Stockholm, 29 Februari 2004

Bismillaahirrahmaanirrahiim.
Assalamu'alaikum wr wbr.

SUTARTO &YUDHOYONO PAKAI KEPPRES NO.28/2003 DIGEBRAK GEORGE BUSH DENGAN HAM ACEH
Ahmad Sudirman
Stockholm - SWEDIA.

 

PANGLIMA TNI JENDERAL ENDRIARTONO SUTARTO & MENKO POLKAM SUSILO BAMBANG YUDHOYONO MEMAKAI KEPPRES NO.28/2003 & KEPPRES NO.43/2003 DI ACEH, DIGEBRAK GEORGE BUSH DENGAN HAM ACEH

"Kenapa azab juga ada diseluruh wilayah NKRI, terutama di atas pulau jawa, dengan demam berdarah-lah, banjir-lah korupsi-lah. Bukankah itu semua pertanda bahwa Allah SWT melaknat kita semua, karena tidak pandai bersyukur? Saya tidak setuju kalau masyarakat Aceh menerima laknat dengan mengirim TNI dan mengejar-ngejar mereka, lalu diindentikan dengan tidak bersyukur. Bagi saya sih, tidak penting mempertahankan wilayah, tapi rakyat tetap sengsara, biarlah kita hidup sesuai dengan keinginan kita-masing, asal kita mendapat kesejahtraan yang merata. Adakah pejabat kita yang bersyukur? Bukankah mereka playboy semua? Kenapa kita harus bermusuhan, disebabkan wilayah, sementara hanya pejabat dan para jendral kita saja yang menikmati hidup enak dan mewah. Saya sedih melihat bangsa di pulau Jawa, masih dikejar dan bahkan diteror oleh petugas, pada hal mereka hanya untuk mencari sesuap nasi dan kebutuhan hidup seharian di ibu kota dan kota-kota besar. Mereka masih banyak yang bikin rumah dibawah jembatan pasar rumput misalnya, atau membuat gubuk disepanjang kali malang. Tak ada jendral yang menyapa mereka, tak ada pejabat yang menjenguk mereka. Jendral dan pejabat sibuk ngurusin wilayah-wilayah dan proyek-proyek di seberang lautan." (Puji Anto , puji50@hotmail.com , Sun, 29 Feb 2004 12:22:08 +0000 )

Terimakasih saudara Puji Anto di Sydney, Australia.
Baiklah.

Memang benar seperti yang dikatakan saudara Puji: "Saya tidak setuju kalau masyarakat Aceh menerima laknat dengan mengirim TNI dan mengejar-ngejar mereka, lalu diindentikan dengan tidak bersyukur. Bagi saya sih, tidak penting mempertahankan wilayah, tapi rakyat tetap sengsara, biarlah kita hidup sesuai dengan keinginan kita-masing, asal kita mendapat kesejahtraan yang merata"

Nah, sebenarnya dengan dikirimkan TNI/POLRI dan Raider ke Negeri Aceh untuk mengejar dan membunuh rakyat Aceh yang telah sadar untuk menentukan nasib sendiri bebas dari pengaruh kekuasaan Negara Pancasila atau NKRI, ternyata hasilnya adalah banyak sekali pelanggaran-pelanggaran Hak Hak Asasi Manusia yang telah dilanggar oleh pihak TNI/POLRI ini.

Coba pelajari dan gali itu yang dilaporkan oleh the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor , February 25, 2004" yang dimuat di http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2003/27771.htm

Dan tentu saja itu laporan pelanggaran HAM telah dibaca oleh staf George W.Bush di Gedung Putih. Sehingga akibatnya, memang benar bahwa laknat telah menimpa kepada pihak TNI/POLRI ditambah sekarang Raider.

Jadi, saudara Puji Anto, jangan khawatir bahwa sebenarnya yang sedang ketimpa laknat adalah pihak TNI yang dikirimkan ke Negeri Aceh untuk menghancurna pihak rakyat Aceh yang telah sadar untuk menentukan nasib sendiri bebas dari pengaruh kekuasaan Negara Pancasila atau NKRI.

Dan tentu saja bukan hanya para serdadunya yang dibawah saja yang terkena, melainkan juga para Jenderal-Jenderal-nya, seperti Menko Polkam Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Panglima TNI Jenderal Endriartono Sutarto, KASAD Jenderal TNI Ryamizard Ryacudu termasuk Kolonel Laut Ditya Soedarsono dan Mayjen TNI Endang Suwarya.

Coba saja, perhatikan sudah sedemikian dikurung itu Negeri Aceh agar supaya jangan ada pihak-pihak luar apalagi bagian HAM Internasional untuk mengkorek, menggali, membongkar apa yang sedang berjalan dan dilakukan di Negeri Aceh oleh pihak Menko Polkam Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Panglima TNI Jenderal Endriartono Sutarto, KASAD Jenderal TNI Ryamizard Ryacudu termasuk Kolonel Laut Ditya Soedarsono dan Mayjen TNI Endang Suwarya. Tetapi pada kenyataannya pagar dasar hukum Keputusan Presiden Republik Indonesia selaku Penguasa Darurat Militer Pusat Nomor 43 Tahun 2003 Tentang Pengaturan kegiatan Warga Negara Asing, Lembaga Swadaya Masyarakat dan Jurnalis di Provinsi Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam yang ditetapkan dan diundangkan di Jakarta pada tanggal 16 Juni 2003, tetap saja itu George W. Bush secara gampang dan mudah memperoleh langsung laporan mengenai pelanggaran HAM di Negeri Aceh.

Memang sulit untuk mendapatkan data dan informasi yang akurat dan valid setelah diterapkannya Keppres No.43 Tahun 2003 di Negeri Aceh, sehingga data dan informasi yang datang dari berbagai sumber itu sering berbeda satu sama lain. Dimana masalah ketidak pastian, dan ketidak akuratan data dan infomrasi inilah yang digambarkan oleh pihak the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor dalam laporannya pada 25 Februari 2004, seperti yang tertulis dalam laporan tsb:

"For numerous reasons, accurate figures on the number of persons killed in Aceh were difficult to obtain. Martial law administrators limited information coming out of Aceh, including restricting access for foreign journalists, blocking cell phones and forbidding contact with GAM. The Government effectively prohibited foreign humanitarian aid workers from the province, except for a limited number of U.N. workers. Data from different sources, even within the Government, were often contradictory. NGO sources frequently questioned casualty figures announced by the security forces, claiming the number of victims was much higher, and that many of those killed were civilians. Security forces and rebels gave conflicting information on victims' identities, making it difficult to determine the breakdown of civilian, rebel, and security force deaths. During the early weeks of the military operation, many of the killings appeared to be executions."

Tetapi, walaupun sulit dan bertentangan satu sama lain data dan informasi yang didapat dari berbagai sumber, ternyata hasil dari pengumpulan pelanggaran HAM yang dilakukan oleh pihak TNI/POLRI dan Raider di Negerti Aceh cukup untuk dijadikan bahan bukti pelanggaran HAM yang sangat membahayakan perdamaian, dan kehidupan yang aman tentram di Negeri Aceh.

Hanya tentu saja yang paling menghambat jalan menuju perdamaian ini adalah para Jenderal TNI yang telah menjadikan konflik Aceh sebagai sumber bisnis dan tempat untuk melanggengkan dominasi TNI dalam Pemerintah.

Dan memang apa yang dikatakan oleh saudara Puji Anto : "Saya sedih melihat bangsa di pulau Jawa, masih dikejar dan bahkan diteror oleh petugas, pada hal mereka hanya untuk mencari sesuap nasi dan kebutuhan hidup seharian di ibu kota dan kota-kota besar. Mereka masih banyak yang bikin rumah dibawah jembatan pasar rumput misalnya, atau membuat gubuk disepanjang kali malang. Tak ada jendral yang menyapa mereka, tak ada pejabat yang menjenguk mereka. Jendral dan pejabat sibuk ngurusin wilayah-wilayah dan proyek-proyek di seberang lautan"

Nah, disini saudara Puji telah menyorot dari sudut kehidupan ekonomi dan sekaligus dari sudut TNI yang sibuk dengan bisnis di Negeri Aceh dan bisnis pendudukan, penjajahan di Negeri Aceh untuk kelanggengan kehidupan TNI dalam tubuh Pemerintah dimasa depan.

Jadi, kesimpulan dari apa yang telah dilakukan di Negeri Aceh ini adalah memang seperti yang dikemukakan oleh saudara Puji Anto yaitu: "hanya pejabat dan para jendral saja-lah yang mempunyai kepentingan dengan besar atau kecilnya daerah. Bagi saya asal lebih makmur dan mendapatka pelayanan yang memuaskan dari pemerintah saya, biarlah hanya negara Pulau Bali saja misalnya, tapi lebih makmur. Saya dengan Singapur adalah sangat kecil tapi rakyatnya makmur dan mendapatkan pelayanan Pemerintahnya dengan baik."

Nah, saya yakin karena saudara Puji Anto ini asal Bali yang orang-orang tuanya dulu semasa Soekarno cs telah mendirikan Negara Indonesia Timur yang dicaplok Soekarno dalam RIS, wajar mengatakan kesimpulan tersebut diatas.

Bagi yang ada minat untuk menanggapi silahkan tujukan atau cc kan kepada ahmad@dataphone.se agar supaya sampai kepada saya dan bagi yang ada waktu untuk membaca tulisan-tulisan saya yang telah lalu yang menyinggung tentang Khilafah Islam dan Undang Undang Madinah silahkan lihat di kumpulan artikel di HP http://www.dataphone.se/~ahmad

Hanya kepada Allah kita memohon pertolongan dan hanya kepada Allah kita memohon petunjuk, amin *.*

Wassalam.

Ahmad Sudirman

http://www.dataphone.se/~ahmad
ahmad.swaramuslim.net
ahmad@dataphone.se
----------

http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2003/27771.htm
Indonesia

Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2003
Released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor
February 25, 2004

The Government's human rights record remained poor, and it continued to commit serious abuses. Security force members murdered, tortured, raped, beat, and arbitrarily detained civilians and members of separatist movements. The Government also frequently failed to protect adequately the fundamental rights of children, women, peaceful protestors, journalists, disabled persons, religious minorities and indigenous people, among others. Human rights abuses were most apparent in Aceh province, the scene of a long-running separatist revolt. Despite the signing of a December 2002 ceasefire between the Government and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM), little progress was made on demilitarization, and alleged violations by GAM prompted the Government to place the province under martial law on May 19 and launch its biggest military operation since 1975. This operation was aimed at eradicating GAM and was ongoing at year's end. Despite some evidence that military commanders wished to improve the behavior of their troops in the field, numerous human rights violations occurred. Unlawful killings, beatings, and torture by soldiers, police, and rebels were common. In many cases, the victims were not combatants but civilians. Accurate figures on human rights abuses in Aceh were extremely difficult to obtain.

RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS

Section 1 Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including Freedom From:

a. Arbitrary or Unlawful Deprivation of Life

The security forces continued to employ unlawful killing against rebels, suspected rebels, and civilians in separatist zones, where most of the politically motivated extrajudicial killings occurred. There was evidence that the TNI considered anyone its forces killed to have been an armed rebel, particularly in areas where the TNI had announced an operation and told all civilians to leave. The security forces also committed numerous extrajudicial killings that were not politically motivated. The Government largely failed to hold soldiers and police accountable for such killings and other serious human rights abuses, particularly in Aceh.

The TNI tried, jailed, and discharged some soldiers for rape, robbery, and torture; however, no security-force members were prosecuted for unlawful killings in Aceh.

In Aceh, military and police personnel committed many extrajudicial killings and used excessive force against non-combatants as well as combatants. Between December 9, 2002 and May 18, 2003, a Cessation of Hostilities Agreement (COHA) was in effect between the Government and the GAM. According to the Center for Humanitarian Dialogue, which monitored the ceasefire, fewer than 50 violent deaths occurred during this 5-month period, representing a significant decrease from the 1,307 violent deaths during the 11 months prior to the signing. However, little progress was made on demilitarization or the establishment of a political dialogue. The rate of violence began to surge in April, and, after last-minute negotiations between the two sides broke down on May 18, the Government placed Aceh under martial law. The President provided written authority for an anti-insurgency operation, unlike previous military operations in Aceh and elsewhere in the country (see Section 2.d.). On May 19, the Armed Forces launched their largest military offensive since 1975, involving around 45,000 members of the Army, Navy, Marines, and police force. They were confronted with what the Government said were 5,325 armed GAM rebels. The operation led to a significant increase in violent deaths in Aceh during the year.

For numerous reasons, accurate figures on the number of persons killed in Aceh were difficult to obtain. Martial law administrators limited information coming out of Aceh, including restricting access for foreign journalists, blocking cell phones and forbidding contact with GAM. The Government effectively prohibited foreign humanitarian aid workers from the province, except for a limited number of U.N. workers. Data from different sources, even within the Government, were often contradictory. NGO sources frequently questioned casualty figures announced by the security forces, claiming the number of victims was much higher, and that many of those killed were civilians. Security forces and rebels gave conflicting information on victims' identities, making it difficult to determine the breakdown of civilian, rebel, and security force deaths. During the early weeks of the military operation, many of the killings appeared to be executions. The Government and the GAM accused each other of killing captured combatants, and there was evidence to support such claims. Press reports undercounted the number of casualties. Police rarely investigated extrajudicial killings and almost never publicized such investigations.

On December 31, Aceh's provincial police chief, Inspector General Bahrumsyah Kasman, told reporters that during the military operation, 580 GAM members had been killed, along with 470 civilians, 50 soldiers and 26 police officers, for a total of 1,126 deaths. The police figure for GAM deaths was lower than that provided by the TNI earlier in the year, when the TNI simply reported all non-security force deaths as GAM deaths. The Aceh police force's figure for security force deaths also differed from information provided by the martial law administration, which noted on its website on December 20 that 105 soldiers and police had been killed in Aceh in the line of duty since the start of the military operation. On September 30, the Aceh branch of the Committee for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) stated that at least 342 civilian noncombatants were summarily killed or executed between May 19 and October 1, but noted that the total could be much higher and that the military was preventing NGOs from carrying out monitoring work.

Sources linked to the Aceh Referendum Information Center (SIRA) reported that, during the first 6 months of the military operation, there were 520 noncombatant deaths. However, the sources did not identify the perpetrators.

The security forces were implicated in a number of unlawful killings. On May 20, Muhammad Jamaluddin, a cameraman with the government television network Televisi Republik Indonesia (TVRI), disappeared near the network's office in Banda Aceh. On June 18, Red Cross workers recovered Jamaluddin's body from a river on the edge of the city. His body displayed marks of torture and his arms were tied behind his back. NGO sources indicated that Jamaluddin might have been murdered because he was suspected of providing information to GAM and allowing rebels to borrow his camera equipment (see Section 2.a.). The case resembled that of Musliadi, a student activist abducted and later murdered by suspected intelligence operatives in November 2002. NGO sources indicated that security forces suspected that Musliadi had also been a GAM informer.
On May 21, army troops killed 10 men in Cot Rebo village, Bireuen. Residents told reporters after the incident that the men were part of a local guard force protecting the village's shrimp ponds. The military claimed that all the victims were GAM members but conceded that it had seized no weapons in the incident.

On June 16, unknown persons abducted a Kontras-Aceh volunteer, Muzakkir Abdullah, in the North Aceh area of Nisam, a GAM stronghold. The following day, villagers found Muzakkir's body tied to a tree, his throat slashed. Kontras-Aceh stated it believed that Muzakkir's killing was part of an intimidation campaign by the security forces against human rights activists in Aceh. The tactic of leaving a body in a public place had been used by the TNI in the past as a form of intimidation.
The Government made no progress in establishing accountability in a number of extrajudicial killings in Aceh in 2002, including the June killings of two farmers on Kayee Ciret Mountain and the August killings of three women in the north Aceh village of Kandang.

During the year, GAM members killed many soldiers, police, civil servants and civilians. In many cases, the victims were killed for allegedly collaborating with the security forces, while in other cases the motive appeared to be purely criminal. Although many Acehnese feared and resented the security forces, many also disliked GAM because of its extortion rackets and the criminal activities of some of its members. On May 20, residents of the Bireuen village of Geudong Alue discovered the body of Jamaluddin Hasany, a member of the local legislature. He had a gunshot injury to the stomach. Witnesses said he had left his house with a group of men the night before and never returned. On July 7, in the Bireuen village of Samalangan, unidentified gunmen shot and killed a former female GAM member, Cut Aca Budi, who had surrendered to the TNI 5 days earlier. Budi was home at the time and her young daughter was also shot and wounded. On July 22, in the Pidie village of Baroh Jong, unknown persons shot and killed a husband and wife, Muslim Sualaiman, 38, and Darmawati, 34, who were returning home from their workplace, an Islamic elementary school. GAM often targeted teachers as the most familiar civil servants in rural areas.

The Government did not report any progress in prosecuting those responsible for unlawful killings that might have been carried out by GAM members in previous years, including those of Zaini Sulaiman, Sukardi, Sulaiman Ahmad, Tengku Safwan Idris, and Nashiruddin Daud. Police continued their investigation into the 2001 killing of Dayan Dawood, rector of Banda Aceh's Syiah Kuala University who was shot after offering to mediate between the GAM and the Government; however, they refused to provide details on the case, apart from naming a suspect, Mahyudin, which might be the legal name of Tengku Don, a GAM rebel and suspect arrested in 2002 in this case.

Numerous unlawful killings that occurred in Aceh during the year could not be clearly attributed to either the security forces or GAM rebels. In early June, a local NGO reported evidence of a mass grave in Kreung Tuan, Nisam District, which had long been a GAM stronghold. According to the NGO, the grave may contain the remains of approximately 30 persons. In addition, other mass graves containing a total of at least 34 corpses were reportedly located near the Permata District villages of Guci and Wehnipasee. The TNI attributed the killings to GAM, an accusation the rebels denied. At year's end, it was unclear how many bodies existed in mass graves or who put them there. On December 31, a bomb exploded at an outdoor concert, killing nine persons. It was unclear whether the blast was linked to the separatist conflict. In the Aceh village of Lambhuk, a group of unidentified gunmen shot and killed a resident, Subhan, in his home. Police investigated and concluded that the attack was related to extortion. Subhan drove a fuel truck and his supervisor reportedly refused to make a hefty "tax" payment. In the East Aceh village of Kampung Baru, an unidentified gunman shot and killed school principal Rasyid near a police station. Police stated that they were unable to apprehend the assailant.

There were no known developments in the following cases of unlawful killings in previous years: The March 2002 killing of six persons in the town of Lombaro Angan, Aceh Besar District, which followed an incident in which 30 policemen were ambushed while searching for GAM rebels; the September 2002 killings of two high school girls in the village of Gumpueng Tiro, Pidie Regency; and the August 2001 massacre of 31 persons at a palm oil plantation run by PT Bumi Flora in Idi Rayeuk, East Aceh. Witnesses in the Bumi Flora attack told Human Rights Watch (HRW) that they believed that TNI soldiers carried out the killings.

b. Disappearance

During the year, hundreds of disappearances occurred, most frequently in Aceh province, and large numbers of persons who disappeared over the past 20 years, mainly in conflict areas, remained unaccounted for at year's end. The Government reported little progress in prosecuting those responsible for disappearances that occurred in previous years.

According to the Government, at least 297 persons disappeared in Aceh following the May 19 imposition of martial law (see Section 2.d.) and the launching of the military operation in the province. Provincial police commander Sayed Husaeny reported that the missing included journalists, civil servants, village chiefs, and bus passengers.

The security forces were implicated in some disappearances. On March 25 in Bireuen town, plainclothes military intelligence officers seized two student activists, Mukhlis and Zulfikar, members of Link for Community Development, a local NGO. The detentions were made in broad daylight on the main street of the district capital and took place during a demonstration by local residents opposing the construction of a police post in their neighborhood. Photographs taken by other participants clearly showed the two victims getting into an unmarked van. Witnesses stated that its plate numbers indicated it belonged to the local district military command (Kodim). Friends of the two, who were also students at the Ar-Rainy Islamic Institute in Banda Aceh, received text messages from the cell phones of the victims later in the day; however, no one has seen them since. Both TNI and police authorities in Bireuen and Banda Aceh denied holding the two men. At year's end, their whereabouts remained unknown.

The Government did not take significant action to prevent security force members from carrying out kidnappings. It was unclear whether any persons illegally detained by police or soldiers in Aceh died in custody during the year.

