Labour issues

Pertamina Balongan workers on strike

Jakarta Post - June 20, 2002

Indramayu, West Java -- Temporary workers at the Balongan, West Java, oil refinery of state oil and gas company Pertamina staged their second day of protest over demands for higher wages on Wednesday.

A Pertamina spokesman said the protests did not disrupt operations at Balongan, which supplies the bulk of Jakarta's fuel.

Most of the demonstrators were drivers hired by Pertamina's 20 contractors, said Suwandi, spokesman at Pertamina's Distribution Unit VI, under which Balongan operates.

Around 1,000 workers held a peaceful sit-in protest in front of Pertamina's office. On Tuesday, they marched for seven kilometers, from the Balongan refinery complex to the Indramayu legislative council building.

The workers demanded Pertamina increase their monthly salary by 50 percent, from the current Rp 476,000.

Ferry owners demand fare hike, threaten to strike

Jakarta Post - June 19, 2002

Oyos Saroso H.N., Bandarlampung -- Sea transportation between Bakauheni in Lampung province and Merak in Banten province could be paralyzed soon as the local union of ferry operators has threatened to stop services until the authorities meet their demands to increase ferry fares.

The operators asked the government on Tuesday to increase the fares by up to 79 percent, otherwise they would stage a massive strike. A strike would severely disrupt goods and passenger traffic between cities in Java and Sumatra, given that 24 ships operate daily in the Sunda Strait.

"If my boss tells me to strike, that's what I'll do," a ferry crewman, who wished to remain anonymous, said.

A company that operates the ferry Mufidah carried out its threat by withdrawing services on Monday evening. At 7 p.m., the ship unloaded passengers and commodities at Bakauheni but then departed without passengers.

The situation panicked employees of the state-owned riverboat transportation firm PT ASDP at Bakauheni. But the "strike" only lasted for an hour as the ship operator met with officials from the local transportation office to negotiate with them.

"The Banten provincial office of the ministry of transportation has ensured that there will be a fares increase within two days to three days," Nurhasan Zen, chairman of the Association of Riverboat Transportation Operators (Gapasdaf), said.

Nurhasan said he had proposed the fares increase to Minister of Transportation Agum Gumelar and House of Representatives (DPR) Commission IV for transportation and infrastructure affairs.

The official said the increase was unavoidable because of frequent fluctuations in fuel prices.

He denied reports that the association had planned a massive strike, saying that it would "likely reduce" the service from 58 trips to 20 trips daily for reasons of efficiency.

The Bakauheni-Merak ferry service is the major surface transportation route that connects Sumatra with Java. Twenty-four ships operate for 24 hours a day, making 58 trips and carrying an estimated 28,000 passengers and 4,200 vehicles.

Apart from the ferry, 10 speedboats are also available for commuters at a higher fare. But people on a budget choose the ferry, which is Rp 2,750 (30 US cents) for third class, Rp 5,000 second class, or Rp 7,500 first class.

The journey from Bakauheni to Merak takes three hours to three- and-a-half hours by ferry, while the speedboat takes only about 45 minutes.

Asked about the planned higher fares, several passengers expressed disappointment as that would increase their expenditure. "If they were followed up by improved services, it would be no problem," said Achmad Syafei, 42, a passenger from Palembang, South Sumatra.

Sriyatun, 34, from East Lampung expressed similar concerns, suggesting that the operators should improve security on board the ferries.

Almost all of the 24 ferries are in a poor condition. Most were built before 1983. Only three -- Ontoseno, Jatra and Mufidah -- are in relatively good condition. The Menggala was made in 1971 and started operating in 1987, while Nusa Dharma and Jatra I BSP started operating in 1984 and 1992 respectively.

Head of the operational division of ASDP at Bakauheni Martin Usanjati acknowledged that the ships were not up to international standard. "They are below the standards set by the International Maritime Organization. That's the situation. [If we had to meet the standards], there would be no ferries to serve the public," Martin said.

1,500 workers rally in Tangerang

Jakarta Post - June 19, 2002

Tangerang -- Some 1500 workers of PT Indorama, a garment producer on Jl. Imam Bonjol in Tangerang, staged a rally at the municipal administration office on Tuesday, demanding an improvement to their welfare.

Accompanied by Tangerang Independent Association of Workers (PBI) coordinator Aat Sukmana, the women workers arrived at the office on Monday evening, spent the night there and staged the rally on Tuesday morning.

"We have repeatedly discussed our demands with the company management and made several agreements, but they've never implemented them," Sukmana said.

He said that the workers had taken their case to the municipal manpower agency and the legislative body, but the company management still refused to fulfill their demands.

"We have now come to this office because we believe the administration has the power to make the company's leaders, CH Yun and Susana, approve our demands," he said.

Semen Cibinong fires 600 temporary workers

Jakarta Post - June 18, 2002

Agus Maryono, Purwokerto -- The Cilacap plant of the country's third largest cement producer PT Semen Cibinong recently dismissed 600 of its 900 temporary workers in the name of efficiency, an official said here on Monday.

The plant's community relations and security affairs manager, Tribowo, said the company decided to terminate the 600 workers following the sale of 74 percent of Semen Cibinong to the Switzerland-based international cement firm, HOL Cim.

"PT Semen Cibinong's Cilacap plant was considered to be overstaffed by 1,700 workers [both permanent and temporary]. And with a total debt of US$500 million, the decision to terminate the temporary workers was unavoidable," Tribowo said.

Besides dismissing the temporary employees, the company has also offered its 800 permanent employees early retirement. "For those applying for early retirement, they will receive their monthly salaries until December of this year," Tribowo said, adding that 27 permanent employees had accepted the offer so far.

He said the company paid out Rp 8.5 billion in severance benefits to the 600 workers. "On average, we gave each of them severance pay equal to their salary for 23 months, as required by government regulations," the official said.

Tribowo insisted the dismissal of the 600 workers was a necessary step, because the plant did not have enough work to go around for all of its employees.

"There were lots of workers standing around talking during working hours because there was nothing for them to do. This could have a negative impact on other workers who are working," he said.

The Cilacap plant has an annual production capacity of 4.1 million tons of cement. However, the plant is only able to operate at 60 percent of capacity this year, he said.

The plant produces cement under the Nusantara brand name. Eighty percent of its products are exported, while the remaining 20 percent is sold domestically.

Though Tribowo said the dismissals were necessary, the 600 fired temporary workers staged a protest at the Cilacap regency legislative council on Monday. The workers claimed the terminations were unilaterally carried out by the cement company, and they also demanded more severance pay than the company was offering.

As of Monday afternoon, the two sides had not settled their differences.

Aceh/West Papua

Big mango in little Aceh

SBS Dateline - June 19, 2002

After the pain of losing East Timor, Indonesia is determined it will never lose Aceh, the resource rich western- most province in the archipelago.

Major General Mangaberani (literally "brave mango"), who earned his rank and fortune in East Timor, is heading Jakarta's military offensive to wipe out the armed separatist Free Aceh Movement -- GAM. GAM guerrillas control large parts of Aceh and reporter David O'Shea easily located its leader Ishak Daud, Indonesia's most wanted man.

Despite the clear call for a referendum on independence made by nearly one million people in Aceh's capital in 1999, the province is enduring the same brutality and corruption used to subjugate East Timor. In the last year alone at least 1700 people, mainly civilians, have been killed by the security forces.

Corruption and its ensuing benefits extend to all areas of Indonesian control in Aceh. O'Shea shares a ride with members of the Indonesian police force which is jokingly described by a police chief as the "happy happy" department.

Travelling in a car they have taken from a driver without registration papers, they head to a disco to enforce the new anti-drug offensive. On the way the officers tell O'Shea that they have already had three hits of amphetamine and invite him to also use the drug.

While renowned for making a fortune from bribery and extortion, O'Shea reveals that soldiers also give drugs to the children they use to spy on GAM.

Ten-year-old Marzuki says, "I said I didn't want any pills. They said they were sweets ... I couldn't understand anything." The information Marzuki passed to the soldiers led to the deaths of three GAM men.

Anxious to reverse the funding freeze imposed after the destruction of East Timor, the armed forces gives soldiers a human rights code of conduct. But O 'Shea hears horrific testimony from a farmer who was tortured, whose pregnant wife was attacked and who fled their home when the soldiers threatened to burn it down.

Meanwhile, General Managberani has announced his intention of arresting the civilian political leaders who are involved in official peace talks in Switzerland with the Indonesian government. The General has also ordered the cancellation of an international conference in Aceh that was to discuss the Swiss peace talks

Reporter: David O'Shea

Meet Major General Yusuf Mangaberani or, as his name translates into English, Joe Brave Mango. After only four months in Aceh, he's earned the right to have some fun. The General has been sent here to wipe out the Acehnese armed separatist movement, GAM. As commander of the whole military operation, Mangaberani has tens of thousands of soldiers and police at his beck and call. In Aceh, he really is 'the big mango'. Not long ago, there's no way he could have thrown a party like this. GAM were too strong. But with the combined might of the police and military behind him, the General now has the rebels on the run. He now feels so secure that even his wife has joined him.

General Yusuf Mangaberani (Transltion): The latest results show how much it has improved. I find it very pleasing to see that the people approve of the operation. Our peacekeepers will be happy that people have started to smile and their concerns and fears have lessened.

Many of these people would strongly disagree. Just over two years ago, close to one million Acehnese gathered in the provincial capital, Banda Aceh, to call for a referendum on independence. After decades of suffering under Indonesian rule, a clear majority of Acehnese want out. But after watching East Timor break away, Indonesia is determined not to lose Aceh. The result -- at least 1,700 people, mostly civilians, have been killed in the last year alone, and independence is now spoken of only in whispers. People here in the capital have grown accustomed to the nightly roadblocks. Local and paramilitary police are checking documents and looking for GAM members.

Station radio centre (Translation): At times it is difficult to monitor GAM. They speak for a brief moment and then stop.

(Voice over 2-way): We've got someone -- we've got someone.

Station radio centre: What do you mean?

(Voice over 2-way) We've got someone. There's a vehicle, a car.

In the interrogation room at the station, police intelligence officers have a handy reference to their most wanted. It's the GAM wall of infamy.

First officer at station (pointing to photo): Take him, for example. His name is Ismuhar. He used to be a policeman. After a year in the force, because he was involved with GAM, he defected and took nine AK-47's belonging to the police. So now those weapons are used against us.

Second officer at station (pointing to photo): This is Romadon Katulan. He killed a policeman.

Reporter: Who was he?

Second officer at staion: Gunshots -- I thought I heard gunshots! This guy killed a policeman. I forget his name.

Reporter: If you could only catch just one of these men, who would it be?

Officer at station: According to me? I'd want this guy. This is his photo.

Reporter: Why him?

First officer at station: He is a very clever propagandist, twisting facts and saying inappropriate things. He's very clever at influencing the community.

Reporter: Ishak Daud?

First officer at station: Yes.

To find Ishak Daud, I have to travel 500km east of the capital. The ring around GAM is tightening. On the main road, I lost count of the number of army and police roadblocks. After a series of rendezvous with GAM escorts, I'm finally taken to meet their leader. Ishak Daud is the GAM spokesman in East Aceh, large parts of which are controlled by his guerrillas. Over the years people here have suffered some of the worst of the military's excesses, so it's not surprising that GAM receives such strong support. Without that support, GAM would get nowhere. They're fighting a traditional guerrilla war of hit-and-run attacks. They ambush soldiers, policemen and informers, then retreat to hide amongst the villagers.

Ishak Daud (Translation): You've come here and you've seen GAM. We are amongst the people. Protected by the people, funded by the people. They say we are under increasing pressure, that GAM is cornered, that they're closing in on Ishak Daud.

What about the people you've interviewed about GAM's status here, where we sleep, who funds us? It's very clear.

But the villagers pay a high price for that support. Ishak Daud says that after every GAM ambush, the security forces take their revenge. Houses are burned down, possessions are stolen, and people are attacked or killed.

Ishak Daud (Translation): It's not unusual or out of the ordinary. In fact, it often occurs. Whenever GAM attacks the armed forces, then the community is targeted.

Bridges here are designed to be quickly dismantled, to slow the military's advance. This also makes life more difficult for GAM and the villagers. In fact, people say that life is harder than it's ever been, even worse than the brutal 10-year-long military operation known as DOM. Ishak Daud is taking me to a gravesite where nine civilians are buried. Victims, he says, of state- sponsored terror.

Ishak Daud (Translation): DOM was bad, but they never killed 35 people in one day. Nine were innocent civilians. Small children were beheaded and buried alive.

There were only isolated incidents during DOM.

At the beginning of this year, President Megawati Sukarnoputri put the hardline two-star General Yusuf Mangaberani in charge of a new, deadly offensive against GAM.

General Yusuf Mangaberani (Translation): They are uneducated. They are former common thugs, former criminals. They are schooled in terrorism. People don't like what they do. We hope that with the participation of the community and progress in our development, in the short term Aceh's problems can be eliminated. We will handle it properly.

Reporter: How long will it take?

General Yusuf Mangaberani (Translation): By elimination, I don't mean getting rid of them completely because we will need time to get rid of the guerrillas. We'll need time to take effective control of every region.

Reporter: But how long?

General Yusuf Mangaberani (Translation): Possibly this year.

With so many terrified people fleeing their homes, Ishak Daud and his bodyguards have ample choice of places to sleep the night. He's in constant satellite phone contact with GAM leaders throughout Aceh and in Sweden, where the movement is led from exile. But this is a long way from Stockholm.

The next morning, farmers are waiting for news that it's safe to tend their plots. They've not been able to go for four days now. The grapevine says there may still be troops around.

