Gus Dur offers freedom but not independence

Gus Dur offers freedom but not independence

JAKARTA (JP): Visiting President Abdurrahman Wahid said in
Irian Jaya on Monday that Jakarta would allow "peaceful freedom
of expression" in the province, but warned against any attempt to
secede from the republic.

Speaking during a Christmas celebration in the provincial
capital of Jayapura, Abdurrahman said that "Irian Jaya must
remain part of the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia".

"I will allow the people here to freely express their
opinions, but if there is any attempt to declare independence of
the province, I will take action against it," Abdurrahman said.

In what appeared to be a shift from his earlier stance,
Abdurrahman also said Monday that the police move to arrest
Irianese pro-independence leader Theys Eluay earlier this month
had to be "respected".

Abdurrahman had earlier called on the police to release Theys
so that dialog between Jakarta and Irian leaders in the troubled
province could resume.

Top security officials in Jakarta refused, however, to bow to
the President's demand. Instead, the promised to speed up the
investigation against Theys, who has been charged with
subversion.

Theys and four other Irian Jaya pro-independence activists
grouped in the Papuan Presidium Council were arrested prior to
and after the observance of the unrecognized 1961 declaration of
independence for Irian, also known as West Papua.

At least 16 people have died this month in a series of violent
incidents related to the growing clamor for independence in the
easternmost province.

The 31-member Presidium has so far been advocating dialog and
a non-violent approach to the independence struggle.

Irianese civic leaders had earlier suggested that the arrest
of Theys could be considered as an attempt to provoke Irianese
people to put up resistance.

They also accused Jakarta of trying to create preconditions
for imposing repressive measures in the province.

Also present on Monday were First Lady Sinta Nuriyah
Abdurrahman, the Indonesian Military Chief Adm. Widodo A.S.,
Irian Jaya Governor J.P. Salossa, Minister of Agriculture and
Forestry Bungaran Saragih and Junior Minister for the
Acceleration of Development in Indonesia's Eastern Region Manuel
Kaisiepo.

Meanwhile, a member of the Presidium was quoted by AFP as
saying on Monday that Abdurrahman has left independence leaders
in Irian Jaya out of the schedule of his two-day visit to the
province.

"We have had no invitation," Presidium moderator Willy
Mandowen said.

"There are no plans for any meeting between Presidium members
and Gus Dur," he said referring to the president by his nickname.

Willy said, however, the Presidium's deputy leader, Tom
Beanal, may be included in a group of community leaders scheduled
to hold talks with Abdurrahman in the southern mining town of
Timika on Tuesday.

Tom is chief of the Timika-based Amungme people.

Abdurrahman, who arrived in Jayapura at around 5 p.m., is
scheduled to return to Jakarta on Tuesday afternoon.

Abdurrahman's visit to Irian Jaya was shadowed by a series of
bombings at churches across the country on Sunday.

Commenting on the bombings, Abdurrahman pledged in Jayapura
that the government "will get to the bottom" of the incident and
said that strict measures would be taken against the
perpetrators.

"We should not be afraid of terrorists. The state will not be
afraid of them and we will take action on them," he was quoted by
Antara as saying.(35/byg)