The GAM also abducted persons during the year. On June 29, in the East Aceh area of Peureulak journalists Ersa Siregar and Fery Santoro of television network Rajawali Citra Televisi (RCTI) disappeared as they were driving along the main Medan-Banda Aceh highway. After 3 days, the local GAM commander admitted that his men had taken Siregar and Santoro into custody, along with the wives of two Air Force officers traveling with them, to question them about their activities. Efforts by both RCTI and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to arrange for their release failed. On December 11, the driver escaped from GAM custody. On December 29, Siregar was killed in a TNI ambush of the GAM patrol with which he was traveling. At year's end, Santoro and the wives remained in custody.

During the year, press restrictions in Aceh province limited media reports on cases of torture there. However, some cases were reported. In June, the military sentenced six soldiers to jail terms of between 4 and 5 months for the torture and beating of civilians in the Bireuen Regency village of Lawang. The soldiers reportedly committed the crimes after the civilians failed to hand over a rebel whom the troops said was hiding in the village. On August 31, 12 soldiers tortured and beat residents of the North Aceh village of Geulumpang Sulu Barat. Witnesses said the crimes were committed when residents failed to provide information on a wanted man, who allegedly escaped on a motorcycle while the questioning was underway. On October 10, a military court in Lhokseumawe acquitted the 12 soldiers, stating that although the troops had beaten civilians, they could not be held responsible because the victims and witnesses had been unable to identify the assailants. In June, Brimob officers in Banda Aceh detained 12 individuals (10 of them State Institute of Islamic Studies (IAIN) University students), took them to a police station, interrogated them over possible GAM links, and beat them.
 

According to Kontras, at least 17 verified cases of torture or beatings involving women or children were recorded in Aceh during the military operation, which began on May 19 and continued through year's end. According to a November press report, a TNI military commander in Aceh, Brigadier General Bambang Darmono, declared that beating suspected rebels was acceptable: "For example, my soldier slugs a suspect across the face. That's no problem, as long as he is able to function after the questioning. [But] if it's gross torture, which causes someone to be incapacitated . . . that's a no-no."

In Aceh province, many politically motivated acts of cruelty or punishment occurred during the year, including the burning of more than 603 school buildings since the start of the military operation on May 19; a majority were elementary schoolhouses. The Government attributed the arson attacks to GAM, which has a history of destroying public buildings, including schools, both as the most visible symbols of government presence and because security forces often used abandoned government facilities as barracks or village headquarters. The GAM denied these allegations.

Occasionally Brimob personnel used arson as a form of punishment. The Government investigated the October 2002 burning of 80 shops and homes in Keude Seuneddon, North Aceh, an incident that occurred immediately after two Brimob officers were killed. Witnesses alleged that police burned the buildings intentionally as a form of revenge; however, in September, Police Commissioner Suryadarma claimed the fires resulted from the explosion of a stove at the market. He stated that this occurred at a time when Brimob members were at the site chasing rebels who had killed the two police officers. The case was under investigation at year's end.

Human rights activists expressed concern over a number of controversial prosecutions, including that of prominent Acehnese political activist Muhammad Nazar. On July 3, a Banda Aceh court operating in a province under martial law gave Nazar a 5-year sentence for "spreading hatred against the Government." Nazar was former chairman of SIRA, which had long campaigned for a referendum on Acehnese independence. On February 12, police arrested him after he allegedly failed to notify the Government of a political rally held in the city of Lhokseumawe on January 9. Armed Forces chief Endriartono Sutarto defended the arrest, although the COHA between the Government and GAM rebels, which was in effect at that time, gave civil society the right to "express without hindrance their democratic rights." This was the second time Nazar was arrested for expressing his political views. In 2001, he served a 10-month sentence for "spreading hatred against the Government." His crime had been attending a campus rally and putting up banners critical of the TNI and supportive of Acehnese independence. In another case, prosecutors in Aceh brought criminal charges against a young Acehnese activist, Muhammad Rizal Falevi Al Kirani, for peacefully expressing his political views. Falevi, a university student and chairman of the Association of Anti-Militarism Activists (HANTAM), was charged with "inciting hatred and insulting the Indonesian Government." The charges stemmed from remarks Falevi made at a December 2002 political rally in Banda Aceh, at which he called for a referendum on the future status of the province. At the time of his arrest, police said Falevi lacked the proper permits for a public rally, but they later charged him with other offenses. In October, a Banda Aceh court convicted Falevi and sentenced him to 3 years in prison.

There was some controversy surrounding the Government's application of the terrorism decree passed in October 2002 and the ensuing anti-terrorism laws passed in March (which allow the use of evidence from wiretaps, video recordings, and other surveillance to be used in court) in the cases of at least five individuals associated with GAM. They included former negotiators Teuku Kamaruzzaman, Teuku Muhamad Usman, Amni bin Ahmad Marzuki, Sofyan Ibrahim Tiba, and Nasiruddin bin Achmed. On October 21 and 22, the Banda Aceh District Court convicted the five for acts of terrorism and sentenced them to between 12 and 15 years in prison. All five sentences were under appeal at year's end. Prosecutors argued that the defendants should have made concerted efforts to subdue the escalating violence and comply with the COHA, which GAM and the Government signed in 2002 in Geneva. Some human rights activists expressed concern that the terrorism decree was being misapplied to individuals who were not engaged in terrorism; others noted that the five were arrested on May 19, the day the Government declared martial law and launched its military offensive.

Also in Aceh, the Government freed two foreign women who were detained, convicted, and imprisoned in 2002 for violating the terms of their tourist visas. It released an American citizen on January 3, after 4 months in prison, and her colleague, a British citizen, on February 9, after a 5-month imprisonment.

e. Denial of Fair Public Trial

The Constitution provides for judicial independence; however, in practice, the judiciary remained subordinate to the executive and was often influenced by the military, business interests, and politicians outside of the legal system. The law requires that the Justice Ministry gradually transfer administrative and financial control over the judiciary to the Supreme Court by 2004, but the Ministry indicated during the year that this transfer would only begin in 2004. Judges were civil servants employed by the executive branch, which controlled their assignments, pay, and promotion. Low salaries encouraged corruption, and judges were subject to pressure from governmental authorities, which often influenced the outcome of cases.

f. Arbitrary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home or Correspondence

Section 2 Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:

a. Freedom of Speech and Press

The Constitution provides for freedom of speech and freedom of the press; however, the Government at times restricted these rights in practice. During the year, the Government jailed at least five peaceful anti-government protestors convicted of "insulting the President" or "spreading hatred against the Government." In addition, politicians and powerful businessmen showed greater willingness to file criminal or civil complaints against journalists whose work they found insulting or offensive, and this trend undermined press freedom. Also during the year, journalists faced increasing threats or violence.

Martial law administrators took various steps to limit information coming out of Aceh, including restricting access of foreign journalists and diplomats, blocking cellular telephones, and forbidding contact with GAM.