Local farmer (Translation): We would die if we crossed their path. It doesn't only happen in the farms. It also happens here. Us farmers don't dare go to our farms if we haven't received clear information.

It's like this all the time. They'll only go to work if they're absolutely certain that the troops have gone.

Local farmer (Translation): Even then we do so carefully, slowly. We can't just go.

At times some will remain. There will be 40 men, 20 remain and 20 go. We think they have all left when in fact some of them are still there. Not all have left. Some stay and some go. Those who remain then get us.

When the security forces sweep through, everyone disappears, running for their lives to the forest. Last time they came, this man would have run away like everyone else, but stayed with his wife, who was about to give birth. His cousin is a GAM member, and this makes him and his young wife the enemy.

After soldiers repeatedly stamped on her belly, her baby is lucky to be alive. Her husband went through several rounds of beatings, and then this.

Villager: They trod on my lower abdomen. They stomped on it. Then my intestines came out. After that I was told to get up and run. I couldn't run anymore. I was told to jump in the drain and drink all the water I could. I said I couldn't drink any more.

He said I had to until I vomited. So I drank until I vomited because I was afraid. Then I was told to jump out of the drain and start running. So I ran. If they said 'stop', I stopped. If they said 'walk', I walked. The soldiers told him they would be back to burn his house down, so he and his wife have moved in with relatives.

The weekend has arrived. Time for the generals running the military operation to leave the pressures of work behind. Whenever he gets the chance, General Mangaberani goes fishing with his closest aides. He once studied psychological warfare in Germany and knows how important it is to look after your men's mental health. Like many of Indonesia's top brass, Major General Mangaberani earned his stars and his fortune in East Timor in the first few years after the invasion. Military legend now has it that, like those early days in East Timor, there are two ways to return home from duty in Aceh -- rich, or in a coffin.

Reporter: How many men have you lost during the problems in Aceh?

General Yusuf Mangaberani (Translation): 100 personnel.

Out here, Mangaberani is more interested in catching fish than answering questions.

General Yusuf Mangaberani (Translation): Independence is not synonymous with ... ah, a big fish. Don't ask any more questions. Oh, another black fish. No more questions. I'm getting dizzy. Or we'll throw you in the water so you can't go home.

These are the foot soldiers in this conflict. They say they love it here.

Soldier (Translation): Well, it's fun.

Reporter: What's fun?

Soldier (Translation): A soldier's job is war and here there is a real feeling of war.

They say their main problem is targeting the right people.

Soldir (Translation): It's hard to tell the difference between GAM and ordinary people. If we know the difference, it's very easy.

As part of the military's attempts to improve its image as professional army, each soldier sent to Aceh is given a pocketbook outlining the human rights code of conduct. Clause 4.b.1.b, for example, instructs soldiers to be nice to pregnant women. And clause 4.d.1.a teaches them not to burn down innocent people's houses. They're supposed to carry the book with them.

Reporter: Have you been given the book?

Soldier (Translation): Yes.

Reporter: Is it with you?

Soldier (Translation): I left it behind. I haven't brought it. But I have read it. So I know about what can be done and can't be done. Even if we don't know it all, we need to know a bit.

The Dutch Government, through the UN, is funding a series of human rights training programs, for both the military and police.

Training officer (Translation): You must know how to act, whether to retreat, confront, ignore or approach. Only you can know.

These officers are taking the community policing course. The first test -- to gauge how brutal they are.

Training officer (Translation): We know our problem, don't we? I was the same when I did the psych test. I was too harsh. I knew that was my weakness and I had to change it.

Little by little, they say they are changing their ways. And in the controlled environment of the classroom, I saw a policeman successfully intervene to stop a fight.

First officer (Translation): I don't have the money to repay my debt to him.

Seond officer: Calm down. What seems to be the problem here?

First officer: Explain to him I can't pay the debt.

Second officer: I think you should settle this like family and not in a public place.

That's better.

By trying to convince the world they're reforming, the armed forces hope to overturn the funding freeze imposed by the West after they destroyed East Timor. But even the army spokesman, Lt. Col. Firdaus, admits that problems remain.

Lieutenant Colonel Firdaus (Translation): We are very confident because they are well trained over a long period and we watch them constantly. We give them some leeway. But these soldiers are still human beings. Some may not be disciplined, but that isn't representative of all TNI soldiers.

General Yusuf Mangaberani (Translation): I always land the big ones. It's the boss dealing with the boss.

With the red groper starting to bite, Mangaberani now believes peace is not far away.

General Yusuf Mangaberani (Translation): Now, this is peace. This is peace. Oh, a black fish.

For the top brass in Aceh, whether army or police, life is pretty sweet. When you get to this level, you don't have to put up with any nonsense.

General Yusuf Mangaberani (Translation): I want to drink coffee and David keeps asking me questions.

Aceh is now Mangaberani's personal fiefdom, and he's brought his oldest and most trusted friends onboard to help run it. This man is the head of internal security.

Reporter: So why have you been sent here?

Head of internal security (Translation): To help out. To help the chief. To solve the situation in Aceh.

Reporter: Do you come here often?

Head of internal security (Translation): This is my first time. Yeah. But I'm happy. There's no problem.

This man runs Indonesia's national traffic police, who make a fortune from bribery and extortion.

Reporter: Which section are you in?

Head of National Traffic Police (Translation): I'm in the happy- happy department.

At the other end of the boat, these young officers hope they too may end up promoted to the happy-happy department. They say that life has improved since the fishing general arrived.

Young officer (Translation): The water police are being encouraged to do as much as we can to repair our ships and speedboats, not only those used for fishing or recreation, but also other vessels.

With their idealism still intact, these young recruits see policing as a noble mission.

Second young officer (Translation): Since I was a kid, I've seen TV shows where the police get along well with the community. They are very close to the people. As human beings, we must live in a community and help one another. So inside my heart I knew I wanted to become a policeman.

The Indonesian police force is widely regarded as one of the most corrupt institutions in the country.

Back on the beat in the capital, local police are checking motorists' papers against a list of GAM members. We didn't catch any, but the night wasn't entirely wasted.

Officer: A good car, Stop it.

The owner of this car is now walking home. He didn't have his registration papers, so we confiscate his car.

Officer: Come here, how do you start it? It is good to drive? It's tough being rich. I don't know.

The owner will have to come and collect his car from the station tomorrow and pay a bribe to get it back. But for tonight, it's ours and we're going to have some fun.

Officer: Keep on tripping. Do you like the music, David? Let's go there later and catch some people.

Reporter: Catch who?

Officer: People at the discoteque.

President Megawati Sukarnoputri has just launched a major drug offensive, but it's common knowledge that the armed forces control or profit from much of the trade. We're off to the local disco to catch some users. But the only users I saw that night were with me in the car.

Officer: I had three hits already. It hasn't come on. Do you want -- You don't know what frying means? I can tell from the way you are saying it. What is it? A flame underneath a bit of foil. We burn a little bit. That's frying.

Methamphetamine, or ice, is becoming a major problem in Indonesia. In Aceh, the war zone, it's no different. The only discoteque in town is a seedy place, full of prostitutes, army and police officers and drugs are readily available. None of this would be possible without their direct involvement. But it gets far worse than this.

Marzuki, young GAM hostage (Translation): I was given pills. How was I to know?

Reporter: They gave you what?

Marzuki: Pills. A drug -- it was like a sweet. I didn't understand.

In East Timor, the military gave their militia proxies 'mad dog' pills to make them crazy. Here in Aceh, young boys like 10-year- old Marzuki are given money and drugs by soldiers who get them to spy on GAM.

Marzuki: It was like a sweet. I didn't understand. I couldn't think. I said I didn't want any pills. They said they were sweets.

Reporter: What were the effects? How did you feel?

Marzuki: I couldn't think straight. I couldn't think and couldn't understand anything.

Marzuki passed the soldiers information that led to the deaths of three of Ishak Daud's men. He is now GAM's hostage and is being held for re-education.

Marzuki: They gave me lots of pills, not just one. I have these bags around my eyes now, look.

Whatever they get up to at night-time, by day the police have to at least appear to be good Muslims if they have any hope at all of winning the hearts and minds of the deeply religious Acehnese people. So the boys have been sent down to the mosque to pray alongside the people.

Police officer outside Mosque (Translation): People here have been saying the police never pray. They don't realise, we're not wearing uniform. My officers pray in civilian dress. The people don't know. We are showing the police do pray. We are religious. We are not here to arrest people who don't pray. We are not here for that reason.

Back on dry land, after the fishing trip, it's time to divide the spoils. The fish will be distributed amongst the different police chiefs. Keeping them happy will shore up Mangaberani's power base.

General Yusuf Mangaberani (Translation): Don't say there is no theory to fishing.

But Yusuf Mangaberani has his eyes firmly set on even bigger fish. While the military's offensive is going well, GAM's civilian leaders are still out of reach. Yet they are sitting right under his nose -- holed up here, in this hotel in Banda Aceh.

Man in hotel room (Translation): We feel this is the safest place for us at the moment.

These are the GAM representatives waiting to return to Switzerland for the next round of peace talks with the Indonesian Government.

Man in hotel room: There have been five or six meetings in Geneva, but the results of those negotiations on paper have never been implemented out in the field.

Second man in hotel room: They are just spreading propaganda overseas that they have held a dialogue in Aceh. But the dialogue is just a smokescreen. Even though they are officially recognised as delegates by the Government in Jakarta, Yusuf Mangaberani can't wait to pounce.

General Yusuf Mangaberani (Translation): We are discussing it at the moment.

When are they part of the dialogue process and when are they not? We are looking intensively at that. If they are outside protection of dialogue process, then we will arrest them.

And an international conference called to discuss the Swiss peace talks has been cancelled on the General's orders.

Liem Sioe Liong, human rights activist: So, it's very regretful. We have come here from all over the world just to attend this very important conference. This is probably the very first seminar for many years ... international seminar on this very important topic of peace talks, and then suddenly the authorities decide to ban this.

Reporter: There is already a dialogue going on in Switzerland, and yet to talk about it here in Aceh is not on.

King Oey, human rights activist: Exactly. It is completely illogical.

Back in East Aceh, Ishak Daud is going through the daily incident reports. He says there is news of more houses burned down. Revenge attacks after GAM carried out an ambush. From here it's difficult to see where all of this can end.

Ishak Daud (Translation): We are still waiting, but ... if justice doesn't come to Aceh, and people are killed every day, the best example we can give is the patience of the Palestinian people. Young people carrying bombs around their waists to Israel.

This could happen one day in Aceh.

Indonesian military continues its repression in Aceh

Carol Divjak - 18 June, 2002

Despite peace negotiations held in Geneva last month, the Indonesian armed forces (TNI) is continuing its offensive against the separatist Free Aceh Movement (GAM) in the north of Sumatra. The current operations are part of a brutal civil war that has raged for 26 years and cost the lives of at least 12,000 people.

The latest deaths took place last week. According to a military spokesman, the army killed two alleged GAM members in two separate clashes in Lhlong village and Lhokseumawe on June 12 and 13 respectively. Three civilians and two soldiers also died. GAM, however, claimed that none of its members had died and accused the military of killing innocent civilians. These incidents are part of a pattern of military violence and repression aimed at intimidating the local Acehnese population.

In early April, President Megawati Sukarnoputri's government dispatched 1,850 fresh troops to Aceh to reinforce army and security forces in the oil-rich province. The force consisted of 825 Kostad army strategic reserve members, along with more than 500 marines and 412 Kopassus special forces troops. Under the Suharto dictatorship, Kopassus was notorious for its use of abduction, torture and assassination to suppress political opposition, including in regions such as Aceh, East Timor and West Papua.

According to then Kostad head, Lieutenant General Ryamizard Ryacudu, who saw off the force, the troops currently in the province had become "ineffective" after more than a year in the conflict area. Asked by Tempo magazine how he thought the military should deal with the separatists, he replied: "Exterminate provocateurs, shoot rioters".

Significantly Megawati has recently promoted Ryamizard to army chief. The emergence of figures such as Ryamizard in the top TNI posts is a measure of just how beholden Megawati is to the military. During the protracted moves to oust former president Abdurrahman Wahid last year, Megawati relied on the military top brass to prevent Wahid from blocking impeachment proceedings and declaring a state of emergency.

The military was highly critical of Wahid's decision to allow limited political freedoms in Aceh and West Papua and to open negotiations with the separatists. Under strong pressure from the TNI, Wahid signed a presidential order for a crackdown on GAM in April 2001. Megawati, then vice-president, presided over the "Operation for the Restoration of Security and Upholding the Law" and continued the offensive when she took over as president later in the year.

At present there are an estimated 25,000-30,000 security forces in Aceh and the number of deaths has jumped sharply over the past 14 months. Last year alone, 2,000 people were killed, including 1,600 civilians. So far this year more than 400 have died. According to the European-based International Crisis Group, the TNI operations have succeeded in reducing the area under GAM control to only 30-40 percent of the province as compared to 60- 70 percent prior to April 2001.

In a number of cases, locals have accused the police and soldiers of killing innocent civilians either during patrols or in reprisal for GAM attacks. The conflict claims roughly four civilian lives for every soldier or alleged guerrilla killed. At checkpoints throughout the province, the security forces openly extort bribes.

An article this week in the New York Times explained: "Often, villagers suspected of having helped the rebels are shot. Here in Butit Meranti, a deaf plantation worker, Abdul Wahab, 35, was gunned down by soldiers as he emerged from the forest, because unlike some other villagers, he was confused and unable to run away quickly enough, Mr Bin said.

"Almost every day in Lhokseumawe, the city closest to the natural gas fields, workers of the International Red Cross sad they pick up bodies shot at close range and dumped in the street. The cause of death is usually listed as 'O.T.K.' for 'orang tak kenal' or "persons unknown'." A report issued by the US-based Human Rights Watch in March strongly criticised the role of the Indonesian National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas-HAM) for covering up one of the most widely reported atrocities in Aceh. In August 2001, 30 men and a two-year-old child from a rubber and palm oil plantation in Julok, East Aceh, were lined up and executed by a group of armed men in camouflage uniforms. GAM and the TNI both accused each other of the killings.

Komnas-HAM interviewed a number of eyewitnesses, virtually all of whom insisted that the army was responsible. But, as the Human Rights Watch report pointed out, investigators failed to follow up on key information and some of the interviews were conducted in the presence of military officers-a situation guaranteed to intimidate witnesses. Komnas-HAM commissioners shelved their findings for five months and only established a formal commission of inquiry in January. No progress has been made in identifying or prosecuting the culprits.

Limited autonomy for Aceh

The Megawati administration and the military have imposed a climate of fear and repression in Aceh in order to undermine support for GAM and to impose a political solution that falls short of independence from Indonesia.

Last year the Indonesian parliament passed a special autonomy law for Aceh that offers the local administration a larger share of the province's oil and gas revenues.

During the negotiations in Geneva, GAM leaders took a step toward dropping their previous demand for an independent statelet in northern Sumatra. An agreement was reached that accepted the autonomy law as the starting point for the next round of talks, which are to include other Acehnese representatives in discussion about local government and a ceasefire. The agreement was signed for Jakarta by Ambassador Sastrohandoyo Wiryono Abdullah and for GAM by Dr Zaini Abdullah.

The US Special Envoy to the Middle East, Anthony Zinni, was present-an indication that the Bush administration is closely following Jakarta's campaign to stamp out GAM. The US-based Exxon Mobil corporation operates and partly owns three huge gas fields in Aceh and the large Arun liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant. US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Matt Daley recently visited exiled GAM leader Hasan di Tiro in Sweden to insist that he accept the government's autonomy offer.

The talks were the seventh in a series between government officials and exiled GAM members begun in 1999 under the auspices of the Geneva-based Henry Dunant Centre. Despite the negotiations, the TNI continued its operations in Aceh. Less than 24 hours after the latest round, a police mobile brigade unit shot dead Zakaria Yahya, the GAM spokesperson for the Greater Aceh region. Police claim they were not aware of the agreement reached at the talks on May 10.

The attack was designed to send a message both to GAM and the Megawati administration that the TNI was going to dictate the terms of any settlement. The commander of the Iskandar Muda military base in Aceh, Brigadier General Djali Yusuf, insisted his troops would continue to "conduct operations for the restoration of peace".

The growing assertiveness of the military in Aceh, West Papua and other areas, and its disregard for democratic rights and human life is a sharp warning that there has been no fundamental change in Jakarta since the fall of the Suharto junta.

Six troops killed by Aceh rebels

Jakarta Post - June 21, 2002

Ibnu Matnoor and Nani Farida, Banda Aceh -- Six members of the Indonesian Air Force's special forces (Paskhas) were killed in an ambush by members of the separatist Free Aceh Movement (GAM) near Iskandar Muda Airport in Blangbintang, Aceh Besar regency, on Wednesday night, an officer said on Thursday.

Spokesman for the Aceh Regional Military Command Lt. Col. Firdaus Komarno said the troops were on the way home after seeking supplies in a market in Krueng Raya, two kilometers away from the airport.

Firdaus said the six fatalities were Pvt. Gunawan Siahaan, Pvt. Tarmizi, Pvt. Widodo, Pvt. Basuki, Pvt. Suparno, and Pvt. Budi Marwoto.

The rebels also took five SS-1 rifles from the troops. According to Firdaus, the six troops were riding on a Kijang pickup when GAM launched the attack at 8 p.m.

GAM spokesman for the Banda Aceh area, Tengku Maksalmina, confirmed on Thursday that his members had attacked four military vehicles patrolling the village of Montasik, near the airport, some 20 kilometers east of Banda Aceh.

Three of the vehicles managed to escape, but the fourth was left behind. All six troops in the pickup were killed. "We also took five rifles from them," Maksalmina added.

In a separate incident on Wednesday, an Indonesian soldier and one alleged Acehnese rebel were killed during a gunfight that broke out in the village of Northwest Hagu, Lhokseumawe, North Aceh.

Military (TNI) spokesman in Lhokseumawe Maj. Zaenal Mutaqin confirmed that the gunfight had taken place at 3:30 p.m. local time as six soldiers patrolled in the village, which is located only one kilometer away of downtown Lhokseumawe.

Seeing the military patrol, three local youths immediately fled. One of them entered a house. Two soldiers chased the youth, who then opened fire.

First Sgt. M. Jafar was severely wounded by the armed youth, identified as Bustaman, 22. But, before Jafar died, random shoots he released killed Bustaman. A Colt pistol and 24 bullets were recovered from the suspected rebel. Jafar, meanwhile, was brought to the Lilawangsa Military Hospital, but to no avail.

Mutaqin said Bustaman was believed to be a GAM member who had set several school buildings ablaze over the weekend.

GAM spokesman for North Aceh Tengku Jamaika admitted that Bustaman was a member of the separatist group. "He was assaulted inside the house," Jamaika told The Jakarta Post.

He claimed Bustaman had gunned down two soldiers. One died and the other was in critical condition. Jamaika denied the accusation that Bustaman was responsible for the burning of several school buildings in Lhokseumawe. "The conflagrations were engineered by the military to fool the Acehnese and defame GAM," said Jamaika.

Another incident took place in Krueng Sabe, West Aceh, when the police's Mobile Brigade killed three GAM members in a gunfight in the village of Paya Seumantok.

Local police spokesman Adj. Sr. Comr. Dade Ahmad said one of the GAM members was identified as Muslim alias Alexander, 20, while the other two remained unidentified. Alexander, known to be a GAM operational commander, has been the target of a military hunt for some time. The police seized an FN pistol, bullets, and other military equipment.

Officer Dade added that Sabaruddin Ahmad, 50, a village head in Samalanga subdistrict, Bireun Regency, was slain by two motorists, believed to be GAM members. No confirmation or denial was forthcoming from GAM.

The continuing violence in the province of Aceh could seriously disrupt the peace agreement reached between Jakarta and GAM representatives in Geneva last month.

A delegation of the Switzerland-based Henry Dunant Center (HDC) arrived on Wednesday in the troubled Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam, formerly known as Aceh, province to evaluate whether the peace agreement had been effective.

The arrival of the delegation was important to ensure that peace was restored in the province after decades of war.

Three members of the delegation, Gen. Rupert Smith, Andrew Marshall, and David Gorman, took part in the dialog between Jakarta and GAM in Geneva last month. The delegation was due to depart for Jakarta on Thursday afternoon.

Papuans rally for probe on independence leader's death

Radio Australia - June 20, 2002

Some 40 protesters have picketed Indonesia's parliament, calling on the government to launch an independent investigation into the murder of Papuan pro-independence leader, Theys Eluay.

The demonstrators, some of whom wore the province's traditional dress, demanded the government form an international investigation commission.

Mr Eluay was murdered in November last year. He had been abducted the previous evening by an unidentified group as he drove home from a celebration hosted by the local Kopassus special forces military unit in the provincial capital, Jayapura.

A government-appointed investigation commission has named six special forces soldiers as suspects in the murder, three of them have been detained. The team classified the murder as a crime rather than a human rights violation.

Students end hunger strike

Jakarta Post - June 23, 2002

Indonesia -- Seven students grouped in the West Papuan Students' National Front (FNMP) gave up their hunger strike on Saturday due to health concerns, but vowed to boycott the 2004 general election in the troubled province should the government fail to reveal the truth behind the killing of separatist Papuan leader Theys Hiyo Eluay and hold a referendum on self-determination.

The decision to end the strike came after two students, Robert Manaku of the Semarang-based Catholic University in Central Java, and Vivi Erari of the Yogyakarta-based Gadjah Mada University, were rushed to Cikini Hospital in Central Jakarta due to dehydration after almost three days on hunger strike.

The hunger strike was organized to protest the government's uncertain policies on Papua and to condemn the ongoing investigation into the murder of Theys, who was also the chairman of the Papuan Presidium Council (PDP), and who was found death hours after being abducted by an unknown group in November last year.

Many believe that a unit of the Army's Special Force (Kopassus), which is stationed at Hamadi in the Papuan provincial capital of Jayapura, was involved in the murder.

"The military's violence continues in our land, while the government just stands by watching it. There's no other way for us to stop it except to ask for a referendum to determine the future of the Papuan people," FNMP spokesman Charles Imbir told a media conference at the National Commission on Human Rights' offices in Central Jakarta.

Six more killed as peace mediators visit Aceh

Agence France Presse - June 20, 2002

A soldier, four suspected separatist rebels and a village chief have been killed in the latest violence in Indonesia's Aceh province, the military and police said.

An army sergeant and a rebel were killed in a gunfight at Hagu Bara Laut near Lhokseumawe in North Aceh on Wednesday, said Aceh military spokesman Major Zaenal Muttaqin.

In another incident police gunned down three rebels of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) at Paya Seumantok village in West Aceh on Wednesday, said police spokesman Adjunct Senior Commissioner Dadek Achmad.

Achmad said a village chief in Bireuen district was found dead with gunshot wounds and torture marks on Wednesday. He blamed GAM for the murder.

The violence happened as three officials from the Switzerland- based Henry Dunant Centre, which has mediated peace talks between the Indonesian government and GAM, paid a two-day visit to the province.

The three -- British General Rupert Smith, Andrew Marshall and David Gorman -- are assessing the situation to establish a framework for "cessation of hostilities," which was agreed at the last peace talks in Geneva in May. They arrived on Wednesday.

In May Jakarta and GAM leaders agreed to work towards a ceasefire to pave the way for democratic elections in the province in the north of Sumatra island.

The three met separately with a joint committee monitoring ceasefires in Aceh and GAM negotiators on Wednesday. Officials refused to comment afterwards.

On Thursday they were due to hold talks with the provincial military and police chiefs before returning to Jakarta.

The Indonesian government last year granted special autonomy to Aceh, allowing it to implement partial Islamic Sharia law and retain a much greater share of its oil and gas revenues.

At peace talks in Switzerland, GAM has agreed to discuss autonomy as a starting point for negotiations but says it had not dropped demands for full independence.

More than 10,000 people, mostly civilians, have died in the conflict since 1976, including over 500 this year alone.

Six killed in Aceh last weekend

Jakarta Post - June 18, 2002

Banda Aceh -- At least six people, including two alleged members of the separatist Free Aceh Movement (GAM), were killed in separate incidents in the restive province of Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam over the weekend, reports said.

An explosive device, believed to be of TNT (trinitrotoluene), exploded in the athletes camp for the provincial sports festival in Sigli regency, which kicked off on Saturday. No casualties were reported.

Witnesses and residents in Lhokseumawe, North Aceh, said two people were gunned down on Saturday while they were riding a motorbike in Teumpok Teungoh district at about 7pm. GAM spokesman for North Aceh area Tengku Jamaika claimed that the two civilians were shot dead by Indonesian security forces.

Indonesian Military (TNI) spokesman in Aceh Maj. Zaenal Mutaqin refuted the accusation, saying that the two civilians were shot dead by GAM members.

In South Aceh, two other civilians, identified as Anwar, 25, and Syahfudin, 24, were found dead with gunshot wounds to their heads on Saturday. Witnesses said the two men had gone missing after members of the police's Mobile Brigade (Brimob) patrolled the Trieng Meuduroe area in Blang Pidie subdistrict on Friday.

The GAM spokesman for South Aceh, Ayah Manggeng, said Anwar and Syahruddin were arrested by Brimob members from Blang Pidie. Their motorbike was confiscated. However, local police spokesman Adj. Sr. Comr. Dade Ahmad said the police did not arrest the men. The police only confiscated a motorbike while raiding a house in Trieng Meudoroe.

Separately, an alleged GAM member died during a clash with military troops in separate locations on Saturday. A military spokesman, Maj. Ertoto, confirmed that during a clash in Montasik village, Aceh Besar, about 15 kilometers east of the provincial capital of Banda Aceh, a GAM separatist, identified as Baruna, 25, was killed.

Despite army assurances, Acehnese continue to suffer and die

New York Times - June 18, 2002

Bukit Meranti -- In Aceh, the northernmost, natural gas-rich province of Indonesia, the guerrilla war by separatist guerrillas of the Free Aceh Movement has ebbed and flowed since 1976.

In its current phase, the Acehnese are on the defensive, pushed back from the urban centres now thick with patrolling soldiers and police.

But civilian killings have also increased in recent months, according to Western officials, and human rights groups report deaths, torture, disappearances and arbitrary arrests on an almost daily basis.

The government of President Megawati Sukarnoputri has offered special autonomy for Aceh, which would allow the province to keep a greater percentage of the revenues from its natural resources. In a nod to the feelings about Islam, the government has allowed provincial authorities to introduce sharia law.

These gestures have proved insufficient, and the war bleeds on. Intermittent meetings between the two sides have provided little movement.

In instructing the military to prosecute the war in Aceh more vigorously, Mrs Megawati installed Brigadier General Yusuf Djali, 52, in February as the new military commander of Aceh.

The general receives some positive notices from Western military officials for trying a new tactic: winning the hearts and minds of the civilian residents.

General Djali said: "I keep telling my soldiers that the indicator of your success in the field is that when you leave, the villagers will cry for you." But the army's burning of villages such as Bukit Meranti continues with only slightly less intensity than before the general's arrival, the Western military officials said.

The rebels generally garner more sympathy from residents than the military does, but their popularly has ebbed as they have turned increasingly to crime and extortion.

