ASIANOW | Asiaweek - Newsmap: Indonesia
Sebastian Wright
Published Apr 12, 2026
| Indonesia |
Week of December 1, 2000
MAKASSAR About 20 anti-independence East Timorese tried to attack Australia's ambassador, John McCarthy, when he attended a public function. Australians have been targeted by pro-Jakarta former residents of East Timor who are angry about Canberra's efforts to get a U.N. peacekeeping force deployed there when violence erupted after the 1999 vote for independence.
Week of November 24, 2000
JAKARTA Rumors of former president Suharto's death, which proved wrong, drove the rupiah down. Police searching for his son, Tommy, in Suharto's bedroom, say the former strongman has an intravenous drip and an oxygen tube to help him breath. News that he was still alive only slightly raised the rupiah's value.
Week of November 17, 2000
JAKARTA Most people surveyed in the capital and its surroundings think the military will take power when the civilian government falters. The results of a poll conducted by the Urban Studies Foundation showed that 60% of the 4,000 people questioned believe the threat of a military takeover is real, according to the Kompas daily.
Week of November 3, 2000
INDONESIA Shouting "Jihad, JihadJihad," Muslim students rallied outside the U.S. embassy. The building, heavily guarded at all times, has increasingly been the scene of demonstrations for what the participants see as the Americans' bias against Palestinians in their struggle with Israel. As street demonstrations in Jakarta go, the gathering was nothing particularly unusual. But there might have been a larger threat lurking in the background. On Oct. 26 and 27 the building unexpectedly closed its gates to the public because of an unspecified terrorist threat -- almost surely not these young people. The embassy's spokesman would not clarify why the steps were taken, only to say that the situation was serious enough that only staff would be allowed to enter to report for work.
Week of October 27, 2000
JAKARTA Donors pledged $4.8 billion in new aid at a meeting chaired by the World Bank. The two-day Consultative Group Meeting for Indonesia (convened in Tokyo) shrugged off protests about human rights abuses and took the view that the government's efforts to improve the political situation should be acknowledged.
Week of October 20, 2000
INDONESIA Lt.-Gen. Endriartono Sutarto (left) and Vice Adm. Indroko Sastrowiryono were appointed to head the army and navy -- an indicator of how far President Abdurrahman Wahid's power has fallen. A much wider shuffle was expected. The little-known Sutarto replaced army commander Gen. Tyasno Sudarto; Wahid was reportedly blocked by the military from appointing his own choice, the reformist Gen. Agus Wirahadikusumah. The limited change shows the veiled tussle between the government and the military continues. Wahid, allegedly involved in corruption scandals and under investigation by the legislative Peoples' Representative Council, complains he is not in full control of the country's troops. So has the push for military reform stalled because of the resistance? Not at all, Defense Minister Mohamad Mahfud told Asiaweek. "All of us have the same attitude," he said. "Everyone wants reform." Some more than others.
Week of October 13, 2000
INDONESIA Win some, lose some. But never give up. For both the government and the Suharto clan, those are words to live by after days of legal skirmishes for the two opposing sides in Indonesia's struggle over reform. At the Suharto family compound in central Jakarta there were words of thanks when the news came that corruption charges against the former president were thrown out on the grounds he is too feeble to stand trial. But whatever joy there may have been was tempered by the reality that Suharto's youngest son, "Tommy" Hutomo Mandala Putra, sometime businessman and millionaire playboy, faces 18 months in jail for a $10.8 million land-swap scandal while his father was in power. Ordered to report to prosecutors to start his sentence on Sept. 29, Tommy showed up on Oct. 3 and appealed to President Abdurrahman Wahid for clemency, which the president quickly rejected.
Week of September 29, 2000
JAKARTA Prosecutors extended for 30 days the detention of the suspended governor of the country's central bank, Syahril Sabirin.
Week of September 22, 2000
JAKARTA A vehicle in the underground parking lot of the 36-story building that houses the stock exchange exploded. The blast was equivalent to 50 kg of explosives according to a police spokesman. At least 10 people died in the blast.
Week of September 15, 2000
ATAMBUA The UNHCR evacuated all its staff after three of them were killed in an attack by hundreds of pro-Indonesia militia.
Week of September 15, 2000
Gen. Abdul Haris Nasution, one of the most influential and controversial military figures of modern-day Indonesia, died Sept. 6 at the age of 81. In a career that spanned the critical early decades, the North Sumatra-born former defense minister and military chief helped shape the nation's destiny, while placing the armed forces at the center of Indonesian life. His opposition to Communism, as well as his dissatisfaction with the chaos of the early years of Indonesia's faction-ridden democracy, often pitted Nasution against first president Sukarno. In the purported communist coup of Sept. 30, 1965, Nasution, then defense minister, escaped the slaughter of senior generals, their aides and families by climbing over the wall of his home. Eighteen months later he chaired the emergency meeting of the People's Consultative Assembly that revoked Sukarno's president-for-life status and ultimately made Maj.-Gen. Suharto president. Nasution's 1958 doctrine in which military officers were neither separated from political affairs nor in charge of the government, evolved into the now much-maligned dwifungsi or dual-function. Increasing military corruption and the armed forces's use as a political tool by Suharto deeply distressed him. In 1980, he joined 49 other senior Indonesian figures to protest the degeneration of Suharto's "New Order" in the famous Petition of Fifty. Nasution spent most of his life after 1965 in retirement in his home in Menteng - a stone's throw from Suharto's house.
