USAID/OTI Indonesia Field Report
September 2001
Program Description
The Office of Transition Initiatives in Indonesia seeks to assist, accelerate, and secure the process of reform and democratization in this enormous island nation. Following thirty years of corrupt autocracy under former President Suharto, Indonesia inaugurated the first freely elected government in the country's history in 1999. This milestone, while very positive, unleashed social, economic, and religious tensions throughout the archipelago which ultimately consumed the Presidency of Wahid, resulting in his impeachment by the Parliament. This Parliament then elevated Vice-President Megawati SukarnoPutri to the Presidency, and named a new Vice President, Hamzah Haz. It is widely believed that President Megawati will prove to be a more deliberate and consistent President.
OTI programs in Indonesia address some of the most difficult regions and issues in the country. The intent is to assist in the resolution of dangerous regional crises that undermine the country's ability to move forward. Using tools, which vary from media support to governance to reconstruction, OTI is focused on conflict prevention, mitigation and resolution in those crisis areas that have national resonance. Additionally, OTI works on the civilian side of supporting military reform.
Country Situation
After the terrorist attacks in the United States, the month of September in Indonesia was largely dominated by this event. The media were full of opinions as to whether or not and how the United States might respond, and how Indonesia should react. President Megawati met with President Bush in Washington during the week following the attacks and conveyed her condolences. Nevertheless, even before President Megawati returned to Indonesia, political groups and individuals in Indonesia were describing any possible U.S. military response as anti-Islamic, and demanding that the Indonesian government issue a strong statement to this effect. Large protests have been staged outside the U.S. Embassy in the weeks following, and several Indonesian groups have openly threatened both U.S. installations and citizens. When the U.S. launched military strikes the level of rhetoric increased, and the demonstrations became more heated.
The U.S. Embassy issued an order for an "authorized departure" of Americans from Indonesia, leaving reduced numbers of staff in place. Travel is largely curtailed for international staff, with Indonesian groups and individuals continuing to issue threats to the safety of foreigners. The Government of Indonesia is attempting to balance the fervor of more radical groups in Indonesia with the realities of the relationship with the West. Many politicians are staking out territory on one extreme or another in the hopes of short-term political gains. At present, Indonesia has said that no country has the right to attack another, but has refrained from an official criticism of the United States.
OTI HIGHLIGHTS
The deterioration of the security situation in much of Indonesia, particularly regarding the movement of expatriate staff, has had a serious impact on OTI's ability to create new programming and to monitor ongoing efforts. In some areas of the country, the current anti-American fervor has also resulted in an unacceptable risk to Indonesian staff working for the U.S. We are closely monitoring the situation, and hope to be able to function normally in the near future.
A. Narrative Summary
Aceh
President Megawati recently extended the period of the security operation in Aceh. Significant clashes continue between the GAM (Free Aceh Movement) and the security forces. OTI has several ongoing activities, which attempt to encourage discussion and ameliorate suffering in the region.
OTI continues to support the humanitarian dialogues that are facilitated by the HDC (Henry Dunant Center for Humanitarian Dialogue). OTI is also supporting a number of local radio stations with reputations for producing accurate and balanced local news coverage of the conflict in Aceh. This includes the provision of studio and broadcasting equipment, as well as field recording kits and transportation (motorcycles). OTI also has a broad program of equipment and training support for the NGO community both in Banda Aceh and in outlying districts. This support will help to increase the effectiveness and professionalism of local NGOs in their activities -- although OTI is not asking that they become more active in the immediate future due to security risks. The equipment has reached some 30 NGOs active in diverse fields, but primarily those involved with human rights, women's rights and empowerment, community development, and the rehabilitation of torture victims and land rights.
The NGO training component is also well underway. Human Rights Watch conducted two sessions, one in investigating and documenting cases of rape and violence against women, and the other in documenting human rights abuses in accordance with international standards of documentation. Another recent training was held in Yogyakarta with a local training organization, Satu Nama, which worked on developing the capacity of local NGOs in program development, implementation and monitoring.