Jakarta, Washington seek a solution for Aceh

New York Times - June 18, 2002

Jane Perlezm Bukit Meranti -- On a Friday, just before noon prayers in the simple wooden mosque, soldiers stormed into the village of Bukit Meranti, herded the people together and, according to two residents, marched them towards a neighbouring hamlet, torching houses as they went.

After six weeks, the village elder, Bin Ali, 52, and his neighbour Agus Salim, 35, summoned the courage to return to the ashes of their lives' possessions. They found little left.

This is the war in Aceh. The military, recently reinforced and deployed in far greater numbers than anywhere else in Indonesia, is under orders from the central government in Jakarta to wrap up the war, once and for all.

But civilian killings have also increased in recent months, according to Western officials, and human rights groups report deaths, torture, disappearances and arbitrary arrests on an almost daily basis.

As part of its global campaign against terror, the United States is preparing to renew ties with Indonesia's military and police forces. These had been reduced and then severed in 1999, primarily because of human rights abuses in East Timor.

At the Bush administration's request, the US Congress has approved a plan to help Indonesia create an elite counter- terrorism police unit. Later in the year, the administration is expected to ask for funds to help the Indonesian military create a peacekeeping unit for use in the internal conflicts that rage in different parts of Indonesia.

But some US lawmakers say the military must first be held accountable for its past human rights transgressions and show improvement in places such as Aceh.

"The Indonesian military is perceived as not having a very sensible attitude about how to deal with the war," an administration official said. "They are not in full observance of the rules of war or of human rights."

Advocates of the new links with Indonesia's army and police, including US Deputy Defence Secretary Paul Wolfowitz, contend that Indonesia can only become a moderate Muslim country if it has a US-influenced military that is able to hold the archipelago together against the forces of extremism.

Successive US administrations have opposed independence for Aceh. No other major government supports independence either -- a stance that means the province is unlikely ever to separate from Indonesia as East Timor did.

Intermittent meetings between the two sides, sponsored by the Henry Dunant Centre in Switzerland, a humanitarian group, have provided little movement towards a solution.

To emphasise the Bush administration's opposition to independence for Aceh, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Matt Daley recently visited guerrilla leader Hasan di Tiro, who lives in exile in Sweden, and told him that Washington wanted him to accept the Indonesian Government's offer of special autonomy.

In April, the administration also sent General Anthony Zinni, a special adviser to Secretary of State Colin Powell, to the talks at the Henry Dunant Centre.

General Zinni told the Indonesian Government that it could no longer keep the conflict hidden from outside observers and that the government had to accept international monitors.

The former commander of UN peacekeeping troops in Bosnia, General Sir Rupert Smith, is scheduled to visit Aceh soon to explain to the Indonesian military that accepting international monitors would be in their interest.

Whether the Indonesian Government will agree to such openness is far from certain. Diplomats said President Megawati Sukarnoputri's government appears to feel little pressure from Washington on the issue of international monitors, and is taking substantial comfort from Washington's opposition to an independent Aceh.

East Timor

Closure of refugee camps in Kupang delayed

Jakarta Post - June 19, 2002

Yemris Fointuna, Kupang -- The central government has relented a little in its approach toward East Timorese refugees by postponing the planned closure of refugee camps in East Nusa Tenggara province until December this year.

But the government has made it clear that there will not be any repatriation of refugees to the newly established Democratic Republic of East Timor after August.

Bowing to demands by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the Indonesian government has agreed that refugees in Kupang will continue to receive aid until the new deadline passes.

"By January 1, 2003 there will be no more refugees in the province," East Nusa Tenggara Deputy Governor Johanis Pake Pani told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday.

The government decided early this year to close down all refugee camps in West Timor in August. However, as the deadline nears and the refugees continue to depend on the government for financial aid, the government has backed down.

However, Kupang social affairs office chief Stanis Tefa said on Tuesday that the extended deadline on the closure of the refugee camps did not mean that the government was extending the deadline for repatriation or monetary compensation for those opting to return to East Timor.

"We will tolerate those who want to stay as Indonesian citizens to use the camps until December, but in September the government will no longer repatriate people or pay compensation to the refugees," Stanis said.

Currently, the number of refugees in Kupang is about 54,000 people, from the approximately 250,000 who fled East Timor after its populace voted for independence in August 1999.

The Indonesian government, with the help of international donors, has provided refugees with daily financial support from the state budget since 1999. The government has asked the refugees to decide whether to stay as Indonesian citizens or repatriate to East Timor.

East Timor became an independent state on May 20 this year and East Timorese leaders have been calling on refugees to return to their hometowns.

Stanis said that from September to December, it would be the responsibility of UNHCR and the International Organization on Migration (IOM) to facilitate the return of the refugees.

Kupang military regional commander Col. Moeswarno Moesanip revealed that the two international organizations would limit their assistance in providing transportation means to cross the border. "The transportation services provided by the two organizations will only last until December," Moeswarno said.

Neo-liberal globalisation

Minister disappointed with IMF trade recommendation

Asia Pulse - June 20, 2002

Jakarta -- Customs and Excise Director General Permana Agung said that a recommendation by the International Monetary Fund to reappoint a surveyor to handle export and import examination to cope with rampant smuggling was disappointing.

Indonesia once used Societte Generale de Surveillance (SGS) to handle preshipment for Indonesian exports and imports but last year the duty was returned to the customs and excise directorate general.

Permana said in a meeting he attended with the IMF there was no talk about reappointment of SGS but unexpectedly the name of SGS appeared in the IMF's recommendation to the finance ministry.

He said as a senior official of the finance ministry he wanted to discuss that matter before a decision is made.

Globalizing debate on IMF: Enter Indonesia

Jakarta Post - June 19, 2002

Max Lane -- The debate about extending Indonesia's relationship with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) between Minister Kwik Kian Gie, in charge of the National Economic Planning Board and the other ministers in President Megawati Soekarnoputri's Cabinet is an important development in Indonesian politics and the debate on development strategy.

It is also a debate that brings Indonesia closer to world trends in discussing these issues.

The economic strategy proposed by the IMF along with the World Bank have been under attack from many quarters ever since these institutions were formed at the initiative of the United States government at the end of World War II. But they have come under particular attack in the last few years.

In the West, the criticisms of these institutions has also led to a substantial new political movement in the US, Western Europe and Australia: The anti-globalization movement, or, more accurately, the anti neoliberal globalization movement.

This movement burst onto the scene with the big demonstrations against the World Trade Organization (WTO) in Seattle two years ago and has continued to grow since then, with more large demonstrations in many European cities. There have also been several major conferences raising criticisms of the IMF, World Bank and WTO, the largest being the gatherings at the World Social Forum in Porte Allegre, Brazil. Last January more than 80,000 people gathered to discuss alternatives to the strategies proposed by the IMF and World Bank.

At the heart of these criticisms is an analysis that during the last 10 years, the western governments, particularly that of the US, have been using the IMF and the WB to push forward the centralization of capital accumulation in the West, and again particularly in the US There has been no real globalization of productive investment.

That remains centered in the US, Western Europe and Japan. There is a globalization of roaming speculative capital which has often caused financial instability, but a centralization of productive investment.

The critique goes that the IMF is using its hold over indebted nations to force developing countries to do away with any protective measures they have against the predatory activities of the stronger Western countries. While the US speaks free trade, it uses the IMF to open up the markets of weaker economies often at the expensive of the development of local national industry and agriculture.

An economy like the Indonesian economy is a smaller and weaker economy primarily because it was the victim of 300 years of marauding by Dutch and other western colonial rulers. All the "developing countries" are still underdeveloped because of colonialism.

Conversely the western countries, such as Western Europe and the US, are powerful economies because they were able to enrich themselves and grow during their time as imperial powers.

A country like Indonesia has every right to protect itself against the ongoing predatory practices of the West. It is even outrageous that the West expects Indonesia to pay the so-called foreign debts of US$70 billion. The West still took much more than that during the previous 300 years.

Worse still, the West uses this indebtness to smash the economic sovereignty of countries like Argentina and Indonesia. The level of detail concerning economic management in the Letters of Intent signed by the Indonesian government and the IMF is such that it is the IMF that has taken over de facto control over economic management.

This control is then used to transform the Indonesian economy into an extension of the US and other western nations' economies. This is why the IMF insists that government-managed banks and other assets are sold as quickly as possible, so that they might be bought cheaply by US capital, as was the case with Bank Central Asia.

It is also the reason for the IMF insisting that tariff quotas on almost every item that the US can export to Indonesia be dropped. This is being done with even sugar and, yes, for rice -- rice which employs tens of millions of people in Java! There have already been scores of protests by rice and sugar farmers as their already miserable livelihoods are squeezed as a result of cheap imported rice and sugar. Their misery has been made worse still by the ending of subsidies on fertilizers, resulting in less incomes and also slowly declining harvests due to lesser use of fertilizer.

It is an expression of solidarity with the victims of these disastrous IMF policies that lies behind the growing movement in the West that is calling for the abolition of the IMF and the cancellation of all the Third World debt.

In Indonesia, the debate has just started. Economic minister Dorodjatun Kuntjoro-Jakti has already answered Minister Kwik by pointing out that ending the relationship with the IMF will result in Indonesia being denied important sources of capital, even if this capital comes with interest repayments and all sorts of delirious conditions.

Minister Dorodjatun is right. His reply to Minister Kwik highlights the direction in which the debate needs to develop. If not from the IMF, then via whom can Indonesia obtain the capital it needs? Of course, Indonesia does have sources of finance that are available for the long term. The world will still need its oil, gas and other minerals. And there will always be those individual western countries and companies that will do deals no matter what the IMF says. Even Cuba, under total boycott from the U.S, receives investment from countries like Spain and Sweden as well as has good trading relations with countries like China and Venezuela.

But if Indonesia wants to have a sovereign economy and be a sovereign country, it needs to look back, and at the same time modernize, an idea born out of the movement to build the Indonesian nation itself: Sukarno's idea of berdikari, to stand on one's own feet. This cannot mean isolation from the world's technology or from trade.

But it can mean having as a starting point for any economic strategy the mobilization of all the human and financial resources already in the society and economy rather than making foreign private investment the motor. In any case today there is no significant foreign or domestic private investment.

Mobilizing existing resources means, most of all, mobilizing and upgrading as quickly as possible the whole of the country's human resources.

This is the greatest crime of the policies being supported by the IMF and implemented by the ruling political elite here. Rather than being the central priority, education is relegated way down the list. With millions of children dropping out of school, Indonesia is being prepared to be mainly a coolie nation.

But mobilizing all the human and technical resources, independent of and in defiance of the IMF and the West, is more a political problem first, and an economic question second.

Government institutions alone cannot draw up a satisfactory inventory and organize 200 million people into collective effort. This requires tens of millions of people to be organized and to be conscious of the tasks of development.

Any discussion of alternatives to slavery to the West and the IMF cannot avoid this central question: Reawakening and rebuilding in modernized form mass popular organizations that can democratically mobilize the resources of society.

[Max Lane is a visiting Fellow, Center for Asia Pacific Social Transformation Studies, University of Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia.]

'War on terrorism'

Jakarta 'not allergic' to military ties with US

Agence France Presse - June 20, 2002

Jakarta -- Indonesia's military will cooperate with any country, including the United States, in the global war on terror provided such ties do not damage the national interest, the new armed forces chief said yesterday.

In principle, the armed forces were "not allergic to accepting any assistance" from foreign countries, said General Endriartono Sutarto. "We will cooperate openly with any assistance from anywhere," he told a press conference.

Gen Endriartono had been asked if Indonesia -- the world's most populous Muslim nation -- had become a haven for members of the Al-Qaeda network headed by suspected terror mastermind Osama bin Laden.

He said the question should be directed to intelligence agencies. Jakarta has come under pressure from several quarters to take tougher action against alleged terrorist leaders but has played down the threat.

Asked if Indonesia would accept assistance from Washington in fighting global and domestic terrorism, Gen Endriartono said he would be "very grateful" for such assistance. He did not elaborate but Indonesian officials have previously ruled out any US military presence as in the neighbouring Philippines.

The US State Department has requested US$16 million for Indonesia in a 2002 supplemental appropriations request to Congress. Of that amount, US$8 million would go for a rapid-reaction peacekeeping force to deal with trouble in Indonesia's far-flung provinces. Another US$8 million would go to train the national police in counter-terrorism.

The US has had no military training or foreign military sales programmes with Indonesia since 1999 when Congress passed an amendment barring funding for those activities until Jakarta accounts for the military's role in East Timor killings.

Since the September 11 terrorist attacks on the US, its officials have lamented the absence of high-level military ties.

Indonesian militants not a big deal, say lawmakers

Straits Times - June 18, 2002

Shefali Rekhi -- Two visiting Indonesian lawmakers dismissed the problem of militancy and terrorism in their country as "not a big deal" yesterday.

House of Representatives member and Partai Keadilan Islamic party vice-chairman Irwan Prayitno and People's Consultative Assembly Deputy Speaker Agus Widjojo, charged that Singapore and neighbouring countries had become unduly perturbed.

They claimed militants such as Jafaar Umar Thalib and Abu Bakar Bashir had a following of "about 100 people".

Questioning the accuracy of reports that Indonesian groups were part of international militant networks and had received funding, Mr Irwan said: "These groups ask for donations on the roadside. The Singapore media has blown up the issue."

Lt-Gen Agus said that most of the militant expressions had to do with cultural Islam -- people speaking up after years of repression. "We still have to believe that they will move to political Islam," he said.

He said militancy, and the country's ability to deal with it, had to be understood in the context of the political realities that the ruling party was a coalition and these were problems arising as Indonesia became democratised. The two legislators gave their views at a panel discussion on the future of Indonesia's Islam organised by Singapore's Institute of Defence and Strategic Studies.