Week of September 8, 2000
INDONESIA These are "against" but there are plenty "for" the trial of former president Suharto starting on Aug. 31. The 79-year-old strongman is being tried for siphoning $571 million from tax-free charities into the businesses of family and friends during his 32-year rule. In trying Suharto the government is putting its prestige and commitment to reform on the line -- even though President Abdurrahman Wahid has promised a complete pardon to Suharto if he subjects himself to the ordeal. Suharto's lawyers say he can no longer express his thoughts coherently and his memory is failing. Attorney General Marzuki Darusman says Suharto must appear to hear the charges when they are read against him, but can then absent himself from the proceedings.
Week of September 1, 2000
DILI The eight-day congress of the National Council of Timorese Resistance got underway on Aug. 22. About 500 people met with the U.N. interim government and other international agencies to begin planning for the parliamentary elections in 2001 that will give East Timor its first government after independence.
Week of September 1, 2000
JAKARTA Former president Suharto will go on trial for corruption on Aug. 31. The ailing 79-year-old will have to appear in court personally, despite pleas from his lawyers that he is too ill to attend. He could have faced a maximum sentence of life imprisonment, but President Abdurrahman Wahid pledged a complete pardon if he stands trial.
Week of Aug 18, 2000
Indonesian government auditors urged an inquiry into $16 billion of loans made by the government to banks that were supposed to cover bad debts. Officials fear the money went into currency speculation or additional lending instead.
Week of Aug 11, 2000
This is the change that got all the attention, but in fact four "political generals" - all appointees of President Abdurrahman Wahid - were reassigned or pushed aside on July 31. Maj.-Gen. Ryamizar Ryacudu took over Kostrad - the Army Strategic Reserve Command, responsible for security in Jakarta - from Lt.-Gen. Agus Wirahadikusumah. It is the fourth military shuffle since Wahid became president in October 1999 and is seen as the return of "mainstream officers" to positions of power. Agus says he was sacked because he found that 173 billion rupiah ($21.3 million) is missing from Kostrad accounts.
Week of Aug 4, 2000
NORTH SUMATRA Ash-laden smog caused by natural forest fires and slash-and-burn brush clearing on plantations has driven air pollution indices so high that civilian evacuations might be necessary. Seasonal winds have driven the haze generated by the fires into neighboring Singapore and Malaysia. Over 160 fires have been detected in Indonesia.
Week of Aug 4, 2000
The 50,000-rupiah notes showing the face of former president Suharto will no longer be legal tender as of Aug. 21. The bills were issued in 1993 to commemorate his sixth five-year term.
Week of Aug 4, 2000
JAKARTA Prosecutors promised they will file charges before Aug. 10 against former president Suharto for stealing $155 million from the state during his 32-year rule.
Week of July 28, 2000
JAKARTA Foreign Minister Awi Shihab will go to the U.N. in August to defend the government's policy of inaction in the violence-torn Maluku islands. Some 4,000 people there have been killed and half a million driven from their homes in the past 18 months by the Christian-Muslim strife.
Week of July 21, 2000
JAKARTA Another deadline set by the IMF for the implementation of economic reform programs might be missed. The biggest problem seems to be the Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency's inability to deal with non-paying debtors. Under consideration: a presidential decree to solve the problem instead of having ministers make policy.
Week of June 30, 2000
HALMAHERA Police and Christian activists in the Maluku islands disagree. The church members say 152 people were killed and many more injured in a June 19 attack by Muslims. The authorities claim the report is one sided and that 114 died. The military posted to the area admit they are relatively helpless in stopping the violence.
Week of June 23, 2000
INDONESIA He came, he smiled, he declined comment. On June 13, Hutomo "Tommy" Suharto, youngest son of former president Suharto, underwent another round of interrogation at the attorney general's office about his father's 32-year rule. Juan Felix Tampubolon, who is also a lawyer for Suharto, told journalists after the questioning that Tommy was asked mainly about land purchased by a foundation he headed from a charity controlled by his father. He later turned the property into a race course. "Not too long in the future, the attorney general's office will hand over the case of Suharto to the court," Attorney General Marzuki Darusman told reporters. On June 14, he said negotiations had started for a handover of any of the family's ill-gotten wealth.
Week of June 16, 2000
SJAHRIL SABIRIN, Indonesia's central bank governor, won't be fired from his job by Parliament unless he is found guilty of misconduct in the growing Bank Bali slush-fund scandal. He is under pressure from President Wahid to leave his post.
Week of June 16, 2000
JAKARTA The Central District Court rejected a $27-billion defamation lawsuit by ex-President Suharto against TIME magazine. In an article, TIME claimed that Suharto's family had illegally accumulated $15 billion during his 32-year rule.
Week of June 9, 2000
MEDAN A home-made bomb exploded in a church here injuring 23 worshipers. Police said they did not know who planted the bomb. Medan, the largest city in north Sumatra, has a large population of Christians.
Week of May 26, 2000
It was a normal week: The rupiah continued its fall through the 8,500 mark, leaving moneychangers working overtime. President Abdurrahman Wahid denied that his brother Hasyim Wahid's job as an adviser to the Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency was inappropriate or that he had anything to do with Hasyim's hiring. Earlier in the week, prosecutors interrogated former president Suharto for a third time over allegations of corruption during his 32 years in power. His former military chief, retired general Wiranto, was questioned about his role in the pro-Indonesian militia's killing spree in East Timor after the 1999 referendum for independence. Angry Indonesians rioted in Jakarta's Chinese district when police cracked down on pirated-video vendors, on the second anniversary of the calamitous riots that accompanied Suharto's ouster. And Foreign Minister Alwi Shihab, in Washington, called for an international economic helping hand for Jakarta -- "Which we very much need," he admitted.
Week of May 19, 2000
This is a common occurrence in Jakarta. On May 9 hundreds of protesters demanded that former president Suharto be tried for graft. Investigators from the attorney-general's office have managed to question the 78-year-old Suharto twice in recent weeks, but have yet to bring charges against him. His son-in-law, Prabowo Subianto, feels the old man should be left alone. "We should all be fair, everybody has his merits and demerits. We should respect a former leader of this nation and his good deeds," Prabowo said at a press conference marking his return from two years overseas. A plea from Prabowo, the former commander of the special forces, might have the opposite effect on these people though - many of them are convinced he orchestrated the violence surrounding Suharto's departure.
Week of May 12, 2000
JAKARTA To meet a June 5 deadline set by donor countries, the government and the IMF gathered to finalize the revamped economic reform program. The IMF's executive board will meet on May 31 to approve the changes. In April the Fund delayed $400 million in aid because of concerns about faltering resolve to clean up the economy.
Week of April 28, 2000
JAKARTA Rumors about a coming cabinet shuffle are swirling. Some of the names being mentioned as possible actors: investment minister Laksamana Sukardi, trade minister Jusuf Kalla and finance minister Bambang Sudibyo. And the debate about turning the next convening of the MPR (the People's Consultative Assembly) into a "special session" in which the president can be ousted, has come out into the open.
Week of April 21, 2000
A 10% value-added tax has been imposed in Indonesia's Batam island, a zone where business activities had been tax-exempt. Companies will still be entitled to tax refunds after showing proof they have exported their goods, but are now worried about getting mired in red tape.
Week of April 7, 2000
JAKARTA Slow negotiations around corporate debt restructuring, state bank reform and taxation will hold up the expected April 4 payment of the next round of International Monetary Fund bailout loans. IMF senior resident representative John Dodsworth says the earliest possible release date will be April 15, but he does not expect a "protracted" delay.
Week of March 24, 2000
JAKARTA The top business associate of former Indonesian president Suharto, timber tycoon Mohamad "Bob" Hasan, was barred from leaving the country. The move came after police questioned Hasan for five hours over possible economic fraud at Bank Umum Nasional, which he controls, even though it was closed by the government in 1998.
Week of March 10, 2000
EAST TIMOR A small step toward reconciliation as Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid is helped by East Timorese leader Xanana Gusmao and Wahid's daughter Yenny, soon after he arrived in Dili on Feb. 29. During his three-hour visit, Wahid placed wreaths at the Santa Cruz cemetery, site of a 1991 massacre by Indonesian troops. "I would like to apologize for the things that have happened in the past," Wahid said. His visit was marked by protesters demanding to know the fate of thousands of people who disappeared during the 24 years of Indonesian rule. Gusmao, most likely the country's first president, called Wahid "a symbol of the universal principle of peace, justice, and democracy." Other Timorese found Wahid's apology inadequate.
Week of March 3, 2000
JAKARTA President Abdurrahman Wahid wants a top-level shake-up of his Supreme Advisory Council and the Supreme Court to make them more effective, according to the Republika daily. Wahid wants judge Benyamin Mangkudilaga, a member of the National Commission on Human Rights, to replace Sarwata as the head of the Supreme Court.
TWO DIAMETRICALLY OPPOSED economies soared in 1999's fourth quarter. Tech-leader Taiwan reported a GDP rise for that period of 6.8% last year, and aims for a 7.5% increase in the first quarter of 2000. Agriculture-based Indonesia saw 5.76% growth, and sees a 4% GDP rise this year.
Week of February 11, 2000
JAKARTA The military is not planning a coup and is unhappy with rumors that it might, Air Marshal Graito Usodo told journalists at a press conference. "The TNI [Indonesian armed forces] fully supports all decisions made by the president and the government," he said. Rumors of a possible coup - or a prolonged standoff between President Abdurrahman Wahid and former Army head Gen. Wiranto (see NEWSMAKERS, page 14) - have been circulating for weeks. Wiranto, 53, is an active general until March 31, when he and three other military officers currently serving as ministers, will take forced retirement as ordered by Wahid.
Week of February 4, 2000
EAST TIMOR Philippine Lt.-Gen. Jaime de los Santos arrived in Dili on Jan. 25 to take over command of the Australian-led troops trying to maintain peace in the strife-torn territory.
Week of January 21, 2000
JAKARTA President Abdurrahman Wahid will embark on a 15-day tour of Europe in February. Wahid said the trip is part of his efforts to help restore confidence in Indonesia.
