USAID/OTI Indonesia Field Report
June 2001
Program Description
The Office of Transition Initiatives in Indonesia seeks to assist, accelerate, and secure the process of reform and democratization in this enormous island nation. Following thirty years of corrupt autocracy under former President Suharto, Indonesia inaugurated the first freely elected government in the country's history in 1999. This milestone, while very positive, unleashed social, economic, and religious tensions throughout the archipelago, which have the potential to slow or derail the country's political progress. OTI programs in Indonesia address some of the most difficult regions and issues. Using tools, which vary from media support to governance to reconstruction, OTI is focused on conflict prevention, mitigation and resolution in those crisis areas which have national resonance. OTI's Indonesia budget for FY 2001 is approximately $12.5 million.
Country Situation
Indonesia's political scene in June remained tense during the ongoing struggle between President Abdurrahman Wahid and the Parliament. The President has repeatedly attempted to declare a state of emergency to escape his imminent impeachment, but has failed so far because of opposition from senior ministers, the military and the police. In turn, President Wahid reshuffled his cabinet, but faced resistance when he tried to do the same with the army and police leadership. The support of both institutions is essential for a successful implementation of the emergency plans; however, the current senior officers from both security forces have made it clear that they would ignore a presidential declaration of emergency. The tensions arising from the conflict over Wahid's presidency have shifted the military back into the spotlight of elite politics.
Religious, ethnic, and separatist conflicts continued in many of the country's outer provinces. The security situation in Aceh and Maluku worsened, renewed ethnic violence erupted in Pontianak, West Kalimantan, and renewed religious violence broke out in Central Sulawesi.
OTI Highlights
A. Narrative Summary
Aceh
Throughout June, security incidents continued to dominate events in Aceh. Daily occurrences included direct clashes between the separatist Free Aceh Movement (GAM) and Government of Indonesia (GOI) military and police; civilian casualties; burnings of shops, homes and schools; intimidation and arrests of activists and private citizens; and unpunished abductions and murders. In addition, a new element emerged in the conflict, with GAM targeting Javanese trans-migrant communities in Central Aceh, claiming that their victims were TNI-supported militias. In one incident, more than forty civilians reportedly died.
The suspension of operations by Exxon-Mobil was still in force by the end of June.
UNDP closed its office in Banda Aceh at the request of the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. UNDP had completed disbursements of over $400,000 from the Humanitarian Pause Trust Fund.
OTI continued its operational support for the Humanitarian Dialogue Center's (formerly the Henry Dunant Center) Banda Aceh-based Joint Committees, Monitoring Teams and Public Information Unit. The Joint Monitoring Teams were still restricted to their offices, but continued to receive and process incident reports from walk-in visitors. HDC also concentrated its efforts on building consensus for a high-level Joint Council meeting that was held in Geneva at the end of June. OTI funded travel for several Joint Committee and Monitoring Team members to attend this meeting.
OTI also funded several grants focussed on human rights. One grant supported a visit by a group of lawyers from Aceh to Jakarta to meet with high-level national government officials, including the president, to lobby for more attention to the deplorable state of the judicial system in the province. The group argued specifically for the assignment of more judges and the provision of incentives to keep them working in Aceh. Another grant provided training for local journalists in Banda Aceh on the reporting of human rights cases, with a particular focus on the issues of protecting the identities of victims and witnesses.
OTI has had consultations with several key U.S. Senators, the State Department, and other USAID offices regarding security conditions that are limiting the kind of activities that OTI normally funds. These discussions led to a decision in late May to expand OTI's mandate in the province to include capacity-building for local NGOs. By the end of June, OTI began grants to provide equipment and vehicles to thirteen Banda Aceh-based civil society groups. OTI intends to complement these grants with similar grants to NGOs in conflict areas outside of the provincial capital. Management and technical training grants will also be provided to these groups.
Medan
OTI completed shutdown operations for its office in Medan by June 30.
Maluku
In June, the security situation in Maluku worsened visibly. Tensions escalated with a new outbreak of violence and a shift in the way violent acts were perpetrated. Much of this was at the hands of Laskar Jihad, which began employing more terrorist-style tactics by sweeping international organizations' vehicles for Christians and targeting specific Muslim communities they deemed had gone "off message". The military responded to this new form of violence in an equally heavy-handed manner. By mid-June, the military's Joint Battalion attacked and destroyed an "illegal" radio station owned and operated by Laskar Jihad. The Joint Battalion then launched a weapons sweep at a Laskar Jihad health clinic, killing or injuring a number of civilians. The public reaction from both Christian and Muslim communities was one of outrage. In response, the military hastily recalled the regional military commander and assigned him to another part of the archipelago in what was seen as a demotion.
