TAPOL Bulletin No. 52, July 1982

=== [PDF page 1] === Tapol bulletin no, 52, July 1982 This is the Published version of the following publication UNSPECIFIED (1982) Tapol bulletin no, 52, July 1982. Tapol bulletin (52). pp. 1-20. ISSN 1356-1154 The publisher’s official version can be found at Note that access to this version may require subscription. Downloaded from VU Research Repository https://vuir.vu.edu.au/26308/ === [PDF page 2] === British Campaign for the Defence of Political Prisoners and Human Rights in Indonesia July 1982 T APOL Bulletin No 52 East Timor NEW FAMINE FEARED, SAYS VISITING NEWSMAN An American journalist who visited East Timor in May confirms that the country is "beset by widespread malnutrition and hunger. This year's grain harvest was a dismal failure; now, as many Timorese suffer through longstanding food shortages, they face a new wave of famine, the second in five years. " Rod Nordland, S.E. Asia correspondent for The Philadelphia Inquirer, who has shared a Pulitzer Prize for investigative reporting, spent 11 days in East Tim or, interviewing villagers, Catholic workers including the acting Bishop of Dili and aid officials. He took weights and measurements of a group of children he met in Dili and came to the alarming conclusion that most were suffering from advanced malnutrition. "... the incidence of disease is essentially unchallenged by the province's inadequate medical care... and anti-insurgency measures imposed by a military government have stripped Timorese of their civil rights." The full text of Mr Nordland's article is printed on pages 9 to 12. Timorese Catholics Speak Out Priests, sisters and brothers of religious orders working in East Timor have spoken out in a document entitled "A Reflection in Faith", compiled for the Indonesian Major Religious Superiors Conference held last year. The following are extracts from the document which we hope to publish in full in the next issue: "We do not intend giving an analysis of the East Timor problem, but only to reflect together on the faith of the East Timorese people in the actual situation... We recognise that a sincere communication demands a long process because despite many similarities of community and faith, we have very different backgrounds. We hope our communication will be successful, based on deep reflections from us all, both in our own groups, and as a group to&ether We must all realise that the Indonesian National Army which liberated Indonesia from the colonial power in an astonishing manner will never liberate the people of East Timar... What has taken place during these five years is mostly invasion, war, looting, the destruction of the indigenous population, territorial subjections, colonial exploitation, the expulsion of the indigenous population... ... the people's way of life has been turned upside down and the basis of the community life has been destroyed. Masses of the population have been forced to shift in large numbers to places far away and unknown. Consequently, apart from having lost all their-possessions, there is alienation and disintegration of families. There are continually new orders from above on 'security' which actually destroys and confuses the people. People who have been concentrated in (certain) areas and who live in dire poverty, in an atmosphere of false peace, have been forced to accompany the army to the mountains. The people do not have a voice, and live in fear. Indeed the people live in a situation of continual war, and thus must be silent, and submissive. The produce of their soil is seized... The army monopolises everything. Confronted by this situation the people do not get an explanation for any of it. Thus they suffer more and feel their faith more... Our connections with the Universal Church, with the Religious and the wider world were suddenly cut off. We are the religious of East Timor who still tggether with the people were suddenly thrown into emptiness and alienation for six years until wc became the silent Church of East Timar... Please turn to back page INDONESIAN RULE IN pagd Also in this issue The "Hijack" Trial and other news page 18 Students Face Expulsions and Arrests... pages 14-15 The Latest on Press Censorship..... •. pages 16-17 Round-up of Publications about Indonesia, East Timor and West === [PDF page 3] === Editorial PNG AND HUMAN RIGHTS IN WEST PAPUA Papua New Guinea is one of the few countries in the world where human rights abuse committed by the Indonesian administration in West Papua is well reported, widely acknowledged and strongly condemned. People there follow with alarm Indonesia's policy of transmigration which is turning Papuans into a discarded minority in their own land. Many West Papuans, fleeing from Indonesian repression and bombing raids, have taken refuge in PNG. In May last year, the Students Council of the University of PNG organised a Tribunal, presided over by Justice Bernard Narakobi, which found Indonesia guilty of numerous human rights violations after hearing details about the imprisonment without trial, torture and murder of West Papuans. West Papuans who testified at the Tribunal, including Eliezer Bonay, the first Indonesian-appointed governor of Irian Jaya (the name by which West Papua is known in Indonesia), were compelled to leave PNG soon afterwards and seek refuge in Sweden. Their continued presence in the country was seen by the PNG government as "endangering relations with Indonesia". As we report in this issue (page 3), during the recent general election campaign in PNG, when these conditions in West Papua again became an issue, Indonesian troops carried out border incursions into PNG, bombing and terrorising villages. The true objective of these incursions has since been made clear in a long statement issued in Jakarta by the Centre for Strategic and International Studies and published in the Indonesian press. The CSIS complains that some "Papua New Guinean writers have pointed to the need for a new government which would be more reponsive to the popular demand for support for their Melanesian brethren in Irian Jaya, and which would help, or at least tolerate, the activities of the OPM (Free Papua Movement)". It then warns PNG politicians "not to make hostile statements about Indonesia which could boomerang" (Far Eastern Economic Review, 25th June, 1982, emphasis added). The statement, adds the FEER, while glossing over the "alleged" border incursions, calls for "greater efforts by Port Moresby to maintain good bilateral relations". The CSIS statement is described by FEER as "a veiled threat of stronger Indonesian reaction". We would remind our readers that the CSIS is headed by General Ali Murtopo and run by a group of "special operations" (OPSUS) personnel, the very people who were put in charge of Indonesia's intelligence operation to de-stabilise and annex East Timor. Elsewhere in this issue we summarise CIA daily briefings, from August 1975 to February 1976, which reveal a great deal about how that operation was conducted, in full view of western governments. One wonders what briefings the CIA is producing these days about Indonesia's acitivities in PNG and whether it will take as long as seven years before they reach the light of day. PNG's future as an independent state is clearly under threat; the Indonesian military make no secret of that. Central to this threat is the PNG's stand on the question of West Papua's right to self-determination and the very survival of the Papuans now living under Indonesian rule. Because of this close connection, recent developments in PNG are a matter of concern to anyone working to defend human rights in West Papua. WATER CELL IN JAYAPURA Free West Papua (January 1982) reports: There are five official prisons in Jayapura, the capital of West Papua, and scores of unofficial places of detention, military cells and interrogation rooms, the existence of which is a carefully-guarded secret. Most notorious of the prisons is lfargunung prison, at the foot of the 5,000 foot high Cyclops mountains and close to Sentani Airport. Its notoriety comes from the 4x4x4 metre underground concrete bunkers which can be turned into drowning pools by the turn of a tap. Many West Papuan nationalists have found their end in these 64,000 litre death traps. The practice is to strip the prisoner naked and order him into the bunker which is then slowly flooded to the desired level. The prisoner is left there for as long as it pleases the prison officials, which may be from overnight to 72 hours. On occasion, sadistic prison officials completely flood the bunkers, drowning the prisoners like rats. One person is known to have survived such treatment by allowing himself to float between the water surface and the ceiling, a gap of about one foot, and treading water gently for several hours. Some survivors of the water treatment later die of exposure when the entire skin lifts off like a ripe banana skin. The second most feared prison is Hamadi prison. It has the tightest security system; the officials are recruited from special Indonesian naval units and it also boasts underground cells. It is rumoured that many persons lost without trace, like Martin Jelmau, Peneha Torey, the brothers Mandatjans and Fritz Awom may still be living in these subterranean dungeons. The three remaining prisons are POMDAM prison of the Military Police where most of the imprisoned West Papuans are being held, KODAM-17 Prison at Angkasa, headquarters of the 17th Indonesian Military Command where Martin Tahu* and Bob Kubia, William Yebleb and Duit Piager are being held, and the general purpose prison at Abepura where political prisoners are mixed with criminal prisoners. (This· is the second report T APOL has received of water cells for political prisoners. See TA POL Bulletin No. 50, March 1982, page 17 for a description of the water room in Jalan Gandhi Prison, Medan.) *More recently, it has been reported (see TAPOL Bulletin No. 51, May 1982, page 16) that Martin Tahu has been executed in April. TAPOL Bulletin No 52 July 1982 === [PDF page 4] === INDONESIAN RULE IN WEST PAPUA Border Incursions Threaten New Guinea Indonesian troops violated the border between West Papua and Papua New Guinea, terrorising villagers, no fewer than four times during May this year. Indonesian claims that these border incursions were part of a search for hostages who were captured last October by the OPM (Free-Papua Movement) when it attacked a timber factory during operations in the vicinity of Jayapura, the capital of West Papua. These incursions took place during the weeks preceding the June general elections in PNG and have been interpreted there as a deliberate attempt by Indonesia to threaten military action against any future PNG government should it reverse the present government's policy of collaborating with the Indonesian Government in its drive to crush the OPM. Many people in PNG are acutely conscious of the possibility that their country could, like East Timor, fall victim to open aggression from Indonesia. Transmigration is "Removing Papuans from the Scene" The border incursions helped focus attention in PNG on conditions in West Papua and the continuing gross violation of human rights. Indonesia's policy of submerging the Papuan population by means of massive transmigration (resettlement) from Java and other parts of Indonesia was raised repeatedly during the election campaign. There is no doubt that a large number of transmigrants, some "official" and some " spontaneous", have settled in West Papua during the last decade or so and that many more are arriving all the time. Estimates of the numbers already settled vary from 300,000 to a million. Indonesian Vice-President Adam Malik claimed during a recent visit to Merauke, on the border of West Papua, that "nine million Javanese" would be settled in West Papua. This figure was quoted by Willem van Kemenade, NRC Handelsblad correspondent, in an interview with Harun Zain, Indonesia's Minister of Labour and Transmigration (NRC, 9th June 1982). Kemenade asked Zain how long it would take to settle that number of people in West Papua, to which Zain replied, without refuting the figure, that the rate of settlement depended on "scientific considerations" such as the suitability of the infrastructure. While numbers is certainly an important aspect of the problem, it is far more crucial to understand the underlying political, economic, social and cultural objectives of transmigration. An American law professor, Henk di Suvero, who was visiting senior law professor at the Law Faculty of University of PNG in 1981 gave one of the most comprehensive accounts of this in an article published in The Times PNG (22 May 1982), after a trip to West Papua. His account is worth quoting in full: I was told that one million persons have been transmigrated since 1970 and one million more would be moved in by year 2000. This compares to the present Melanesian population of about 1,300,000. The transmigration programme serves multiple purposes. Most important it is designed to create a Javanese majority and to make Melanesians a minority in their own country. What lies ahead is a relative population constriction that will rival the constriction and subsequent annihilation of the Indians of North America and the Aboriginals of Australia. It is also designed to provide a secure labour force in key sectors of the economy, For instance for 1981-82, 1,050 families or 5,000 persons are planned to be "dropped" near the oil fields of Manokwari and another thousand families will be "dropped" near the (oil) fields of Sarong. This guarantees a safe labour force and ties in..,ith Pertamina, the £lational oil company's policy of non-employment of Melanesians in the oil industry. That began in 1969 and the continued on page 4 Six West Papuan women who have been held without trial since August 1980. They were arrested after unfurling the West Papuan flag in place of the Indonesian flag outside the Governor's office in Dock II suburb of Jayapura. The women are Maryones Yarona, Florida Yakadewa, Persila Yakadewa, Regina Yakadewa (back row) and Barbalina lkari and Dominggas Fisrewa (kneeling). According to reports from West Papua, the women have been raped by their gaolers; Florida Yakadewa is now pregnant as a result. The women are all adopted by Amnesty International, and a campaign for their release is being launched in West Germany by Gesellschaft fiir bedrohte volker. T APOL Bulletin No 52 July 1982 === [PDF page 5] === DUTCH ARMS SALES TO INDONESIA INCREA,SING The military-industrial complex has recently come to play a crucial role in Dutch-Indonesian relations. This is very clear from material distributed and speeches delivered at a conference on Trade in Repression held in Amsterdam on 5th June by the Dutch Indonesia Committee. The conference brought together a diversity of organisations, including those concerned with Third World issues and the peace movement, as well as anti-militarist groups and pressure groups working within the Dutch trade unions. Other Dutch-based solidarity groups also attended, as well as church organisations, Amnesty International, TAPOL, and Indonesian, West Papuan and Moluccan groups. One of the main objectives was to consider Holland's rapidly growing arms trade with Indonesia as part of the overall pattern of Dutch relations with Third World countries, and to consider the possibilities for joint action between organisations involved in one way or another with opposing the arms trade. A comprehensive dossier produced for the conference analyses many aspects of Dutch arms exports which have sharply increased in the past decade. According to SIPRI, the peace-research unit in Sweden, Dutch exports of complete weapons systems, representing only part of the total trade in arms, rose more than 500% from 1976 ($29 million) to 1980 ($162 million). Holland takes ninth place in the world league of arms exporters. Officially, Holland is bound by policy decisions adopted in continued opposite diseases have appeared as well, that is, those which can affect people living at high altitudes. ... sexually-transmitted diseases are rife now, aren't they? Yes, they spread in epidemic proportions because people here have a very different concept of morality. When were these diseases introduced here? In 1962. The (Dutch Parliament) report says this could be disastrous because these diseases adversely affect fertility. Others say that it is not that serious. What is the true position? The epidemic as such is on the decline at the moment... But the resultant infertility is every bit as serious as in Africa which is quite alarming... ... has the epidemic of sexually-transmitted diseases with its serious consequences for the fertility of the Dani tribes really reached such a bad state? Yes, it is very bad. A Dutch missionary, Jan van der Horst, who works in the mountains where life is unbearably hard, told the film team: 90% of people here have goitre, infant mortality is more than 60%, the average life expectancy is about 31 or 32 Medical Conditions of Papuans "Alarming" years. Yes, and then there is yaws which has caused many While transmigration moves rapidly ahead, the health condideaths, and respiratory diseases and that sort of thing. tions of the Papuans are visibly deteriorating. Medical facilities Dutch sociologist, Theo van de Broek, who is well provide virtually no protection against new diseases and acquainted with the conditions in West Papua, told the team: natural population growth appears to have been brought to a think illegal (spontaneous) transmigration mainly affects standstill, if not actually reversed. A Dutch television film on the towns Whether they come from Sulawesi or Java or West Papua, which was shot in October last year and shown in another province makes little difference; the point is that the Netherlands in February, provides revealing evidence most them are very dynamic people... So they eventuabout this. ally manage occupy positions which the local people and The film reported that the medical situation in some parts of everyone else here also want. Opportunities for the West Papua is alarming; cholera in Asmat, whooping cough indigenous people are gradually disappearing, which and venereal disease in Bali em Valley, and yaws and measles creates a number of problems... were all on the increase. Poor nutrition plus a lack of medicines There one phrase in the (Dutch Parliament) report: "the and medical personnel were resulting in needless deaths, and Papuans are slowly disappearing from the scene." Is that what there were numerous reports of small and large scale you envisage? epidemics sometimes leaving hundreds of people dead. Yes, I do. This is all part of what is going on. It is undeniable The film contained an interview with Dr Vriend, a Dutch that at the same time as the breakdown of the isolation of the doctor working alone at a hospital in Wamena which, with 24 Papuans is taking place, another sort of isolation is taking beds, serves an area with 60,000 inhabitants. He was asked: place, their personality is being uproot~d, broken down... I What new diseases have been introduced here? feel that the development policy which is now being pushed Wh_ooping _cough appeared for the first time during the Dutch very hard is going much too fast. And on top of that, other penod. This had a tremendous effect on the population. And factors such as transmigration play a very important role. So, precisely because of the presence of other groups, the since ~hen many dise~ses have been i~troduce~. Of cou~se flu tendency for Papuans to disappear worsens unless one starts to came m b~cause that is ca~sed by_ a virus, and 1t spread mland from Nab1re and Enarotah. But smce then all sorts of tropical favour the groups which have fallen behind. T APOL Bulletin No 52 July 1982 Papuan labour force was soon afterwards retired from the industry. Lastly it is designed to establish a line of villages at the border with Papua New Guinea, and in future years, along key roads that will be cut into the interior. The idea is to make militarily secure an otherwise hospitable area for OPM activities. For instance, the 1981-82 plan calls for 500 families to be settled at Arso, near the West Sepik border; and near Merauke in the south, near the Western Province border, 900 families will be dropped at Kurik, 500 at Bupul and 900 at Semangga at Tanah Merah. By the end of next year there will then be over 100,000 new Javanese inhabitants next to PNG's south west border. This vast planned migration - probably the largest the world has ever conducted under the auspices of a central government in such a short space of years - is quickly changing the country from a Melanesian one into an Asian one. The ubiquitous mosques with their onion shaped cupolas made out of sheet tin are eloquent symbols of this change, strangely contrasting against the familiar New Guinea landscape. === [PDF page 6] === the 1970s to subject arms exports to restrictions based on the human rights record of the importing country, and to refrain from exporting arms to countries involved in territorial disputes or when there is a danger of their being used for internal repression. Yet, at the height of Indonesia 's war of aggression against East Timor, the Dutch government authorised the export of three naval corvettes to Indonesia despite strenuous efforts to halt the sale. A court case brought at the time by the Committee and a number of other petitioners, charging the government with breaching state policy, was thrown out on the grounds that the petitioners were " not interested parties"; Fretilin, one of the petitioners, was declared to have "no legal standing". As one speaker at the conference explained: " We had no illusions that we could stop the sale; we wanted first and foremost to draw public attention to Indonesia's aggression in East Timor and to Dutch support for this aggression." Holland, with its long colonial involvement in Indonesia, has strong pressure groups with a vested interest in maintaining close economic ties with Indonesia's military regime. Speakers at the conference explained that this made it particularly difficult to stop the arms trade with Indonesia, although arms to other countries such as Chile had been stopped. Even trade union leaders display a strong resistance to campaigns to stop arms sales to Indonesia, and effective action among workers has to be built up from the grass-roots level. The government employs many devices to circumvent official restrictions that would certainly exclude Indonesia from any deals with Dutch arms manufacturers. In some cases, companies deal through third countries; in others, they enter into consortia with arms manufacturers in other countries. The government has compiled a list of "strategic" goods subject to the formal restrictions. By narrowly defined this term, many goods of evident strategic value are beyond official scrutiny. One of the preparatory documents produced for the conference points out that telecommunication apparatus and equipment required for sea and air transportation, which comprise a substantial share of Dutch exports to Indonesia, clearly have a crucial significance for the Indonesian military even if they are, formally speaking, sold for "civilian" use. Fokker F-27 and F-28 aircraft figure high among Dutch exports to Indonesia and are particularly suitable for use in outlying regions, for short-distance operations with small airports. Their significance in such areas as West Papua, where the government faces persistent and widespread opposition, cannot be underestimated. The conference dossier (produced unfortunately only in Dutch) provides detailed descriptions of the activites and output of four major Dutch arms manufacturers: Fokker, HSA (Dutch Signals Apparatus) a Philips offshoot, DAF Trucks and Rijo Scheide Verolme, the shipbuilding.company which built the corvettes for Indonesia. All these companies have sharply increased the military component in their output since the midseventies and all have major contracts with Indonesia. The conference did not aim at creating a joint organisation; it was convened to encourage the sharing of experience and to discuss ways in which broadly-related organisations might work together to grapple more effectively with the task of halting the dangerous trade in weapons of destruction to repressive governments in the Third World. The conference dossier, price 15 guilders, is available from the Dutch Indonesia Committee, Minahasastr. l, Amsterdam 1094 RS (Giro Account number: 30.65.720) Three Repatriated West Papuans in Detention Three West Papuans who were forcibly repatriated from Papua New Guinea last year are now reported to be in detention in Jayapura. The three men, all of whom had enjoyed permissive residence status in PNG and had lived there for many years, are Bob Kubia, a teacher, Fred Pieger, a businessman and Willie Jebleb, a health worker. According to Free West Papua, January 1982, they were all being held in cells at the headquarters of the 17th Military Divisional Command, together with Martin Tabu, the guerrilla leader who was captured in 1978. As we reported in T APOL Bulletin No. 51, Martin Tabu has since been executed. AN0 No""3 === [PDF page 7] === Trials of Muslim Political Prisoners THE ''HIJACK'' TRIAL Efforts to Expose State Provocateurs Thwarted by the Court Imran bin Muhammad Zein, a young Muslim tried for allegedly planning the hijack of an Indonesian plane in March last year, was sentenced to death by the Bandung District Court on 13th March. This is the case which Buyung Nasution, the human rights lawyer, described in an interview with TAPOL as a "frameup" because even though lmran had for some considerable time been making outspoken statem_ents attacking the government and Suharto, all of which was known to the intelligence forces, no action was taken against him; on the contrary he was even provided with help by the authorities. Yet other Muslims who behaved far less recklessly were being arrested at the time. (See TAPOL Bulletin. No. 50, March 1982. pages 3-9.) The pronouncement of Imran 's death sentence, depicting him as a "terrorist", coincided with the commencement of the 1982 general election campaign and is believed by many to have been deliberately timed to discredit the Muslims as a political force. Many other Muslim trials were also being held at the same time. Imran was accused, as the "spiritual leader" or imam of his Jama 'ah Islam, of inspiring and planning several acts of violence, notably the hijack which ended in Bangkok when Indonesian special troops stormed the plane, as well as an attack two weeks earlier on a police station in Cicendo, West Java when several prisoners-associates of Im ran 's-were freed and three policemen were killed. The other charges were plans to replace the Pancasila with the laws of Islam, efforts to undermine the lawful government, the seizure of weapons, and attempts to obtain arms and other material assistance from foreign sources. He was also accused of planning the murder of Najamuddin, a leading member of his group. Imran denied all the charges. He told the court that one of the most important things that had provoked his mood of anger had been a document published by the Centre for Strategic and International Studies which he had been given by a former Army general, Ishak Djuarsa. This document claimed that after the 1982 elections, Indonesia's Muslim community would be "wiped out". Djuarsa appeared as a witness only after repeated delays; he denied having given lmran the CSIS document, and claimed too that he knew nothing about a book by Ben Anderson which lmran said the witness has also given him. Crucial Witnesses Not Called Imran was defended by a team of lawyers from the Legal Aid Institute. Their efforts to call crucial witnesses to testify about the hijack were all unsuccessful. The prosecution with the help of the court refused to allow the co-pilot of the hijacked plane who survived (the pilot was shot dead) to appear as a witness, nor were any of the passengers or any of the crew allowed to appear. Before the trial too, all these witnesses had been under strict orders not to give interviews to the press. Defence demands to find out precisely how many hijackers there were, and how many were captured alive and killed in captivity were also unsuccessful. The defence lawyers stressed that information about all this was contradictory and unclear. In reply to a request that postmortem reports on the hijackers be made available to the court, the prosecution merely submitted death certificates which did not mention cause of death. A request for information about where the bodies had been buried was described by the prosecution as "irr~levant", even though one of the dead men was the broth er of the accused. According to the defence, Najamuddin, the murdered man who had gained the confidence of lmran and