Foreign concern mounts over activists' arrests
Foreign concern mounts over activists' arrests
JAKARTA (JP): More concern was voiced overseas yesterday on the country's political situation and the recent arrests of activists from organizations that have been branded subversive.
Glyn Davies of the United States' state department expressed Washington's concern at the government's crackdown on the activists, in particular its detention of Budiman Sudjatmiko of the Democratic People's Party (PRD) and labor activist Muchtar Pakpahan, AFP reported yesterday.
"We are aware of the continued wide-scale arrests of political activists," Glyn Davies said. "We have a particular concern about the arrest and continued detention of Muchtar Pakpahan and Budiman Sudjatmiko. There are of course others and we are concerned about those as well."
US officials have made their concerns known to Indonesian authorities, Davies said, noting that Assistant Secretary of State Winston Lord summoned the Indonesian charge d'affaires for a meeting in Washington last week.
A US official, who asked not to be named, said that Jakarta appeared to be "taking on board what we're having to say."
In Jakarta, US Embassy spokesman Craig Strommen, when questioned by The Jakarta Post, said that "we continue to be deeply concerned about the violations of basic rights of freedom of peaceful assembly, freedom of speech, freedom of association, respect for the rule of law and the democratic process."
Strommen said his government also called on the Indonesian government to ensure that these rights were protected in future, that those detained simply for exercising constitutional freedoms be released and to guarantee that any people charged in connection with the July 27 riots were treated according to the law.
Pakpahan, the leader of the Independent Prosperous Labor Union, was arrested and charged with subversion following the riots in which four people were killed. He could face the death penalty.
Sudjatmiko was arrested with nine fellow activists on Sunday. The military allege there are links between the PRD and the outlawed Indonesian Communist Party.
In Manila, union leaders said yesterday they didn't believe that Pakpahan had been detained solely for instigating the July 27 riots.
Daniel Edralin, the secretary-general of the union of hotel and restaurant employees in Manila, and Ursula Engelen-Kefer of the German Confederation of Trade Unions said the detention was more likely related to Pakpahan's earlier activities in advocating workers' rights.
They said separately that protest letters had been sent to Jakarta along with letters from their affiliated international unions, including the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions, the American Federation of Labor and the Congress of Industrial Organizations.
Edralin said more letters would be sent by a new Philippines' umbrella union, the Alliance of Progressive Labor. Letters have also been sent by the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines and other unions.
Edralin also told the Post that it was Pakpahan's right as a citizen to participate in public protests not directly related to workers' rights, if he was in fact involved at all.
Engelen-Kefer, also the Deputy Chairwoman of the Confederation of Trade Unions, said the confederation and the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions had written to President Soeharto.
The letters "protested very sharply", she said. The arrest was a serious violation of trade union rights as recognized by the International Labor Organization, of which Indonesia is a member, she said. (anr)