Week of December 31, 1999
JAKARTA Former military chief Gen. Wiranto asked that his interrogation about violence in East Timor be put off until after the year-end holiday season. Investigators acceded.
NO DEAL ON BANK BALI Standard Chartered Bank pulled out of a deal to buy Bank Bali. Indonesian authorities say they will reopen bidding for the troubled institution.
Week of December 24, 1999
JAKARTA President Abdurrahman Wahid promised to allow the prosecution of top generals - including former military chief Gen. Wiranto - if evidence links them to the violence that rocked East Timor. Meanwhile, U.N. Sec.-Gen. Kofi Annan said he will appoint a commander from the Philippines to head the U.N. peacekeeping force in East Timor. He told a news conference that the deputy commander would still be an Australian "to ensure continuity with the excellent job done by the present international force under Gen. Peter Cosgrove." Cosgrove heads a force of 5,300 Australians and 4,100 other nationals.
Week of December 17, 1999
DEFENSE MINISTER JUWONO SUDARSONO laid it out clearly:"If we don't put substance into the notion of civilian supremacy, then sooner or later the military will return in full force," he told a group of businessmen in Jakarta. He dismissed the possibility of bringing to trial military leaders for their role in human rights abuses in East Timor, Aceh or anywhere else in Indonesia, too. "There would be no end to that [trying military men]. We cannot win through democratic absolutism" - largely because most of the policies that led to the abuses were legitimized through parliament and former president Suharto. Sudarsono, the first civilian defense minister, says he is working on a five-year plan to make the head of the army subservient to the defense ministry.
INDONESIA'S NEW SENIOR ECONOMICS minister Kwik Kian Gie has discussed a plan for Singapore Airlines to run state-owned Garuda Indonesia. Kwik also said Jakarta will sell its majority stakes in its crown-jewel phone monopoly, Telekomunikasi Indonesia and Indonesia Satellite.
Week of December 10, 1999
ON NOV. 30, JOSE RAMOS HORTA, 49, set foot in East Timor for the first time in 24 years after fleeing the territory three days before it was invaded by the Indonesian military in December 1975. The day before his return, Ramos Horta met in Jakarta with President Abdurrahman Wahid. He was accompanied to East Timor by independence leader Xanana Gusmao, who also attended the Jakarta meeting. Gusmao has been back in East Timor since October, after almost seven years in Indonesian prisons. For now, the men share collegial feelings, with Ramos Horta willing to defer to Gusmao's leadership. Gusmao has troubles of his own, though, and faces dissent from within his National Council for East Timorese Resistance.
THE GDP TRAIN ROARS ON: Malaysia's economy grew 8.1% year-on-year in the third quarter of 1999, lower than the two-digit expansion many private-sector economists expected. Hong Kong surprised analysts with a better-than-predicted 4.5% third-quarter rise, while the Philippines met expectations by registering 3.1% GDP growth for the same period. Those economies are on the same growth track as South Korea (12.3%), Singapore (6.7%) and Indonesia (0.5%). Thailand does not issue quarterly growth figures. Japan will release its third-quarter GDP result Dec. 6.
Week of December 3, 1999
JAKARTA The 27-member Independent Commission for Investigation into the Violence in Aceh, established in July, accused top generals of ordering troops to carry out "war crimes" during 10 years of operations in the province and said the officers must be held accountable. The commission's report identified the men only by their initials, but they correspond to former vice president Try Sutrisno, former defense minister Edi Sudrajat, former coordinating minister for political and security affairs Feisal Tanjung and the current holder of the same portfolio, Gen. Wiranto. The day before the report was released, Parliament said it would call officers in to respond to allegations of brutality that already had been made. But the military is taking a hard line: "I and my soldiers will defend Aceh from separation from Indonesia until our last blood," Col. Syarifuddin Tippe told reporters as the parliamentary threat was made.
Week of November 26, 1999
JAKARTA REPORTED HALF-A-PERCENTAGE point GDP growth for the third quarter of 1999, continuing the 1.82% expansion of the second quarter. Officials expect growth of 0.12% for the whole of 1999.
Week of November 19, 1999
THE HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS of Acehnese who turned out in the capital Banda Aceh to call for a referendum on independence got mixed messages. "I myself am pro-referendum. If we do the referendum, let's see what happens," President Abdurrahman Wahid said during his tour of Southeast Asia, which he decided to cut short. The military had a different response. "Referendum is not the best solution. The problems in Aceh are not referendum or freedom," Maj.-Gen. Sudrajat, a military spokesman in Aceh, said a few hours before his president spoke. The government officially started its anti-rebel operations in 1988 when troops were deployed to quash the separatist movement, which has been active since the mid-1970s.
Week of November 12, 1999
ACEH One day after President Abdurrahman Wahid dismissed calls for a referendum on independence, police fired on demonstrators in Meulaboh, injuring 21. Rioting in several towns preceded the shooting. While rejecting the vote, Wahid did recall military units deployed in the province following talks with rebel leaders. On another front, the president ordered that the suppressed, complete version of PricewaterhouseCoopers' investigation into corruption at Bank Bali be distributed to the public.
Week of October 1, 1999
PRICEWATERHOUSECOOPERS SAYS the irregularities it uncovered when investigating Bank Bali are typical of similar widespread abuses throughout Indonesia's banking system. The auditors' report was released in an abbreviated form that did not name government officials who received money from the bank after it was nationalized.