Countering their comments, National University of Singapore Professor Leo Suryadinata referred to growing political violence in Indonesia that was causing concern among its neighbours. "There should be ways to allay concerns," he said.

Human rights overtaken by a bigger concern for US

Sydney Morning Herald - June 17, 2002

Gay Alcorn, Washington -- The White House is now confident that Congress will approve the resumption of military ties with Indonesia, according to a leading adviser to the Bush Administration.

James Kelly, the most senior United States adviser on South-East Asia, said Indonesia was a crucial player in the US-led war on terrorism because there was a struggle for the "soul of the country" between moderate democrats and extremist Muslims.

If Congress does approve US aid to the Indonesian military -- just three years after all contact was banned because of atrocities committed by Indonesian soldiers in East Timor -- it will be a dramatic signal of how the war on terrorism has downgraded the importance of human rights in US foreign policy in favour of security issues.

Mr Kelly said he thought that the Administration's lobbying of Congress to lift the ban on military links was "going to bear some fruit". He acknowledged that Jakarta's reform of its military had been inadequate, but said it was good enough to start "modest" military-to-military co-operation. "It is cutting off your nose to spite your face to say that because of the crimes of some in the past, [we] leave the entire training and upkeep to those who have erred in the past. That doesn't strike me as a very good idea," Mr Kelly said.

But Indonesian rights abuses remain a big concern of leading congressional figures. The White House cannot renew ties without congressional approval.

Senator Patrick Leahy, a Democrat, is sceptical of the Administration's position that renewing ties will help train Indonesian soldiers in the ethics of a modern military. He and others in Congress argue that nothing has been put in place in Indonesia to prevent future abuses.

Critics also argue that Jakarta's efforts to show that its military is now accountable -- most notably through the trial of four army officers accused of atrocities in East Timor -- is only for show. Mr Kelly agreed that Jakarta "needs to do more in terms of accountability issues" but that the resumption of training was a separate issue. He proposed renewing military ties now "in very small measures", and then increase links if further reform went ahead in Indonesia.

Indonesia "is very important because it is the country in the world with the largest Muslim population, because it is a functioning democracy, because it plays such a significant geo- strategic role in South-East Asia", he said.

"It's important because it's a centre of moderate Islam, in which Islam is not an impediment to education and development and the activities of women. There's really a struggle that's going on inside Indonesia, for the soul of that country's going to be decided by Indonesians; it's not going to be decided by Australians or Americans." The US would would like to have greater investment in Indonesia's future, but the archipelago -- with other South-East Asian countries -- is less convinced that the war on terrorism should be its first priority.

Indonesia's Defence Minister, Matori Abdul Djalil, said recently that "combating terrorism constitutes only one priority", given Indonesia's economic problems and its difficult transformation to democracy. Mr Kelly, who was present during the Oval Office meeting between President George Bush and the Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, last week, said there was "total candour and openness" between the leaders on about 20 subjects, including the war on terrorism, Iraq and the prospects for a free-trade agreement with Australia.

Although Mr Howard insists Australia's support for the war on terrorism is independent of its push for a free-trade agreement, Mr Kelly said one issue did "feed into" the other in Washington's mind. "Australia has a hearing that has been earned over all these years. [Mr Howard] is a welcomed figure, he's a serious interlocutor about a lot of different things that are going on in the world, in Asia and elsewhere." There was strong interest in an agreement with Australia when Congress grants the president the power to negotiate agreements without congressional interference. There would be many applications for trade deals from the Asia-Pacific, he said, "so the cases of allies, of valued old friends, are bound to get better attention".

Mr Kelly rejected a suggestion that Australia was under greater risk of terrorism because of its strong support for the US.

Government & politics

Commission members reveal huge flaws in election bill

Jakarta Post - June 20, 2002

Moch. N. Kurniawan and Yogita Tahilramani, Jakarta -- Though hailed as democratic, Indonesia's 1999 elections could hardly be called credible with a dismal record of 2,400 election campaign violations, including bribery, vote-rigging and extortion among its other vices.

Can the current election bill be counted upon to guarantee a democratic election in the 2004 polls? According to members of the General Elections Commission (KPU), an independent body entrusted with the task of organizing the polls, it is highly unlikely that the 2004 polls will be administered credibly, if serious flaws in certain articles of the election bill are not corrected.

Prof. Ramlan Surbakti of Surabaya-based Airlangga University said on Wednesday that among its major flaws, the bill limited the powers of KPU to effectively deal with violations committed during elections and election campaign.

Article 125 of the election bill states that KPU monitors the elections, records election violations, investigates them, prepares dossiers of investigations and hands over the dossiers to either the police or local prosecutors.

"The cases will be then handled by the Indonesian courts. Out of the 2,400 violations recorded in the 1999 polls, only four were settled by our courts. They are just too burdened with day-to-day criminal cases," Ramlan, who is a KPU member, told The Jakarta Post.

He suggested that ad-hoc tribunals instead be established by local courts, for the purpose of handling violations committed before and during the elections.

"We hope the Article is revised, so that KPU is authorized to supervise the prosecution or police investigations into the criminal violation cases, which should then be tried by ad-hoc tribunals," Ramlan said, adding that ad-hoc tribunals were required by law to issue a ruling on cases within a set period of time, like within 30 days.

Ramlan said that KPU should control investigations in "non- criminal" cases also such as incidents of public officials campaigning during elections or the use of public facilities by political parties for election work.

"A paragraph in the Article should stipulate that aside from investigating noncriminal cases, to save time, KPU should be empowered to enforce sanctions against the guilty party. Sanctions must already be regulated in the Election Law," Ramlan said.

Another KPU member Chusnul Mar'iyah also slammed the government for literally robbing KPU of its independence, by placing the KPU secretary-general and vice secretary-general under the Ministry of Home Affairs in the KPU organizational structure. This is stipulated in Article 67 of the election bill.

Chusnul said that the secretary-general administered the polls. "It is the staff of the secretary-general that holds the election results. They are the ones registering the voters, and counting the votes, and not the total 11 members of KPU," she said.

"There will always be fear that the Ministry of Home Affairs could order the secretary-general to favor a particular political party, and we wouldn't even know about it." The secretary-general and vice secretary-general are appointed and dismissed by the President upon the recommendation of the minister of home affairs, according to Paragraph 4 of Article 67 in the bill.

"The secretary-general's promotions, salary and transfer of duty is arranged and executed by the Ministry of Home Affairs. If the body that administers the polls is not independent, how can the poll results be trusted by the public?" she said.

Chusnul said that another "ludicrous" issue was that KPU funds would be regulated by the secretary-general, as stipulated in Article 74 of the bill, but KPU members would be held accountable for the funds.

"How can we, the 11 members of KPU, be held accountable for something like the corruption of election funds allocated for political party' flags for instance, in the 1999 polls, when we were never in charge of the funds?"

Mega faces calls for Cabinet revamp

Straits Times - June 18, 2002

Devi Asmarani, Jakarta -- President Megawati Sukarnoputri is facing mounting calls from Indonesian legislators to reshuffle her 10-month-old Cabinet, which has been criticised for poor performance and a lack of teamwork.

The legislators see the Cabinet as a disappointment, with one minister accused of abusing power and another of non-performance. Cracks are also showing within the economic team.

Parliament Speaker Akbar Tandjung said: "Changing Cabinet members is the most viable alternative to improve the government's performance." His call echoed the sentiments of several political and economic experts.

Political analyst Bantarto Bandoro of the Centre of International Strategic Studies: "Megawati has no other choice but to revamp the Cabinet, she should have done it months ago." But the President has been keeping mum on the issue, prompting speculation of an impending reshuffle.

"I may keep a little secret, may I not," she told Antara news Agency on Saturday on the sidelines of her visit to London over the weekend.

One of her party officials, however, expressed doubt she would reshuffle the Cabinet soon.

Legislator Subagyo Anam said: "It is not Megawati's style to make such a major move hastily like president Abdurrahman Wahid did in his two-year rule. Even if she reshuffled the Cabinet, it would probably be after the National Assembly annual session."

The Cabinet has been criticised for lacking vision, focus and leadership, and for being ineffective. Mr Bantarto said: "The Cabinet lacks a clear policy blueprint." Furthermore, its economic team appears to be tearing at the seams with the State Minister of National Development Planning Kwik Kian Gie at loggerheads with Coordinating Minister for Economy Dorodjatun Kuntjoro-Jakti and other economic ministers.

Mr Kwik, who is a senior member of Ms Megawati's Indonesian Democratic party (PDI-P), recently said the government should not renew its dealings with the International Monetary Fund, but other ministers say Indonesia still needs assistance from the Fund.

A top official in the PDI-P told The Straits Times that Ms Megawati was not likely to sack Mr Kwik, who is one of her most trusted aides.

Other Cabinet members who have been criticised include Defence Minister Matori Abdul Djalil who some legislators said have not achieved anything significant.

But PDI-P sources said the only minister likely to get sacked is Cabinet Secretary and State Secretary Bambang Kesowo. He has been accused of blocking access to the President and of trying to make his office the powerful body that it was during the Suharto regime. His office has also been accused of misusing billions of rupiah from the palace coffers.

Corruption/collusion/nepotism

191 legislators have not paid back Banpres loans

Jakarta Post - June 20, 2002

Jakarta -- As many as 191 legislators received loans worth Rp 40 million each from the off-budget Presidential Aid Fund (Banpres) during the leadership of former president Soeharto but have not repaid the money in full, a legislator said Wednesday.

House of Representatives (DPR) Commission I member Djoko Susilo, a member of Commission I's small team established to probe irregularities in the use of Banpres, urged concerned legislators to immediately return the loan.

"There are several names including Akbar Tandjung, Slamet Effendy Yusuf and Albert Hasibuan," Djoko said after quizzing former state secretary Ali Rachman and former presidential secretary Abdul Mudjib Manan over alleged irregularities in the use of Banpres.

On Tuesday, the team questioned Moerdiono and Muladi, ministers/state secretaries during the administration of Soeharto and B.J. Habibie respectively. Moerdiono told the team Tuesdayhat the funds were disbursed only with the approval of the President.

According to Djoko, the legislators took the loan to buy Timor cars from a company owned by Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra, a favorite son of former dictator Soeharto.

Each recipient still owes up to six million rupiah, Djoko said, adding: "They have to return the money immediately." Djoko, a legislator from the Reform Faction, also said that some business enterprises belonged to Soeharto's cronies also received funds from Banpres.

"We have identified major debtors such as the Sea Games Consortium and Tapos Plantation, which owe a combined amount of Rp 6.7 billion," he said. Tapos plantation is owned by Soeharto. "We urge those who took money from Banpres to repay as soon as possible," Djoko said.

Banpres came under the spotlight early this year after President Megawati Soekarnoputri donated Rp 30 billion to the Indonesian military (TNI) and police to rehabilitate housing complexes for low-ranking personnel. As the funds were not allocated in the 2002 State Budget, legislators moved to summon Megawati to explain the source of the funds.

Media 'also received Bulog funds'

Straits Times - June 20, 2002

Marianne Kearney, Jakarta -- Investigation into several corruption scandals is proving extremely embarrassing not just for a handful of politicians alleged to have diverted or accepted state funds but even for the media.

In the latest revelation, witnesses in the graft trial of Rahardi Ramelan, a former head of the food distribution agency, Bulog, said 400 million rupiah of Bulog funds was set aside for newspapers and televisions to gain positive coverage for former president B. J. Habibie before his 1999 re-election bid. Rahardi is accused of misusing 62.9 billion rupiah of Bulog funds.

House Speaker Akbar Tandjung, who was then state secretary, is on trial separately on charges of siphoning 40 billion rupiah out of the amount Rahardi took. Akbar claimed that the money was used under Mr Habibie's orders to buy emergency food supplies for the poor, and that the little-known Raudlatul Jannah Foundation was appointed to arrange the food delivery.

Former Trade Ministry official Khalid Ghazali said during hearings on Tuesday that four television stations would receive 28 million rupiah each while 25 newspapers and magazines would receive 21 million rupiah each for publishing positive stories about Mr Habibie under a project to influence media coverage. Mr Habibie, who was a presidential candidate put forth by Golkar party then, finally withdrew from the race after his accountability speech was rejected at the general session.

It was not clear if the money actually reached the news media. Newspapers and a television station contacted by The Straits Times yesterday about the allegations that they received the misdirected Bulog funds could not confirm or deny them.

However, Ms Ati Nurbaiti from the Alliance of Independent Journalists said lower-level politicians and businesses often gave journalists envelopes filled with money to influence their coverage. She suspected that editors and media owners had been persuaded to give preferential coverage to certain powerful figures.

Major religious and civil organisations such as the Association of Muslim Intellectuals were also given funds from Bulog to garner their support prior to elections, said Mr Teten Masduki, head of Corruption Watch. "Bulog was the funding machine ... Not just Golkar but all the big parties benefited, as well as Muslim and church groups,' he said.

Mr Teten agreed that tracing the flow of misdirected funds in such cases was difficult. "The Buloggate case is difficult to investigate and bring to court fairly because so many of the elite are involved and also because there are so many overlapping political interests," he said.

Former president Abdurrahman Wahid, prior to his impeachment, repeatedly threatened to reveal all the major political parties which had received Bulog funds over the last couple of years.

Corruption mars councillors' housing development

Jakarta Post - June 17, 2002

Oyos Saroso H.N., Bandarlampung -- A Lampung-based corruption watchdog has revealed a conspiracy between the Lampung provincial legislative council and a real estate developer in the construction of 26 houses for councillors.

