RI demands answers on phone taps
RI demands answers on phone taps
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs wants an explanation over
reports of telephone tapping imposed on Indonesians living in
Australia by federal security and intelligence officers.
"We are still gathering information over the reported phone
taps which are targeting Indonesian nationals there," the
ministry spokesman, Marty Natalegawa, told reporters on Friday.
Marty said the Indonesian Embassy in Australia had not yet
received notification from the Australian government regarding
the report.
He said after the raids that targeted 14 Indonesian Muslims
with suspected ties to the now outlawed Jamaah Islamiyah terror
network, in Australia, that some members of the Indonesian
community residing in Australia were living in fear.
Indonesia, according to Marty, asked the Australian government
to assure a peaceful life for the Indonesian nationals. He went
on to tell them that this could be achieved through, among other
things, providing clear legal grounds for the raids and the
interrogation of the 14 Indonesians, he said.
Jakarta has also demanded that Canberra restore the good names
of the Indonesians targeted by the raids.
The Australian Embassy has held a meeting with the Australian
International Student Office to discuss possible assistance for
Indonesian students in Australia, some of whom could experience
difficult and fearful times after the raids.
The assistance, in the form of counseling assistance, will be
given to the Indonesian Muslims who are fasting during Ramadhan.
Such assistance has been popular at some Australian universities
following the Sept. 11 terrorist attack on New York and
Washington last year.
Meanwhile, a group of Italian intellectuals appealed to the
world community on Friday not to associate the Oct. 12 Bali
bombing with Indonesian Muslims.
They feared that such a generalization would provoke further
conflicts and claim more innocent lives.
The group said the statement was released in response to ill
treatment and threats suffered by Indonesian Muslims overseas,
including those in Australia.
In a statement available to the media, the intellectuals
called on the world community to maintain their composure and
preserve harmony.
They said the generalization could not be proven, because
Indonesian Muslims had a historical tradition of peace,
moderation and tolerance.
"In fact, Indonesian Muslims are traditionally synonymous with
tolerance and openness to the world," said the group which
comprises journalists, scholars and Italian members of civil
societies both in Italy and Jakarta.
The statement was signed by Guido Corradi, Elena Dell'Agnese
and Francesco Montessoro, lecturers in Milan, Emanuele Giordana
and Marina Forti, both are journalists in Rome, Giulio Soravia, a
lecturer in Bologna and Antonia Soriente, a researcher in
Jakarta.