Journalists in Aceh experienced serious difficulties operating under martial law. The Government issued a decree that required each news coverage activity to "be supported by written permission by the head of Aceh's Emergency Military Authority." However, enforcement of the decree was erratic. In practice, only foreign journalists and local journalists reporting for foreign news organizations required special permits from the martial law administrator. The administration did not directly censor reporters' stories, but many local journalists felt intimidated by public criticism from army spokesmen about specific stories, as well as by passionate statements from military commanders urging journalists to report "patriotically." Journalists also expressed concern that critical reporting of TNI operations could cause them to lose access to military press briefings. Finally, the uncertain security situation in many parts of the province limited access to many areas. In the early weeks of the operation, the TNI operated a program of "embedding" journalists with military patrols. Many journalists who worked in Aceh--both embedded and independent--indicated they felt threatened by both GAM and the TNI in reporting on events. The military terminated the embedding program after 1 month. Some journalists complained that pressure by the TNI on their Jakarta-based editors also limited negative reporting of the conflict. For example, in late May, the Surya Citra Television network (SCTV) fired reporter/producer Dandhy Dwi Laksono after the network aired Laksono's interview with an Acehnese man who said he had been tortured by soldiers. Laksono told a media watchdog group that the TNI took offense at the report and that this prompted his dismissal.

There were many violent attacks against journalists in Aceh. For example, on June 19, the corpse of TVRI cameraman Jamaluddin was found near Banda Aceh with his hands tied, mouth sealed, and head covered with a plastic bag (see Section 1.a.); however, evidence suggested that the killing may have been unrelated to his press activities. On July 20 in the North Aceh community of Krueng Keukeuh, unknown gunmen opened fire on the home of Waspada newspaper journalist Idrus Jeumpa, killing Jeumpa's wife and injuring him and his two children. In early July in the South Aceh village of Panton Luas, five soldiers allegedly beat brutally 68H radio journalist Alif Imam Nurlambang. On June 29, the GAM abducted journalists Ersa Siregar and Fery Santoso, along with the wives of two Air Force officers (see Section 1.b.). The GAM's commander in East Aceh, Ishak Daud, defended the abductions by saying that TNI intelligence officers frequently used vehicles marked "press," an assertion confirmed by journalists.

b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association

The Constitution provides for freedom of assembly; however, the Government restricted this right in certain areas. The law requires that persons planning to hold a demonstration notify police 3 days in advance and appoint someone accountable for every 100 demonstrators. The law generally does not require permits for public social, cultural, or religious gatherings; however, any gathering of five or more persons related to political, labor, or public policy required police notification (see Section 6.a.).

In Aceh, the security forces interfered with or shut down a number of public rallies, ostensibly for a lack of proper permits. For example, on January 9, police physically prevented thousands of civilians from attending a rally demanding the withdrawal of the security forces from the province. At one point, Brimob officers fired warning shots; four demonstrators were injured, two seriously. Although the shootings appeared to be accidental, police later charged two speakers at the rally with "spreading hatred." One of those charged, Muhammad Nazar, was convicted and sentenced to 5 years' imprisonment (see Section 4). The other, Kautsar, fled prosecution and remained at large at year's end.

The security forces continued to enforce a prohibition on the flying of the GAM flag. In July, Aceh's Governor instructed all Acehnese to fly the Indonesian national flag from July 8 to September 1, and residents who displayed a worn or tattered one were reportedly ordered to buy a new one. The flying of the red-and-white national flag was seen as a test of their loyalty to the state and their rejection of the separatist movement. On May 21, 37 homes in the Bireuen subdistrict of Peusangan were reportedly burned for not displaying the national flag. Some human rights activists accused the Government of forcing civilians to take part in patriotic mass rallies, such as the June 17 event in Banda Aceh, in which 10,000 young persons declared their loyalty to the unitary state of Indonesia. Similar rallies were held in Aceh Besar, Pidie, Bireuen, North Aceh, and East Aceh.

c. Freedom of Religion

The Constitution provides for "all persons the right to worship according to his or her own religion or belief," and states that "the nation is based upon belief in one supreme God." The Government generally respected the former provision, but only five major faiths--Islam, Protestantism, Catholicism, Hinduism and Buddhism--received official recognition in the form of representation at the Ministry of Religious Affairs. Other religious groups were able to register with the Government, but only with the Ministry of Home Affairs, and only as social organizations. These groups experienced official and social discrimination. By stipulating that the country is based on belief in one God, the Government does not recognize atheism.

On March 3 in Aceh province, the Government began the implementation of Shari'a by issuing a presidential decree establishing Islamic law courts in that province. There was no evidence that suggested that Shari'a was being applied to non-Muslims in Aceh. Some in Aceh worried that implementation of Shari'a would provide new powers to already-discredited law enforcement institutions and provide opportunities to intrude on private religious matters, such as whether an individual attends Friday prayers. At year's end, such concerns thus far appeared unfounded. Women's groups played an active role in helping draft local regulations in order to avoid provisions that might restrict women's rights.

d. Freedom of Movement Within the Country, Foreign Travel, Emigration, and Repatriation

On May 18, President Megawati issued a decree establishing martial law in Aceh province for an initial period of 6 months. On November 19, the Government extended martial law for 6 months.

The decrees name the President as the central martial law administrator and appointed Aceh Regional Military commander, Major General Endang Suwarya, as regional martial law administrator. The decrees give the regional martial law administrator overall government authority for the province and power to issue emergency measures to control travel, trade, transport, and other civilian activities. The basis for the decree is a 1959 "Government Regulation with the Force of Law" on National Emergencies. Human rights activists called the President's decrees vague and stated that, by drawing their authority from a 44-year-old law, the decrees do not explicitly recognize subsequent human rights legislation or the rights of non-combatants in a conflict area.

The Government restricted some residents' movements through the issuance of new national identity cards. These cards required the signatures of the holder's local military commander, local police chief, and village head. Acehnese who wished to travel or leave the province had to produce these cards at security checkpoints along main highways. Failure to produce the card was cause for arrest. In practice, the cards were easily obtained.

The Government also restricted movements in order to close avenues of supply to GAM rebels. In the remote Lokop district of East Aceh, home to 30 villages and a heavy rebel presence, TNI units monitored and controlled food shipments moving in and out of villages and limited shipments to TNI-linked suppliers. Soldiers also limited the amount of food each family could purchase, and this resulted in malnutrition, according to the Aceh branch of Kontras. In addition, troops reportedly restricted the hours that fishermen could fish, and the hours that rice farmers could work their fields.

Section 3 Respect for Political Rights: The Right of Citizens to Change Their Government

The Constitution provides citizens with the right to change their government peacefully, and citizens exercised this right in practice through periodic, free, and fair elections held on the basis of universal suffrage. During the year, they exercised this right indirectly, as their elected legislators chose governors in regional DPR elections. The Constitution provides for general elections every 5 years. The last elections were held in 1999 and the next were scheduled for April 2004. During the year, the police and military continued to hold 38 appointed seats jointly in the DPR and 10 percent of the seats in provincial and district parliaments; however, according to a 2002 amendment to the Constitution, they will lose their appointed DPR seats after the 2004 elections. The DPR members automatically are members of the MPR, which also includes 130 regional representatives elected by provincial legislatures, and 65 appointed representatives from functional and societal groups.
Domestic and international observers monitored the 1999 elections and considered them largely free and fair. Following the 1999 elections, the MPR, in a transparent manner, elected Abdurrahman Wahid as President and Megawati Soekarnoputri as Vice President. In July 2001, the MPR convened an "Extraordinary Session" to require President Abdurrahman Wahid to account for his performance. Wahid refused to appear, claiming the charges were politically motivated, and instead issued a directive to "freeze" the MPR, the DPR, and the Golkar Party and to hold new elections. This exceeded his authority under the Constitution, and the military and police refused to enforce these measures. On July 23, 2001, the MPR canceled Wahid's mandate, and Vice President Megawati replaced Wahid as President, as provided by law.

