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East Timor ACTION Network ALERTCo-Sponsors Needed to Support Peace and Human Rights in AcehThe Indonesian Government has extended martial law in
Aceh for another six months. As the civilian death toll mounts,
governments of the world remain quiet. Act now to urge the U.S. Congress
to send a loud and clear message that the Indonesian military's slaughter
of Acehnese must be stopped. Urge your Representative to cosponsor H. Con.
Res. 327. The full text's of the co-sponsorship letter and resolution are below. Please note the group of initial sponsors is bi-partisan with Reps. Joseph Crowley (D-NY), Chris Smith (R-NJ), Lane Evans (D-IL) and Phil English (R-PA). Questions or to report responses, contact Karen Orenstein, 202-544-6911; etan@etan.org Background After the Indonesian government declared martial law on May 19, 2003, the Indonesian military launched its largest operation since its 1975 invasion of East Timor. On November 6, the government extended martial law for another six months. Extensive violations of human rights have been reported, including extra-judicial execution, rape, torture, sexual assault, arbitrary detention, forced displacement, and destruction of property. Indonesian military and police forces have particularly cracked down on human rights and humanitarian organizations. All international humanitarian and human rights organizations have been shut out of Aceh. Even the International Committee of the Red Cross no longer has a presence there. Access by international and Indonesian press has been severely limited, and journalists have been targeted. It is feared that a large-scale humanitarian crisis is underway, but there can be no independent verification of this. The U.S. government played a strong role in negotiations between the Indonesian government and the Free Aceh Movement. These negotiations originally led to a December 2002 ceasefire but were suspended last May just prior to the imposition of martial law. Senior U.S. administration officials, including President Bush, have stated that the conflict in Aceh is not amenable to a military solution. Violence has never solved the decades-old conflict. During the 1989-1998 period, Aceh was a declared a military operations area, and some 10,000 civilians were killed. Jafar Siddiq Hamazah – an internationally-known peace advocate, human rights lawyer, long-time friend of the East Timor Action Network, and permanent U.S. resident – was abducted, brutally tortured, and murdered upon his return for a visit to Indonesia in August 2002. Indonesian military and police have not released any surveillance files or materials they may have pertaining to Jafar’s abduction, torture and execution, more than three years later. Support the Peace Process and Human Rights in Aceh November 18, 2003 Dear Colleague: A human rights tragedy is occurring right now with scant international attention in Aceh, a conflict-ridden province of Indonesia. The Government of Indonesia declared martial law there on May 19, 2003 following the breakdown of an internationally brokered ceasefire between the Government and the rebel Free Aceh Movement. The U.S. government played a strong and active role in achieving the ceasefire and senior administration officials, including President Bush, have stated since its breakdown that the conflict in Aceh is not amenable to a military solution. The Indonesian Government has effectively barred international humanitarian and human rights organizations from Aceh. Even the International Committee of the Red Cross no longer has a presence. Access to the province by international and Indonesian press has been severely limited, with Indonesian journalists intimidated, including the reported murder of several. The Government of Indonesia’s military campaign has displaced scores of thousands of civilians and extensive violations of human rights are alleged to have occurred, including extra-judicial killing, torture, rape, sexual assault, arbitrary detention, forced displacement, and destruction of property. The Indonesian Government, Armed Forces and Police have especially targeted domestic human rights and humanitarian non-governmental organizations. It is feared that a large-scale humanitarian crisis is underway, though there can be no independent verification. The following resolution protests these unconscionable violations. Negotiations fully backed by the U.S. government and suspended last May, offer the best hope for peace in Aceh. Decades of armed conflict have clearly demonstrated that violence, regardless of its justification, cannot win the hearts and minds of the Acehnese people but only results in ever-increasing casualties and further alienation of the civilian population. Please join myself and Representatives Christopher H. Smith, Lane Evans, and Phil English in cosponsoring this most important resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire and an end to all human rights violations in Aceh. If you would like to become a cosponsor of this resolution or for more information please contact Gregg Sheiowitz in my office at 5-3965 or via email at gregg.sheiowitz@mail.house.gov. Sincerely, Joseph Crowley Chris Smith Lane Evans Phil English 108TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. CON. RES. 327 Calling on the Government of Indonesia and the Free Aceh Movement to immediately declare a ceasefire and halt hostilities in the Indonesian province of Aceh, end all human rights violations, and return to negotiations with significant Acehnese civil society and international involvement, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES Mr. CROWLEY submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on International Relations CONCURRENT RESOLUTION Calling on the Government of Indonesia and the Free Aceh Movement to immediately declare a ceasefire and halt hostilities in the Indonesian province of Aceh, end all human rights violations, and return to negotiations with significant Acehnese civil society and international involvement, and for other purposes. Whereas the Government of Indonesia declared martial law in the province of Aceh on May 19, 2003, following the breakdown of the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement between the Government of Indonesia and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM); Whereas the United States strongly supported the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement, which manifested dramatic reductions in human rights abuses and provided a promising framework for peaceful resolution of the conflict; Whereas the Government of Indonesia’s military campaign has displaced thousands of Acehnese civilians and extensive violations of human rights have been reported, including extra-judicial killing, torture, rape, sexual assault, arbitrary detention, forced displacement, and destruction of property; Whereas the Indonesian Government, armed forces, and police have cracked down on domestic human rights and humanitarian nongovernmental organizations and agencies through extra-judicial killing, disappearance, physical intimidation, detention, and destruction of property in Aceh and elsewhere; Whereas lawyers of Acehnese detainees have reportedly been threatened and in some cases assaulted, and many of the human rights and political