RI promises to help Libya on sanctions
RI promises to help Libya on sanctions
By Meidyatama Suryodiningrat
JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia pledged yesterday to use its influence as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council to help remove UN sanctions imposed on Libya.
Libya is accused of harboring the suspects responsible for the 1988 Pan Am bombing in Lockerbie, Scotland.
After a meeting with his Libyan counterpart, Omar M. Muntasser, Indonesia's Minister of Foreign Affairs Ali Alatas stated that Jakarta would strive to convince fellow members of the Security Council to re-evaluate their position when the sanctions come up for review in the next few months.
"We will urge the Security Council to review the matter," Alatas said here yesterday.
Two Libyans have been accused by the United States and Britain of the downing of a Pan Am jet which killed 270 passengers, though Libya has vehemently denied any involvement.
However, Libya has since agreed, under a compromise proposal by the Arab League, to extradite the two suspects to the UN's International Court of Justice, or a neutral third country, for trial under Scottish law.
"Unfortunately the U.S., Britain and France continue to reject this compromise," remarked Alatas, frustrated with the insistence of the three countries to prosecute the suspects in either Scotland or the U.S.
"We argue that Libya's willingness to prosecute the suspects in a third country is an important factor in reviewing the whole matter and will of course try to convince the other members to accept this compromise as a way out," he added.
Muntasser himself argued that recent evidence casts further doubt on Libya's involvement in the bombing.
British and Scottish newspapers reported last month that U.S. Air Force intelligence documents pointed to the involvement of an Iranian who bankrolled the radical Abu Nidal group to carry out the attack.
"These all raise doubts which should induce the Security Council to review the whole issue versus Libya. All of the sanctions should be abolished until a thorough investigation is carried-out to find out the truth," Muntasser said.
Alatas noted that as chair of the 111-nation Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) Indonesia would have the support of fellow NAM members in the Security Council.
Known as the NAM Caucus, they include Botswana, Nigeria, Oman and Rwanda.
When asked to comment on Indonesia's strong support for Libya, Muntasser remarked that "Indonesia is always supporting whatever is right and our position has always been right."
"The whole world knows that there is plenty of doubt in the accusations," Muntasser said while calling for an unbiased body to investigate those truly responsible for the bombing.
"We're sure we're not involved in it, somebody else is," he remarked without pointing fingers.
Before returning home, Muntasser will meet with President Soeharto today and is expected to discuss the matter at length with the NAM chairman.