The construction of the 26 houses, the funds of which had been proposed by the legislative council to be taken from the 2002 supplementary budget, had reportedly begun in 1999, or three years before the project's proposal was submitted by the council.

"We traced the construction of the 26 houses three months ago. They are located in Sukabumi subdistrict, Sukarame district in Bandar Lampung. Residents in the surrounding neighborhood said the construction of the houses had begun in 1999 by construction firm PT Rendi Utama Jaya," said Coordinator of the Lampung Anticorruption Committee, Ahmad Yulden Erwin, on Friday.

Erwin said that due to strong public criticism of the alleged misuse of Lampung's provincial budget, the marking board on the construction site of the 26 houses had been removed two years ago.

Besides the construction of the councillors' housing, the legislative council is also seeking to obtain Rp 2 billion (US$222,222) from the council's routine budget for the procurement of 16 official cars for councillors.

For the current fiscal year, the Lampung provincial administration has allocated an extra budget of Rp 100 billion, which was collected from the 2001 provincial budget surplus, amounting to Rp 72.436 billion, the increase in revenue split from oil and gas worth Rp 19 billion, and the remaining Rp 10 billion from provincial revenue.

Previously, the deputy speaker of the Lampung provincial legislative council, Mochtar Hasan, said that one-third of the 75 council members would receive official housing this year.

Mochtar, however, denied allegations that the council had recommended certain developers to carry out the housing construction project.

President of PT Rendi Utama Jaya, Darwis Merawi, admitted that his company was building 26 houses for the councillors after securing the council's approval in 2000.

"The approval from Lampung provincial legislative council was issued on Oct. 9, 2000. Based on the council's approval, we then proceeded with the construction," Darwis said.

He said his company had secured a contract to develop houses, worth Rp 120 million each, for 75 Lampung provincial councillors in Sukarame district.

"But, for the initial phase, we will construct 26 houses first. The rest will be built after we obtain approval for the use of the provincial budget," he said.

A number of councillors contacted by The Jakarta Post declined to comment on the alleged conspiracy.

But rumors are rife that the legislative council had endorsed a number of projects carried out by the provincial offices of the state ministries, in return for fees provided by chief officers of the project based on a percentage of the project's value.

Government Decree No. 11o/2000 on the position and structural relationship between the House of Representatives and the lower provincial, regency-level legislative councils stipulates that councils are not supposed to get involved with any business deals or commercial projects.

In an attempt to escape the sanctions stipulated in the decree, the legislative council and the provincial administration reportedly came up with an understanding that it would be the provincial administration that would submit the project's proposals to secure the 2002 supplementary budget.

"So, as the proposal has come from the provincial administration, there will be no procedural violations in the implementation of the project," Erwin explained.

Erwin alleged that the provincial administration's willingness to take the initiative to submit the project's proposals was connected with incumbent Governor Oemarsono's plan to run for another gubernatorial term in the upcoming election in December.

"Therefore, it's natural to see all project proposals granted by the legislative council ... All of these are part of a conspiracy (to help smoothen Oemarsono's renomination)," he said.

He said the conspiracy began with the council's endorsement to the governor's accountability speech earlier this year as the move was then followed with the granting of Rp 1.2 billion to the councillors.

A councillor of the Justice Party (PK) faction, Abdul Hakim, however, said that not all councillors had taken the money from the governor. "I and a councillor from the National Mandate Party (PAN) were among those who refused to take money," he said.

Smuggling in Sabang involves officials

Jakarta Post - June 17, 2002

Nani Farida, Sabang Island Aceh -- Amiruddin sits idly on a bench, casting his sight at the open sea in front of Sabang harbor. There was not a single ship docking at the harbor that day.

On a busy day he earns Rp 7,300 (70 US cents) for every 1,000 kilograms of goods he carries on his back and so in total earns an average of Rp 47,500. "Even if there is a ship but it is not unloading its cargo, there is no work," said the well-built manual laborer at this port located on the northern tip of Aceh province.

Sabang was declared a free port in January 2000 by former president Abdurrahman Wahid, partly to allay the Acehnese demand for independence.

As a Sabang native, the new status of the port has not brought any change to his life, he said. "The price of sugar here, for example, is the same as in Banda Aceh," he said referring to the capital of Aceh several hundred kilometers from Sabang.

"Why is it so?" he asked, "shouldn't it be cheaper here since the commodity is unloaded here in bulk?" In a more serious tone, he asked why those people should bring in numerous luxury cars instead of soap, spoons, glasses and other daily necessities? "The shipment of luxury cars only benefits government officials," Amiruddin said.

Sabang free port on the 154-square-kilometer island was closed in 1985 after the widespread smuggling of electronic goods out of the island to other regions in Indonesia.

Now barely two years after it gained its former status, second- hand luxury cars have taken the place of electronic goods. The cars range from BMWs to Pajeros and with Rp 50 million one can get a 1994 BMW 3181 or a Pajero. With Rp 70 million one gets a BMW 3189 made in 1995 or 1996.

All these secondhand cars look brand new and ready to hit the road. To get the Nanggroe Aceh (NA) police license one only needs to add Rp 20 million. All transactions take place between car traders-cum-smugglers and the car importers.

Joy, not his real name, said he owed his "profession" as a car trader to his uncle who is an army colonel. He claimed that he had never encountered any trouble in his "trade" and he had smuggled cars out of the free port regularly upon his uncle's instructions.

"This time I was asked to buy several BMWs," said the young man who is also a university student during the day, "they cost Rp 52 million each".

The cars are then sold in Banda Aceh and they can fetch a price of Rp 150 million each, he said. "Outside Banda Aceh, they can fetch a higher price, up to Rp 350 million each." But to bring them out of Banda Aceh needs stronger backing, he said, say a higher rank of military official or police officer.

Head of Aceh Besar Police, Adj. Sr. Com. Alfons said the police were prepared to prevent smuggling and would never allow its members to smuggle cars out of Sabang. "We will mete out harsh punishment if they are found out," he told The Jakarta Post.

There has not been a single smuggling case in the last few months, he said. Another car trader, M. Hadi said he was once asked by a high ranking police officer to take an Audi Metic out of Sabang using a fake police license.

"When I was stopped at the North Sumatra border, I only showed a letter of recommendation from the police officer, and was allowed to continue my trip," he said. Hadi said he was paid Rp 1.5 million for his service.

What do people like Amiruddin get from the free port? "Secondhand clothes, for sure," Amiruddin said with a smile, "people like us can only buy such clothes at a good price".

He is not entirely wrong. Since the free port was opened, imported secondhand clothes have become ubiquitous in the port city, mostly sold by side-street vendors.

Regional/communal conflicts

Three killed in communal clash in South Sulawesi

Jakarta Post - June 20, 2002

Jupriadi, Makassar -- At least three people have been killed, four seriously injured, and more than one hundred houses burned down following a communal clash between residents of Cappasolo and Padang villages in East Malangke subdistrict, North Luwu regency, South Sulawesi, since Monday.

The clash forced hundreds of residents from both villages to move to safer locations, at Palopo, Luwu Regency and other nearby villages. Security forces were deployed immediately to the location to restore order, but failed to prevent the exodus.

As of Wednesday the situation was still tense. The three casualties were identified as Bachtiar, 62, Tira, 60, and an unidentified young girl. They were all residents of Cappasolo village.

Witnesses said the clash, between residents of Cappasolo and Padang, erupted at dawn on Monday when several Cappasolo residents attacked the residents of neighboring Padang village. The attack prompted the Padang villagers to take up weapons, leading to the communal clash.

A witness said the attack was prompted by the prolonged retaliation of residents from both villages. "The cause of the clash is vengeance from long ago," the witness told The Jakarta Post by phone from Palopo, the capital of Luwu Regency.

The authorities immediately deployed three platoons of police to the site of the incident. The security forces carried out raids in and around the location in search of homemade weapons or machetes brought by the opposing sides. But no information was available about the weapons that had been confiscated.

"The three platoons deployed in the location have helped calm the tension, but Cappasolo residents keep moving toward the town of Palopo," said North Luwu Regent Luthfi A. Mutty. Luthfi added that the clash had forced residents in Cappasolo and Padang villages to move to downtown Palopo and Malangke respectively.

The frightened residents also sought places of safety in the villages of Buloe, Pabombong, Birue, Kopi-kopi, Baebunta, Sabbang, Bonebone, and Masamba. He also confirmed that at least 128 houses in the two villages had been burned down.

Poso returns to normal despite recent incidents

Jakarta Post - June 19, 2002

Jupriadi, Poso -- Six months after the signing of the Malino peace deal the situation in the Central Sulawesi town of Poso is returning to normal, despite the recent series of incidents that have claimed dozens of lives.

There have been signs of peace restoration in the town although the recent incidents have fostered increasing suspicion between the warring Christian and Muslim factions.

Following the signing of peace accord on December 20 last year in the resort town of Malino, South Sulawesi, people from the conflicting groups have returned gradually to Poso from refugee camps in and around the town. It was expected that their return would mark the end of the communal conflict which erupted in 1998.

As soon as the peace agreement was signed and the public educated on its meaning, people began hoping for a bright future. Only a few months later, signs of life have emerged in the regency which is home to 222,000 people.

"I was surprised. As soon as the peace agreement was aired on television, everyone welcomed it," said Daniel Topang, 43, a refugee who lived at the Kayamanya refugee camp in Tentena, two- hour's drive from Poso. For Daniel, a Christian, who once lived in Poso, the Malino peace deal has brought optimism.

Daniel and many Christian refugees have returned to their homes. Similarly, Muslim refugees have also returned to Poso. But many of them have expressed disappointment after promised temporary settlements did not materialize.

Following their return to Poso and Tentena, social activities have begun to appear. Markets have opened, while government offices and schools too have resumed operating, although not at maximum capacity. Similarly, traffic has begun flowing in Pendolo, Tentena and Poso.

Unfortunately, the peace process was disturbed in May. A refugee, Agus Pasolle, who had just returned to Lakalemba village in Pesisir subdistrict, Poso, was found dead on May 16. The situation became tense, but the incident did not spark unrest as the reconciliatory team managed to calm the people.

Another incident occurred when a bomb blast hit the Antariksa bus serving the Palu-Poso-Tentena route in the Landaiga village, Poso Pesisir, on June 5, killing four people and injuring 17 others.

All instantly reacted. Refugees, who were living peacefully, became panicked and the warring camps suspected each other. It was not surprising that many people returned to the refugee camps.

Four days later on June 9, the situation in Poso became tenser after a refugee who returned to the Kayamanya camp was found dead. Each warring faction traded accusations.

Tension was obvious in recent days in Tentena and Poso. Both conflicting groups continued to suspect each other. "It's normal if the people show such a reaction. They worry and stay alert," a resident said.

Despite all the expectations, pessimism reigned among the leaders of the conflicting groups. "It is not easy to bring peace to Poso. The target of the government [to create peace] within six months is impossible. Security in Poso cannot be restored in such a short time," Poso Conflict Resolution (RKP) chairman Darwis Waru told The Jakarta Post recently.

He said the target was likely not realistic as it was not easy to restore security in Poso. Quoting research by RKP, Darwis said it took at least a generation to create peace. Therefore, it was naive to expect peace to be restored within just six months.

"We see that Poso is not secure yet. Problems occur anywhere. But we have to admit that the peace agreement has changed Poso a little," said Poso deputy regent Malik Syahadat. Syahadat, also chairman of a team to educate the public on the peace agreement, emphasized that the peace pact had brought changes in Poso.

A similar opinion was aired by head of the Christian delegation in the Malino peace pact, Johannes Santos.

The peace agreement, Johannes said, had at least had a positive impact on peace talks in Poso. He acknowledged that the willingness for peace was not enough, regarding some incidents that took place in the last one month. "The incidents in the past month were regrettable," he said.

Muslim hardline leader Nawawi S. Kilat said the Malino peace pact had given a positive impact. But, it must be followed by the government's commitment to the agreement.

Central Sulawesi Police chief Brig. Gen. Zainal Abidin Ishak said his office would coordinate with all related institutions to restore peace in the area.

Yet, residents still doubt the commitment and seriousness of the state apparatus to uphold the law. "It takes time to create peace. The problem lies on the seriousness of the government officials," they said.

Deserters blamed for Maluku strife

Jakarta Post - June 19, 2002

Tiarma Siboro and Oktovianus Pinontoan, Jakarta/Ambon -- Pattimura (Maluku) military commander and chief of Security Restoration Operations Maj. Gen. Djoko Santoso has blamed the prolonged conflict in the Maluku city of Ambon on military deserters.

Djoko pledged on Tuesday he would soon arrest the perpetrators in an operation currently under way.

The two-star general further asserted that he would try the deserters at a military tribunal, because "it violates the military code of conduct." "Many have said that some of our troops have deserted from the military and are supporting certain warring camps there. I have launched an operation to arrest and investigate my personnel believed to be deserters.

"Should the allegations be proven, I won't hesitate to try them at a Military tribunal," Djoko said. Nevertheless, he refused to reveal more, saying that the operation had yet to come up with results.

A soldier, Private Hanafi, 28, was charged by a military tribunal in Ambon with possessing explosives to bomb a Christian target -- an offence punishable by death.

The tribunal heard that Hanafi was caught last November 30 carrying a home-made bomb, Antara news agency said. He had been riding pillion on a motorcycle which was stopped by security forces in the city.

Military prosecutor Major Soenarso was quoted as saying that the defendant had been promised money to carry the bomb, which was to be exploded at the Maluku Protestant Church Hospital.

He said Hanafi told the motorbike driver to set off the bomb at the governor's office after they were stopped near the office. The bomb did not go off. The driver, Aras Pontororeng, has escaped. The trial was adjourned till June 20.