activists detained have been denied legal representation; Whereas those responsible for approving, planning, and carrying out the extrajudicial execution of Acehnese human rights lawyer Jafar Siddiq Hamzah a United States permanent resident who testified before Congress, advocated human rights and a peaceful political solution for Aceh, and was later abducted, tortured, and murdered upon his return for a visit to Indonesiahave not been prosecuted and brought to justice; Whereas the armed forces and police of Indonesia have yet to publicly release any surveillance files they may have maintained on Jafar Siddiq Hamzah, or materials they may have pertaining to his abduction, torture, and execution; Whereas Muhamad Nazar, one of Aceh’s most prominent civilian leaders, was sentenced to five years in prison in an apparent revival of Suharto-era legislation for ‘‘sowing hatred and hostility’’ against the Indonesian Government for peaceful political activities; Whereas the Indonesian Government has severely restricted access to Aceh by international humanitarian and human rights agencies and nongovernmental organizations, effectively precluding their operation in Aceh; Whereas the Indonesian Government has curtailed the free flow of information on conditions in Aceh by severely limiting access by international and domestic journalists and intimidating local journalists, including the reported murders of several local journalists; Whereas the Free Aceh Movement has been accused of serious violations, including the burning of schools, extortion, and taxation of many Acehnese residents; Whereas President Bush and senior United States Government officials have stated that the conflict in Aceh is not amenable to a military solution, and leading religious figures, civil society leaders and politicians in Indonesia have called for a ceasefire in Aceh; Whereas the Indonesian Government and the armed forces of Indonesia are likely to prolong the duration of martial law in Aceh, from the initial six months to the completion of nationwide elections in mid-2004; Whereas the Government of Indonesia has publicly pressured the Government of Malaysia to forcibly return Acehnese seeking refuge in Malaysia; Whereas the Government of Malaysia, in contradiction to international refugee law and United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) guidelines on detention, has forcibly returned Acehnese asylum seekers to Indonesia where they are at risk of serious human rights violations and has further detained several hundred asylum seekers with the indication that they too will be forcibly returned, although some of them have been issued protection documentation by the UNHCR or have indicated a desire to seek protection from the UNHCR; and Whereas a previous decade-long (1989–1998) military campaign in Aceh led to the death of more than 10,000 civilians and broad human rights abuses, while failing to resolve the conflict in Aceh: Now, therefore, be it Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), That (1) Congress (A) condemns past and ongoing violations of human rights by all sides in the Indonesian province of Aceh; (B) calls on the Government and armed forces of Indonesia to allow immediate, free, and unhindered access to Aceh by international humanitarian and human rights organizations and by international and domestic journalists; (C) calls on the Government and armed forces of Indonesia and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) to immediately declare a ceasefire and halt hostilities, end all human rights violations, and return to negotiations with significant Acehnese civil society and international involvement; (D) calls on the armed forces and police of Indonesia to publicly release any surveillance files they may have maintained on Jafar Siddiq Hamzah, and all materials they may have pertaining to his abduction, torture, and execution; (E) calls on the Government and armed forces of Indonesia to immediately end martial law in Aceh and withdraw all non-organic troops, intelligence forces, and special forces such as ‘‘KOPASSUS’’ and paramilitary and special police such as ‘‘BRIMOB’’, GEGANA’’, and ‘‘SGI’’ components; and (F) calls on the Government of Malaysia to refrain from the forcible return of Acehnese asylum seekers to Indonesia, allow these asylum seekers full access to representatives of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to enable them to apply for asylum should they wish to do so, respect protection documentation issued to refugees and asylum seekers by the UNHCR, and release asylum seekers thus far detained; and (2) it is the sense of Congress that the President and Secretary of State should (A) expeditiously increase efforts, in conjunction with the Government of Japan, the European Union, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and others instrumental in securing the December 2002 ceasefire, to press both sides to the conflict to suspend hostilities and return to negotiations; (B) increase pressure on the Government, armed forces, and police of Indonesia, and the Free Aceh Movement, to cease all human rights violations; (C) press the Government of Indonesia to prosecute and bring to justice those responsible for approving, planning, and carrying out the extrajudicial execution of Acehnese human rights lawyer and United States permanent resident Jafar Siddiq Hamzah; (D) press the armed forces and police of Indonesia to publicly release all surveillance files they may have maintained on Jafar Siddiq Hamzah, and all materials they may have pertaining to his abduction, torture, and execution; (E) urge the Indonesian Government, armed forces, and police to end repression and intimidation of nongovernmental organizations and to allow immediate, free, and unhindered access to Aceh by international humanitarian and human rights organizations and independent monitors; (F) press the Government of Malaysia to release Acehnese asylum seekers in detention, allow them full access to representatives of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to apply for asylum should they wish to do so, immediately refrain from forcibly returning Acehnese seeking asylum in Malaysia, and cooperate fully with the UNHCR; (G) increase efforts to assist in the rehabilitation and economic development of Aceh; (H) raise and protest human rights violations committed in Aceh at all appropriate international fora and actively support involvement of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, through the dispensation of special rapporteurs, to investigate human rights violations in Aceh; (I) press the Government of Indonesia, working through the Indonesian National Commission on Human Rights (‘‘KOMNAS HAM’’), to identify those individuals within the Indonesian armed forces, police, and others who should be prosecuted for human rights crimes committed in the military campaign in Aceh and ensure that trials are conducted which meet international standards of justice; (J) review its bilateral relationship and military assistance to Indonesia in light of serious human rights violations committed by the Indonesian armed forces and police in Aceh; and (K) urge the Indonesian Government and armed forces to refrain from using United States-supplied weaponry in Aceh.
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