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.