Among the entourage will be four or five of Wahid's ministers, two of his daughters and his wife.

Time US `renewed ties' with region

Canberra Times - June 19, 2001

Lincoln Wright -- A leading United States congressman, who is a major supporter of the alliance with Australia, has called for America to renew its military ties with Indonesia's navy, air force and marines, but not its army.

Playing down what he called the difficult issue of human rights, Republican Congressman Doug Bereuter has told the Heritage Foundation, a conservative Washington think-tank, that Indonesia was strategically too important to ignore.

"I encourage the Bush administration to pursue engagement with the Indonesian military, giving preference to the more reform- minded navy, air force, and marines at the expense of the distrusted Indonesian army," Mr Bereuter said. Since the 1999 Leahy amendment, the US (like Australia) has banned giving aid or training to the Indonesian armed forces until officers involved in war crimes were prosecuted.

But Mr Bereuter told the foundation that the decision by the US Congress to suspend its International Military Education and Training program and the denial of human rights training had 'eroded' US influence with the Indonesian military.

A report from Indonesia at the weekend claimed the Bush administration had made some new moves to increase US engagement with Indonesia. They fell well short at this stage of lifting the Leahy amendment and Australia is continuing to call for the prosecution of military officers who may have committed war crimes in East Timor.

Mr Bereuter said, "It is appropriate to insist that the armed forces abide by internationally respected human rights, but we must also recognise that the Indonesian military remains a major political force and ultimately has a role to play as a final guarantor of Indonesia's security and stability."

Mr Bereuter, who visited Australia during the East Timor crisis, also said Australia was America's closest friend in the Asia Pacific region, second only to Japan in significance. "Australia is more than just an ally. For America, it is the country in the region with which we have our deepest friendship," he said.

"Small in population, Australia has nonetheless unfailingly joined the US in protecting our mutual national security interests around the globe. Our alliance with Australia and our close bond with the Australian people do not always elicit much attention, but it is one of America's crucial strategic partnerships. We should pay more attention to Australia and do more to show our appreciation of this special relationship."

Economy & investment

Jakarta's fuel-price hike hits petty traders

Straits Times - June 23, 2001

Marianne Kearney, Jakarta -- Eddie, a former waterside thug, is not too worried about a local council's recently declared intention of clearing the city of illegal businesses such as his -- a street stall where he sells fake branded bags.

He boasts that South Jakarta's local government would never be brave enough to close down the hundreds of illegal market stalls involved for fear of the boisterous demonstrations that would follow.

But what does worry him is last week's fuel-price rises. Already, his small stall is feeling the pinch. Fewer customers are arriving to survey his fake Gucci and Salvatore Ferragamo bags.

This, he says, is a result of common concern that with the rise in fuel prices, the cost of basic goods will shoot up. "It's extremely quiet and already the price of food has risen," says an adjacent stallholder, Yono, who sells sunglasses.

Like dozens of other stallholders, Yono started his own small business when his more lucrative job at a ceramics factory came to an abrupt end as a result of the 1997 Asian economic crisis.

Earning a living since then has been tough but manageable. But with prices set to rise, supporting his family in Surabaya could become very difficult.

The cost of fuel was raised last week by an average of 30 per cent. Next month, electricity prices will rise by 20 per cent, and economic analysts predict that inflation will rise to at least 10 per cent over the next two months.

The fuel-price hike has sparked violent protests in the streets of the capital but the government has said it will not review its decision.

Transport drivers are being subsidised to help offset the increase in their fuel prices but traders such as Yono and Eddie will receive little help to offset their rapidly increasing cost of living.

Illegal stallholders such as Eddie earn about 30,000 rupiah on a good day. If the sluggish trade continues, he and his fellow street workers will probably earn only 10,000 rupiah a day. It may be just enough to feed themselves and to pay the rent but it is not enough to support their wives and children living in Surabaya, Yogyakarta or Semerang.

A senior economist with the government-owned Danareska Research Institute, Dr Raden Pardede, says the number-one concern for most Indonesians, according to their most recent survey, was inflation. He predicts inflation will hit 10 per cent, the number of jobs will decline and the average income will also decline over the next few months.

Most Indonesians have been pessimistic about their job prospects and worried about their ability to buy new products since 1999, the latest Danareska survey reveals.