There were no legal restrictions on the role of minorities in politics. There were 365 members of minorities in the 500-seat DPR; minorities meaning legislators from areas outside of Java, the most populous island, or neighboring Madura Island. There were 12 members of minorities in the 33-member Cabinet. While most Cabinet members were Javanese, Sundanese, or Madurese, minority members were of Bugis, Batak, Acehnese, Minang, Flores, Balinese, Banjar, Arab or Chinese heritage.

Section 4 Governmental Attitude Regarding International and Nongovernmental Investigation of

Alleged Violations of Human Rights

Domestic NGOs were subject to monitoring, abuse, harassment and interference by the Government; however, they remained active in advocating improvements to the Government's human rights performance. KOMNAS HAM reported that, since 2000, 14 human rights activists had been killed, and that in not one of these cases had the perpetrators been brought to justice. Many NGOs, particularly those in Aceh, accused the security forces of obstructing their activities and expressed concern that this prevented the revealing of many human rights violations. During the year, organized groups attacked members or offices of a number of NGOs and related organizations, including Kontras, IMPARSIAL, the Indonesian Red Cross (PMI), the Human Rights and Anti-Violence Foundation (HAMAK), and others.

In Aceh, NGOs experienced intense governmental interference, particularly after the Government launched a military operation against GAM rebels in May. The security forces repeatedly summoned many domestic NGO activists for questioning regarding possible links to GAM. The resulting intimidation prompted between 100 and 200 activists to leave the province. The Government effectively prohibited foreign humanitarian aid workers from the province, except for a limited number attached to U.N. agencies. For example, in June, a government decree prevented foreign NGOs from communicating directly with Acehnese without prior approval from local authorities. The same decree required martial law administrators to distribute all humanitarian aid.

The Government criticized NGOs that questioned its policies. HRW called for the removal from Aceh of six serving or retired TNI officials who are known human rights violators. In November, the TNI removed Major General Adam Damiri, who was convicted of crimes against humanity by the country's own Ad Hoc Tribunal for Human Rights in East Timor (see Section 1.e.).
Following the imposition of martial law in Aceh, the Government charged at least six activists with crimes, including Cut Nurasikin, a director of Srikandi Aceh, a prominent Acehnese women's organization. Police charged her with being a leader of Inong Balee, GAM's women's auxiliary. She was convicted on October 21 and sentenced to 11 years in prison. On July 3, political activist Muhammad Nazar was convicted and sentenced to 5-years' imprisonment (see Section 1.e.).

There were reports of the killing of members of NGOs in Aceh (see Section 1.a.). For example, on June 7, a Kontras volunteer named Syaiful Bachri was shot and killed in the East Aceh village of Beringin. The military claimed that four GAM members shot Bachri while he was en route to his parents' home.

Section 5 Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Disability, Language, or Social Status

The Constitution does not explicitly prohibit discrimination based on gender, race, disability, language, or social status. It provides for equal rights for all citizens, both native and naturalized. In practice, however, the Government failed to defend these rights adequately, and the basic rights of women and children were frequently abused. The Government did little to defend the rights of persons with disabilities. There was some societal discrimination against persons with HIV/AIDS; some such individuals received prejudicial treatment at medical centers, saw their confidential lab results released or had their identity published in a newspaper. In most if not all such cases, the Government failed to take corrective action. However, the Government encouraged tolerance, took steps to prevent new infections and drew up plans to subsidize anti-retroviral drugs.

Women

Violence against women remained poorly documented. Nationwide figures were unavailable, but the Jakarta office of the NGO Legal Aid for Women (LBH-Apik) received reports of 280 cases in the capital during the year. The NGO said 70 of these cases involved physical abuse, 124 psychological, 85 economic, and one sexual. Jakarta's biggest hospital, Cipto Mangunkusumo, treated 112 women for domestic-violence injuries during the year. In West Sumatra, police received 33 reports of violence against women during the first six months of the year. Two types of crisis centers were available for abused women: Government-run centers in hospitals and NGO centers operated in the community. During the year, the Women's, Health, and Social Welfare ministries signed a memorandum of understanding with the National Police on the establishment of integrated crisis centers at certain police hospitals.

Rape was a problem. It is punishable by 4 to 12 years in jail, and the Government jailed perpetrators for rape and attempted rape. Reliable nationwide statistics were unavailable, but Jakarta police reportedly tallied 134 rape cases in the capital during the year, marking a 25 percent increase from 107 in 2002. During the year, Cipto Mangunkusumo treated 91 women and 127 girls for rape and 132 girls for sexual assault. Women's rights activists speculated that these figures were artificially low because of the social stigma associated with rape. The law requires penile penetration to constitute rape. On several occasions in 2002 in Aceh, soldiers were not held accountable for violating women with bottles and other foreign objects. However, during the year, the Department of Justice and Human Rights completed a draft Criminal Code Bill that contained a provision expanding the definition of rape to cover the insertion of foreign objects into a woman's vagina or anus. The bill had not passed by year's end.

Rapes committed by members of the security forces were most numerous in Aceh, the scene of a major military operation against GAM rebels. Human rights activists expressed concern that rapes were being underreported in the province, partly because of press restrictions. The NGO consortium Sahabat Aceh reported that up to 100 rapes were committed in Aceh from May to September, but that only 21 cases of rape or sexual harassment had been reported to the authorities. The TNI prosecuted a few rape suspects. On July 19, a military court in Banda Aceh convicted three low-ranking soldiers and sentenced them to between 21/2 and 31/2 years in prison. The three soldiers, who were also discharged from the army, raped four women in the village of Alue Lhok between June 20 and 22. In each case, the soldier allegedly threatened to kill the victim if she spoke out.

Although it was unclear that GAM rebels committed rape during the year, there were numerous reports in previous years that GAM members committed rape.

Children

The Government stated its commitment to children's rights, education, and welfare, but devoted insufficient resources to fulfil that commitment. In practice, most schools were not free of charge, and poverty put an education out of reach of many children. Child labor and sexual abuse were serious problems during the year (see Sections 6.d. and 6.f.). Although girls and boys ostensibly received equal educational opportunities, boys were more likely to finish school. In January, the leader of the National Commission for Child Protection (KOMNAS PA) identified the most pressing issues related to the country's youth as: Child labor, child trafficking, child prostitution, street children, children in conflict areas, and undernourished children. The National Child Protection Act addresses economic and sexual exploitation of children, as well as adoption, guardianship, and other issues; however, some provincial governments did not enforce its provisions.

Children suffered casualties in areas of armed conflict. For example, on July 24 in Aceh, a grenade buried in a sandbox exploded, killing two sisters and seriously injuring their brother. The TNI alleged that GAM rebels had planted the grenade. Many children in Aceh reportedly have died as a result of explosives concealed by both sides in sandboxes and paddy fields. On May 21, 2 boys were among 10 males shot and killed by the security forces in the Bireuen village of Cot Rebo. The TNI claimed that the victims were all rebels; however, the Government conceded that it had not found any weapons. Residents said the victims were guarding the village's shrimp ponds.

For example, in Aceh province, more than 603 school buildings were burned in the months after the May start of the military operation against GAM rebels. Kontras said 361 of these schoolhouses were elementary schools. According to the deputy chief of the provincial education department, at least 56 teachers had been killed and more than 100 injured following the start of the operation. On August 25, a provincial education official said Aceh faced a shortage of 20,000 teachers. Thousands of children studied at makeshift schools, at mosques, and inside tents.

Section 6 Worker Rights

a. The Right of Association

The Labor Union Act provides broad rights of association for workers, and workers exercised those rights. The law stipulates that 10 or more workers have the right to form a union. Union membership must be open to all workers, regardless of political affiliation, religion, ethnicity, or gender. Private sector workers are by law free to form worker organizations without prior authorization, and unions may draw up their own constitutions and rules and elect representatives. The Government records, rather than approves, the formation of the union and provides it with a registration number. In addition, the law provides that union dues must finance union activities, but does not indicate how dues should be collected or whether management has a role in collecting dues. A regulation that requires that police be notified of all meetings of five or more persons of all organizations outside offices or normal work sites applies to union meetings. The police periodically showed up uninvited at labor seminars and union meetings, which often had an intimidating effect. Under the law and registration regulations, 75 union federations notified the Ministry of Manpower and Transmigration of their existence. In addition, thousands of workplace-level units registered with the Ministry.

b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively

The law, including the new Manpower Act, provides for collective bargaining, and the Manpower Ministry promoted it within the context of Pancasila. The law allows for workers' organizations that register with the Government to conclude legally binding collective labor agreements (CLAs) with employers and exercise other trade union functions. In companies without unions, the Government discouraged workers from utilizing nongovernmental outside assistance, such as during consultations with employers over company regulations. Instead, the Manpower Ministry preferred that workers seek its assistance and stated that its role was to protect workers. However, there were credible reports that for many domestic and foreign-owned companies, ministry consultations with workers were perfunctory at best and usually only occurred with management-selected workers.
According to the Manpower Ministry, as of October, there were 9,097 CLAs in effect between unions and private companies. According to this data, 25 percent of companies with over 10 employees had collective labor agreements. Company regulations, allowed for under government regulations, substituted for CLAs in another 36,170 companies, many of which did not have union representation. In addition, there were 59 labor agreements in effect between unions and state enterprises, and another 65 agreements between non-unionized workers and state enterprises. The new Manpower Act requires that employers and workers form bipartite bodies (joint employer/worker committees), but the Manpower Ministry did not complete implementing regulations and the number of bipartite bodies did not increase significantly.

During the year, strikes occurred across a wide range of industries, but declined in frequency. From January to October, the Manpower Ministry recorded 134 strikes involving 56,464 workers, continuing a steady decline since 2000. Observers speculated that depressed economic conditions, fears of job loss, and gradual worker and employer adjustment to the new labor relation's environment contributed to the decline in strikes. The vast majority of Government-recorded strikes involved nonunion workers.

c. Prohibition of Forced or Bonded Labor

The law prohibits forced labor, and the Government generally enforced this prohibition. The law and regulations prohibit bonded labor by children. However, the Government was not effective in eliminating forced child labor, which remained a serious problem (see Section 6.d.).

According to the NGO KOPBUMI, approximately 3 million citizens worked overseas, mainly in the Middle East and Malaysia. There were many incidents in which these migrant workers, most of whom occupied low skilled positions, received insufficient protection from the Government and host governments. The Government, through its diplomatic posts, established shelters in a few overseas locations, and the Government also funded the repatriation of several hundred workers who fled employers in the Middle East and Malaysia. The unscrupulous practices of migrant worker recruiting agencies, or Perusahan Jasa Tenaga Kerja Indonesia (PJTKI), and poor government regulation, led to abuses of workers, including situations of debt bondage. According to press reports and research by the Solidarity Center, recruiting agencies frequently held migrant workers in holding centers for months at a time before sending them abroad. During their stay at holding centers, migrant workers normally did not receive pay and recruiters often did not allow them to leave the centers. In most instances, workers were forced to pay recruiters for the cost of their forced stay, resulting in large debts to the recruiters.

d. Status of Child Labor Practices and Minimum Age for Employment

The law prohibits children from working in hazardous sectors and the worst forms of child labor, to include mining, skin diving, construction, prostitution, and offshore fishing platforms; however, the Government did not enforce these laws effectively. Law, regulations and practice acknowledged that some children must work to supplement family incomes. The new Manpower Act prohibits the employment of children, defined as persons under 18, with the exception of those 13 to 15 years of age who may work no more than 3 hours per day and only under a number of other conditions, such as parental consent, avoidance of work during school hours, and payment of legal wages. The law does not appear to address exceptions for children ages 16 to 17.

Many girls aged between 14 and 16 worked as live-in domestic servants. The ILO informally estimated that 700,000 children worked as servants, an estimate lower than reported in previous years by the National Committee for Child Protection. Many child servants were not allowed to study and were forced to work long hours, received low pay, and generally were unaware of their rights.

e. Acceptable Conditions of Work

Following the Government's implementation of wide-ranging decentralization in 2001, provincial and district authorities, not the central Government, established minimum wages, which vary by province, district, and sector. Provincial authorities determined provincial minimum wage levels based on proposals by tripartite (workers, employers, and government) provincial wage commissions. The provincial minimum wage rates establish a floor for minimum wages within the province. Local districts set district minimum wages, using the provincial levels as references. Districts also set minimum wages in some industrial sectors on an ad hoc basis. Provinces and districts conducted annual minimum wage rate negotiations, which often produced controversy and protests.

f. Trafficking in Persons

There is no law that specifically prohibits trafficking in persons; however, trafficking in persons is criminalized under the Penal Code and the Child Protection Act. Persons were trafficked to, from, and within the country during the year for the purposes of prostitution and forced labor, including instances of debt bondage.

During the year, police arrested numerous traffickers. For example, in January, Jakarta police arrested two men for the attempted trafficking of young women to Malaysia. The Government initiated a joint operation with Malaysia that freed 24 Indonesian victims trafficked into prostitution in Sabah, Malaysia, and the police arrested two traffickers. In September, police arrested three suspected baby traffickers in Batam and charged them with violations under the Child Protection Act. Their cases were pending at year's end.

Commercial sexual exploitation of children continued to be a serious problem (see Section 5).
The Singkawang district of West Kalimantan remained well known as an area from which poor, Chinese-Indonesian women and teenage girls between the ages of 14 and 20 were recruited as "mail order" brides for grooms primarily in Taiwan but also in Hong Kong and Singapore. In some cases the women were trafficked for sex work and slavery-like servitude.