Meanwhile, spokesman of the Pattimura Military Command Maj. Herry Suhardi said that the local military chief had recently visited two regencies in Maluku province in an effort to boost consolidation of troops in the troubled territory.

During his visit to the Central Maluku capital of Masohi over the weekend, the commander was shown over 1,752 weapons of various types, handed over voluntarily by various community groups and collected through raids.

The weapons included 16 standard rifles, 50 homemade rifles, a Colt pistol, 309 rounds of ammunition, 24 grenades, 21 M-16 magazines, 200 homemade pistols, 158 SS1 bullets, 158 homemade bazookas, 161 bows, 97 spears, 22 swords, 40 quivers of arrows, and 502 homemade FN and SP pistols.

Focus on Jakarta

Rights group claims city involved in 'crimes against humanity'

Jakarta Post - June 23, 2002

Jakarta -- The National Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempuan) urged the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) to set up a team to investigate serious human rights abuses allegedly committed against the urban poor by the city administration.

The Komnas Perempuan chairwoman Saparinah Sadli told a press conference on Friday that forced evictions by the city administration of poor people from their homes and the outlawing of their sources of livelihood could be categorized as serious human rights abuses.

"There are strong indications that the city administration under the leadership of Governor Sutiyoso has committed crimes against humanity, particularly against poor residents working in the informal sector and those living in slum areas," she said.

Saparinah, who read the Komnas Perempuan statement, said the fact that the forced evictions were being conducted based on a systematic plan was sufficient indication that the city administration had resorted to violent means in dealing with the poor.

"Such abuses are systematically implemented. This is clearly designed with a certain target in view and with clear financial support," she said.

According to Saparinah, the Komnas HAM Inquiry Committee (KPPHAM) should at least investigate forced evictions by the city public order agency since early 2001.

Komnas Perempuan's secretary-general Kamala Chandrakirana, denied a statement made by Komnas HAM's secretary-general Asmara Nababan saying that there was no strong legal basis for taking the city administration to court over the alleged human rights violations.

Asmara claimed that the forced evictions were covered by United Nations Commission on Human Rights Resolution Number 77, which was issued in 1993.

"It is clearly stated in our law that forced evictions constitute crimes against human beings," Kamala said quoting Article 9 (d) of Law Number 26 on human rights tribunals, which was enacted in 2000.

According to Kamala, the city administration under Sutiyoso had no intention of ending the forced evictions as it had rejected a call for a 100-day moratorium proposed by Komnas Perempuan.

Saparinah said that the North Jakarta administration had clearly rejected the moratorium proposal and had stated that the forced evictions were part of official policy.

Saparinah said that Komnas HAM should conduct an investigation as the conventional courts were unable to resolve the problem.

Komnas Perempuan also urged the City Council to revise Bylaw No. 11 of 1988 on public order, which had been used by the city administration to conduct the forced evictions.

Forced evictions and property seizures involving poor people

January to October 2001

• 45 cases of forced evictions, including the destruction and burning of property Victims: 38,514 people Losses: 6,588 homes, and six schools
• Seizure of becak (pedicabs) Victims: 6,000 pedicab drivers Losses: 3,000 pedicabs worth Rp 500,000 each.
• 54 cases of forced eviction against street vendors Victims: 2,700 street vendors Losses: Rp 540 million.

Jakarta home to great number of poor people without ID cards

Jakarta Post - June 17, 2002

Jakarta -- Urban Poor Consortium (UPC) chairwoman Wardah Hafidz said on Saturday that the number of poor people without ID cards in the city could be five times greater than the 100,000 reported earlier by the Jakarta Bureau of Statistics.

"It must be far more than only 100,000. It could be five times higher," she said.

Wardah gave as an example the slum in Kampung Sawah in Cilincing, North Jakarta, where over 2,000 poor families live, 70 percent of which do not have ID cards. "This is an attempt by the city administration to conceal the poverty problem by discounting their existence here," she said.

She also lambasted the unfair treatment received by the poor. "Such discriminative treatment of poor people is common by the administration simply to force them out of the city to ease overcrowding here," Wardah said. "However, it's obviously against human rights as well as a citizen's rights as stipulated in our Constitution."

The Jakarta Statistics Bureau reported on Thursday the results of a 2000 survey that found the total population in the capital was 8.38 million, with the total of absolute poor at some 340,000. Of the total impoverished people, 32,983 poor families or over 100,000 people do not have ID cards, the report says.

News & issues

'Judge killed by bullet linked to Tommy'

Associated Press - June 20, 2002

Jakarta -- A bullet that killed a Supreme Court judge came from one of six guns found at homes owned by former president Suharto's youngest son Tommy, a police colonel said yesterday.

Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra is accused of masterminding the assassination of Judge Syafiuddin Kartasasmita in July last year after the judge sentenced him to 18 months in prison for a multi-million-dollar real estate scam. Tommy also faces weapons charges and being a fugitive from justice. If found guilty, he could be sentenced to death.

Lt-Colonel Homsi Safrian Simin said the bullet that killed Mr Syafiuddin had come from a 9 mm revolver found when police raided two homes owned by Tommy. Prosecutors have said the guns belonged to Tommy but he has denied it.

Yesterday, Tommy asked the five-judge panel to assign an expert to do its own examination of the bullet. But the judges said they would consider his request at a later date.

The trial is one of several cases involving high-profile defendants from the Suharto regime. It is seen as a test of President Megawati Sukarnoputri's pledge to clean up the legal system and crack down on powerful but allegedly corrupt members of Suharto's family and entourage.

A doctor who did the autopsy on Mr Syafiuddin testified yesterday that three shots were fired into the judge's car. One hit the windshield, a second hit the judge's hand and the fatal shot went into his head.

Armed forces/Police

TNI chief warns against secessionist movements

Jakarta Post - June 20, 2002

Tiarma Siboro, Jakarta -- Newly installed Indonesian Military (TNI) Chief Gen. Endriartono Sutarto issued a strong warning to secessionist movements on Wednesday, saying that efforts to separate from the unitary state of the Republic of Indonesia would be crushed with military operations.

Speaking to journalists in his first press conference as TNI chief at the Cilangkap military headquarters in East Jakarta, Endriartono urged rebel groups to end their struggle against the legitimate government as "the country has been quite patient in dealing with them." "If we agree to keep the country united, we should not tolerate any secessionist movement," said Endriartono, who was installed as the new TNI chief last June 7 replacing Adm. Widodo Adisutjipto of the Navy.

Endriartono was accompanied by the Army Chief of Staff Gen. Ryamizard Ryacudu, Air Force Chief of Staff Marshall Chappy Hakim, Navy Deputy Chief of Staff Vice Adm. Sahroni, and TNI Chief for General Affairs Lt. Gen. Djamari Chaniago.

Two secessionist movements -- the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) in the country's westernmost province of Aceh and the Free Papua Movement (OPM) in the easternmost province of Papua -- have been fighting for independent states from Indonesia.

"If both the government and legislators consider that only military operations can put an end to the rebel movements, TNI is ready to carry it out," the four-star Army general said when asked whether or not the military would intensify its operation in Nanggroe Aceh Darusalam.

Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono issued new directives on Monday, urging troops to intensify their security operations against hard-line rebels.

Intensified operations are likely to ruin the ongoing peace talks organized by Switzerland-based non-government organization the Henry Dunant Center (HDC) between the Indonesian government and GAM representatives.

"We [the TNI] believe that problems in Aceh and Papua as well as Maluku are not merely our responsibility. We are concerned because they continue to call for independence even if the government has given in to their demands," Endriartono said.

The TNI, which consists of the Army, Navy and Air Force, has some 300,000 troops at its disposal, with the Army accounting for two-thirds of that number.

Responding to allegations that military deserters worsened communal clashes and religious conflicts in the country, Endriartono said: "I don't deny that some of my troops have deserted for various reasons, particularly those who are assigned in sectarian conflict areas. It happens because my troops are only humans."

TNI fledges its muscle over political privilege

Jakarta Post - June 18, 2002

Tiarma Siboro, Jakarta -- Amid mounting controversy over its political role, the Indonesian Military (TNI) said on Monday that it wanted to remain in the legislature until 2009, until it consolidated itself.

Outgoing TNI chief Adm. Widodo A.S. warned that the proposed bill on general elections that would force TNI/National Police to leave the legislature in 2004 contradicted a People's Consultative Assembly decree allowing it to stay in the country's highest legislature until 2009.

Should the bill that grants voting rights to military and police personnel be passed into law, Widodo said TNI would demand that its implementation be delayed to ensure TNI's internal consolidation.

"I believe that political rights are part of the basic rights of my soldiers. But we must consider many things, including the impact of its implementation," Widodo told a press conference at TNI headquarters in Cilangkap, East Jakarta.

Also present at the press conference were, among others, all chiefs of staff, TNI chief for general affairs Lt. Gen. Djamari Chaniago, newly appointed chief of the Army's Strategic Reserves Command (Kostrad) Lt. Gen. Bibit Waluyo, and chief of TNI's Strategic Intelligence Body (Bais) Vice Air Marshall Ian Santoso Perdanakusumah.

Widodo is scheduled to hand over his command to his successor Gen. Endriartono Sutarto in a ceremony at Cilangkap on Tuesday.

TNI spokesman Maj. Gen. Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin elaborated on Widodo's statement, saying that TNI needed time to educate the military personnel about such political rights to ensure solidity, considering that "we only recognize singular loyalty."

Asked whether the TNI was actually reluctant to leave the House of Representatives as well as the Assembly, Sjafrie said: "TNI agrees to leave the House in 2004 and the Assembly in 2009, but we need more time to make arrangements, including developing communication with soldiers, should we be allowed to vote." Both Sjafrie and Widodo referred to Assembly Decree No. 7/2000 that grants seats to TNI/National Police at the Assembly until 2009.

Should the newly proposed bill be approved by the House, TNI must leave the Assembly ahead of schedule. Article 93 of the bill grants both TNI and the National Police the right to vote even if they are still in active duty.

Nevertheless the bill also stipulates that servicemen who wish to pursue a political career must resign from its institution and compete as civilian politicians through the Regional Representative Council (DPD). The DPD, along with the House of Representatives, will make up the Assembly.

The last time TNI and the police were granted the right to vote was in 1955, after which they have been barred from elections. In return, they are assured seats in both the House and the Assembly.

The Ministry of Home Affairs, led by former TNI/National Police faction chief at the House, shook the public when it submitted the bill on general elections that would force TNI/National Police to vacate the legislature in 2004.

Debates on the bill have not started yet, but already conflicting opinions surround the granting of voting rights to military and police personnel.

Major factions like President Megawati Soekarnoputri's Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle, the Golkar faction and the United Development Party faction favor the granting of voting rights to the military and police, but smaller factions like the National Mandate Party faction oppose the move.

Experts, nevertheless, warned that granting TNI voting rights too soon could jeopardize its internal reform.

Kusnanto Anggoro of the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) and M. Riefqi Muna of the RiDEP Institute said that the decision to give the military political rights was not wise considering that TNI was still far from becoming professional.

"I think we must give some 'punishment' to TNI for its past violations by denying them the right to vote at least until 2009, and until 2013 for the right to be elected," Kusnanto told The Jakarta Post.

MPR guarantees seats for military until 2009

Jakarta Post - June 21, 2002

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, Jakarta -- The latest revision for the fourth amendment of the 1945 Constitution contains new articles which grant the military free seats within the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) until 2009, undermining efforts to remove the military from politics by 2004.

The revised draft amendment, a copy of which was obtained by The Jakarta Post on Thursday, stipulates that the MPR might also include non-elected members of the Indonesian Military (TNI) until 2009.

Chairman of the ad hoc committee, Jakob Tobing of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-Perjuangan), asserted that based on the new draft, the military could still leave the MPR earlier than 2009.

"In the draft amendment, we use the term 'at the latest by 2009' so in case there is a decision that will move the schedule ahead, it won't violate the Constitution," Jakob, who chairs the MPR's ad hoc committee in charge of amending the constitution, said on Thursday.

In the draft, agreed upon in April, the clause on TNI's seats at the MPR is placed as a supplementary article to the 1945 Constitution.

The Assembly's ad hoc committee on constitutional amendments is slated to finalize the discussion on the supplementary articles by Monday.

Legislator Burhanuddin Aritonang of the Golkar party, which is the country's second largest party behind PDI-Perjuangan, said his party would be against inserting the supplementary article into the Constitution. "It is too technical to be stated in our constitution," he said.

TNI's early removal is one of the key demands of the 1998 student reform movement. The upcoming debate over the fourth amendment to the Constitution during the Assembly's Annual Session in August is seen as a test case for legislators' resolve to push for reforms.

An earlier draft amendment denies the military free seats in the MPR after 2004. By that time, the MPR must consist only of elected members from the House of Representatives and the Regional Representatives Council.

Based on this earlier version, the government recently submitted to the House, a general election bill that requires the military to leave the MPR by 2004. To compensate for their lost seats, the TNI would regain the right to vote. The TNI, however, has openly opposed the voting rights and been campaigning to remain in the MPR until 2009.

On Thursday, Indonesian Military (TNI) chief Gen. Endriartono Sutarto visited Assembly Speaker Amien Rais and House Speaker Akbar Tandjung to give his suggestions on the issue.

"For the greater interest, we want to ask for permission to reject our right to vote in the next election, regardless of our presence in the Assembly," Endriartono said after the meeting.

The general election bill, if passed, will automatically force the TNI to leave the legislature by 2004. But support is uncertain. Both the TNI and several legislators signaled their disfavor by saying the military could only vote after 2009 and not in 2004.

With the TNI objecting to its voting rights, legislators might agree to maintaining the military seats until 2009. "We were just discussing the issue of the military refusing to use their right to vote, and wondering if it would be fair if we also cut their presence in the Assembly," Jakob explained.

