Men sweep hotels in Surakarta

Men sweep hotels in Surakarta

JAKARTA (JP): Notwithstanding the government's efforts to ease
tensions with the U.S. government, dozens of men clad in green
military-style uniforms stormed into a number of international
hotels in Surakarta, Central Java, on Sunday demanding that
American guests leave the country.

Hotel staff were reportedly warned that checks would be held
at the hotels for American guests and, if found, they would be
asked to leave the country within 48 hours.

"About 40 or 50 of them came in... they were wearing these
uniforms, with the words Lasykar Islam Hizbullah on them. They
said that if they found American guests, they would warn them to
leave the country within 48 hours," operations manager of the
Lord Inn, Budi Chandra, told The Jakarta Post by phone.

"They were calm and did not seem to want to cause trouble. But
they were very clear on what they wanted."

"I gave them the guest list printout as there were really no
Americans staying with us. They became cool after that," he said.

"They told me that if they found any American guests, they
would tell (the guests) that the U.S. had caused problems in
Indonesia and Palestine, and that, as a result, they were given
48 hours to leave the country."

Meanwhile, a receptionist at the Novotel said that dozens of
men had stormed that hotel as well, asking hotel staff if any
American guests were staying there.

"Those men were pushy... and we've never faced anything like
this before. I really can't say much. We've been instructed by
our operations manager not to say anything," the receptionist,
who requested anonymity, said.

The actions were a result of rising anti-American sentiment
following the arrest of an American citizen, Aaron War Maness, on
Oct. 21 over an allegation of espionage. The government, however,
has issued a statement, dismissing the allegation that Maness had
been involved in espionage in Irian Jaya.

While presidential officials were quick to play down the
incident and cool tensions, House of Representatives (DPR)
legislators demanded that U.S. Ambassador Robert Gelbard be
declared persona non grata.

The U.S. Embassy here, which temporarily closed its public
services section last week after receiving an unspecified threat,
announced on Saturday that it would remain closed to the public
until at least Wednesday.

"The Embassy will be closed to the public on Monday, Oct. 30
and Tuesday, Oct. 31.

"The closure is in response to a credible threat to the
Embassy and our desire to reduce the risk to members of the
public who might be visiting the Embassy," it said in a statement
on Saturday.

The U.S. embassy has been the subject of almost daily protests
by students and Muslim groups here since violence erupted between
Israelis and Palestinians in the Middle East earlier this month.

Muslim groups and students have accused Washington of siding
with the Jewish state.

The extension of the closure was the latest in a series of
diplomatic spats between Jakarta and Washington.

Defense Minister Mahfud M.D. and several nationalistic
legislators have been at odds with Gelbard. They accused Gelbard
of meddling in Indonesia's internal affairs.

A U.S. embassy press release retorted on Friday that it was
"deeply disappointed" by the actions of Cabinet members "who seem
determined to create a rift in an otherwise historically strong
bilateral relationship".

It added that Mahfud had "perpetuated falsehoods" including a
charge that an American citizen arrested last week had been
spying.

"Once again, the embassy laments that the defense minister's
reported false accusatory statements ... are contributing to a
disinformation campaign that is creating a rapidly deteriorating
environment hostile to U.S. interests in Indonesia including
investment and tourism," it said.

President Abdurrahman Wahid, responding to suggestions that
Gelbard be declared persona non grata, replied on Saturday:
"Never."

"An ambassador is an envoy of a sovereign country so we must
honor him rather than declaring him persona non grata,"
Abdurrahman was quoted by Antara as saying.

A senior observer said on Sunday that personalities, not
bilateral policies, are at the center of the current tension as
well as Indonesian domestic politics and the U.S. failure to
condemn Israel's use of force against Palestinians.

"I think it is a combination of these factors," political
analyst Soedjati Djiwandono told The Jakarta Post in a telephone
interview.

Soedjati said that "there is also an endeavor to exploit the
issue of Ambassador (Gelbard) for political purposes.

"It is not unlikely that this forms part of the effort to
weaken the President," Soedjati said.

Critics of Abdurrahman have stepped up their attacks in recent
days, making concerted calls for his resignation, accusing him of
corruption and demanding a special session of the People's
Consultative Assembly to unseat him.

Soedjati said that "under the circumstances, adopting a
hostile attitude to Washington is wrong".

"I don't think that the nation can afford that ... our policy
towards the world should serve the country's national interests,"
he said. (byg/ylt)