Week of September 10, 1999
JAKARTA Prosecutors demanded Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra, youngest son of former president Suharto, serve two years in jail for corruption.
STUDENTS FROM THE Indonesian Muslim Student Movement (PMII) staged a demonstration at the Welcome Monument in Jakarta to oppose a State Security Bill, currently under debate in Parliament. The PMII demanded the government reject the bill, which they claim is unconstitutional and threatens a return to a military-dominated society.
Week of September 3, 1999
EAST TIMOR With the Aug. 30 U.N.-held referendum on the territory's future only days away, motorcyclists accompanied a street parade of 4,000 people in Dili, the capital, to urge East Timorese to vote for broader autonomy under Indonesia. Pro-independence campaigners, who want to break away and establish their own state, were also out in force, with thousands lining the streets of the former Portuguese territory. Some 450,000 citizens have registered to have their say.
THE HAZE IN THE INDONESIAN PROVINCE of Riau has dramatically reduced visibility, forcing drivers to use headlights in the day. Aircraft are occasionally unable to land and many people have trouble sleeping at night due to restricted breathing.
Week of August 20, 1999
EAST TIMOR U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan wants to boost the U.N.'s police force from 280 to 460 after the Aug. 30 vote on either independence or autonomy for the territory. He also wants an interim representative council in place soon after the vote, no matter what the outcome. Megawati Sukarnoputri, winner of the national elections, called on all sides to maintain peace during the ballot.
Indonesian regulators will appoint independent auditors to review their investigation into irregularities at Bank Bali. Meanwhile, regulators slapped a travel ban on six former bank officials suspected of a connection to the payment of an $80 million commission for the recovery of interbank loans.
Week of August 13, 1999
EAST TIMOR Registration was extended by two days for the referendum on the territory's future. Of the 400,000 people eligible to vote, some 393,000 have signed up for the twice-delayed Aug. 30 poll to decide on total independence from Indonesia or limited autonomy. To accommodate the new polling date, the mandate for the U.N. monitors was extended to Sept. 30.
Week of August 6, 1999
Even with more police like these arriving in East Timor, the U.N.-mandated vote to decide on autonomy or total independence for the territory looks increasingly in doubt. At mid-week, registration for the polling went ahead, while East Timorese independence leader Jose Ramos-Horta warned of a bloodbath if efforts to hold the vote were thwarted. But Ian Martin, head of the U.N. East Timor mission, admitted that the late start to registration, caused by violence from pro-Jakarta groups which want to stay closely tied to Indonesia, make the August deadline difficult to achieve. Voting was originally scheduled to start on Aug. 8 and is now planned for Aug. 21 or 22. In Jakarta, Foreign Minister Ali Alatas accused the U.N. of an anti-Jakarta bias. He said most of the 4,000 local staff the U.N. had hired were from groups demanding independence.
A deal between the Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency and Standard Chartered Bank paves the way for the London-based bank to buy up to a fifth of Bank Bali. Standard Chartered may acquire 100% in coming years.
Hilton International has withdrawn its services from all its Indonesian hotels because of a payment dispute with their owner, PT Indobuildco, according to the Jakarta Post. Until the dispute is settled, Hilton International will not be responsible, and declines any liability for the level of service in the five hotels.
Week of July 30, 1999
JAKARTA Former president Suharto suffered a mild stroke, but his condition was improving at midweek, though his speech was slurred. Suharto, 78, was admitted to Pertamina hospital on July 20 and is expected to remain for about one week. His family and associates at first denied any problem, claiming he had entered the hospital for a regular checkup.
MEGAWATI SUKARNOPUTRI'S INDONESIAN DEMOCRACY PARTY OF STRUGGLE (PDI-P) took 33.7% of the 105 million valid votes counted in the June 7 elections, some 12 million votes ahead of ruling party Golkar, which came second with 22%. But the PDI-P's share of the vote translates only into about 154 seats in the 700-seat People's Consultative Assembly (MPR), which will choose the president and vice-president in November. Responding to criticism that its parliamentary slate doesn't contain enough Muslims, the PDI-P announced it will juggle its list of candidates to make it "more balanced." The final outcome will be determined by deal-making between the major parties, which was underway even before the vote count was completed.
Week of July 23, 1999
EAST TIMOR In the runup to the deadline for a decision on whether or not to go ahead with polling, leaders of the U.N. Mission in East Timor met with the government task force to try to resolve mounting security problems. On July 16, 400,000 eligible East Timorese voters will start to register for August's balloting. The choice: either limited autonomy or full independence from Indonesia. Partisan groups on both sides remain reluctant to surrender their arms and an exodus of frightened citizens is slowly building.
INDONESIA'S ECONOMIC TABLOID Kontan says the PricewaterhouseCoopers' audit of Pertamina, the state-owned oil company, showed some $6.1 billion either missing or misused.
Week of July 16, 1999
AFTER SEVEN ATTACKS ON UNARMED United Nations officials in East Timor, the head of the mission, Ian Martin, flew to Jakarta to make clear his unhappiness with the lack of security arrangements. The government pledged to help but rejected accusations that the violence comes from Jakarta-backed militia groups in the province. Indonesia ruled out sending troops to the area, though it has beefed up police forces that are supposed to work with the U.N. teams. Voting to decide on autonomy or total independence for East Timor, once a Portuguese colony but annexed by Indonesia in 1976, is scheduled for sometime in August. The balloting has already been postponed once and the final decision to go ahead with the process lies with U.N. Sec.-Gen. Kofi Annan.
