UN given the go-ahead to observe student protests<\/p>\n
SEMARANG (JP): Minister of Justice Muladi said here yesterday
\nthat the United Nations could send representatives to monitor the
\nwaves of student protests in Indonesia, but their presence should
\nonly be as observers.<\/p>\n
Speaking to reporters, Muladi also said that the UN's presence
\nmust be certified by the foreign ministry.<\/p>\n
\"The UN can come here, but its capacity can only be as an
\nobserver, not more than that,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Muladi was replying to questions from journalists querying the
\nminister over reports that several non-governmental organizations
\nhad called for the UN to send a team to Indonesia to monitor the
\nprotests and alleged disappearance of several activists.<\/p>\n
The influential Foundation of the Indonesian Legal Aid
\nInstitute is among those who have sent a letter to the Geneva-
\nbased UN High Commission on Human Rights (UNHCR).<\/p>\n
Muladi said he had so far not received any notice as to
\nwhether the world body would send a team to monitor the student
\nprotests and inquire about the reportedly missing activists.<\/p>\n
At least two people -- Andi Arief, the chairman of
\nunrecognized Indonesian Student Solidarity for Democracy and
\nHaryanto Taslam of the Indonesian Democratic Party faction loyal
\nto Megawati Soekarnoputri -- are still reported as missing.<\/p>\n
In Jakarta, Minister of Home Affairs R. Hartono said the
\nreportedly missing activists could be \"in hiding\".<\/p>\n
\"They could be hiding in a hut somewhere having a cup of
\ncoffee ... It's just possible.<\/p>\n
\"We (the government) won't fuss about it. There's one thing
\nthat I as the minister of home affairs, want to remind you
\nconcerning their disappearance, if they really are missing, and
\nthat is that it is ABRI's (the Armed Forces) duty to find them,
\nbut it's not ABRI's responsibility if they can't be found,\" he
\nsaid after meeting with President Soeharto at the Bina Graha
\npresidential office.<\/p>\n
\"There's a difference, you know, between duty and
\nresponsibility. ABRI's duty is to search for them but don't blame
\nABRI if they are not found.<\/p>\n
\"And don't say that their disappearance is ABRI's
\nresponsibility.\"<\/p>\n
Also in Jakarta, National Commission on Human Rights member
\nBambang W. Soeharto said the commission had received inquiries
\nfrom the UNHCR along with NGOs in England, the United States, as
\nwell as from Sweden about the reportedly missing activists and
\nstudent protests.<\/p>\n
\"But I have told them to wait for the results of our
\nevaluation, monitoring, and investigation, so we haven't given
\nthem our answers yet,\" he was quoted by Antara as saying.<\/p>\n
Student demonstrations over the country's deepening economic
\ncrisis continued in many parts of the country yesterday,
\nincluding in Semarang and Purwokerto in Central Java, East Java's
\ncapital Surabaya, and South Sulawesi's Ujungpandang.<\/p>\n
Violence erupted in Purwokerto. Two police officers and dozens
\nof students were injured following a clash near the entrance gate
\nof Jenderal Soedirman University when about 1,500 demonstrating
\nstudents tried to break a police barricade to march off the
\ncampus into the street.<\/p>\n
The other protests ended peacefully. (45\/37\/nur\/har\/prb\/aan)<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/un-given-the-go-ahead-to-observe-student-protests-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }