DATE=2/1/2000
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=INDONESIA / RIGHTS (L-ONLY)
NUMBER=2-258659
BYLINE=PATRICIA NUNAN
DATELINE=JAKARTA
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:
INTRO: Indonesia's former Armed Forces chief
General Wiranto says he is not ready to resign
his cabinet position, despite a report
implicating him in last year's wave of violence
in East Timor. As we hear from Patricia Nunan in
Jakarta, the general has rejected the human
rights report and says he will fight to bring out
the truth.
TEXT: General Wiranto says he found the report
released by Indonesia's National Commission on
Human Rights in East Timor "vulgar" and says he
was offended that the results of the
investigation were announced publicly.
General Wiranto also says the commission --known
in Indonesia as "K-P-P-Ham" -- ignored his
efforts to force warring factions to lay down
their arms in advance of last August's United
Nations supervised referendum.
///ACT WIRANTO ///
K-P-P-Ham does not care about this positive
activity at all. This positive activity I did in
the past, they don't care about it. I'm very
sorry. But because of this I will continue to
fight for the truth.
///END ACT///
He adds the National Commission on Human Rights
fails to mention what he says was Indonesian
military protection given the four thousand U-N
staff members, aid workers and journalists in
East Timor at the time.
General Wiranto was one of six top military
officers blamed by Indonesian human rights
investigators for the eruption of violence in
East Timor. The rampage claimed hundreds of
lives, forced hundreds of thousands to flee their
homes and left much of the territory in ruins.
The human rights team concluded that as both the
Minister of Defense and the head of the
Indonesian Armed Forces at the time, General
Wiranto should bear the responsibility for the
carnage.
It is now up to Indonesia's Attorney General to
further investigate the generals and decide what
legal action might be taken against them.
Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid, who is
traveling in Switzerland, told reporters Monday
that he would consider asking the general to
resign from his current post, if he were named in
the human rights investigation. General Wiranto
holds the cabinet position of Coordinating
Minister for Political and Security Affairs,
/// OPT /// The long-awaited human rights report
is being released in the midst of a power-
struggle between the Indonesian military and
President Wahid. The president said recently he
believes members of the armed forces are
provoking violence in two of Indonesia's outlying
provinces, as means to destabilize his
government.
Concerns have been raised about a possible armed
forces coup in Indonesia. But military analyst
Salim Said says the East Timor investigation will
not provoke a military takeover. To the
contrary, he says the probe will allow the
government to strengthen its position.
/// ACT SALIM///
The Attorney General can work safely because
there will be no antagonism from inside the Armed
Forces. Because they are now badly beaten, they
are not united. And this would be a good time for
the civilian government to establish civilian
supremacy.
//// END ACT //// /// END OPT ///
The release of the Indonesian report comes one
day before a United Nations human rights
investigation is presented to the Security
Council in New York. U-N human rights officials
also blame the Indonesian military for the
bloodshed in East Timor. They are calling for an
international tribunal to be formed to bring
those responsible to justice.
NEB/PN/FC
01-Feb-2000 05:28 AM EDT (01-Feb-2000 1028 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
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