Nessen wants safe passage out of RI<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
American journalist William Nessen did not comply on Saturday
\nwith the Indonesian Military (TNI) ultimatum to leave the Free
\nAceh Movement (GAM) rebel group and report to the military.<\/p>\n
He said that he would only go if he was allowed to leave
\nIndonesia without arrest or interrogation.<\/p>\n
Nessen did not heed the Saturday 6 p.m. deadline, set by Aceh
\nmilitary operation commander Brig. Gen. Bambang Darmono on
\nThursday. The TNI gave the deadline to allow time for Nessen to
\nleave the GAM camp in order to avoid injury to the American
\njournalist in the ongoing military offensive.<\/p>\n
\"I will come out if the TNI and the Indonesian government
\nguarantee that I can leave the country without being arrested,
\ninterrogated or stopped,\" he told The Jakarta Post by telephone
\nfrom his hiding place about 30 minutes after the deadline.<\/p>\n
Aceh military operation spokesman Lt. Col. Achmad Yani Basuki
\ncould not be reached for comment on Nessen's demand.<\/p>\n
Nessen said that he would like to be accompanied by a member
\nof staff from the American Embassy and the International Red
\nCross should he decide to leave the rebels' hiding place.<\/p>\n
Bambang had said earlier he had no objection to Nessen leaving
\nthe GAM camp to report to the military under the observance of an
\nAmerican diplomat.<\/p>\n
Nessen, who is known to journalists in Aceh as Abu Billy, has
\nbeen traveling with the rebel group since before the military
\noperation began on May 19.<\/p>\n
The military believes he has joined the group of GAM leader
\nMuzakir Manaf.<\/p>\n
Due to security concerns, Nessen declined to mention his
\nhiding place. The military surmises that he might be in Nisam or
\nSawang area in the North Aceh regency.<\/p>\n
Bambang has warned that Nessen's presence among the rebels
\nwill not hamper the ongoing military operation to quash the GAM
\nseparatists. The passing of the deadline meant that attacks
\nagainst GAM positions would continue regardless of the American's
\npresence among the GAM rebels.<\/p>\n
On Thursday, the TNI displayed several of Nessen's belongings
\nwhich he had left behind in haste when they raided the rebels'
\nposition a day earlier. Some of those items were pictures of him
\nand his family and friends and also several of his videotapes.
\nFootage from the tapes shown to journalists included him
\ninterviewing a young rebel and rebels engaged in a gunfight with
\nIndonesian troops.<\/p>\n
Nessen acknowledged that staying with the rebels would mean he
\nremained in danger, but said he wanted to complete his coverage
\nof them and tell the story of the 27-year-old independence
\nstruggle from their perspective.<\/p>\n
A freelance journalist, Nessen's articles on Aceh have been
\npublished in many major newspapers around the world, including
\nthe Sydney Morning Herald, The Age and The Boston Globe.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, 34 residents of Blang Seupang village, Jeumpa
\nsubdistrict of Bireuen district, Aceh, said they had been
\ntortured by a marine unit of the Indonesian Military. Four of
\nthem showed their wounds and told their experience to RCTI
\nprivate television station and Radio 68-H.<\/p>\n
But the marine commander, Second Lt. Danang Wahyu, whose unit
\nwas accused of torturing the civilians, vehemently denied the
\naccusation.<\/p>\n
\"Why don't you journalists bring them (the villagers) here, so
\nwe can crosscheck the facts,\" he said.<\/p>\n
The villagers, who forced Jakarta-based press cars to stop,
\ntold the TV and radio journalists that the marine units came on
\nFriday at around 3 p.m. and asked them about the whereabouts of
\nGAM members. The villagers said they knew nothing about GAM and
\nsaid that the rebels only came to the village at night.<\/p>\n
They claimed the marine unit members selected 34 people
\nbetween 17 and 45 years old and told them to lay down. The
\nmarines began to walk on their bodies. Four of the villagers --
\nMustafa Usman, Ibrahim, Mohammad and Majid -- were severely
\ntortured.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/nessen-wants-safe-passage-out-of-ri-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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