Nobody knows how many people become poorer as a result of these price increases, but Dr Pardede says that the number of people living below the poverty line is bound to increase.

With almost 50 per cent of Indonesia's population facing poverty, according to a recent World Bank study, the fear is that an even higher proportion will slip below the poverty line. "No doubt the poor will suffer more," says Mr Philip Clarke from the World Food Programme.

While he agrees the government could not continue to lose billions of dollars each year by keeping fuel prices at some of the lowest in Asia, he said the increases were bound to be far harsher on poor people.

He pointed out that the cost of diesel, the fuel which is more commonly used by poorer people, rose by 50 per cent while petrol, which is used by cars and therefore by the middle class, rose by only 25 per cent.

Mr Clarke predicted the poorer 20 per cent of the population would continue to need assistance for at least another 18 months.

Spot audits for the rich

Straits Times - June 22, 2001

Robert Go, Jakarta -- It is getting harder to hide the extent of one's wealth in Indonesia these days. Tax collectors, under pressure from their bosses at the Finance Ministry, are stepping up on-the-spot audits. They are directing their activities towards rich neighbourhoods whose inhabitants are likely to display their high-class consumption.

Mr Nono Hanafi, a tax-directorate spokesman, said: "We are looking at the lifestyle and whether it fits the declared income. If you drive big cars, live in big areas and make big purchases, we want to make sure you have paid your taxes."

Government officials had so far looked at Jakarta's richest areas, such as Menteng, Pondok Indah and Permata Hijau. But Mr Nono spoke of plans to expand the operation to middle-class areas, where many expatriates live. "People in other areas will receive requests soon to provide documentation. If they can't give complete information, they should register before our officers get to their areas," he said.

10.8 billion dolars owed by Jakarta tax dodgers each year

Straits Times - June 22, 2001

Robert Go, Jakarta -- Indonesia would gain an additional 60 trillion rupiah (S$10.8 billion) a year if citizens paid their proper taxes, according to an aide to new Finance Minister Rizal Ramli.

Indonesians were notorious for dodging their taxes by bribing collectors and under-reporting their incomes, said Mr Anggito Abimanyu.

Of the country's population of 210 million, only 1.5 million have tax files. Earlier this week, Director-General of taxes Hadi Purnomo said that as many as 600,000 of Jakarta's eligible taxpayers did not have proper papers and did not pay taxes.

Just days after taking over at the Finance Ministry, Dr Rizal has moved aggressively on one of his pet projects: Filling government coffers with more tax revenue. And the signs are there that he might succeed.

Hundreds of rich Indonesians had voluntarily registered with local tax offices as soon as authorities started knocking on doors and demanding to see tax documentation in exclusive Jakarta neighbourhoods, said senior Finance Ministry officials. Mr Anggito added: "When they heard about the taxmen coming, they flocked to tax offices and registered themselves. It is sad to see how many people have not paid proper taxes. This can be positive for us, however, as it means we can step up collection and increase state revenues."

Mr Nono Hanafi, a spokesman for the tax directorate at the Finance Ministry, said: "Our tax ratio is very low, at 11.7 per cent of GDP. This ratio is about 16 per cent in the Philippines and is much higher either in Singapore or Malaysia. The 'registration update' will increase tax participation. We are adding offices to make enforcement more efficient and to allow easier registration for citizens."

The two officials said the government wanted to see tax revenues reaching at least 15 per cent of Gross Domestic Product within the next three or four years.

While agreeing that many Indonesians neglected their tax duties, homeowners in neighbourhoods being targeted by the taxmen expressed doubts about the government's ability to execute its plans efficiently. A resident of the Pondok Indah neighbourhood said: "They've come to my door and I have registered to avoid problems. But I'm not sure if the bureaucrats can effectively follow through, especially if all the money is now supposed to go to the state."

A businessman with a house in Menteng, where former President Suharto's Cendana complex is located, said: "If we have to pay the full amount, OK. But how can we be sure the money goes for the right purpose?"

Mr Nono, however, reported that there would be no letting up in the government's pace and that it planned increase the scope of the door-to-door audits."Less than 50 per cent of residents in some areas had proper papers, but after our visits, we estimate that over 90 per cent of residents are properly registered now. That is an encouraging development," he said.

The "targets areas" were those where the cost of an average home was more than 3 billion rupiah. "We have just begun to scratch the surface. The result will be very visible in next year's income-tax revenue."

