Opposition to Suharto, Timor Updates - GreenLeft Via NY Transfer News Collective * All the News that Doesn't Fit source: Green Left Weekly #304 2/4/98 Growing opposition to Suharto By Karina Marlon JAKARTA - The opposition to the Suharto dictatorship is growing, fuelled by the economic crisis. The drop in the value of the rupiah and the slumping economy have brought a severe loss in confidence in the regime. People are aware that the international banks' rescue attempt for the rupiah before the economy is limited, and that the economic crisis is a result of more fundamental problems with the system. Gunnardi H, leader of the National Democratic Struggle Committee (KNPD) in Yogyakarta, explained: ``In daily conversation, people are talking about politics because the cost of basic needs has risen dramatically. For example, rice has risen from Rp1000 per kilogram to Rp3500. When the government told people that if they can't afford to buy rice because of the price rises, you can eat alternatives [which are less nutritious], the people responded by saying, `You eat the alternatives yourself'.'' The government's ``love the rupiah'' campaign, an attempt to stabilise the dropping value of the rupiah, is seen as useless, because the people recognise that the problem is the corruption of the government. Gunnardi continued, ``When the government officials seem so eager to contribute their money and gold to the economy, people say, `Now we see who has the gold', and ask who receives it. Consciousness has been raised.'' The economy is expected to worsen as the government takes further steps to implement the IMF program. Suharto is attempting to delay the impact of the crisis, for example by waiting till April to withdraw the fuel subsidy. There have been spontaneous riots in Banyuwangi and Jember in East Java and Rembang, in Central Java. People heard that the shops had increased the prices of basic needs, and responded by trashing the supermarket and taking what they needed. Price increases for basic needs have been a major focus of protests held almost every day over the past two weeks at parliament. Several non-government organisations have issues a press release demanding that the parliament convene a special meeting to discuss the responsibility of Suharto for the economic crisis, and that the increasing prices of basic needs be addressed. For the first time in Suharto's dictatorship, serious calls for an alternative presidential candidate have been raised by a coalition of Megawati Sukarnoputri, leader of the PDI, Amien Rais, leader of Muhammadiyah, and Abdurrahman Wahid, leader of Nahdatul Ulama. The last two are mass organisations with more than 30 million members each. The MPR, which will meet in March to elect the president, will consider only the nomination of Suharto. According to Gunnardi, ``The only shortcoming of the pro-democracy movement is that it cannot give clear leadership. The problem is how to unite the many different elements of the pro-democracy movement - including Islamic fundamentalists and the Indonesian Democratic Party - and consolidate a pro-democracy force which will fight the government instead of each other. ``We must explain that in a democratic atmosphere it's okay to raise political differences and fight, but now we must focus on the regime.'' * Bomb charges rejected By Karina Marlon JAKARTA - The dictatorship is trying to blame the People's Democratic Party (PRD) and the National Democratic Struggle Committee (KNPD) for the January 18 explosion of a bomb in an apartment in Tanah Tinggi, an industrial area in central Jakarta. Residents of the building seized one person found in the apartment, Agus Priyono. The military later claimed to have found several homemade bombs in the apartment, as well as pagers, a laptop and political documents. At a press conference on January 27, the KNPD rejected the accusation that it was involved in the explosion and explained that it has no political or organisational affiliation to the PRD. The KNPD said, ``Whoever is responsible for the explosion, we must consider that this action stems from the people's dissatisfaction and distrust in the government... this event happened because the people have learned violence from the teaching of the government through its violent and repressive actions against striking workers, students, peasants, the urban poor, newspapers and so on.'' The military has interrogated prominent businessmen Sofjan Wanandi and Surya Paloh, manager of Media Indonesia, claiming their names were found on documents in the apartment. Both men are on the executive of CSIS, a think-tank connected to right-wing business and military figures. * Fear of famine in East Timor By Jon Land Recent reports from East Timor indicate that unless long-awaited monsoon rains arrive soon to break the drought, there may be a severe famine within the next few months. Speaking in Darwin on January 24, East Timorese resistance spokesperson Jose Ramos Horta stated: ``If there is no urgent humanitarian assistance right now, in a few months from now it will be too late for many thousands of people''. Food and water are in short supply for more than 7000 people on Atauro island, 20 kilometres from Dili. ``There are people half dead right now without the strength to walk to the nearest village to fetch water or food'', said Horta. Staple food crops such as corn, pineapples and bananas have all failed, while the cost of rice has risen by 33% as a result of the economic crisis in Indonesia. A report from the AusAID office in East Timor to the Australian government revealed that communities along the north coast - stretching from Liquicia in the west to Los Palos in the east - are subsisting on seeds designated for next year's crop. AusAID and the Red Cross are the only aid organisations the Indonesian government will permit into East Timor. At a press conference in Lisbon on January 28, Horta called for international pressure to be placed on Indonesia to allow more aid organisations into East Timor in order to avert a catastrophe. A briefing paper, prepared by the East Timor International Support Centre in Darwin, highlights the fact that the large number of Indonesian troops occupying the territory (30,000 by recent estimates) have placed a big drain on its food and water supplies. Resettlement and transmigration programs, along with deforestation carried out by the Indonesian government, have also exacerbated the difficult situation. * Ramos Horta on the `winds of change in Asia' By Rohan Gaiswinkler DARWIN - 250 people heard Jose Ramos Horta, international representative of the East Timor independence movement, give a public lecture entitled ``The winds of change in eastern Asia'' on January 24. Horta spoke on many aspects of the struggle for a free East Timor, beginning with an account of the campaign for Bishop Belo to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1996. Belo and Jose Ramos Horta received the prize jointly. Horta said the responsibility for the East Timor tragedy lay not only with Indonesia but also with Australia and other western countries, including Britain and the US. Portugal could be excused for abandoning East Timor in 1974 because it was hit by internal upheaval, he said. Horta added that the leaders of East Timor were not free from responsibility for the crisis, telling the audience that in 1974-75, ``We were immature and acted irresponsibly'' in the events leading to the Indonesian invasion. Horta predicted that the economic crisis may force the Indonesian government to withdraw its military from East Timor. He explained that the military occupation cost about $30-40 million a year. The forum was organised by Australians For a Free East Timor. -30- Six-month airmail subscriptions (22 issues) to Green Left Weekly are available for A$80 (North America) and A$90 (South America, Europe & Africa) from PO Box 394, Broadway NSW 2007, Australia http://www.peg.apc.org/~greenleft/ e-mail: greenleft@peg.apc.org ================================================================= NY Transfer News Collective * A Service of Blythe Systems Since 1985 - Information for the Rest of Us 339 Lafayette St., New York, NY 10012 http://www.blythe.org e-mail: nyt@blythe.org ================================================================= nytas-02.04.98-10:08:53-23775