Lord says F-16 sale still on
Lord says F-16 sale still on
JAKARTA (JP): U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for East Asia
and Pacific Affairs Winston Lord said yesterday that Washington
would proceed with the sale of nine F-16 fighter jets to
Indonesia.
"The administration has made it clear that we intend to go
ahead with that sale, as early as January," Lord told journalists
yesterday at the conclusion of a whirlwind visit to Jakarta.
"We believe that Indonesia has legitimate self-defense needs.
However, we do feel that it would be useful to have further
consultations with Congress," he said.
The sale has been delayed because of concerns in the U.S.
administration and Congress on the Indonesian government's
crackdown against its opponents in the aftermath of the bloody
riots in Jakarta on July 27.
Indonesian officials say they are not bothered by the
postponement because the F-16s are not a priority and that it was
Washington who first offered to sell the planes.
Lord said he met Minister/State Secretary Moerdiono, Attorney
General Singgih, leaders of the National Commission on Human
Rights and other public figures, to obtain a firsthand account of
the political scene in Indonesia, including recent events and
human rights.
Lord said Singgih invited him to visit activist Budiman
Sudjatmiko and labor leader Muchtar Pakpahan in their cells.
The two men are being interrogated on charges of subversion in
connection with the riot.
"There was not much time to spend with either individual,"
Lord said. "It was mostly a matter of entering into where they
are now residing, shaking hands and leaving. I was glad to have
the opportunity to do that and it symbolizes our interest in
recent events." He did not comment on their conditions.
Washington "has expressed its interest and its concern about
recent developments, including the proper legal process,
accounting for the missing, the rule of law, the treatment of
those detained, peaceful assembly and freedom of expression," he
told reporters at the U.S. embassy.
"I've come away with a better understanding of all points of
view here and I would like to reflect on what I've heard," he
said. "I don't think it's appropriate for me to pass instant
judgments."
He said he would take his new information to the American
public and the U.S. Congress next week.
"I go away with a better understanding of all points of view
in Indonesia, " he said, but declined to elaborate.
He said he visited the National Commission on Human Rights to
find out exactly what had happened in the July riots.
He commended the commission's work, particularly its
investigation of the riots.
The commission's provisional report on the riots said that
five people died and 74 went missing. The government said four
people died, but has not referred to anyone missing. President
Soeharto has asked the commission to release its evidence on
those missing.
Lord met the deputy chairman of the commission, Marzuki
Darusman, and commission members Charles Himawan, A.A. Baramuli,
Soegiri and Asmara Nababan.
The Attorney General's spokesman, Pontas Pasaribu, said that
Singgih informed Lord on the investigations of Budiman and
Muchtar.
The two men are in the custody of the Attorney General's
Office rather than the police because they are charged with
subversion, Pontas quoted Singgih as telling Lord.
Pontas said the attorney general had explained the rationale
for using the 1963 Anti-Subversion Law, stating that it was still
a "positive" law and therefore applicable.
Singgih said the detentions and interrogations complied with
Criminal Code Procedures, Pontas said.
The government, under the 1963 Anti-Subversion Law, can detain
suspects for up to one year without trial. "We are scheduled to
finish the investigation (of Budiman and Muchtar) in three
months," Pontas said.
Lord arrived here Thursday night after attending a two-day
meeting between the U.S. and the Association of Southeast Asian
Nations in Batam. He will leave for Singapore today. (16/14)