Indonesian consumers worry about job prospects

Reuters - June 20, 2001

G. K. Goh, Jakarta -- Fears of social unrest in Indonesia continued to chip away at consumer confidence in May, state brokerage Danareksa said its latest survey showed on Wednesday. Sentiment about future job prospects fell to its lowest since it started surveys in October 1999, the company said.

In its monthly survey of around 1,700 respondents, Danareksa said its index on job prospects for the next six months fell to 98.1 from 103.0. An index reading below 100 indicates that negative responses outweigh positive ones.

"Lingering doubts over the prospect of a sustainable economic recovery in the second half of 2001 and inflation threats unsettled consumers and caused their sentiment on job availability over the next six month period to turn to 98.1 from 103, the lowest in the history of the survey," the report said.

The survey preceded a series of worker protests in east and west Java last week, when police fired tear gas and warning shots to disperse thousands of protesters angry over a decree to end severance pay. The government has postponed implementing the decree following the backlash.

The overall Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) fell to 96.3 from 97.9 "The CCI has been in a bear run, extending its losses for four months in a row. Overall sentiment was poor amid fears that civil unrest might erupt." The confidence index on family income also sagged on the prospect of rising fuel and electricity prices.

Respondents said they would likely curb their future spending as a result. "The portion of respondents planning to cut spending on durables rose from 73.5 percent to 77.7 percent."

The government raised fuel prices by an average of 30 percent on Saturday. Parliament has also approved a hike in electricity tariffs by 17.47 percent to take effect on July 1.

IMF says hopeful of breaking Indonesia deadlock

Reuters - June 20, 2001

Joanne Collins, Jakarta -- The IMF said on Wednesday it was optimistic Indonesia's willingness to revise controversial central bank law amendments would end a six-month deadlock on a vital $5 billion loan programme.

Resumption of International Monetary Fund loans would give President Abdurrahman Wahid a shot in the arm as he teeters toward impeachment over his erratic rule, and signal to donors and investors Indonesia's economic reforms were back on track.

"This is a positive development and I'm much more hopeful now we can reach some kind of agreement on this and get the mission to come to discuss [the programme]," John Dodsworth, the IMF's senior representative to Jakarta, told Reuters.

"We're very hopeful this is going to work," he added, without giving details on when an IMF mission, needed to clear the way for resuming the loan programme, would visit Jakarta.

Indonesia on Tuesday bowed to pressure over the proposed central bank amendments when new chief economics minister Burhanuddin Abdullah said the government was willing to revise the proposed changes.

The Fund froze its aid programme to Indonesia in December over a raft of missed economic targets and foot dragging on reforms that has held up a $400 million loan.

But the law changes have since become the biggest barrier, particularly Article 75 which stipulates the whole bank board resign once the new laws take effect. The Fund fears that would erode the bank's hard won independence. An independent report recently said the clause was a "serious mistake".

Dodsworth said it was now up to parliament and the government to strike an agreement on the amendments. "We favour coming to a compromise on this and the minister [Abdullah] at the moment is trying to get a consensus with the government and the parliament on the best way forward," he said.

In another positive sign for Indonesia's economy, the World Bank -- which slashed its aid programme earlier this year, citing concerns over regional autonomy laws and sluggish economic reforms -- said at the weekend its board was set to approve a $320 million loan next week.

But Indonesia is still battling numerous economic woes as it attempts to escape from more than three years of crisis. Economic growth is only modest, a crushing debt burden hangs over the country, foreign investors are still wary of the political instability surrounding Wahid's waning fortunes and inflation has moved back into double digits.

The statistics bureau said on Wednesday it expected inflation in June to be 1-1.5 percentage points above the May figure of 1.13 percent because of price rises in key sectors. It also said year-on-year inflation was expected to be higher in June. Indonesia's year-on year inflation was 10.82 percent in May, from 10.51 percent a month earlier. The government recently raised fuel prices by 30 percent and plans to soon hike electricity tariffs.

[On June 23 the Jakarta Post reported that industrialized nations added Indonesia to a money laundering blacklist thereby putting international financial transactions with that country under a tougher scrutiny. The blacklist, issued by the Financial Action Task Force on money laundering, includes governments that don't cooperate with international money-laundering efforts. The Indonesian government recently proposed money-laundering legislation to the House of Representatives in Jakarta - James Balowski.]