The world is watching us
The world is watching us
Indonesia may find it comforting to learn that the United
Nations Security Council will not set up an international
tribunal for people responsible for the campaign of terror and
destruction in East Timor in September. This assurance from
visiting UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan on Wednesday, however,
comes with a caveat: That the investigation and the ensuing
trials -- assuming there is a case for prosecution -- conducted
by Indonesia is seen as credible and meets basic international
standards of justice. Although Annan's words are reassuring, the
onus is still on Indonesia to prove to the international
community that this country's judicial system can deliver
justice.
Some people in this country have wrongly treated this kind of
international pressure as meddling in Indonesia's domestic
affairs. Those with the most to lose from such an investigation
have even tried to fan nationalist sentiments and mobilize public
opposition against any kind of international pressure. The
independent Inquiry into the Violations of Human Rights (KPP HAM)
in East Timor has been accused of working for foreign interests.
President Abdurrahman Wahid has also been criticized for bowing
to international pressure when he let the investigation
continue, and again when he suspended Gen. Wiranto from a top
Cabinet post on Monday because the latter was named as the target
of the investigation.
These accusations miss the whole point of the investigation.
Indonesia, as a member of the international community, must live
up to its responsibility. The tragedy in East Timor -- the
killing, the forced evacuation of almost the entire populace and
the destruction of property -- was our responsibility since the
territory was still under the care of our government. Even if we
assume that the Indonesian Military (TNI) did not take part in
the terror campaign, it should bear some responsibility for
allowing the mayhem to occur right under its nose.
While international pressure on Indonesia to investigate the
East Timor tragedy has been strong, the domestic pressure has
barely been heard or felt. This is partly because the local East
Timor lobby no longer exists since the territory opted for
independence in September, and partly because to the Indonesian
public, East Timor is only one of many tragedies of miscarriage
of justice that have occurred in this country these past years.
The cry for justice has recently become louder from people in
Aceh, Maluku, Irian Jaya and even here in Jakarta because of the
presence of a strong domestic lobby.
Although the domestic pressure on East Timor is virtually
absent, that in no way clears Indonesia of its international
obligations. Indonesia's own experience from the last two years
has shown that international pressure is not necessarily a bad
thing. At times, it more than supplemented the domestic pressure
for change in the face of a strong and stubborn regime.
The International Monetary Fund may have contributed to the
worsening of the economic crisis, but it was the one that forced
then president Soeharto to end monopolies and other business
privileges given to his children and cronies. Outside pressure
has also played its part in the anticorruption drive, and in
forcing the regime to make concessions on questions of human
rights, democracy, labor rights and environmental conservation.
While these are essentially battles for the Indonesian people
to wage, there is nothing wrong with counting on a little help
from outside from time to time.
This argument could now be stretched to include the current
fight to ensure that justice is upheld in this country, a cry
that has been heard louder and louder all across the country.
Given Indonesia's notorious judicial system, a little pressure
from outside could well provide the thrust to ensure that justice
finally sees the light of day, not only in East Timor, but also
in Aceh, Maluku, Irian Jaya, Jakarta and the rest of Indonesia.