had become his right-hand man, was in fact a plant from government intelligence. Najamuddin was murdered by followers of Imran. Imran told the court that they had all become deeply suspicious of this man; even though he had planned the Cicendo attack and had gone to East Java in search of weapons for the group, he was not arrested later when others in the group were rounded up. "I am inclined to regard this as being in actual fact the case of Najamuddin, for he played such a big role," said Abdulrachman Saleh, defending lawyer, in his concluding defence plea. Yet, the lawyer went on. he was no more than a man executing the orders of others. The real "brains" behind the affair has not been revealed during these hearings, he told the court. " Is it really true that the accused is a terrorist? Is he not rather just a young Muslim who fell into a trap?" Sources: Tempo, 27 February and 20 March, 1982; Merdeka 4 February and I March, 1982. Imran and his three defence lawyers 'TAPOL Bulletin No 52 July 1982 === [PDF page 8] === OTHER MUSLIM TRIALS A considerable number of Muslims have been tried in the pastfeu•months. It is not easy to receive details; occasional press clippings only provide fragmentary information about one or two trials. The following summarises this information, and provides just a glimpse of the nature of these cases: Romadon bin Jakarsi (35 years old), a teacher of religion, and Safari bin Turmuji (30 years old), a worker at a rice-hulling factory, were tried in April and May this year in Cilacap. They were both accused, under the 1963 Anti-Subversion Law and a combination of articles from the Criminal Code of "offending and undermining Pancasila and the 1945 Constitution" and of "undermining State power and the authority of the lawful government". As members of an Islamic organisation, Jama'ah lslamiyah, they allegedly "spread hostility and disorder for the purpose of setting up an Islamic state". On 5th May, they were found guilty and sentenced respectively to 5 and 7 years imprisonment, with deduction for time already served. They have both been in detention since late 1980. Five of the witnesses who appeared for the prosecution (whose names are not mentioned) are also under detention. A sixth witness, Sudiyatno, who refused to collaborate during the court and remained silent when questioned, is to be held as a "hostage" (sandra); he is reportedly to be tried for this offence and may also come up for trial for being himself a member of Jama'ah Islamiyah. Announcing the " hostage" detention, the court declared that the period served in this respect will not be included in time deducted when a sentence is eventually passed. (Sinar Harapan, 6 May, and 10th April 1982.) According to independent information reaching T APOL, Sudiyatno (33 years old) who is a student in Jogjakarta, has been under detention without trial since June 1979. Other Muslim prisoners who, according to independent sources, have recently been on trial are: Abdul Sungkar. arrested in November 1978. now in Magelang Prison. Ashifuddin. arrested in June 1979. now in Magelang Prison. Arman Jauhari. arrested in June 1979, now in Magelang Prison. M. Thohari, arrested in December 1978, now in Jogjakarta Prison. Abdul Malik/Purwanto. arrested in December 1978. now in Magelang Prison. In Purbolinggo, Central Java, another Muslim political prisoner, identified only by his initials as Msr bin Myd (38 years old), a secondary school teacher, was tried for similar offences. At a hearing on 9th April this year, the prosecution demanded a sentence of I 0 years. There are no details of the court verdict. Sinar Harapan (10th April). reporting the trial. said the courtroom was packed especially with law students from Purwokerto. All the three men on trial are said to have been "chairmen" of district "commandments/residencies" of the Jama'ah /slamiyah. There are, in addition. seven Muslim prisoners currently on trial in Purwokerto. No further details are known. MUSLIM PRISONER DIES IN MAGELANG PRISON Muhammed Hasyim, a Muslim political prisoner from Wonosobo, was arrested in 1979 and detained first in Semarang then in Magelang Prison. He was arrested by LAKSUSDA-Central Java (Central Java Security Command) on charges of involvement in the "Warman Terror", originally referred to as the Jihad (Holy War) Command. He was to have been tried shortly. While in prison, Hasyim fell ill; a doctor diagnosed his illness as hepatitis and said he should be treated in hospital. The process of getting him into hospital however proved difficult (communications between Magelang Prison and Semarang were not good) so he waited several days. His condition worsened, and only then was the order given for him to be transferred to hospital. Although physically very weak, he was taken to Selama Hospital handcuffed and under guard by seven fully-armed military policemen. In hospital, he was kept under continual guard. After treatment in hospit<ll for a few days. his condition improved and he was returned to prison. But still being weak and with a bad diet and unhealthy conditions, his illness returned and he was again transferred to hospital. In all he was moved back and forth from prison to hospital three times. Finally, the doctor said there was no point treating him in hospital. His illness was due to his physical surroundings and he should. the doctor recommended. be given better conditions of detention. Hasyim's family and the prison governor reported this to LAKSUSDA and asked for permission for Hasyim to be allowed home. under house arrest. There was no reply. and his condition grew worse until eventually his stomach and legs became swollen. When his family visited him on 17th February at 4.00 pm. he was unable to rise from his bed and his body was swollen even further. LA KS USDA had still failed to reply to the request that he be detained outside, and was not even granting permission for family visits. Soon after the family left the prison on that day. Hasyim died. at 6.00 pm. For more news abollt Muslim prisoners, please turn to page 18 Do you get your TAPOL Bulletin complimentary? If you do. and want to stay on our mailing list, please return the form we sent you with our last issue. And those of you who can, please help us by paying a subscription. Costs are increasing, but so are the number of problems we need to report. T APOL Bulletin No 52 July 1982 === [PDF page 9] === TALES OF TORTURE Indonesian soldiers took hold of the legs of small children and threw them in the air a number of times ' and smashed their heads against a rock. There was a 'woman who asked that one of the children be given to her after the mother had been killed. At that time, a soldier permitted the woman to take this small child, but a few minutes later he grabbed the child and killed him. The poor woman who asked for the child was not so wise because she too was then killed. There was one other who asked for one of the children to be given to her... the army person did not want to hear her pleadings and in front of everyone destroyed the body of this small child who had done no wrong. And then the soldier opened his mouth, showing his teeth with a smile, and said a sentence which we consider to be part of the wisdom of Java. He said: 'When you clean your field, don't you kill all the snakes, the large and small alike?'' ' Eyewitness account, from East Timor, 1981 On the first day that I arrived, the big shock and sadness for me was to see two civilian men carrying three heads of our brothers from the bush... Accompanying these men were (Indonesian soldiers) with a revolver and a knife. They took the heads to bury in a cemetery... The heads were in a bag which was thrown into a hole without covering them with a cloth or anything. ' ' The repprt says the three dead men were members of a Fretilin group who visited a neighbouring village, Lacio. Five other Fretilin soldiers were killed 10 days later. Indonesian troops ordered villagers to behead the corpses... Indonesian soldiers joked about the heads delivered to them and some of them even put cigarettes into the mouths of the dead heads and said: 'Smoke! Don 't you like cigarettes?' ' ' Eyewitness account, Manatuto, East Timor, 1981. Some people from the bush surrendered. All were suffering from a lack of clothing and had been sheltering in caves. They were immediately divided into 'two groups. The first group offive women were placed on one side and later taken away by helicopter. The second group, all of them males, both youths and adults, consisted of 20 people. At the same place where they stood, this group ofpeople were shot dead by the marines. Their bodies were covered with dry grass and leaves, and the whole thing was set alight. Eyewitness account from Lacluta, East Timor, 2 September, 1981 These and other testimonies were presented to the Australian Senate Enquiry investigating the situation in East Tim or, during an in camera session held in May this year. The material was presented by Australians who have made a detailed investigation about incidents which occurred during Operation Security ( Operasi Keamanan), conducted from June to September last year by Indonesian troops in East Timor. The evidence they collected, some of which was published in the Melbourne Age (15th May 1982), also includes detailed eyewitness accounts of interrogation with torture of prisoners and their subsequent execution, more accounts of the massacre of hundreds of villagers at Lacluta last September, reports of bombing raids during 1978 and 1979 as a result of which thousands of Timorese lost their lives, and allegations that a number of people have disappeared after arrest and interrogation. ''ELECTIONS'' IN EAST TIMOR The Indonesian government claims that the results of the "elections" held in East Timor in May this year prove that the people of East Timor accept integration and support the Indonesian Government. As a military power in illegal occupation of the country, elections held under any circumstances are in gross violation of the Timorese people's right to self-determination. The conditions under which the "elections" were conducted in East Timor and the results now being officially claimed only show how farcical this "exercise in democracy and selfdetermination" really was. * All indigenous East Timorese parties were disbanded immediately after· annexation. None of the Indonesian parties has any roots whatsoever in East Timor, yet they all "contested" the elections. * Lopez da Cruz, the Indonesian-appointed deputy-governor of East Timor, himself revealed the meaninglessness of any political campaigning when he told a Sinar-Harapan journalist (SH, 5 May 1982) that "the only contest between the three contestants was about who could decorate the polling booths best". * The official returns recorded a turnout of 101.05% (sic) out of which GOLKAR is said to have received more than 99% of the votes cast. Number of voters: Number of votes cast: GOLKAR PPP PDI 306,507 309,734 308,046 666 1,022 These figures were reproduced (without comment) m several Jakarta daifies on 7th and 8th May. At the polling booths, there were three separate boxes, one for each of the "contestants". The Sinar Harapan journalist reports that there were "three white boxes" for the parliamentary votes and "three yellow boxes" for the local assembly election. (SH, 5th May, 1982) T APOL Bulletin No 52 July 1982 === [PDF page 10] === mfie rnttabelpfita Jnquirer Friday, May 28. 1982 Hunger Under Indonesia, Timor remains a land of misery By Rod Nordland group known as Fretilin - the Revolutionary Front for Independent East DILi, East Timor - East Timor, the Timor. Hundreds of thousands have former Portuguese colony that was been relocated in a policy to depopu· forcibly annexed by Indonesia in late the countryside and deprive the 1976, is a land beset by widespread guerrillas of civilian support. malnutrition and hunger. This year's These are some of the conclusions grain harvest was a dismal failure; reached during an 11-day tour of the now, even as many Timorese suffer province of East Timor, the first visit through longstanding food by an American journalist in two shortages, they face a new wave of years and one of the few allowed to famine, the second in five years. an independent outside observer in Adding to the misery of East Timor, the six years. of Indonesian rule. the incidence of disease is essentially They are conclusions that are supunchallenged by the province's inad· ported by a number of clergymen, equate medical care; a six-year guer- civilian officials and aid organizarilla war continues to disrupt the tions. populace, and anti-insurgency mea· Nevertheless, Indonesian officials sures imposed by a military govern· hotly contest them all. According to ment have stripped Timorese of their these officials, there was no poor harvest this year, only isolated food civil rights. Thousands of people.are political. shortages; there is no famine, only prisoners - most of them simply isolated cases of malnutrition; there because they are related, often dis· are no political prisoners, just a reha· tantly, to a fighter with the guerrilla (See TIMOR on 20-A) East Timorese children face futures of starvation and disease While many of the scores of Tlmo· TIMOR, from l·A oilitation center where the relatives rese Interviewed were frankly fear· of guerrillas arc kept for their own ful about talking, dozens did so none· good: the countryside has not been theless, sayl'ng, as one did, "Please depopulated, it has been "resettled." tell the world so they can help the "We · hav-c nothing to hldc in East Tlmoresc people." At least six of Timor," Adm. Sudomo of Indonesia's those interviewed. it was learned, Command for the Restoration of were summoned afterward to mlli· Peace and Order said recently when tary Intelligence headquarters and he issued the invitation to visit the interrogated about what they had province, which has been a source of said, often for many hours. The picture that emerged was one international concern since the mid· of ii population that widely regard~ 1970s. Year after year, the United Nations the Indonesians as 11 foreign occupy· has condemned as illegal Indonesia's ing force. Even many leaders who forcible takeover of East Timor and once favored annexation by lndone· has demanded that it withdraw its sia have become disenchanted - in troops and allow for self-determlna· some cases openly - with Indonelion. Portugal itself has refused