ASIET news updates - December 8, 1998 ===================================== * East Timorese protesters mark invasion anniversary - Reuters * Rival political groups clash, 11 Injured - AP * Election dates change again - AFR ------------------------------------------------------------------- East Timorese protesters mark invasion anniversary ================================================== Reuters - December 7, 1998 (abridged) Tomi Soetjipto, Jakarta -- Thousands of East Timorese protesters rallied in the troubled territory's capital Monday to mark the anniversary of its invasion by Indonesian troops 23 years ago, witnesses said. Crowds began gathering at around dawn in Dili and dispersed around midday after hoisting the East Timorese flag and laying a wreath outside the Santa Cruz cemetery. The cemetery is near the site of a 1991 massacre in which troops opened fire on thousands of East Timorese mourners. The government said 50 people were killed but human rights groups put the death toll as high as 200. Witnesses said Dili was tense but quiet Monday with many offices and businesses closed for fear of unrest. In the Indonesian capital, Jakarta, about 100 East Timorese students protested outside UN offices, demanding Indonesian troops quit the territory and that former President Suharto be tried in an international court for human rights abuses. Witnesses saw police beat two East Timorese students with rattan sticks and drag them inside a truck. They said they were later freed. The students tried to march on the US embassy but were blocked by more than 100 police and troops in riot gear. Jakarta has said it began pulling out combat troops from East Timor in August, but a document said to have been leaked recently from the Indonesian armed forces points to a build-up of troops. Indonesia denies it has stepped up troop numbers. Last month, at least seven people died in clashes between Indonesian troops and rebels. Some of the dead were civilians. Elsewhere in Jakarta, about 800 anti-government union workers rallied in the south of the city in preparation for a march to the Defense Ministry. The workers rallied under the banner of Indonesian Union Workers, headed by former political prisoner Muchtar Pakapahan. And in downtown Jakarta, several hundred students protested outside the Education Ministry. Rival political groups clash, 11 Injured ======================================== Associated Press - December 7, 1998 (abridged) Jakarta -- Eleven people were injured when supporters of rival political parties clashed in an Indonesian town, a news report said Monday. Fighting broke out on Sunday in Brebes, about 250 kilometers east of Jakarta, between followers of the ruling Golkar Party and the Indonesian Democratic Party, or PDI, who are loyal to opposition figure Megawati Sukarnoputri. The newspaper Kompas said PDI supporters in three trucks and on hundreds of motorcycles went through the town and burned Golkar flags. They then assembled outside a sports stadium where about 7,000 Golkar supporters were holding a rally. The two groups clashed at the stadium's gates before police broke up the fighting. The paper said 19 vehicles were damaged. Also on Sunday Megawati, the eldest daughter of Indonesia's founding President Sukarno, staged a rally in Jakarta where she called on her supporters not resort to violence. Election dates change again =========================== Australian Financial Review - December 7, 1998 Greg Earl, Jakarta -- Indonesia has outlined yet another schedule for its elections next year as horse-trading over the shape of the new electoral system enters a volatile final phase. A senior government official was quoted yesterday as saying the presidential election would be held on October 28 followed by the swearing in of a new president on November 10. The new dates supercede suggestions last week that the presidential election could be held around the end of August in what appeared to be a significant concession to government opponents who say President B.J. Habibie is clinging to power too long. The two new dates are each commemorative days for historic events in what appears to be an attempt to give some added respectability to a timetable that will drag out the country's economic recovery. The economic risks of a long electoral schedule were underlined last week when economic planning officials suggested that Indonesia may not produce a traditional government budget in January for the fiscal year beginning in April, but instead simply extend the current budget until after a new president is elected. The election planning gathered more pace at the weekend with the creation of a university-based election monitoring organisation which is likely to be one of several domestic and foreign monitoring groups. A large group of potential new political parties also held a conference yesterday to inject their views into the House of Assembly debate on election reform which reconvenes today but is dominated by the existing Soeharto-era parties. While June 7 has been generally accepted as the general election date, there are many uncertainties over the system and several analysts believe that street protests could quickly become more serious if the government does not produce a fair election system. One controversial issue is whether regional parliaments will also hold elections on that day or whether their representatives in the presidential election assembly will come from the existing bodies that are dominated by the Government's Golkar Party. Another issue prompting opposition from the new parties is a requirement that to be eligible for the election a party must have branches in half of Indonesia's provinces and local government centres or one million signatures from supporters. There is also uncertainty about what body will oversee the election and how independent it will be from the government, and no clear agreement on the electoral system although it will be a largely proportional representation system. ********************************************************** Action in Solidarity with Indonesia and East Timor (ASIET) PO Box 458, Broadway NSW 2007 Australia Phone: 61-(0)2-96901230 Fax : 61-(0)2-96901381 Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] WWW : http://www.peg.apc.org/~asiet/ Free Xanana Gusmao, Budiman Sujatmiko and Dita Sari! 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