Week of July 9, 1999
MALIANA For two hours on June 29, a 100-strong mob of pro-Indonesian militiamen attacked a U.N. outpost 80 km southwest of East Timor's capital, Dili. It was the first reported violence against the U.N. mission since it was deployed in May. The incident came as pro- and anti-independence East Timorese leaders were in Jakarta for talks to reduce Timorese violence Newsmakers. Because of the continuing violence, U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan had already ordered a two-week delay in the vote - originally set for Aug. 8 - which will decide on the territory's increased autonomy or total independence from Indonesia. And at midweek, official results from the country's general election, held on June 7, showed 57% of the vote had been tallied. Megawati Sukarnoputri's Indonesian Democracy Party-Struggle led the count with 35.9%, with the former ruling party Golkar in second place, with 19%.
Week of July 2, 1999
DILI The first 41 members of the U.N. police force arrived in East Timor's capital on June 21. But two days later U.N.Secretary General Kofi Annan announced that the referendum on the future of the territory - set for Aug. 8 - will be delayed for two or three weeks. Rival Timorese factions pledged to lay down their arms by July 5, but continuing violence and logistical problems tied to the polling caused the setback. Justice Minister Muladi told U.N.Special Envoy Jamsheed Marker that the unrest is not a deliberate attempt by the government or its Timorese allies to disrupt the poll. Eventually, about 270 U.N. police officers will back up some 5,000 of their Indonesian counterparts to try to ensure a calm vote.
Week of June 25, 1999
EAST TIMOR According to documents revealed by the Sydney Morning Herald, authorities in East Timor plan to use $4.6 million in aid money earmarked to help the poor to instead fund propaganda backing autonomy - rather than full independence - before the Aug. 8 voting on the territory's future. The paper says district leaders have been given the go-ahead to use part of President B.J. Habibie's Social Safety Net Program - much of which came from international donors to help the country weather the Crisis. Meanwhile, the government continued to build up its law enforcement forces in the territory ahead of the first batch of U.N.-sponsored civilian police to be deployed on June 19. The inclusion of the unarmed international officers - there will be 270 of them to bolster more than 5,000 of their local counterparts - is part of an agreement signed by Indonesia and Portugal on May 5 at the United Nations.
Week of June 11, 1999
JAKARTA Siti Hardyanti "Tutut"Rukmana, eldest daughter of former president Suharto, is the second of his six children to be questioned about the family's wealth. The attorney-general's office acted after Time magazine reported that the family amassed $15 billion during Suharto's rule.
Week of May 14, 1999
THE HAZE Asian Development Bank experts say this year's fires in the Indonesian province of Sumatra are smaller than two years ago and have yet to reach the danger point. While there is a threat that the fires could multiply if the dry season prolongs, satellite surveillance has improved the ability of governments to react quickly. The ADB is working on prevention efforts. "I don't think small farmers understand the consequences of one matchstick, especially in a drought situation. I think it's important to raise their awareness," S. Tadir Qadri, a senior environmentalist at the bank, says.
EAST TIMORESE WHO WANT to stay part of Indonesia and those who want either autonomy or independence are at the crux of the problem in the chaos-wracked territory. Indonesia and Portugal signed a May 5 agreement at the United Nations to set up an Aug. 8 vote for Timorese to make the decision. National Police Chief Gen. Rusmanhadi said he will "expand the number of police until it is in line with the need." Until now, the military (ABRI) has controlled East Timor, and not always with a kind hand. U.N. police observers will start arriving on May 10 as ABRI gradually withdraws at its own pace. There is a long history of animosity between the military and the police, which is sure to be aggravated by the presence of men like these who have acted with relative impunity under the 24 years of ABRI's presence
Week of May 7, 1999
U.N. SECRETARY-GENERAL Kofi Annan announced that Portugal and Indonesia agreed to a May 5 signing date for an autonomy package for East Timor which paves the way for 850,000 East Timorese to determine their future. After the agreement goes into effect, U.N. personnel, specifically not identified as peace-keeping troops or military observers but civilians (most likely police), from six countries could move into the troubled territory to curtail ethnic violence. The agreement will effectively allow the people of the former Portuguese colony to choose, on Aug. 8, between autonomy within Indonesia or complete independence.
(LINK TO WORLD EVENTS) Late evening trading on the Nasdaq Stock Market could arrive by mid-year. The move to longer Wall Street days is driven by Internet-based investors who want to deal beyond traditional hours but can't because they hold daytime jobs. The New York Stock Exchange is considering a morning session for trading European stocks and possibly a late session - the Big Board could be open for nearly 20 hours a day within two years.
Week of April 30, 1999
ACCORDING TO THE ASIAN DEVELOPMENT BANK'S Development Outlook for 1999, growth in the Asian and Pacific region is expected to pick up this year, from 2.6% in 1998 to 4.4% this year. Of four major Southeast Asian countries - Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, and Thailand - Malaysia and the Philippines are the ones most likely to grow, although at modest rates of 0.9% and 2.4% respectively.
