Reporters and Human Rights Defenders Targeted for Exposing Indonesian Military Atrocities in Aceh



U.S. Journalist in Danger


Kurt Biddle

Contact: Kurt Biddle, Coordinator, Indonesia Human Rights Network,
510-559-7762

June 19, 2003 < The U.S.-based Indonesia Human Rights Network (IHRN) today
called upon the Indonesian government to respect freedom of the press,
ensure the safety of journalists and human rights workers working in Aceh,
and to end harassment and intimidation of activists and reporters focusing
on the war-torn region.

The life of American William ³Billy² Nessen, the only journalist to spend
time with the rebel Free Aceh Movement (GAM) since Indonesia renewed the war
on Aceh in mid-May, is in danger. The Indonesian military (TNI) has demanded
that Nessen turn himself in. Nessen is refusing to give himself up to the
TNI and has requested that he be allowed to leave Indonesia without being
stopped or interrogated. He also asks that the U.S. Embassy or an
independent third party meet and escort him out of the country. Because
these conditions have not been guaranteed, Nessen missed the TNI¹s June 14
deadline to surrender.

"I am not going to turn myself in," Nessen told the Sydney Morning Herald.
"My fear is of being shot, tortured, beaten and arrested and held
indefinitely in a black hole." The military operation commander for Aceh,
Brigadier-General Bambang Darmono, has said that Nessen will be arrested.

Senator Richard Lugar (R-IN), Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations
Committee, sent a letter on June 15 to Indonesian President Megawati
Sukarnoputri requesting that Nessen¹s safety and safe passage out of
Indonesia be ensured.

On June 10, the New York based Committee to Protect Journalists also sent a
letter to Megawati urging immediate action to ensure Nessen¹s safety. The
Paris-based Reporters Without Borders sent a similar letter to Indonesian
military officials.

Aceh provincial governor, Abullah Puteh, recently commented, ³Foreign
journalists are here to stir up problems in Aceh² and cited Nessen as an
example.

The press has repeatedly come under fire during the Indonesian military¹s
renewed war on Aceh. Snipers have ambushed several press vehicles. Police
and army officials have interrogated journalists reporting on TNI atrocities
against civilians; some journalists have received death threats. Indonesia
is employing an ³embedded reporter² program < Indonesian journalists undergo
³boot camp² style training and wear military uniforms. Reporters have been
warned not to report on military abuses they have witnessed. Mohamad Jamal,
a cameraman for the Indonesian government-run television station TVRI, was
kidnapped by unknown men on May 20, the day after current military
operations began in Aceh. Jamal¹s body was found on June 17 in a river near
Banda Aceh, bound and gagged with duct tape with a noose around his neck.

A reporter for Indonesian television station SCTV, Dhandy Dwi Laksono, was
fired after interviewing an Acehnese man was about being tortured by the
TNI. According to Laksono, the station received threatening messages from
the military after the interview aired.

Human rights workers and lawyers have also been subject to attacks for their
work in Aceh. Many have fled the region. Indonesia¹s National Human Rights
Commission says there have been arbitrary arrests of human rights workers.
Last month, an organized mob of 100 thugs attacked the Jakarta office and
staff of the Commission for Disappearances and Victims of Violence (KONTRAS)
because of the NGO¹s criticism of government actions in Aceh.

The Indonesian military shot two German tourists two weeks ago. Luther
Hendrik Albert was killed by the TNI, and his wife, Elizabeth Margareth, was
shot in the leg. Indonesia has since banned all foreigners from going to
Aceh.

Background:

Nessen has written articles about Indonesian military repression for the San
Francisco Chronicle, the Boston Globe, the Independent (UK) and the Sydney
Morning Herald (Australia).

Aceh, on the northern tip of the island of Sumatra in the Western end of the
Indonesian archipelago, is the site of one of Asia's longest running wars.
For almost 27 years, the armed Free Aceh Movement (GAM) has been demanding
independence from Indonesia. On December 9, 2002, an important cease-fire
agreement (CoHA) was signed between Indonesia and GAM. Both sides were
subsequently criticized for violating the agreement. In February, Indonesian
security forces began actively undermining the CoHA by targeting peaceful
political and human rights activists for arrest. At talks in Tokyo, the
Indonesian government demanded that GAM drop its goal of independence and
disband in order to continue the talks < conditions that GAM could not
fulfill. On May 19, 2003, Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri
declared martial law in Aceh. A few hours later, hundreds of Indonesian
troops poured in and renewed attacks on both GAM and Acehnese civilians.
Numerous civilians and five GAM negotiators were arrested. Under martial law
they are not allowed legal representation for twenty days; this can be
extended to fifty days. The current TNI offensive is only increasing
Acehnese desires for independence from Indonesia, already widespread due to
the brutality of Indonesian military and police and the lack of Acehnese
control over the region¹s rich natural resources.

The income Indonesia draws from the Aceh gas fields is a quarter of the
country¹s natural resource revenues; ExxonMobil provides Indonesian troops
with economic and material support, and Acehnese activists and the
Washington based International Labor Rights Fund charge the oil giant with
complicity in TNI murder, kidnapping and rape of Acehnese living near the
plant.

Human rights groups estimate some 200 civilians have been killed in Aceh
since Indonesia declared martial law on May 19. Over 40,000 people have fled
their homes; many are in camps without clean drinking water and adequate
sanitation. Indonesia has estimated that over 300,000 people will be
displaced in the military operation.

IHRN is a U.S.-based grassroots organization working to educate and activate
the American public and influence U.S. foreign policy and international
economic interests to support democracy, demilitarization, and justice
through accountability and rule of law in Indonesia. IHRN seeks to end armed
forces repression in Indonesia by exposing it to international scrutiny.
IHRN works with and advocates on behalf of people throughout the Indonesian
archipelago to strengthen civil society. For more information see
www.IndonesiaNetwork.org.