Indonesia told to follow lead of Arab nations

Indonesia told to follow lead of Arab nations

The Jakarta Post
Jakarta

Indonesia should follow the lead of the Arab nations in
reacting to the latest Middle East crisis, former defense
minister Juwono Sudarsono said Wednesday.

Juwono said Indonesia was "despairing" at the failure of the
United Nations to rein in Israeli aggression against Palestinian
leader Yasser Arafat, but, despite being the world's largest
Muslim nation, the country was limited in its ability to help the
Palestinians

"There is a sense of despair and helplessness among
Indonesians," Juwono, a professor of international relations,
told The Jakarta Post.

"On our part the feeling is that the UN has failed and the
United States doesn't seem to be serious in trying to rein in Mr.
Sharon about the events in Ramallah."

Juwono, a minister in the Soeharto, B.J. Habibie and
Abdurrahman Wahid administrations, was commenting on the latest
strike by Israel on the Palestinian territories, which has
sparked nationwide protests here.

The government issued a five-point diplomatic note on Monday
condemning the attack and demanding that Israel protect Arafat,
who has been under siege from Israeli troops in his West Bank
compound since Friday. Indonesia also asked the United Nations to
step in and provide a forum for settling the dispute.

"There is very little that we can do effectively beyond the
diplomatic note. This is rather ironic, given the fact that the
silence of the UN Secretary-General over the past 10 days has
been deafening. I don't think there is anything substantive we
can do besides making these diplomatic protests," he said.

He suggested that Indonesia rely on the Arab League and the
Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) to lead efforts at
finding a solution.

"I don't think there is any need at the moment for Indonesia
to take a lead in this matter." he said.

Muslim organizations led by the Indonesian Ulemas Council
(MUI) have also condemned Israel and demanded Sharon's arrest for
"gross human rights violations".

Amid frustration, there have been calls for the use of an oil
boycott to pressure the U.S. to force Israel to withdraw its
troops from the Palestinian areas.

But Juwono said Indonesia was unlikely to participate in the
move, which has been demanded by Iran and Iraq.

"I don't know whether (an oil blockade) would be effective,
and it would be difficult to get a general agreement among the
oil-producing countries in the Middle East and the members of
OPEC," he said.

"I don't think Indonesia would take part in that kind of
sanction. Our membership within OPEC is still very, very small
and our role in that forum is insubstantial."

Former energy minister and OPEC secretary-general Subroto had
earlier warned Indonesia against supporting an oil embargo.

Juwono also said the escalating tension in the Middle East to
some extent reflected that Arafat had lost control of Palestinian
militants.

"There is a generation gap within the Palestinian leadership,
and the suicide bombers seem to be beyond the control of Mr.
Arafat's leadership. Conversely, in Israel there is widespread
support for the actions the Israeli government is taking because
of the high tension."

More parties joined the chorus of condemnation on Wednesday.
Among them were the Crescent and Star Party (PBB), which called
the Israeli attacks a gross human rights violation and called for
an international tribunal to be established to try Sharon.

"Israel has invaded the Palestine sovereign territories, a
move which has claimed many lives," Jamaluddin Karim, PBB deputy
secretary-general, said reading from a party statement.

PBB secretary-general MS Ka'ban demanded that the government
take an active role, including proposing a peace-keeping force.

Separately, some 200 protesters from the Action Group of
Indonesian Muslim Students (KAMMI), rallied in front of the UN
offices and the U.S. embassy, both in Central Jakarta, to protest
Israel's military attack.

"The UN and the U.S. must take resolute action against the
crimes against humanity being committed by Israeli. An
international court for Israel's Prime Minister Ariel Sharon must
be set up," said Rahmat Ubaidillah, the rally coordinator.

The rally almost turned ugly when several protesters forced
their way up to the embassy compound. Scuffling took place
between the police and the protesters. Further violence was
avoided after Rahmat managed to calm down his followers.

KAMMI activists in Yogyakarta also took to streets to condemn
Israel's attacks on Palestine. They were joined by other Muslim
groups, the Yogyakarta Mosque Youth Brotherhood Forum, Justice
Youth Movement and the Association of Muslim Students.

The rallies went off peacefully.