to sian rule, or at least with the military acknowledge the annexation, insist· officials that represent it here. The behavior of those military Ing that Frctil!n Is the appropriate governing power of 11 free East Ti· authorities "can only be described as being the behavior of conquerors mor. The recent visit Included tours by toward a conquered people," said a helicopter and jeep of IS towns and petition signed by a pro-Indonesian villages In eight of the province's 13 member of the provincial assembly, dist rlcts. Despite al most perpct ual Joao Pedro Soares, and sent last year close monitoring by lndonesllm mill· to the central government in Jakar· tary and civilian officials, it was still ta, Indonesia's capital, appealing for possible to see obvious signs or large· relief. A short time later, Soares and scale malnutrition and disease, as 'three other East Timorese members of parliament Whose names appeared well as overt oppression. It also was sometimes possible to on the petition disappeared, re· meet Independently with Tlmorese emerging after a month to swear that In and out of government, with cler· it was 11 fake. The Indonesian rule has been char· gy or the Roman Catholic Ch1,1rch In the mostly Catholic province and acterized by fear and marred by with average Tlmorese from many accusations of torture and widespread abuse of civilians by soldiers. walks or life. There are virtually no civil liberties. Fretilin declared the short-lived Peasants are told to whom they must Democratic Republic of East Timor sell their coffee and at what price. No on Nov. 28, 1975. A week later, Indonc· one may leave his village or home- sian paratroopers and marines in vad· town without permission. Telephone ed Dili, and within a few months calls and telegrams to places outside they had tali.en over most of East F:ast Timar are forbidden. No one Timor. In July 1976, it was pro· may leave the province without spe- claimed Indonesia's 27th province. cial - and rarely granted - permis· But serious fighting with the Frcti· sion. That applies as well to the more Jin guerrillas did not end, and the than 4,000 citizens of other coun·tries years-long disruption interfered who live in the province. According with planting. The ultimate result to military police statistics, there are was a major famine that devastated 916 Portuguese nationals and 3,158 the province between 1978 and 1980, Taiwanese nationals on East Timor; with great loss of life. many of them have requested and Word <1f conditions in East Timor been refused permission to return to leaked out and, although Indonesia their own countries. initially denied reports of, the famThe Timorese have already suf· inc. in 1980 and 1981 the lnternationfered a great deal since the 1974 rcvo- al Committee of the Red Cross and lution in Portugal brought to power the Catholic Relief Services of the leftists who initiated a precipitous United States were allowed to begin a decolonization of Portuguese hold· relief program in the province. It was ings around the world. One of those terminated last year by the Indoneholdings was the eastern half of the sian government, which said it was island of Timor. <West Timor had no longer necessary. been a Dutch colony until joining How many people died in the fight· Indonesia when that country won ing and famine before the relief independence from the Dutch on program began may never be known Dec 27.1949.) for sure, but based on Indonesia's In East Timor, thp in_itial struggle census figures, there were only 550,for power after decolonization ended 000 persons in East Timor in 1980· in when the leftist. pro-independence 1974, the Portuguese authorities had Fretilin wrested control from two:ounted 650,000. other parties. u.DT, or Unity, which The conclusion that may be drawn wanted to remam a colony of Portu· from these figures is not as obvious gal. and Apodite, a small!"inority as it appears, because the Portuguese party th_at favored integratton wtth census was a vol,untary one: People lndoncsta. were asked to go to their local admin· Inquirer Stafl Writer Philadelphia Inquirer I ROD NORDLAND T APOL Bulletin No 52 July 1982 === [PDF page 11] === istrativ e cen1 ers to be counted. but vested in 1982 because of bad weat11 many lived far in the mountains and er. attacks by rodents and "moved id not make the trip. Under the me nt of population in the second Indonesian regime, on the other half of 1981 lwhich J made planting in hand, people have been concentrated some areas, specially in the so uth. in towns and resettlement centers, insufficient. " and the 1980 census was a thorough. According i.o clergy here. the rcdoor-t<Xlooraffair. suit has been a famine or ncar-fam Nevertheless, Catholic authoriUes inc in many parts of the province. doubt the Indonesian results, anQ the particularly in Baucau and Viquequc church's own census puts the cur- districts in the east, where the conrent population at 4;!5,000, a loss of tinuing fighting between govern225,000 people from the Portuguese ment troops and Fretilin guerrillas figure. has been most severe. While still recovering from the Msgr. da Costa Lopes hesitates to terrible famine of tqe late 1970s, use the term "famine"; he prefers to Timorese agriculture was dealt an-· say that more than half of the populaother blow last year, when, just as tion in those districts, where more the planting season wits beginning than 100,000 people live, has "insuffiand only a few months after the gov- cient food to maintain life." In addiernment haci ordered the relief pro- tion, he said, hunger and malnutrigram ended, the Indonesian army tion arc endemic throughout the launched Operation Security. country. Every male In the province age 13 "In Viqueque. they begin to eat the or older was.ordered into the moun- sagu Iboiled palm pulp I. and this is a talns to help the army to conduct a sign for Timorese that famin e is giant sweep designed 10 finish the comi ng." he said. Fretilin once and,for all. The civil· Other clergymen stated the case ians, mostly armed with sticks and more strongly. "If you quote me as farm implements, formed human saying this, I'll be killed," said one, chains and ent:ircled the rugged who was recently in the eastern part mountain fastnesses where the guer- of the province. "Famine is always a rillas were believed to be hiding. relative term, and there is hunger Army troops moved ahead of them. and malnutrition all over the countheoretically to beat their quarry try, but it 's truly a famine in this region" of Baucau and Viqueque. into this human net. Many of those caught in the net. One of the worst-hit towns in Vihowev:er. were civilians who them- queque, according to Msgr. da Coste selves had resisted government at· Lopes, is Uatolari, a mountainside tem11ts to make them leave their town close to the scene of the heavihomes in the mountains,- the tradi- est fighting. Not so, said East Timor's tional dwelling place for Timorese - vice governor, Francisco Xavier and move to resettlement centers. Lopes da Cruz. According to the top church au- "The bishop, you know, he just thority here, apostolic administrator stays here in Dili, he doesn't go very Msgr. Martinho da Costa Lopes, who often to the mountains," Lopes da is widely known as "the bishop," at Cruz said. "Uatolari, they have a least 1,000 civilians perished in the surplus, plenty of corn. The military operation. which lasted from two to commander told me he bought 26 four months between June and Sep- million rupiahs!about $41,0001 of tember 1981. In one action alone, he corn, so how could they be starving said, 500 civilians were killed at Lac- in Uatolari? lut in Viqueque District. "The truth is," he added, "no fam"Many Timorese were killed, in- ine here in East Timor -you can see eluding... innocent children, preg- one or two people who don't have nant women and defenseless people enough food, but not a famine." without any crimes except their wil!· A prominent Timorese vlewed the ingness to be independent from all issue of famine politically. Like oppression," Msgr. da Costa Lopes many, he was clearly sympathetic to said in a recent interview here. the guerrilla movement: "The FretiThe Indonesian government says, lin is a symbol of resistance" to lndoofficially, that Operation Security nesia, he said. "In the heart of the was a success.and that it reduced the people there will always be resisranks of Frctilin to JOO men, sharing tance. Tha1's why I think the lndone120 weapons. Privately, however. sians arc happy to see famine. The several officials say there are still as Timorese people will always be a many as 1,200 armed guerrillas at problem so. they figure, just elimilarge. nate the problem." The greatest casualty of Operation Security, in fact, was the 1981-82 corn When a party of officials and a and rice.- crop, much of which was reporter descended on Uatolari by not planted before the rainy season helicopter, the grassy public square began in September because the men immediately was crowded with of East Timor were with the army in scores of children, standing just at the mountains. the edge of the rotor wash. Many of That crop was to have been har- them appeared to be severely malvested in March, but it was a disaster, nourished, with the classic distended according to Msgr. da Costa Lopes, bellies and stick-like limbs that declergy elsewhere iii the province and note long-term, serious hunger. other independent sources. The In· Or so the reporter thought. Hans ternational Committee of the Red Meier-Eybers, the project director Cross, which still has one representa- for a Catholic Relief Services agricultive on East Timor, stated in a report tural recovery program in East Tiin March that, according to official mor. a $5 million, U.S. gQvernmentfigures, th.e anticipated crop of 40,000 funded program, thought otherwise. to 60.000 tons of maize and 30,000 to Meier-Eybers. a Swiss, surveyed the 40,000 tons of rice would not be"har- children critically and said, "They 10 22 Children of Lahane Age (yro.) Name la y Domingos Joao Oorego 6. Alverio Sarmento Fernandu <la: Costa SavJel 9. RoSari d8 Silva 10. Juli Perer:::. 22mos 6mos. 11. NelSOt1 samiente 12. Mocarta 11 10 13. MOlaco. 14. Domingos J.9: Manuel dO Sant0$ · 20. Domingos Marai~ _,.,,.. 10 17 'femandQ · 18. Allonso Doming~ 16. Madeleina ijl)r!ll!lftl! +·· 22. Sara Lemos 10 11 5. Domingos Offvera 16'"- Sex ., ·11 10 Measured just under th!t' ** Right maximum n~vel. on iliac crests of pelvis. wrist, dls.t~nce between the stylo1d processes at the Left bicep; subiect sJand~ng. arms relaxed at sides Righi calf: subjec1 s1and1ng. Eighteen of the 22 children' listed above arc slowly starving in the capital of East Timor. On May 9. I secretly visited the Lahane resettlement area in the ci1y of Dili and weighed and measured people to_assess claims of starvation in East Timar. I was urged to slop by police who were summoned to the scene. but not before recording vital statistics or 22 children under the age or 12 - the group that nutri1ionists say most clearly shows evidence of malnutriti on or its absence. The data were assessed using anthropometric tables originally campiled by 1he U.S. National Academy of Sciences and since adopted by the World Health Organization as an international standard of malnutrition. In technical terms. 18 of the 22 children fell.i nto the category of "chronically malnourished," meaning that their food intake had been so inadequate that the1r growth was seriously, and probably irreversibly, stunt· ed. Nutritionists say that tn a normal population. even a t percent incidence of chronic malnutrition would be alarming. The four children who, according to the measuremer sla1 cha. sign slicl angr ail r, ian! tai ~ al n lhil ln<I; earn wai! Sara Lemos and Domingos Marais are chronically malnourished; of 22 LahaE11 look li~e healthy kids to me. Sure. they're a little dirty, but that is a:l." An Indonesian doctor, S.C. Kurniati. approached and was asked if he thought the children appeared to be malnourished. "You can see for your self," he said, seeming a bit taken aback by the question: "These chll dren are all malnourished." In another mountainside town Jn Vlqueque District, Uato Carabilo, which was also visited by helicopter the picture of apparent starvatio11 was the same. Tucked onto a narrow, cloud-covered shelf on the moutaln's edge, Uato Carabao also Is closeto the fighting and, 115 a result, the: town's residents are forbidden to go up the mountain slopes to tend thellf fields. As the hellcopter touched: down briefly, people emergecS, wraithltke from the mist and starecf without smiling while thfl helicopter! picked up visiting medical personneand swoojiCli orr again. Although visits were permitted tthe districts of Los Palos and Bauca~, reportedly the past and present slteri or the heaviest fighting With Frett· Un, they were confined to the dlstrle\ capitals. No visits at all were perm!~ ted to places like Lura in Los Paloi,o and Batumacela, Begula, Quellcai TAPOL Bulletin No 52 July 1982 East Timoi LOCATION: The eastern hall of a '<·.norlh ol Australia. POPULATION: Disputed. Est i ma1es ~ AREA: 7.383.square miles. CAPITAL: Dili. GOVERNMENT: As a province of 11the Indonesian national parliament. Hl8TORY: East Timar was colon~e~, 1Ury. Adjoining Wes1 Timar was lirs1 a c· II. i1 became an Indonesian province. b.\ until 1974. In 1hal year. af1el several ~ seeking independence and!hose wa111'!• gal pulled ou1. The political turmoil CO"t sians seized the area in a move conde": Assembly. · Bu1 a pro-Indonesian assembly in ~! been "slacked" by Jakar1a. voted 1c1 which formally incorporated ii as its 21) isl. pro-independence guerrilla movert•, to fight Indonesian troops. and many 1\ in fighting or in the resul1ing famine. Reprinted by permission on1 === [PDF page 12] === she explafned, because much of th~ food in their houses, so how can they population has been resettled in th.e get better'" lowlands, far from the mountainside In the Lahane neighborhood of fields. In Baucau District, for in· Dili, where hundreds of families stance, 61,000 of the 74,000 people ii.I have been forced to live in tempo~ WI. Wal1I Wriol Ches I Bicep Call the district now live clustered rary huts along the steep banks of a feel mountain stream, severe malnutri· around the town of Baucau proper. 22.0 3.54 116.3 . 23.2 5.50 8.27 "They can grow enough fooc,1 tion is widespread and apparent. 3 54 22 0 22 8 45 2 5 11 8 27 Most of Lahane's residents were there," said Slnagp. 116.S 20 1 3 74, 50 "More thai;i SO percent of ~e peo- moved to Dlli from their farms in the 8 66 3.54 20.& 22.0 117.4 5.50 827 ple are short of food," Sister Saurez surrounding mountains; in Dili they 17.7 2 95 17 3 5 91 have no job skills and little work. said. 20.9 3.54 217 4.72 9.06 00.7 Evidenc;e of serious food shortages Of 22 Lahane children under the 3. 15 20.9 4 72 20 9 7 413 '39.7 3.15 19.7 7.09 can be found all over the country, age of 12, whose body weights and 17.3 2.95 16.5 4 13 5.51 '19.9 not just in the hard-lilt areas in the measurements were taken on May 9, ' 17.3 16.1 4.72 3.54 113.2 5.90 eastern districts. On a trip to Aileu, • 18 were proved to be chronically 21.7 5 11 354 8.66 48.5 4.92 3' 11" 21.3 3.54 mountain distrtct just 30 mil~ SQ11.~11 malnourished, according to stan· 21 7 7.87 18.5 3.54 20. 1 4.33 72 6 02.3 of the capital of Dili by rough jeep dards adopted by the World Health 20,1 2.95 20.1 4.72 37" .7.48 ITT.5 road, malnourished people were 1 Organization. 17.:l 3. 15 18.9 4.33 6.30 30.9 frequent sight along theway. "If the situation is this bad in Dili, " .21).6 4,33 19.3 7.09 tl3.l 18.9 4 53 ~69 2.76 18.9 At a resettlement village called said Msgr. da Costa Lopes. "you can 21.7 5.11 ' 8.27 Saburia, just outside the district seat imagine wha1 it's like in Baucau or 21.3 4.33 3. 15 19.3 7 48 3' 10" 140.8 of Aileu, the party,. wbi~h in11:lt,1decl,os Palos. I've bacn there - to Laga, 19.7 '. 3.94. 21:7. 4.92 7.ffT 00} 3.94 21.7 19.7 492 7.87 half a dQZen military and civilian Baguia, Los Palos last October. Even 45.2 officials as well as a journalis\, at tha1 time there was hunger, and 10Cl5! d1s1al ends ot the radius and ulna. stopped to see the corrugated, tin now ii is far worse." ho11ses the Indonesian government East Timor's de facto ruler is an had built. for people resett)ed there army colonel named A.P, Kalangie. A from the mountains. non·Timorese who holds enormous Saburia lies in a deep mountaio power despite his modest title as East ~~ nts, were healthy all were on the low side of the valley. The village chief.is a Tlmo- Timor provincial secretary, he noted ndards. <They arc numbers S, 7, 10 and 11 on the rese, but his "assistant" is an lndone- in a recent interview that Indonesia ill!h rt.l sian; they and a military intelllgence had refused an Australian donation 1111111 22 children said they were hungry. Many bore major named Marsidik accompanied of 1,000 tons of corn because Austral· l111lns of m_a lnutrition: Some had bloated bellies and the journalist as he interviewed resi· ia had continued to criticize condi· l ~l: k·hke hmbs; the black hair of one had turned or· dents. lions In East Timor, which is only 350 id.5e; many suffered from skin diseases and other Bernardo, 56, who lives with his miles off its north coast. IMlments commonly associated with malnutri\ion. wife and 10.year-old son, sat on the In place of the Australian grain, u1r,.everal hundred people live in the Lahane area •SI of them moved from their mountain farms by bare dirt floor of his house, which Col. Kalangte said, the Indonesian 11Ji!;ernment order i_n. 1980, in an attempt to deny civil· was devoid of possessions of any government is Itself sending 1,000!l1i1 support to Frellhn guerrillas active in the moun· kind; there was also no sign or food tons of grain to East Timor. "But we 1~ns. In Lahane. they cannot farm. and most have no in the house. Asked how the harvest won't just give it away," he added. ''If il!l ady work in Dili. had been, he surveyed the circle of you give people something for noth· inll\lthough their resettlement area. unlike many of officials and, after a long pause, said, ing, they get lazy," I!~) more than 100 in the province. is not remote, sever· "There is not enough to eat." "Yes," agreed Catholic Relief Servi· d rres1dents said no aid had been brought to Lahanc The next house was identical, ex- ce's Meler-Eybers, "and soon you,,~.s year. Each family has a card recording visits of the cept that nine persons lived in it and have an island of beggars." 11flllones1an Red Cross wilh food and medical aid. On that it contained a piece of furniture. "That's what they are always tell· 11\f:h of a dozen cards examined, the last visit noted IS September1981. a table. Under the table - the coolest Ing me," said a priest in DilL "'We 11111 - Rod Nordland place at midday in the tin house - have 10 stop bringing in food so the lay a boy sweating and shaking in people will make it for themselves,' whet his family said was a three-day- but thes~ people arc working hard old malarial fever, Other children in and still they arc hungry. ,ol!ile children measured for the chart above, 18 are starving the household bad bloated bellies "What I cannot understand is the and Laga In Baucau - where clergy. and emaciated limbs, Thomas Ferr.e· reluctance of the Indonesian govern· men say widespread starvation ex~ ria, the family spokesman. was asked ment to allow one independent team through an interpreter about his 10 visit East Timar to see the real situlsts., ation and assess its normality for In Baucau, dls1rlct administrative famlly 's condition. "Tell him," Maj. Marsidik warned themselves,'' said Michael Whiteley starr member Slnago, an Indonesian, Australian Catholic Relief, which Introduced Sister Osario Saurez. a Ferreria in Indonesian, "that it's OK of in the past has been active In raising Tlmorese nun who Is principal or the here." aid money for the Timorese, Ferreria did as he was told. Catholic primary school there. "So even though the crops are bad "East Timor has enough foreigners She listened Sina desert bat ~~outhem Indonesian island. 350 miles you have enough food for the wbol~ w~o are refereeing us," CoL Kalangie what a success Operation Security family?" he was asked, in English. said tes~lly. There are two. Meier·:~~ range from 425,000 to 550.000 had been. "Every time we go to a vii• "Tell him you have enough until Eybers is one of the~. and agreed lage now," said, "they are happy oil the next rainy season," said Marsidik heartily with Kalang1e. The repre· see us." in Indonesian. sen1atlve of the International Com· iir.'ndonesra. East Timor holds seats in. "Because or the political situation,~ "We have enough until the next mil1ee of the Red Cross, Cedric NeuSister Saurez said quietly, i'becaose rainy season,'' Ferreriesaid. ~fl by the Portuguese in the 16th cen~omm, is, the second. He declined to the people had to help the military 0~Dutch colony. Then. alter World war At the Betora parish church. on the b~.!~11erv1ewed. c ontinued as a colony ror the Operation Security, they were outskirts of Dili, Sister Josephine I he Re.~ c:oss doesn t want to say l years of lighting between factions not able to plant the rlelds.'' Bordallo, a Spanish Carmelite nun ~.he 1ru1h, satd Msgr. da Costa Lopes, M~ 1ng unification with Indonesia. Portu"There is. plenty of food hete," who has worked here since 1979 because!hey are afraid the lndone· ~.f'l1nued and, late in 1975. the lndone· Slnago said insistently, and little single·handedly runs a clinic i~ sten government will throw them 1 ~,rnned by the United Nations General nervously. which she sees 160 seriously ill peo· out, and t~~y want to stay to provide ~ast Timor. widely regarded to have. The nun continued to contradict pie a day. including "many, many some help. ri P request annexation by Indonesia. him. with a soft-spoken resolve th81 cases of malnutrition," she said. Most province on July 17, 1976. A left· clearly astonished some or the· offl' of the patients come to her clinic "When we were• kids," said a man 1~i17th 11ent known as Frelilin has continued cials present. "We are very shOrt ot because the government-run facili- r,rom a Por1uguesc-Tlmorese family, 111,~1 housands of people have died either food, namely In Bagula, Quellcal and ties often have no medicine and no our mothers used to say to us, 'Don't Laga. ·~ut eve!l here the food is not medical personnel. eat so fast, the Indonesians aren'1 sufficient, the health care is not suf. "Tuberculosis is the most common coming.'" 11 was something the East flcient Last year it Is better, this year disease, but hunger is the biggest T1moresc long feared. it is worse becau9e of Operation Seel!· problem," she said. "They come here In December 1975, when the Jndo· rlty." and I give them medicine for TB but neslans finally did come, Col. Kalan· The problem has been complicated, then they go home and they hav'e no gte was one of the commanders of the fur's history ~nvasion. lhe Philadelphia Inquirer T APOL Bulletin No 52 July 1982 11 === [PDF page 13] === He recently contrasted Indonesia's ove r of East Timor." he said. "She said they are grateful to the petition was filed. takeover with the current dispute The people on Atauro Island are government who take care of them Soares, during a tense interview et over the Falkland Islands: "T~e Brit- hostages of a different sort. Thou- so they don't feel they arc prisoners. his home here. first denied ever \sh generals a_rc bad: You don t gtvc a sands of Timorese are being held on hut like others they can live as they having visited Lu bis. Then. when a little bit. a little b11: you go all at the island, 15 miles north of Dili, and want. " the interpreter translated. reporter mentioned having see n. a nnce. Like what we did here, 1s all at Indonesian authorities have an - lie was asked to inquire how long photograph Lu bis had taken of him once - bok' - and then explain to nounced their intention of keeping she thought her brother would stay during the visit, Soares said, "I might the rest of. the world that we arc the internees there until every last in the mountains. have been in their offices. but I here. That 1s how.to do.. It, like the known Fretilin guerrilla surrenders. "''God knows," she rcpli~d. her head didn't take part in this." Russians m Afghanistan " Authorities freely acknowledge that still bowed. One of the central charges in the Now he 1s enthusiastic about the the only reason they arc being held Kalangie acknowledged that at petition was confirmed by Manuel government's far-reaching resctlle- there is that they are related to least some residents of the camp Carnscalao. a prominent coffee plantwere not pleased to be there. "You er. Timor produces some of the ment policy. Since "integration," ISO known or suspected guerrillas. new resettlement centers have been Between June and September last know. east or west. home is best," he world 's best coffee. much of it grown built and.so more are P.lanned by th.c year. 3.78S such people-entire fami- said. "But maybe some of those who on small, individually owned plots end of this year, he said. To make 11 lies. including young children _ are in the mountains will feel their that provide a source of cash income easter to control the population and were moved to Atauro and left there family is unhappy so they will come for peasant families who otherwise to provide food and medical aid, with no food supplies, according to down. It is a positive system." make a subsistence living growing education and other amenities. peo- church sources. Quiet pressure by And if they don 't come down. he corn. rice or cassava. pie have been moved from the moun-------liiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii~~~-iiiiii~iii~~· After integration with Indonesia. talns to these resettlement villages. Carascalao said, the military authoriusually in the lowlands. he ex- ) tics granted ~coffee monopoly to a plained. Java-based company, P.T. Denok " It is the new Indonesian civilizaHernandez International, and all tion we arc bringing." Kalangie said. .growers, small and large, were ordered to sell their coilee to Denok, "And ii is not easy to civilize the backward peoples." · which became the only authorized While the resettlement scheme exporter. may be effective in denying support The Denok firm is widely believed to be owned by Maj. Gen. Leonardus to the guerrillas. critics say 11 has serious flaws. There was a good his_ _.. "Benny" Murdani. Indonesia's chief torical reason for the Timorcsc averof military intelligence and the man sion 10 the lowlands: Malaria there is ~ in ultimate command of f,ast Timor. virtually epidemic, water supplies The prices Denok set for the pur· are poor and irregular, and the clichase of coffee were absurdly low: currently they arc about 2S cents a mate is far hotter than that of the highlands. pound for arabica coffee a.nd 18 cents Still. under Indonesian rule the for robusta, less than half what buy. province's road system is being vast · ers pay growers in Java and in other ly improved; color television - as places in Indonesia. Kalangic is fond of pointing out was introduced here even before it I Meanwhile, because of food sh:>rtcamc to Portugal; there arc new pubages. the price of rice and other stalic works in virtually every large pie foods here is twice what it is elsctown. public buses now travel the e!!"!!l~~!!"'!'l!!!!!!l!!!!!!!!!!'!!l'!l~!!"!!!"!'!!!!!"!!!!!!!!!ii...."""""""'!"..........-...........""!~~~~"!tc~ where in Indonesia. The result is that Ph1ladelph•a Inquirer/ PETER FALCHETTA a peasant grower cannot purchase a highways an d d ozcns o f government schools have been opened. the International Committee of the said, the prisoners of Atauro Island SO·ccnt pound of rice with the pro"ln many things, the Indonesians Red Cross persuaded the Indonesians will stay where they arc. ceeds from a pound of his coffee. "During the coffee harvest" in have done very well, far better than to allow the Red Cross to begin an the Portuguese," a Timorcsc who is emergency feeding and medical-care The most serious civil-liberties June and July, a knowledgeable generally pro-Indonesian said in an program in February. challenge raised.in East Timor came Timorese said. "there arc.s earches at interview. "Only in social justice and But by then, according to lndone- last year in the petition of the four all t~e military. checkpoints - ~ut health have they fallen down." Later sian government figures. 