In many cases, traffickers recruited girls and women under false pretenses. One tactic was to offer young women in rural areas jobs as waitresses or hotel employees in distant regions, including island resorts. After the new recruits arrived and incurred debts to their recruiters, they learned they had been hired as prostitutes.

Domestic NGOs, with international support, led efforts to monitor and prevent trafficking, frequently in coordination with government agencies. These NGOs included the Consortium for Indonesian Migrant Workers Advocacy (KOPBUMI), LBH-Apik, Women's Aid and Protection Group (DERAP), Women's Coalition (Koalisi Perempuan), and Solidaritas Perempuan.
In April, the Government co-hosted with Australia the Second Regional Ministerial Conference on Migrant Smuggling, Trafficking in Persons, and other Transnational Crimes. In June, the Government hosted the U.N. World Tourism Organization's Regional Consultation on the Protection of Children from Sexual Exploitation in Tourism. In July, the Government co-hosted the first National Conference on Trafficking in Women and Children with hundreds of participants from across the country. On July 23, President Megawati announced the launching of a national campaign to eliminate the sexual exploitation of children in tourist zones.
( http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2003/27771.htm )
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From: "puji anto" <puji50@hotmail.com>
To: dobing@telkom.net
Cc: ahmad@dataphone.se, hassan.wirajuda@ties.itu.int, dityaaceh_2003@yahoo.com, acsa@yahoogroups.com,sira_jaringan2000@yahoo.com, serambi_indonesia@yahoo.com Subject: Re: MEGAWATI CABUT KEPPRES NO.28/2003 & KEPPRES NO.43/2003, TNI DITARIK DARIACEH, DITYA & ENDANG KELUAR DARI ACEH
Date: Sun, 29 Feb 2004 12:22:08 +0000

Kenapa azab juga ada diseluruh wilayah NKRI, terutama di atas pulau jawa, dengan demam berdarah-lah, banjir-lah korupsi-lah. Bukankah itu semua pertanda bahwa Allah SWT melaknat kita semua, karena tidak pandai bersyukur?

Saya tidak setuju kalau masyarakat Aceh menerima laknat dengan mengirim TNI dan mengejar-ngejar mereka, lalu diindentikan dengan tidak bersyukur. Bagi saya sih, tidak penting mempertahankan wilayah, tapi rakyat tetap sengsara, biarlah kita hidup sesuai dengan keinginan kita-masing, asal kita mendapat kesejahtraan yang merata. Adakah pejabat kita yang bersyukur? Bukankah mereka playboy semua?

Kenapa kita harus bermusuhan, disebabkan wilayah, sementara hanya pejabat dan para jendral kita saja yang menikmati hidup enak dan mewah. Saya sedih melihat bangsa di pulau Jawa, masih dikejar dan bahkan diteror oleh petugas, pada hal mereka hanya untuk mencari sesuap nasi dan kebutuhan hidup seharian di ibu kota dan kota-kota besar.

Mereka masih banyak yang bikin rumah dibawah jembatan pasar rumput misalnya, atau membuat gubuk disepanjang kali malang. Tak ada jendral yang menyapa mereka, tak ada pejabat yang menjenguk mereka. Jendral dan pejabat sibuk ngurusin wilayah-wilayah dan proyek-proyek di seberang lautan.

Saya pernah melihat denga mata kepala sendiri, ketika pulang ke Jakarta, seorang TNI memukul seorang sopir sampai pingsan dan uang tagihannya berhamburan ke jalan. Alasan serdadu TNI memukul itu sopir karena tidak berhenti pada titik yang dimaui oleh serdadu TNI tersebut. Sopir itu berhenti beberapa meter lebih awal dari kemauan sang serdadu.

Itu kelakuan serdadu kecil, dapatkah anda banyangkan, bagaimana kelakuan sang jendral dan pejabat kalau sudah berhadapan dengan rakyat atau biasa? Sungguh Tuhan pantas untuk menyiksa bangsa ini dengan mengirim berbagai melapetaka!

Saudara dobing jangan hanya melihat dari segi pandangan pejabat saja, kecuali anda juga sama dengan mereka. Tapi kalau anda memihak kepada rakyat yang 98% adalah miskin, seperti saya. Saya belum pernah mendapatkan perhatian dari yang namanya pemerintah saya. Kalau anak saya sakit, kalau tidak ada uang tidak dibolehkan masuk rumah sakit. Apalagi saya ini bukan pegawai negeri yang puny askes.

Saya punya teman, dia adalah seorang guru SDN, dia menderita sakit parah, batuk TBC, dia pergi kerumah sakit, dua hari tinggal di rumah sakit, lalu pejabat RS datang dan mengatakan bahwa dia harus pulang, sebab askes tidak berlaku, pada hal sakitnya semakin parah selama di RS. Inilah pelayang pemerintah kita untuk daerah saya.

Mungkin pelayanan untuk pemerintah untuk bung Dobing berbeda, sebab bung ada relasi dengan para koruptor itu. Maka kita berbeda pandangan terhadap pemerintah kita. Kalau anda harus membela mereka habis-habisan, itu juga punya latar belakang. Kalau saya memang tidak punya urusan denga mempertahakan wilayah atau pemugaran wilayah, sama saja. Saya tidak akan pernah bisa untuk berkunjung ke Aceh, atau Kalimantan, atau Irian, sebab tidak mampu untuk membayarnya.

Dulu sebelum Tim-Tim pisah dengan NKRI, tahun 1999, kehidupan saya sudah begini, lalu Tim-Tim pisah, kehidupan saya dan famili juga tidak berobah. Lalu kalau Aceh atau Irian pisah dengan NKRI, saya kira kehidupan saya juga masih sama.

Jadi kesimpulan saya, adalah hanya pejabat dan para jendral saja-lah yang mempunyai kepentingan dengan besar atau kecilnya daerah. Bagi saya asal lebih makmur dan mendapatka pelayanan yang memuaskan dari pemerintah saya, biarlah hanya negara Pulau Bali saja misalnya, tapi lebih makmur. Saya dengan Singapur adalah sangat kecil tapi rakyatnya makmur dan mendapatkan pelayanan Pemerintahnya dengan baik.

Saya ini orang netral-netral saja, kenapa saya harus sibuk dgn wilayah-wilayah kalau hanya untuk keenakan para jendral dan lebih banyak kesempatan berkorupsi bagi sang pejabat. Saya berperinsip, bahwa kita bernegara itu supaya lebih hidup aman dan makmur, baik individu maupunsecara kolektif. Nah kalau ini tidak bisa terwujut, peduli apa dengan urusan mereka yang hidup enak karena mereka pejabat atau penjilat mereka.

Mungkin kita beda pendapat, karena kita beda nasib; Alhamdulilah, nasib saya tidak dekat dengan pejabat, maka saya masih bisa netral, malihat orang seperti melihat diri saya sendiri, tidak ada kepentingan

terimakasih!

Puji Anto

Sydney, Australia
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