Week of April 23, 1999
ASEAN environment ministers are worried that Indonesia's elections in June, coupled with the economic crisis, will hamper efforts to tackle air pollution, which is expected to recur during the dry season starting in July. "Our neighbor [Indonesia] will be having an election soon and there will be another period of waiting for a new government to form," Malaysian Science, Technology and Environment Minister Law Hieng Ding was quoted as saying by the New Straits Times. Singapore Health and Environment Minister Yeo Cheow Tong called for a proactive attitude: "We should not be complacent because La Ni"a will end sooner or later and the dry season will return to the region in a few months." He wants ASEAN to re-emphasize enforcement on open burning to tackle the problem at its source - Indonesia's plantations, which use the slash-and-burn method to clear land. He also added a note of reality: "Political will is needed and this is beyond our control."
ATTACKS, COUNTERATTACKS AND ALL-AROUND mayhem have become the order of the day in East Timor. Pro-Indonesian Timorese wrapped themselves in their nation's flag, right, and massed at rallies armed with spears, machetes and home-made guns in a show of force after their nemesis, rebel leader Xanana Gusmao, called on secessionist-minded Timorese to resume their armed struggle. All such desperate men "must be aware that continuing the war would be totally useless in helping to solve the East Timor problem," President Habibie said in Jakarta. To combat the chaos and head off calls for the deployment of U.N. peacekeepers, he endorsed the establishment of an independent human-rights commission to monitor the disintegrating situation.
Week of April 16, 1999
ON APRIL 5, JAILED REBEL LEADER Xanana Gusmao called on East Timorese guerrilla fighters to resume their struggle after he heard that pro-Indonesian militias had killed 17 East Timorese. Military and independent sources put the death toll at two in the skirmish, which happened in a village west of Timor's capital, Dili. Gusmao's declaration was an abrupt reversal - he had been encouraging his followers to show restraint and avoid overreaction to provocation. On April 6 he followed up his call to arms by urging the United Nations to deploy a peace-keeping force in the territory, a plan opposed by the Jakarta government and not endorsed by the U.N.
Week of April 9, 1999
JAKARTA The Supreme Court upheld the independence of the newly created Election Commission, but left it up to President B. J. Habibie to decide whether or not ministers can campaign during the proposed nationwide polls in June - an issue that the Habibie government lobbied hard to win. Critics say it is another example of how desperate ruling politicians are to keep their power and makes the prospect of a fair election a bit more distant.
SINGAPORE, HONG KONG AND JAPAN are the cleanest places to do business in Asia, while Indonesia, India and China are the most corrupt, according to the most recent survey by the Political and Economic Risk Consultancy.
Week of March 26, 1999
JAKARTA Top Australian and Indonesian military brass met in the city for three days of talks on ways to encourage reform in the military. The Australians say reformists, including Armed Forces Commander Gen. Wiranto, recognize that the old ways of doing things are no longer viable and significant elements of the military want to see a successful Indonesia in which the armed forces no longer play a dominant role.
Week of March 19, 1999
ETHNIC KILLINGS IN AMBON as anger and grief spread across the country. At the University of Indonesia in Jakarta women turned out to protest what they called "ethnic cleansing" carried out by the military and Christians. On March 7, Armed Forces chief Gen. Wiranto sent a special taskforce of 19 Ambon-born officers, both Christian and Muslim, to the city on the heels of 3,000 Marine and army reinforcements flown in a few days earlier
Week of March 12, 1999
EAST TIMOR Rebel leader Xanana Gusmao blamed the military's intelligence service for fomenting unrest in the territory in an attempt to derail the move toward greater autonomy or independence. In Jakarta, the chief of the military command overseeing East Timor, Maj.-Gen. Adam Damiri, said he will send troops to protect Indonesian settlers in East Timor, who, he said, are being subjected to "terror and intimidation." And in Australia, Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said that while Canberra did not at this stage favor a Cambodia-style U.N. peacekeeping force, Australia would provide police officers to work under a U.N. command with East Timorese authorities.
Week of March 5, 1999
FOREIGN MINISTER ALEXANDER DOWNER wants the United States, Japan and Portugal to set up a contact group on East Timor. The Australians, seeking to pre-empt possible chaos in a place so near their coast, want to insure as smooth a transition as possible to either independence or autonomy for the territory.
NATURAL DISASTERS
Asia is hit by more natural disasters every year than anywhere else in the world, the U.N.'s Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific said at a convention in Bangkok. Six of the world's 10 largest disasters last year occurred in Asia. They included floods in China and Bangladesh and the forest fires in Indonesia that generated the "haze" that affected much of the southeast. ESCAP estimates that last year 27,000 people died and more than $38 billion was lost to such man-made and natural phenomena.
In Indonesia, at least 30 pharmaceutical firms have temporarily stopped production because of difficulties in obtaining raw materials. Industry officials said up to 80% of the ingredients for the country's drug industry are imported. Sales of producers have dropped by some 60%.
The Indonesian economy might be bad, but that hasn't stopped would-be publishers. The government has issued 685 new licenses for publications since the fall of president Suharto last May.