176 intern- assemblymen. who stressed the lack they.re not lookm~ for guns. Thi:_1 re he was seized by military intclJi-. ees had died in an outbreak of con ta- of legal recourse under military looking for. coffee. gencc and interrogated for hours gious disease. Some think it was chol· authorities The soldiers make sure the coffee about the interview, according to era; others say it was gastroenteritis. is sold to Denok, and growers are well-informed sources. Both are conditions that could have 011hough five years of mtegra11on even prohibited from trading or "A referendum now would go in been aggravated by the crowded ha\c passed, although security ha.s bartering their coffee for basic neravor of Indonesia." said Lucio Enge- conditions in what the governmen1 been restored hy stages and m a van - ccssities in local markets. nio da Encarnacao. SS. manager of calls the "rehabilitation camp." cty of ways, although the masse~ of the Dili Hotel and a Portuguese citi· It consists of SS plywood and corru- people have constantly made endless One evening, young Timorese zen who has been trying unsucccss- gated-tin barracks, each measuring sacrifices," it said, "it is not yet possifully to get Indonesian government 20 by 60 feet and housing an average ble to experience the implementa- man fell quickly into step bestde a permission to leave. "I have to admit of 65 people. For privacy, the inhabi- tion of law and discipline in this reporter on Dili's Rua Antonio de Carvalho. "We are not allowed to that in transportation. education.. tants hang plastic sheets as room young province of East Timor." many areas. the Indonesians did in dividers. The petition cited numerous in- speak to foreigners." he said. "But I fivc years what Portugal didn 't do in "It is for their own good. and t.hcy stances of murder. torture and sexu- just want to tell you. Uefore. we had hundreds of years. like to be here," Col. Kalangie con- al assault by soldiers and officials Portuguese colonialism. Now. we "As for freedom," he concluded, tended during a guided tour of the against civilians. "These people or have Indonesian colonialism." When Indonesians began consoli · "We never had it under Portugal so camp. lie said many of the internees groups com1J1it murders without due we don't miss it now." had been harassed by guerrilla rela- process or the laws concerning in· dating control in the province. they "Sure. in Portuguese times, many tives, or forced to provide them with vestigation. Feelings of fear are told everyone that the East Timoresc people would be sarna sarna. which thin~s were bad," said a former colo- food. and he asked, "Does this look widespread among the people.... " " 1al ~m· crnmcnt employee. "But it's like a concentration camp to you?" All four of the men who signed the in Indonesian means roughly, "ev,,,.1 a comparison between Indonesia In Barracks B-2. many of the more petition now repudiate.it as a forgery eryone equal." The slogan was less and Portugal, but between Indonesia than SO inhabitants were there be- and say they had nothing to do with than successful. however, since in and the independence we could have cause they were related to a single it. Msgr. da Costa Lopes said he felt Tetum. the chief Timorese dialect. had." Fretilin member. Onrato da Costa; sorry for the men. who he main- sama sama means "trample. tram "This whole island is just a big pris· some were only cousins or distant in- tained were forced to recant nftcr ple." on." said a part·Timorese man who laws. Da Costa's sister, Amelia da having been held in solitary confine· - - - - - - - - - - - - - • holds Portuguese citizenship and Costa Fernandes. was asked through ment on the island of Bali for a said he wanted to join his family in an official interpreter how she felt month. Australia According to reliable about being imprisoned. The author of the petition is besourccs. he is one of 700 Portuguese The interpreter repeated the ques- lieved to have been Joao Pedro who have been registered with the tion and Miss da Costa Fernandes, Soares. According to Mulya Lubis. Red Cross cis would-be cmigrcs. "We with bowed head and frightened Jakarta director of the Legal Aid arc being held hostage here until expression, mumbled one or two Society, Soares visited the society's Portugal recognizes Indonesia's take- words. offices to seek protection after the 12 TAPOL Bulletin No 52 July 1982 === [PDF page 14] === THE TIMOR PAPERS The National Times, Canberra (May 30th-June 5th and June 6th-12th, 1982) has reproduced.lengthy quotes from CIA topsecret reports on Indonesia 's preparations for. and launching of, its invasion of East Timar. The quotations, taken from the CIA 's confidential internal newspaper, the National Intelligence Daily as well as from the US Defence Intelligence Agency, the National Security Agency and the State Department, cover the period from 11th August 1975, just prior to the coup attempt by the Timorese Democratic Union (UDT) up to 13th February 1976, after Indonesia had successfully thwarted attempts by a UN envoy to visit Fretilin-controlled areas. The documents are of crucial significance in understanding many aspects of the tragic events that led to Indonesia's annexation of East Timar. They reveal callous indifference on the part of western powers to events about which they were clearly well-informed, involving the denial of East Timor's right to self-determination, and which led to the well-documented genocidal onslaught against the Timorese people. The following brief summary covers some of the salient points only: (1) US and Australian intelligence had a detailed, day-to-day knowledge of Indonesia's invasion plans for the invasion of East Timar a nd of the numerous military attacks against East Timor territory launched across the border from Indonesian Timor, starting early in September 1975 as Fretilin forces gained the upper hand over the UDT and pro-Indonesian groups in East Timar clearly failed to win popular support. (2) Indonesia pursued a "twc-track" policy in its invasion and take-over. There was on the one hand clandestine activity inside East Timar to set up and support pro-Indonesian groups and to incite chaos and disorder which could then be used as the pretext for intervening militarily so as to "establish law and order". On the other hand, there was direct military intervention, carried out initially under the guise of "exercises", moves to "rescue" Indonesian diplomats, and the use of Indonesian "volunteers". Later these covers were dropped, and overt military.intervention took place. (3) The two tracks were complementary, but a conflict of interest did develop, between Ali Murtopo in charge of cland~stine activity and Adam Malik, then Foreign Minister who favoured a diplomatic solution, on the one hand, and the military commanders who were keen to invade speedily, on the other. On 8th September 1975, it was reported for example that for Ali Murtopo, "military action would be tantamount to a vote of no confidence in his abi lity". (4) The overriding consideration for General Suharto in delaying overt military action was to make sure that there would be sufficie nt " justification " for such action, so as to ensure that the US and Australian governments would not feel compelled to object publicly.. His troops were equipped almost entirely with US weapons and he was well aware that the formal terms of delivery permitted their use only in defence and not in an act of aggression against another country. As it was, the USA made no objection though it followed close ly the course of Indonesian military aggression across the border during the months from September to November 1975. The Indonesian assault on Dili, launched on 7th December, was deliberately delayed till after President Ford's visit to Jakarta had been completed, to avoid "embarrassing" the USA. (5) The Portuguese Government seriously considered requesting the Indonesians to intervene directly in East Timar and formal discussions to this end actually took place. The idea only foundered because the Australian government, locked in its own internal disputes, would not respond to a Portuguese request that Indonesian intervention should be conducted jointly with Australian troops. For several weeks, Suharto hoped that the Indonesian invasion could take place under the cover of a Portuguese plea for help but this eventually failed to materialise. When Indonesia finally captured DiH, Portugal was compelled to protest, to sever diplomatic relations with Indonesia and to make a call a.t the UN for an Indonesian withdrawal. Portugal's failure to carry out a decolonisation process and an act of self-determination in East Timor goes a long way to explaining that country's subsequent lack of effort to mobilise international condemnation of Indonesian aggression and solicit concrete action such as sanctions to halt the aggressors. (6) Malaysia allowed ·its weapons to be used so that Indonesian invading troops would be using weapons not traceable to Indonesia. (7) In early 1976. Indonesia deliberately and successfully thwarted a visit by a UN envoy to Fretilin-held territory, as part of a mission authorised by the UN Security Council. They actually planned to sink the ship that was to be used to take the envoy from Darwin to the south coast of East Timor, thus preventing him from setting out. Barrack 8-2 Atauro Island holds more than 50 people believed to have relatives among the guerrillas. 'They like to be here', an official said. === [PDF page 15] === Censorship TEMPO BACK, PELIT A STILL OUT After a ban lasting two months, the major Indonesian weekly, Tempo was allowed to resume publication on 12th June. In an editorial statement published in the first issue, the editors pledged to continue with the same policy and to uphold the standards of reporting they achieved before the ban. On the other hand, Pelita, the Muslim daily is still banned. Reports from Jakarta suggest that the paper's publishing permit may have been cancelled permanently. Protests from IPI, PEN and others The International Press Institute sent the following protest to President Suharto and KOPKAMTIB chief, Admiral Sudomo: Your Excellency The International Press Institute, an organisation of nearly 2,000 leading editors in Africa, Asia, the Americas and Europe, wishes to protest strongly against the continued banning of the newspaper Pelita as well as the banning of Tempo. We are most concerned to see that your authorities appear to extend further restrictions and controls on the media, which could not possibly be in the interest of your country's image in the free world and violates the declaration of human rights. I would be grateful if you would assure our members through me that both Tempo and Pelita will be allowed to resume publication without any further delay. Peter Galliner, Director, International Press Institute, Zurich. International PEN sent the following protest cable to President Suharto: International PEN, world association of writers. is deeply concerned at news of indefinite banning of Tempo. We are proud of having last year elected a PEN Centre in Indonesia and earnestly request you to reconsider this infringement of the freedom of the press. Per Wastberg, International President; Alexandre Blokh, International Secretary. The International Federation of Journalists, which had protested in April against the banning of Tempo, renewed its protest in June, and addressed its cable to Information Minister, General Ali Murtopo: Sir, In the letter I sent you on April 26, 1982, I expressed the deep concern of this Federation at the closure of the independent weekly Tempo. Since then, we have also been informed about the banning of Pelita, the daily newspaper of the Muslim Party. As we feel that both leading publications were banned as a direct result of their reporting of events during the election campaign in your country, we cannot but condemn this infringement of press freedom which, for our Federation, implies free access of the people to diversified sources of information. We therefore urgently ask you to abolish the measures taken against both publications. We have a similar request regarding the reported banning of a series of British, French, Dutch and Australian newspapers. Yours sincerely, Theo Bogaerts, General Secretary. 14 Foreign Newspapers Banned A number of foreign newspapers have been prohibited from circulating in Indonesia since 25th May. They are: Figaro, L' Aurore, France-Soir, NRC-Handeslblad, The Obvserver (London), and the Sydney Morning Herald. Le Monde has not been formally banned but is no longer available in Jakarta. In March, the Indonesian authorities had decreed a ban against the circulation of The Australian, starting 1st April. The Australian normally sold about 500 copies in Indonesia, mainly to expatriates. The Indonesian Embassy in Canberra described this ban as a "cooling-off period" instituted by Indonesia on western coverage of Indonesian affairs. "The government is afraid some reports by foreign news agencies may prejudice Indonesian voters", an Embassy spokesman said. (Australian, 30 March, 1982.) It is understood that a new weekly, firmly dedicated to supporting the government, may soon start appearing in Jakarta. The new venture apparently has the backing of Information Minister Ali Murtopo who is believed to have put Tempo out of action temporarily in order to undermine its finances and marketing. Trade Union Journal Banned Dynamika, the monthly journal of the Union of Metal and Ceramic Workers/FBSI has been banned by order of General Ali Murtopo, Minister of Information, at the instigation of the FBSI. The ban was imposed on 7th November 1981. * The decree gives the following reasons for prohibiting the further publication, printing and distribution of the journal: ( 1) "... that the publication was converted fom appearing weekly to appearing monthly without first obtaining permission from the Department of Information... " (2) "... that it had departed from the letter and the spirit of its permit which states that this publication 'is intended as a means of information, guidance and education which should not contain any analysis or treatment of material that is of a practical political nature'. Dynamika did not focus its attention on matters of an informative nature but rather, concentrated on matters that are controversial and antagonistic which is not in keeping with Article 1 (2) (3) "... in view of these deviations, the Central Board of the All Indonesia Federation of Trade Unions (FBSI), as the basis organisation of the Metal and Ceramic Workers Union, deemed it necessary to write to the Minister of Information suggesting that the Registration Permit of Dynamika be withdrawn because its contents tended towards tendentious issues and conflict with fellow executive members of the FBSI." •A copy of the Information Minister's Decree was published in the May 