Ironically, and in light of the reform movement's wishes, the Reform faction's Patrialis Akbar -- also a committee member -- came out in full support of maintaining the military seats. He said the TNI should be allowed several free seats in the MPR until 2009. "The number of seats should be determined by a law...," he said.

Agreement of ad hoc committee I on the amendment of the 1945 Constitution, April 6, 2002: Article 2 Alternative I: The People's Consultative Assembly shall consist of members of the House of Representatives and members of the Regional Representatives Council who are elected through a general election, as well as functional groups to be provided for by law. Alternative II: The People's Consultative Assembly shall consist of members of the House of Representatives and members of the Regional Representatives Council who are elected through a general election as provided for by law.

Supplementary Regulation: Members of the People's Consultative Assembly as provided for in Article 2 (1) of the Constitution shall further include functional groups from the Indonesian Military and the National Police until not later than 2009.

Short memories of Indonesian military

Sydney Morning Herald Editorial - June 18, 2002

There are many sound reasons why the United States -- and Australia -- should resist wading back into the moral quagmire which military co-operation with the Indonesian armed forces represents.

Not least must be doubts over whether the resumption of defence ties can blunt support for Islamic extremists inside Indonesia, when these same armed groups -- including those linked to the al-Qaeda terrorist network -- have been supported by factions within the Indonesian military itself. In these circumstances, a policy reversal would seem to demand a certain compromise of human rights principles, but offer an uncertain strategic outcome.

Both the United States and Australia severed defence ties with Indonesia over the military-led carnage in East Timor in 1999. Australia tentatively resumed training ties earlier this year, specifically excluding Indonesia's notorious special forces. The US Congress is poised to resume military co-operation, arguing that Indonesia is crucial to its anti-terrorism campaign because a struggle is under way between moderate Indonesian democrats and Islamic extremists in the world's most populous Muslim nation.

With a weak central government and corrupt institutions, the vast, poorly policed Indonesian archipelago is, certainly, vulnerable to infiltration by terrorist groups. However, the danger of radical Islam cannot be addressed without understanding the manner in which religious tensions are being manipulated by disgruntled generals and politicians.

Indonesian military officers have ignored or actively supported the extremist Laskar "Jihad" movement, which has provoked bloody sectarian conflicts with minority Christian communities. Such civil strife is intended to destabilise the civilian government in Jakarta, and strengthen the view that a powerful security apparatus is needed.

Radical Islam, itself, has traditionally had little grass roots support in Indonesia. Any intervention by the US military in complex, internal conflicts in Indonesia, however, could inflame nationalist sentiments and strengthen, not undermine, radical Muslim groups.

The US, like Australia, has previously linked the resumption of defence ties to meaningful reforms of the Indonesian military. This is a sound position. No policy change should be implemented before the current trials of Indonesian soldiers responsible for atrocities in East Timor are complete.

Unfortunately, it seems likely the most senior officers will escape punishment. Wider reforms, too, are stalled. At this juncture, the Indonesian military would make a problematic partner in the "war against terrorism" and a mockery of the principles upon which it was so recently shunned.

Military loath to quit Jakarta parliament

Straits Times - June 19, 2002

Marianne Kearney, Jakarta -- Despite a growing debate over its political role, Indonesia's military has said that it does not want to quit the legislature in 2004.

Sceptics say the move is a bid by the military to retain its influence in parliament and on political parties. Elements of the military are lobbying to extend their seats in the House of Representatives until 2009. This is despite the declarations that the military has made over the past three years that it wants to quit politics and focus on being a force of professional soldiers.

But some legislators from the military have raised objections to a draft law that calls on them to quit their seats after the next election in 2004. In exchange, the proposed law would let them vote, or run as party candidates upon retiring from the force.

Military spokesman Sjafrie Samsoeddin argued that giving police and the military voting rights for the next election while allowing them to run as political candidates contradicted the Constitution, creating legal inconsistencies.

"Passage 93 from the election law is not consistent with constitutional amendment No 7, which says that members of the armed forces cannot vote or participate in elections," said General Sjafrie. He and outgoing armed forces commander Widodo argued that more time was needed to prepare members of the armed forces to understand their democratic rights.

However, sceptics say elements in the military are reluctant to let the force give up its 38 parliamentary seats as they afraid of losing their influence in parliament and on political parties.

"There are some military members who are quite keen to get out but there are some who are quite keen to stay," said analyst Harold Crouch of the Australian National University. "They don't see what is wrong with it."

Other analysts suspect the military wants to retain its hold in parliament to ensure that civilian politicians don't take the threat of separatist conflicts in Aceh and West Papua too lightly.

Recent statements from the military on its role in Indonesian politics seem to confirm their suspicions.

Gen Sjafrie said the military has no desire to be involved in "day to day politics" but added that he felt it should be "involved in the interests of the state". According to him, the "interests of the state' involve 'protecting the territorial boundaries of Indonesia".

The military and former military commanders still hold considerable sway in both national and regional politics across the archipelago. However, some of them fear they will lose too much power if they give up their parliamentary role before 2009, say analysts.

Many regional governors and mayors are former military commanders appointed during the Suharto era. President Megawati Sukarnoputri's Cabinet also consists of several former generals.

Another analyst, Mr Kusnanto Anggoro, said political parties are also reluctant to see the military quit politics because they believe they still need military backing to win elections. However, some more reformist sections of the military have said that the military no longer wanted a role in politics.

Just last week, the head of parliament's military and police faction, Mr Agus Widjojo, said the military would not campaign to remain in parliament beyond 2004. "TNI has no intention of retaining its presence either in the House or the People's Consultative Assembly," he said.

International relations

Opinion: A hard look at Australia's foreign policies

Jakarta Post - June 20, 2002

Kel Dummett -- As the independence celebrations begin to subside in East Timor, it certainly is timely for Australia to take a sober look at its foreign policy, especially regarding its immediate neighbors. To this end the Australian Government's planned White Paper on foreign policy is welcome.

To avoid another East Timor on the doorstep, Australia must begin to take the lead role as a mediator of conflict in the Asia- Pacific region. Australia must have foreign policies that are sustainable over the long term; that can respond to changing circumstances; and that respect human rights. These were all sadly absent from its policy regarding East Timor. Instead, Australia locked itself into the untenable position of unconditional support of Indonesian sovereignty over East Timor.

This 24-year flawed East Timor policy, not only contributed to the deaths of thousands of Timorese, but also severely damaged the close relationship between Australia and Indonesia.

Many in the Indonesian government saw Australia's sudden policy reversal, from that of total support of Indonesian sovereignty over East Timor and of turning a blind eye to military (TNI) and militia atrocities, to calling for and leading an armed intervention force, as a betrayal.

Numerous writers have written about the failings of Australia's Indonesia policy, particularly regarding East Timor. John Birmingham in Appeasing Jakarta: Australia's complicity in the East Timor Tragedy describes Australia's policy as "appeasement", "lacking in authentic and widespread domestic support" and "unsustainable". He also describes the culture of the Australian Foreign Service, responsible for developing these policies and advising governments, as rigid and hierarchical and "vulnerable to capture by their own mythologies". He says they exhibited the standard practices of "retreating into tunnel vision, the denial of truth [and] refusal to plan for worse case scenarios".

Many in the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs, and in this and former governments, still refuse to admit they and Australia's policies, were wrong.

Former Foreign Minister, Gareth Evans, has only recently acknowledged his errors. In Indonesia: My Mistake, an article in the International Herald Tribune, July 2001 he says "I am one of those who has to acknowledge, as Australia's foreign minister at the time, that many of our earlier training efforts [of Indonesian military officers] only helped to produce more professional human rights abusers.

Australia's Foreign Minister, Alexander Downer, however, still refuses to admit that he or his Department knew months before hand, of the planned destruction of East Timor if the referendum vote went in favor of independence. This is despite the fact that their prior knowledge of the atrocities has been exposed on national television by the Australian Army whistleblower, Capt. Plunkett.

Further, the Government still refuses to make public, intelligence information that identifies key TNI and government personnel involved in planning the rape of Timor. It also refuses to support calls for an international war-crimes tribunal investigation into the East Timor atrocities.

In recent years the Australian government has been forced to open its eyes to what is happening in our immediate region, that is, in the Pacific as well as in Southeast Asia. In the past, foreign policy has given the impression that the Pacific did not exist, preferring to direct its attention over the top of the Pacific to Asia, or even further a field to Europe, North America and the Middle East. Now, as some analysts talk of the "arc of instability" when describing the Pacific region, with conflicts and potential conflicts in PNG, Bougainville, Fiji, Solomons, Australian policy-makers are being forced to pay more attention to the Pacific.

That is not to say that Australia ignores the Pacific, indeed Australia has taken an active role in some Pacific nations. Unfortunately, unlike its recent constructive involvement in the peace negotiations between PNG and Bougainville, Australia's role has not always been constructive. For a number of years Australia provided military support to PNG to wage its war against Bougainville. Australia also pushes the International Monetary Fund's socially and environmentally damaging Restructuring programs to Pacific nations. The Australian government has frequently played the bully-boy role at the Pacific Islands Forum, formerly the South Pacific Forum.

Even more concerning is the fact that the government has not learned from the mistakes of East Timor, and is committing the same errors in relation to our response to the 40 year struggle for justice and self-determination in West Papua or the province of Papua, formerly Irian Jaya.

Australia's foreign policy position regarding West Papua, is just as rigid as the 24 year East Timor policy. A Parliamentary Briefing Paper entitled Is West Papua Another Timor?, states: "Australia made a pragmatic decision a long time ago that it has no choice but to support Indonesia's sovereignty in West New Guinea [West Papua], and this will not change".

Indeed the same comments made by our leaders in the lead up to the devastation of East Timor, are being repeated now regarding West Papua. What Australia's leaders and foreign affairs bureaucrats fail to realize is that independence movements rarely go away. In a recent visit to Australia, the US State Departments policy director, Richard Haas said, "Jakarta will ultimately have to accommodate at least some provincial ambitions for self- government".

Australia's Indonesia policy needs to respect Indonesian sovereignty, but also to recognize Papuan's right to a genuine act of self-determination. Many in the Australian NGO community believe that there is a middle way for foreign policy, in which Australia quietly holds its ground over issues that matter, but handles mutual differences sensitively.

Economy & investment

Shoppers lead the charge as rupiah bounces back

Straits Times - June 21, 2002

Robert Go, Jakarta -- Architect Andi Perdana dug out his wallet without hesitation and snapped up new cell phones for himself and his wife in a shopping mall in Surabaya, East Java.

In what seemed like an extravagant move, he bought a Nokia 6510 for 2.4 million rupiah a Siemens S45 for 1.6 million rupiah.

But he had a justification for it: "We wanted to upgrade our handphones last year but waited because prices were high. Now even top-of-the-line models are more affordable. We don't have to wait anymore," he said.

The two phones would have cost him 3.5 million rupiah and 2.4 million rupiah, respectively, just two months ago. Cell phone dealers around Jakarta verified Mr Andi's estimates, and explained that prices fluctuate depending on the rupiah's performance. Most models, they said, had become considerably cheaper in recent months.

The rupiah's recent vigour -- the currency has gained nearly 20 per cent in value against the American dollar since January 1 -- has made many high-end items cheaper for Indonesian shoppers. And consumers, who avoided spending too much on high-priced, dollar- pegged items during the crisis years, have embarked on a buying binge that analysts say could boost Indonesia's recovery process.

The trend is not limited to cell phones but extends to electronics, cars and other consumer items.

This week, Indonesian car association Gaikindo reported that a stronger rupiah, and therefore cheaper prices, had contributed to a significant 15-per-cent rise in vehicle sales in the first five months of this year, compared to the same period last year.

Based on a healthy performance during the first half of the year, dealerships in major cities predict yearly sales of as many as 320,000 vehicle units, 10 per cent more than last year.

In addition to its positive effects on the economy, increased consumer spending, according to analysts, could also be seen as a strong vote of confidence in the government's performance.

Among the middle-class, an influential minority in Indonesia's socio-economic scheme and the engine of the country's consumer activity, President Megawati Sukarnoputri seems to be scoring major points.

Danareksa Research Institute, which conducts monthly confidence surveys, said in its last report that stronger consumer spending was in sight, with the percentage of respondents ready to buy durable items within the next six months up from 22.6 per cent to 23.1 per cent.

"Consumers placed greater confidence in the government's ability to improve their welfare. Consumers are now less worried about being laid off. Optimism has also returned to the future job market as the recovery has gathered pace," the research institute's report said.

But the analysts warn that the government still has to provide the right environment for continued stability and increased consumer activity. "Sentiment can change in no time in response to a salient change in the environment," their report added.

Indonesia firms upbeat on export sales: Survey

Jakarta Post - June 17, 2002

Jakarta -- Local exporting companies are mostly optimistic that their export sales to the Asia-Pacific region and Europe will increase over the next 12 months, but they are somewhat less upbeat about the United States and African markets, according to a survey.

The survey, which was jointly carried out by consultancy firm Castle Asia and US delivery firm DHL, put exporters' confidence index at 31.3 for the next 12 months.

The index's figure is equal to the percentage of exporters expecting an increase in export sales minus the percentage of exporters expecting a decrease in export sales. The confidence index was at 29.8 for the second quarter of the year, which has just passed.

The survey was carried out on 245 respondents, 72 percent of which export less than US$10 million per quarter. It was conducted in April.

The survey said the major factors affecting export sales were the cost of raw materials and economic, political conditions in the country.

Regarding the performance of companies in the second quarter, the survey said 47 percent of exporting companies projected their exports would be higher than those in the first quarter.