OTI's ongoing activities on Ambon island continued to focus on the expansion of neutral space. Despite the renewed violence, the NGO Community Resource Center (opened in May by Mercy Corps, with OTI funding) continued to be used by local NGOs for training, planning meetings and coordination efforts. In addition, the Joint Committee's Baku Bae movement resumed the establishment of its secretariat in Nania, a new neutral location on Ambon island. Finally, an OTI-supported local NGO, Yayasan 45, continued repairs to the high school that will temporarily house classes for Muslim and Christian students from Pattimura University. In partnership with UNICEF, OTI funded the Christian-based group, YPLPMK, and the Muslim-based Forum, Inovasi Group, to establish a long-term computer skills training program for at-risk high school students at the Ambon Public Library, another neutral location in Ambon city. In addition, OTI partnered with UNICEF to fund the purchase of garbage skips run by a Muslim NGO and a Christian NGO in connection with a wider campaign for inter-community cooperation.
During June, OTI began to turn its focus to areas of Maluku province where the conflict has ended and voluntary returns of IDPs have begun. OTI funded Mercy Corps to carry out an assessment of the needs and obstacles to returnees in Southeast Maluku, Seram and Buru islands.
OTI is now planning to fund an expansion of the Ambon Public Library's facilities for the computer training program, including an internet café. OTI also plans to support repairs and equipment replacements for the largest vocational high school in Maluku province, where Christian and Muslim students can once again study together in peace. OTI will also work with the new mayor of Ambon to gauge interest in a clean-up-the-city campaign aimed at inter-community cooperation and civic pride. OTI will also survey parliamentarians from Southeast Maluku to determine whether there is a need for a parliamentary strengthening program aimed at building the skills necessary to cope with decentralization and returning IDP needs.
North Maluku
North Maluku remains as stable as it was during the month of May, and has been relatively peaceful for nine months, with reconstruction efforts and the return of IDPs showing progress. OTI is continuing to assist in the reconstruction of homes for returning IDPs, media efforts, training for the local Parliament, and support to the Indonesia Red Cross. All of these efforts are intended to solidify the peace and a return to normalcy.
West Timor
This month, the local and international community looked on as the Government of Indonesia (GOI) finally conducted a one-day refugee registration in West Timor on June 6. While very few international monitors participated, there were critical reports from inside and outside of the country regarding the lack of a comprehensive operational strategy and poor education of the event and its implications for refugees. Among other issues, the registration committee was ill prepared for the arduous process. Consequently, the validity of the registration result has been questioned by many - only 1.1% of the refugees expressed a willingness to return to East Timor with the rest preferring to stay in Indonesia. While immediate repatriation/resettlement was planned for after the registration, to date there has been no activity on the ground. However, recent reports from West Timor indicate that TNI may not begin to withdraw after August from refugee camps, as was planned earlier.
In response to the security situation, OTI activities in West Timor were limited until recently. OTI's specific priority areas for West Timor are providing accurate information to refugees and strengthening local human rights capacities. In anticipation of the GOI refugee registration on June 6, OTI supported a local NGO to educate the local public about the registration process. This was accomplished using dialogue, advocacy and dissemination of information in three relatively secure camps around Kupang. This activity encouraged several camp leaders from those locations to return to East Timor directly after the process finished.
Future activities in West Timor will depend on security conditions. With high numbers of East Timor refugees choosing to stay in Indonesia, there may be increased tensions due to the economic and social burden to the West Timor region. At the same time, the potential conflicts between this immigrant group and local people may become greater. Anticipating this situation, OTI will focus its programs on conflict prevention and resolution efforts, while maintaining a concentration on human rights programming.
Papua
In May, attention was focused in Jakarta, where the draft Bill for Special Autonomy for Papua was discussed in the House of Representatives (DPR). After lengthy lobbying and arguments, the BAMUS Special Committee in the DPR provisionally decided to use the draft bill composed by the OTI-supported UNCEN team as the one to be discussed within the House, rather than an alternative draft bill composed by Ministry of Home Affairs that was submitted first, and according to house rules, should be granted primary consideration. [The UNCEN team includes political and legal experts from Cendrawasih University, (UNCEN), based in Papua, and was tasked with combining elements of four existing draft bills and a document prepared by moderates of the Papuan People's Presidium, into a new framework for special autonomy].
During the month of June, the political map in the House of Representatives (DPR) shifted along with changes in the political atmosphere in Jakarta and the future of the draft was uncertain. However, in mid-July the BAMUS finally decided that the UNCEN draft would indeed serve as the principal draft - a positive step forward to addressing local aspirations.