1982 issue of Berita Tanpa Sensor (Uncensored News), published by Gerakan Demi Hak-Hak Azasi Manusia dan Demokrasi, the Indonesian Movement for Human Rights and Democracy based in Europe. T APOL Bulletin No 52 July 1982 === [PDF page 16] === A Case for Pancasila The Attorney General of the Indonesian Government has recently banned and prohibited the circulation of all books by Mr. Hamran Ambrie, a Muslim convert of many years standing. Mr. Ambrie has so far published 17 titles about his Christian faith which he has tried to reformulate in the context of his Muslim background. Some of his books are apologetics in relation to Islam. Some others are refutations of distortions of Christianity in Muslim publications. that a country which upholds Pancasila and believes in religious tolerance and freedom outlaws one citizen who explains and defends his religious faith while, at the same time, allowing another to challenge and ridicule others' faith. It is t.:nderstood that the NCC of Indonesia is also examining the matter. Christian Conference of Asia News June 15th 1982 The belated ban naturally raised questions. SlNAR HARAPAN, one of the major dailies in Jakarta enquired in an editorial whether the office of the Attorney General had read Mr. Ambrie's publications before issuing the banning order. It was skeptical about · this as Mr. Ambrie's writing total about 2800 pages, and between the request for the ban and the announcement of the ban there were only a few days. Mr. Ambrie has himself now appealed to President Suharto for justice in his case. In his letter of 17th May 1982, he pointed out that the circulation of his books had never been prohibited till he published the title No prophesy from the Prophet Muhammad in the Bible in reply to Prof. H. Hosbullah Bakry's publication "Jesus the Prophet in Al Quaran and Muhammed the Prophet in the Bible". He has regretted POLITICAL PRISONER STILL HELD TWO YEARS AFTER SENTENCE COMPLETED The Legal Aid Insititute in Jakarta is to make a formal complaint to the Supreme Court and the Department of Justice on behalf of a political prisoner whose sentence expired in 1980 but who is still in prison in Balikpapan, South Kalimantan. The case came to the attention of the Institute when the wife of the prisoner, Hadi Surano wrote complaining that he was tried and sentenced to 13 years for charges in connection with the 1965 events. The 13-year sentence was passed with deduction in late 1975. Hadi Surono was arrested in December 1967 which means that his sentence expired at the end of 1980, yet he is still being held in Balikpapan. Prison. She explained that neither he, the defendant, nor the prosecutor appealed against the sentence. Mrs Surano asked the LBH to press for her husband's immediate release. Abdulrachman Saleh, a lawyer and director of the LBH, said that, counting automatic remission to which the prisoner is entitled, he should have been released some time in 1979. '"This case is proof of the existence of a cruel web of bureaucracy. It is the duty of the prison director to make investigations with the court which tried the prisoner. If the sentence has been completed, the prisoner should be released", he said. ' This man is fully entitled to sue the state for compensation. "(Kompas, 5 May, 1982) (Editor's Note: In 1980, TAPOL received information about dozens of tried prisoners in Balikpapan whose releases have been delayed by bureaucratic confusion and deliberate procrastination. In some cases, appeals against sentence made by the accused were being used as the pretext for postponing release; the authorities claim that the tried person cannot be released until the appeal has been heard, a process which frequently takes many years. In one case, release was delayed because the prosecutor who appealed against the sentence had died, and legal processes had to be started all over again. It is to be hoped that Mrs Hadi Surono's action in bringing her husband's case to the attention of the LBH will pave the way for all the other cases to be taken up as well.) T APOL Bulletin No 52 July 1982 15 === [PDF page 17] === The Student Movement: EXPULSIONS, ARRESTS AND STRIKES In a number of clashes with university authorities and the security forces recently, students in several parts of Indonesia have been involved in actions and strikes to protest against the suspension, expulsion and arrest of their colleagues. The current wave of campus repression should be seen against the background of the systematic suppression of the student movement since 1978 and associated with the name of Daud Jusuf, Minister of Education, a man close to General Ali Murtopo and his special intelligence agency, OPSUS. Jusuf's policy of "de-politicising" the campuses followed in the wake of the clampdown on the student movement which began in 1977 shortly after the general elections of that year and reached a climax in January 1978, just two months before the presidential election. The main thrust of the 1977178 student movement was opposition to the uncontested re-election of General Suharto as President and sharp criticism of corruption and the deteriorating living conditions of the people. In order to neutralise the student movement and prevent it from ever again becoming a force for political protest, the government imposed its policy of "Normalisation of Campus Life". Central to this was the dissolution and prohibition of elected student councils and their replacement by closelysupervised student-faculty bodies and student senates, with all campus activities rigorously policed by the university authorities backed up, when necessary, by armed troops. With the active collaboration of virtually all rectors, in particular at the state universities, the government has succeeded in curbing student activity and effectively dismantling the independent student press. Yet, time and again since 1978 incidents have occurred on a number of campuses, particular!~ in Jakarta and Bandung, proving that in spite of the repression, many students remain defiant. Despite the government ban, students still have their representative councils, among others at the University of Indonesia (UI), Jakarta, and the Bandung Institute of Technology. Campus meetings have been held for dissident politicians, and in September last year, students of the Faculty of Social Sciences at UI defied a university ban and held a meeting which was addressed by the well-known ex-political prisoner, Pramoedya Ananta Toer. All four students held re~ponsible for that meeting were immediately expelled and later arrested.(See box) EXPULSIONS AND A STRIKE AT UI UI students have persisted in electing a Student Council and those chosen to lead the Council have been systematically victimised. In 1981, the elected chairman of the UI Student Council Biner Tobing, was expelled. His place was then taken by Peter Sumariyoto who was soon suspended and threatened with expulsion. Shortly after his suspension, Professor Nugroho Notosusanto, the Army's official historian and chief VI students protest. The banner reads: "We Want Peter Back" 16 T APOL Bulletin No 52 July 1982 Peter Sumariyoto. === [PDF page 18] === TWO MORE UI STUDENTS ARRESTED T APOL Bulletin in May (No. 51, page 19) spotlighted the fate of Rafendi Djamin and Alexander Irwan, the two UI students who were expelled last October, then arrested, released and re-arrested for their part in organising a lecture by Pramoedya Ananta Toer at the Faculty of Social Sciences. Shortly after that issue went to press, T APOL was informed that the other two students expelled for that incident have also been re-arrested. They are Widi Krastawan and Verdi Jusuf, the son of Jusuflshak, a director of the publishing company Hasta Mitra which publishes Pramoedya's books. So now, all four expelled students are back again in detention. continued from opposite page ideologue of Indonesia's new educational system, was appointed as Rector of UI in place of Profesor Mahan Mardjono who had on occasion shown himself to be insufficiently heavy-handed with the students. Nugroho 's appointment was greeted with a wave of student protest, during the course of which posters appeared warning that the campus was being "taken over by the jackboot". A few weeks later, the Student Council held a general election rally in defiance of a university ban, and Peter Sumariyoto was then expelled for engaging in activity that could, Nugroho said, "send the University up in flames". In protest against this expulsion, the students launched a lecture strike demanding the reinstatement of both Biner Tobing and Peter Sumariyoto. The strike which lasted for several days was virtually complete on the Salemba campus and well supported in several major faculties. In the face of intensified repression and divisive tactics, the chairmen of the student senates of all the faculties at Ul issued a joint statement on 6th April, in which they declared the suspension of all Student Senates, thus effectively cutting off relations between the students and the university authorities. Since then, no further reports of student activity at UI have been received but towards the end oflApril, a delegation of seven student representatives from faculties at the Pajajaran State University, Bandung visited Parliament in Jakarta to express their solidarity with UI students and to protest against the expulsion of Biner Tobing and Peter Sumaroyoto. They also called upon Parliament to restore all state universities "as institutions of the state, not of the govertment". During the strike which lasted three days and ended only when armed troops were brought in, slogans such as " Withdraw the Suspensions" and "The Rector is a Dictator" were plastered on walls. In the repression which followed, five students have been arrested and two others, sought by the Army, have gone into hiding. A joint statement issued by the student senates of all faculties at the Institute protested strongly about the arrests and against interference in campus affairs by the security forces. Sources: Merdeka. 19 April and 22 April 1982. THOUSANDS OF STUDENTS PROTEST INRIAU Some two thousand students at the Riau University in Pakanbaru marched in protest to the Riau Police headquarters on 12th May in protest against a police officer who had beaten up a student following a street accident between vehicles driven by police and by students. The students refused to leave the premises until they had been given an assurance by the Rector that the Police Chief would investigate the affair. (Merdeka, 12 May 1982) STUDENT PARTICIPATION IN THE ELECTION CAMPAIGN Apart from incidents in Jakarta, including the student election rally held on the UI campus which led to Peter Sumariyoto's expulsion, little is known about student involvement in election activity except for Ujung Pandang, South Sulawesi. A report by Richard Cowper from Jakarta in early May revealed that troops entered the campus of Hasanuddin University in the city and arrested about 80 students after stud.e nts.had demonstrated against a GOLKAR rally. A mass student protest through the streets of the city took place on the next day. Troops fired on the students and, according to Richard Cowper, "a numQer.o f people are understood to have been killed with several dozens injured". The same incident is spotlighted by Adam Malik, Indonesian Vice-President, in an interview with the Far Eastern Economic Review (21st May 1982), when he said: The violence in Sulawesi was a direct result of a long-running feud between very radical and outspoken students of the Islamic institute for higher learning there (the Hasanuddin University-Ed.), and other youth group.'l, specifically GOLKAR, and violence broke out when a large demonstration marched past the institute's campus. Sources: Sinar Harapan, 1 April; Tempo, 10 April; Merdeka, 26 April 1982. STUDENT STRIKE AND ARRESTS IN JOGJAKARTA Meanwhile in Jogjakarta, Central Java, a major university town, another issue has led to st~dent protest. In January this year, three students at the Institute of Education (IKIP) were suspended for failing to stand up at a meeting when President Suharto entered the hall. (see TAPOL Bulletin, No. 50, March, 1982). This led to student protest culminating in a lecture strike in April after the failure of repeated attempts by the students to meet the Rector, Drs St. Vembriarto. It is not possible to speculate on whether a resurgence of student protest followed by the ine.vitable repression will occur again in the months leading up to the presidential election early. next year. But the above events taken together would suggest that, despite the severe repression of the past four years, many students are in a mood of defiance. The policy of de-politicisation has been far less successful than the government claims. On some campuses at least, unity has been forged around the right of students to retain their in'dependent, elected councils, and the tradition of solidarity with victims of repression is firmly rooted. T APOL Bulletin No 52 July 1982 17 === [PDF page 19] === Dutch police confiscated a T APOL poster during a protest vigil in Amsterdam on the opening day of this year's meeting of the Inter-Governmental Group on Indonesia. They claimed that the slogan The Butcher of Jakarta above a collage of Suharto was offensive to a friendly Head of State and was unlawful. Dutch law does not in fact prohibit "offensive" statements unless the Head of State.in question is vis.iting the country. A complaint against the police is being lodged with the Amsterdam Court by the Dutch Indonesia Committee which organised the vigil, and T APOL. OUT SOON! THE TIM OR DRAMA: PORTUGAL AND EAST TIM OR April 1974-December 1975 by Joao Loff Baretto with an introduction by Adelina Gomes and Jill Jolliffe This book, based largely on testimony submitted to the Permanent People's Tribunal on East Timar, in Lisbon, June 1981, gives an in-depth account of Portugal's policy on East Timar from the overthrow of the Portuguese dictatorship in 1974 to the Indonesian invasion in December 1975. It covers much of the ground dealt with in the confidential Timor dossier which was declassified last year by President Eanes after public pressure. Publication of the dossier followed the showing of a TV programme strongly critical of Portugal's conduct in East Timar. The dossier, 867 pages long, contains the official report of a military enquiry set up in 1976, together with a 223-page report by Lo mos Pi res who was