Week of February 26, 1999
JAKARTA Four junior officers of the Kopassus special forces admitted to a series of kidnappings in the final days of the Suharto government. Their confession came a week after three other soldiers told the same court martial they had been involved in seizing anti-government activists.
Week of February 19, 1999
AT U.N. HEADQUARTERS IN NEW YORK, Indonesia and Portugal could not agree on a method to enable East Timor to choose independence. Indonesian Foreign Minister Ali Alatas and his Portuguese counterpart Jaime Gama also disagreed on the need for a U.N. presence in the former Portuguese territory at this stage. U.N. special representative Jamsheed Marker said the ministers would meet again on March 10, following a senior officials' meeting. Marker said that he has a sense of "profound optimism" about the success of the talks.
Week of February 5, 1999
INDONESIA CONTINUES TO BE WRACKED by civil unrest. The worst violence since the May riots that ushered out the Suharto regime struck the eastern island of Ambon last week. Muslim-Christian strife killed 50 people and left the military warily struggling to regain control - like this soldier near Ambon's fish market. Amien Rais laid the blame for the social tensions on anti-reform forces trying to stall parliamentary elections scheduled for June 7. But Jakarta might solve its problems in East Timor: Information Minister Yunus Yosfiah said after the Jan. 27 cabinet meeting that if the East Timorese reject an "autonomy plus" plan, the territory might be "released from Indonesia."
Week of January 22, 1999
THIS SORT OF SCENE has become common in much of the country: In Karawang, about 60 km east of Jakarta, a demonstration degenerated into an attack on a police station that left one student dead. Increasingly, there are reports of uniformed men carrying out armed robberies with seeming impunity. In the northern province of Aceh, 30 Indonesian soldiers were arrested for beating and torturing to death four young suspects in custody. Those killings came after weeks of clashes between mobs and troops and attacks by crowds on government buildings and symbols in the fervently Muslim, resource-rich province, which the Aceh Merdeka (Free Aceh) movement has long demanded get independence.
INDONESIA'S ECONOMY is so bad that local franchisers of the U.S. fast-food chain McDonald's closed 30 of its 101 outlets in the country in 1998.
Week of January 15, 1999
JAKARTA The markets generally welcomed an austere budget for the next financial year. Government expenditure will drop 17% over this year in an attempt to rein in public spending. Much of the money will still subsidize fuel, electricity, rice and medicine and alleviate growing poverty, but $2.25 billion has also been set aside for the recapitalization of ailing financial institutions. The budget targets zero growth after a 12% contraction in GDP this year. However, the calculations rely on $10 billion in foreign aid, which may or may not come in, and unrealistic expectations of a 57.2% increase in tax revenues.
The General Strikes Back
GEN. WIRANTO, CHIEF OF INDONESIA'S ARMED FORCES (ABRI), is cleaning house. Last year, he got rid of the military faction led by his rival, dismissed Lt.-Gen. Prabowo Subianto, who has been widely accused of involvement in the ethnic rioting that climaxed in the downfall of his father-in-law, President Suharto. Now Wiranto is purging ABRI of the so-called "green" Islamic faction that has been maneuvering to win the military leadership. The Nov. 13 clash between soldiers and the public nearly gave Islam-aligned forces the opportunity to oust Wiranto. But on Jan. 4, Wiranto used his leverage with President Habibie, who has been backing the general for his own political survival, to transfer Lt.-Gen. Fachrul Razi, a key Islamic figure who was ABRI's chief of general affairs. Razi, an emerging rival to Wiranto, was appointed secretary-general in the Ministry of Defense and Security. His successor is deputy army chief of staff Sugiono, whose post, in turn, was awarded to Lt.-Gen. Johny Lumintang, a Christian who headed the Armed Forces Staff and Command School.
Week of January 8, 1999
Jakarta A son of former Indonesian president Suharto denied allegations that charity funds controlled by his father had been diverted into business interests. "Nothing,"said Bambang Trihatmodjo, when asked by the attorney-general's office whether any assets or funds of the Dana Sejahtera Mandiri foundation, of which he was treasurer, had been misused.
Gus Dur Strikes Out on His Own
Some observers think recent comments by Indonesia's charismatic Muslim leader Abdurrahman Wahid point to the involvement of former president Suharto in the "ninja" killings of some 150 shamans and Muslim clerics in East Java in recent months. Many of the victims were loyal to Wahid's 30-million strong Nadhlatul Ulama Muslim group. Wahid's pointed comments about his Dec. 19 meeting with Suharto - "This is the source of disintegration," he said about Suharto's followers - and the presence there of Yorys Rawaii, made clear the NU leader's suspicions. Rawaii is a leading figure in the paramilitary Pemuda Youth movement, which was often used as the muscle for Suharto's political machine. Wahid has obviously decided to pursue his own vision of national reconciliation. To that end he has met in recent weeks with Armed Forces Commander and Defense Minister Wiranto, President B.J. Habibie, one-time military strongman L.B. "Benny" Murdani and, of course, Suharto. Fellow Muslim leader and now head of the National Mandate Party Amien Rais lashed out at Wahid for setting his own agenda, going outside the guidelines set up with other senior oppositionists - dubbed the Ciganjur group - in November. But many, including the respected scholar Nurcholish Madjid, jumped to Wahid's defense, saying no one can keep the 57-year-old cleric from travelling his own road.