June also saw an increase in separatist activity in the Birds Head (northwest) region of Papua, including reported human rights violations in Wasior, a sub-district in Manokwari, where five Brimob and one civilian was killed and several civilians were injured.
Since February, OTI has expanded its focus to include the important issue of special autonomy. In this area, OTI has supported three organizations to carry out public information campaigns and provide feedback on the draft Special Autonomy Bill for Papua. The Board of Legal Aid for Research, Studies and Development (LP3BH) covered the district of Manokwari, The Institute for Human Rights Study and Advocacy (ELSHAM-Sorong) covered the district of Sorong (one of the largest and most resource rich sections of the province), while GKI (The Indonesian Christian Churches of Papua) carried out activities in the districts of Biak, Timika, Jayapura, Manokwari and Sentani. OTI also funded equipment, travel and accommodation of the Cendrawasih University team to Jakarta in order to lobby the national legislature and the central government to approve the draft Bill for Special Autonomy.
In June, OTI supported two initiatives in the area of governance - a workshop on government transparency and accountability in Biak, and another in Manokwari. Future activities in Papua still depend very much on the fate of the draft Special Autonomy Bill. Recognizing that this contentious issue is a potential trigger for conflict, OTI is developing activities with GKI, the largest Church in Papua, to strengthen its province-wide human rights network. OTI is also developing programs with YPLHC in Jayapura and YWL in Merauke to develop a good governance program as a continuation of the previous program in Jayapura, as well as preparation for the future special autonomy once it is applied in Papua. In addition, OTI continues to work with its grantees, UNCEN and Kontras, to address legislative strengthening in Papua.
Civilian-Military Relations
Civilian-military relations continued to be dominated by the ongoing struggle over the presidency. Political dynamics have made implementation of OTI program activities in this sector difficult. The focus of the program, institutional reform of the military and the establishment of effective civilian control over the armed forces, was often overshadowed by the day-to-day issues of politicking. The Minister of Defense, for instance, who had worked closely with an OTI-funded team of civilian military experts in formulating a reform-minded State Defense Bill, was busy lobbying other political forces not to topple President Wahid. As a result, he was unable to adequately defend the bill during deliberations at the Parliament. However, at the request of the Minister, OTI was able to provide resources to allow members of the team of experts to advise him during the deliberation process.
Also during the deliberation process, OTI funded briefings for both political parties and the military about part of the bill. OTI's support for these briefings removed most of the hurdles for the bill. The outcome is still unknown, given the recent change in Department of Defense leadership and the acute presidential crisis.
Other OTI projects on institutional military reform have experienced similar disturbances. An OTI-appointed team of legal experts working on alternatives for the Emergency Act drafted by the government has interacted with four Ministers of Justice in the last six months. Each change in the Ministry's leadership requires new briefing sessions and strategic reorientation, leading to substantial delays in the process. Equally, an OTI-funded project on the decentralization of security had problems presenting its results to the political elite because the focus on Wahid's future continues to alter the routine parliamentary schedule.
The apparent inevitable downfall of President Wahid will mean that OTI's program will need to adapt to a dramatically changed policy environment, with new political players and shifted priorities. On the positive side, greater political normalcy may allow for the concentration of structural aspects of military reform. On the negative side, the military may enjoy the fruits of the successfully mastered political crisis, which could lead to increased institutional autonomy and expanded public tolerance toward its security approach in Aceh and Papua.
B. OTI-Indonesia Grants Activity Summary (Program Funds only)
| Civil Society |
17 grants |
$233,073 |
| Civilian/Military |
1 grant |
$36,235 |
| Community Stabilization |
4 grants |
$88,000 |
| Governance |
2 grants |
$30,845 |
| Media |
1 grant |
$5,882 |
| ACEH |
15 grants |
$198,785 |
| MALUKU Province |
4 grants |
$88,000 |
| PAPUA Province |
1 grant |
$8,915 |
| SULAWESI ISLAND Provinces |
2 grants |
$35,500 |
| East Nusatenggara, West Timor Region |
2 grants |
$26,600 |
| JAVA Provinces (excluding Jakarta) |
1 grant |
$36,235 |
| TOTAL GRANTS - MONTH OF JUNE 2001 |
25 grants |
$394,035 |
| TOTAL GRANTS - OCT 00 to JUN 01 |
154 grants |
$3,270,118 |
| TOTAL GRANTS - LIFE OF PROGRAM |
656 grants |
$20,945,677 |
|