Governor of East Timor from November 1974till December 1975. A 12-page summary of the dossier, compiled by Jill Jolliffe and published in Timor Newsletter (June 1982) gives but a glimpse of the confusions and frustrations accompanying Portuguese administration, and the degree of support given by some Portuguese officials to Indonesian takeover plans. The Timor drama, written before the release of the dossier and anticipating much of its material, is now available in English. It is an accessible alternative to the dossier which is unlikely to be published in English, although, as Timor Newsletter points out, it obviously reflects the author's own interpretation of events. Price: US$5.00 (including air postage). Discount for bulk orders; rates available on enquiry. Copies available from the publisher: Timar Newsletter, Rua Damasceno Monteiro, 14A-R/c, 1100 Lisbon. Kindly include payment with your order (no Australian dollars, please). MUSLIM PRISONERS IN CENTRAL JAVA MALTREATED T APOL has received reports giving details of the torture and maltreatment used against Muslim political prisoners now being held in Mlaten Prison, Semarang and Wirogunan Prison, Jogjakarta. They include the following: * Interrogations, often lasting several days, are sometimes carried out at gunpoint. During interrogation, prisoners are subjected to electrical torture: their toes are tied together with wire connected to the chair on which they are sitting, and current is passed through the wire. Prisoners under interrogation are not permitted to say their daily prayers. * Nails are driven through the prisoners ' small fingers. Finger nails and facial hair are ripped off, skin and all. Matches are pushed under their Qails, match-head first, then lit. As the prisoners scream with pain, the guards watch laughing. Prisoners are ordt!red to hold their heads inside an empty drum which is then beaten very hard, driving them to distraction. * They are held in windowless cells, without washing facilities, for days at a stretch. They are given no food, and have to sleep on the bare floor. Sometimes, they are tied up naked and left for days, then beaten with iron rods and chains. * They are forced to do push-ups, moving forward. Their 18 torturers then jump up from behind, landing on their backs. On occasion, they are submerged in water, then clubbed about the head. Women prisoners are subjected to the same tortures as the men. They are sometimes stripped naked and ordered to adopt improper postures or be beaten. On occasion, men and women are left together in darkened cells to taunt them into making sexual contact. Women whose husbands are sought by the Army are held hostage and forced to divulge their husbands' whereabouts. Prisoners' wives are summoned by officers, then raped; some have been forced to divorce their husbands, then marry officers. Prisoners are placed in cells with criminal prisoners who are ordered to beat them. One prisoner, after being maltreated in this way, had to have an operation because of the wounds inflicted. In Wirogunan Prison, prisoners summoned one by one into a room where officers were waiting, were clubbed and beaten with chains. Although some were badly injured, no medical treatment was provided. TAPOL Bulletin No 52 July 1982 === [PDF page 20] === ROUND-UP OF PUBLICATIONS ABOUT INDONESIA, EAST TIMOR AND WEST PAPUA E. TIMOR (LlJ~[Q)&LJpublishes articles on E. Timor with special features such as: Timor Update, Washington Update, International Update and Committee Update. Published quarterly, and available for $5.00 a year. Please enquire for overseas rates. Has useful E. Timor resource material available. Published by: E. Timor Human Rights Committee, Box 363 Clinton Station, Syracuse, New York 13201. USA. lli!iT PRfUll~ AAl&.&W&.& publishes analytical reports and up-to-date information about the resistance and about conditions in West Papua, and also information about West Papuan activity in the Netherlands. Published, in English, by Stichting Werkgroep Nieuw-Guinea (New-Guinea Workgroup Foundation). Published every two months; now in its sixth volume. Annual subscription: 17.50 guilders (25 guilders, support sub) overseas: $10.00 ($15.00, support sub). Al I PERH/MPUNAN INDONESIA RAYA January 1982 1:82 A monthly newsletter, containing news, views and information about the West Papuan struggle for freedom. Now in its first year of publication. ·Queries on subscriptions, etc., to editors. Editorial address: West Papuan Information Centre, P.O. Box 6186. Boroko, NCP. Papua New Guinea. TIMOR INFORMATION SERVICE 50 cents• FEITEN EN MENINGEN ~ALAI-~ P.O. Box 6717, 6503 GE, Nijmegen. Number 35 INDONESIA (Indonesia. Facts and Opinions) Publishes analytical articles. translations and up-to-date news briefs about all aspects of life in Indonesia. and about Dutch-Indonesian relations. Published six times a year. in Dutch. by Komitee lndonesie. Annual subscription (outside the Netherlands): 30 gui lders: (inside the Netherlands) 20 guilders. Available from: Komitee lndonesie. Minahasastr. I. 1094 RS Amsterdam, Netherlands. March/April 1982 publishes up-to-date reports from East Timor. comments on recent statements and articles, chronology of events in or concerning East Timor. Published six times a year in Victoria. Australia. Has appeared regularly since 1976. Annual subscription: Institutions A$5.00. individuals A$3, in Australia and overseas surface mail. Please enquire for airmail rates. Editorial address: P.O. Box 77, Clifton Hill. Victoria 3068. Australia. Timor newsletter on independent bulletin of nev·s about East Timer publishes news and reports about East Timor. including up-to-date information from Timorese refugees in Portugal. Focuses in particular on developments regarding East Timor in Portugal, Portuguese press reports. etc. Editor: Jill Jolliffe. After a year's trial run, will now appear occasionally, with special supplements. For details, write to editor. Editorial address: Rua Damasceno, 14A-R/c, 1100 Lisbon, Portugal. publishes original articles. translations and comments about Indonesian political, economic and social affairs. Editor-in Chief. Letus Tarung. Published quarterly. in Indonesian. by Perhimpunan Indonesia Raya. Now in its second year of publication. Editorial address: c/o Erwin Ramedhan, 46. Rue St. Lambert, 75015 Paris. France. ifl beritn 111.npR. ·Je1£1or News Without Censorship publishes documents from dissidents. petitions. and personal statements. which are censored in Indonesia. Original documents. all reproduced in Indonesian. Published hy Gerankan Demi Hak-Hak Azasi Manusai dan Demokrasi (Movement for Basic Human Rights and Democracy), in Europe. Price: 25 gui lders a year for indeterminate number of issues. Five issues have appeared since November 1981. in the first year of publication. Available from: R. Tombokan. Frans Hallsstr. 14, 3781 EW Voorthuizcn. Netherlands. berita indonesia (Indonesian News) Publishes a wide range of selected press cuttings from the Indonesian press (all in the original) and occasional clippings from the Far Eastern Economic Review and other non-Indonesian journals. Published monthly, since 1977 by Perhimpunan Pelajar Indonesia (Indonesian Students Association) Amsterdam Branch. Subscription rate: (minimum 4 months) 15 guilders. Editorial address: p/a Leksmondhof 16, EM Amsterdam, Netherlands. TAPOL Bulletin No 52 July 1982 19 === [PDF page 21] === BOOK REVIEW Atmakusumah. Kebebasan Pers dan Arus lnformasi di Indonesia (Press Freedom and the Flow of Information in Indonesia). published by Lemhaga Studi Pemhangunan (Institute for Development Studies). Jakarta. 1981. "Don't ask me to look for information that can get me into trouble. If I'm arrested and put in prison. who is going to defend me'l " This was the response of a journalist working for the Indonesian official news agency. Antara. when asked to look for more detailed information from Army officers. among others. about events that both media people and the general public found hard to understand. The request had come from Atmakusumah. then working as co-ordinator of Antara reporters. " If I had asked him to unearth material that we being deliberately concealed hy people in authority. I think he would have resigned on the spot... Shortly after this incident. Atmakusumah himself resigned from Antara and has since written for various newspapers including Indonesia Raya (banned in 1974). foreign news agencies and a variety of weeklies and periodicals. The incident occurred way hack in 1968 and is reported in an article written a year later about the dismissal of two Antara journalists. Their crime? They had reported a road accident involving the cars of three Army generals which were being driven at high speed. The source of the item was a press release issued hy the Jakarta police. but a day later the report was denied and the press release was withdrawn. Yet the two journalists were sacked for using the accident to "make political innuendoes·· against generals though no-one denied that these men were indeed the owners of the cars involved. The charge of "political innuendo" lay in the fact. says the writer. that both men were " suspect'' because of the journalistic work they had done before 1965; one had worked for the nationalist daily Suluh Indonesia (banned in 1965) and the other had often carried out photographic assignments for President Sukarno. Relegated to a footnote in the same article is an extremely important piece of information: in October 1965. a quarter of all newspapers existing in Indonesia at the time - 46 out of 163 - were banned by the Army. Yet despite this startling fact. despite the abrupt dismissal of the two journalists and. the writer could have added. the fact that dozens if not hundreds of journalists were then in jail. he nevertheless. in a later article published in February 1980. describes this early period of the New Order as one of the few periods in post-1945 Indonesian history when "real press freedom existed". This blind spot about the first years of the New Order mars the writings of many people who now criticise army rule. It is as if the destruction of a massive segment of the Indonesian press. plus of course the wholesale murder and arrest of millions of people. had simply never happened. and that the first press clampdown by the Army occurred only in January 1947 when a dozen or so publications were banned. This apart, Atmakusumah's collection of articles. spanning the period from 1968 to 1981. provides a comprehensive picture of the parlous state of the Indonesian press under the New Order. The collection includes the two chapters on press freedom which he wrote for the 1979 and 1980 annual reports of the Indonesian Institute for Legal Aid. The latter reproduces the humiliating pledges extracted from the editors of major Jakarta dailies in 1978 as the price for renewal of their publishing permits after the crackdown against the press in January 1978. Several articles in this collection describe how the men in power. invariably of course generals, pass out vague statements with hidden meanings for publication in the press. "explaining" events which noone is allowed to know anything about because of reporting prohibitions. This is not commtmication. he writes. but monologue. comparable to stars flickering in the sky, emanating a light that is inaccessible and incomprehensible to t·he general public watching from afar and denied the right to know what people are really talking about. The Indonesian press is full of such reports. There is, he says in another article, a "bullet theory of communication" according to which people in high places use the press to fire off information at passive targets, meant not to inform but to create the required reactions. Fortunately, as he points out, the reactions are not always those intended but often cynicism and mistrust. In an article 20 about the student press. he praises the role of campus newspapers which have tried so hard to provide an alternative source of news. One striking example of their success was the detailed reporting of the.1978 student trials hardly mentioned at all in the national and region al press. This was a time when student papers sold tens of thousands of copies. But things are very different now as most student papers h~ve been shut down or compelled to confine themselves to campus affairs. From the wide range of topics discussed by Atmakusumah. one gets an impression of the present state of media communication in Indonesia. It is a situation that cannot be summed up merely in figures about the number of papers banned and the number of journalists arrested or dismissed. The most devastating result is a press that is incapable of reporting anything regarded by those in power as dangerous and which therefore confines itself by and la rge to reporting government handouts and the verbalistic rantings of officials who aim not to inform but to mislead and manipulate public opinion. continued from front page We are aware that we were 'persuaded ' to have relations with the Indonesian Church which is the nearest Church and which is authorised by the Government and Army to straight away create relations with us. We hope that this ' persuasion' develops an honest meaning... We must also acknowledge that we do not yet understand why the Indonesian Church and the Universal Roman Church have up till now not stated openly and officially their solidarity with the Church, people and Religious of East Timor. Perhaps this has been the heaviest blow for us... We felt stunned by this silence which seemed to allow us to die deserted." Have you ordered your copy of "This Earth of Mankind"? by Pramoedya Ananta Toer A limited stock available at the special price to T APOL readers of £2.50 including postage (£4. 75 airmail to countries outside Europe). Order your copy now! See flyer for details SUBSCRIPTION RATES Increase in Subs. To cover higher printing costs, postal charges. and to ensure the regular production of at least 20 pages each issue. subscription rates are being increased as follows: Annual rates UK, Europe and Overseas-air mail (6 issues) Overseas-surface £10.00 Individuals £14.00 Instirutions £12.00 TAPOL's Giro Account number: 56 781 4009. Overseas subscribers please note: If you pay by cheque not drawn on a London bank, please add the equivalent of £1.50 to cover bank charges. Subscriptions and correspondence to: T APOL, Sa, Treport Street, London SW18 2BP. TAPOL Bulletin No 52 July 1982