OTI is also engaged with the local Parliament in Banda Aceh. OTI is providing technical assistance in helping the parliamentarians understand the economic and political implications of the recently passed special autonomy status for Aceh.
Maluku
The sporadic bombing of neutral locations frequented by both Muslims and Christians that began in August continued into September. However, members of both communities expressed their defiance of such actions by quickly returning to their trading or other integrated activities soon after the bombings took place. There appears to be a new split within Ambonese society - in particular, between the elite (political and economic) trying to control when and where such trading activities take place, and the grassroots - who openly defy the elites in order to carry on with their daily activities as they see fit.
Fortunately, the events of September 11 appear to have had little impact on the situation in Maluku to date. Laskar Jihad, a hard line Islamic group, has been quiet on this subject within the province and none of the hard line Christian groups have made any related statements. While international NGOs remained cautious and continued to monitor the situation at month's end, there was no indication that they would curtail their activities. OTI's ongoing activities on Ambon Island continue to focus on the expansion of neutral space and an increase in positive interactions between Muslims and Christians. These activities include:
- The NGO Community Resource Center - which opened in May by Mercy Corps with OTI funding - has been used by an increasing number of NGOs from both communities;
- The Baku Bae Secretariat (a Malukan people's organization) office has been nearly completed, making for another new neutral space on Ambon island. Yayasan 45, a local NGO, is temporarily housing classes for Muslim and Christian students from Pattimura University;
- Mercy Corps' assessment of needs and obstacles to returnees in Southeast Maluku, Seram and Buru islands was completed at the end of August. They will hold presentations in Ambon and Jakarta in September;
- OTI is providing support to the Ambon City sanitation department and six local NGOs for an integrated clean-up-the-city campaign aimed at inter-community cooperation and civic pride.
North Maluku
The situation in North Maluku, where IDPs continue to return home, remains calm. The exception is Ternate, where Muslim IDPs remain in large numbers. This creates a larger problem since many of them are squatting in homes that belong to Christian IDPs who took refuge in North Sulawesi. The local government insists that the IDPs in Ternate will be moved out so that the IDPs in North Sulawesi can return home; however, little progress has been made.
The governorship issue for North Maluku is still not resolved. The latest report is that the election has been cancelled and that a new election will be held in November.
The main focus of OTI programming in North Maluku continues to be the implementation of the housing reconstruction grants through local government entities, as well as through one grant to ACF (Action Against Hunger). Monitoring has been difficult and sporadic; however, the housing program appears to be in line with expectations. Nevertheless, there are tremendous unmet housing needs. Based on comprehensive field assessments, OTI executed two additional grants in September to expand the housing reconstruction program to the districts of Ibu and Loloda.
OTI's newspaper distribution project is going well, with the local Red Cross continuing the distribution of local newspapers to IDP areas. Based on an OTI monitoring trip in September, the project continues to be well received, and the quality of information available in N. Maluku has vastly improved.
OTI has also supported ISAI, the Institute for the Studies on Free Flow of Information, to conduct journalist training in North Maluku. Participants included thirty local journalists from radio and print media as well as NGOs that provide media outreach for people in conflict areas.
West Timor
During September, two large waves of refugee repatriation took place in Salele district at the West/East Timor border. Both repatriation efforts involved the Indonesia government, which was represented by the Regional TNI (Indonesian military) Commander and Regional Police Chief. The repatriation was a result of previous reconciliation meetings between the Indonesian militia leaders, the Indonesian Government, Xanana Gusmao and UNTAET. The involvement of prominent militia leaders has been crucial to pave the way for refugee returns.
The presence of the TNI and police in this effort is clear evidence of the Indonesia government's support to help accelerate refugee repatriations. The change in policy of the Indonesian government on this issue was confirmed by a recent UN assessment visit to West Timor. The Regional Police Chief declared that they would not tolerate individuals or groups trying to hinder refugee returns.
Several smaller meetings have been scheduled for the upcoming weeks with Indonesian militia leaders. These meetings will deal with specific problems that militia leaders might have in respect to their own return to East Timor. An additional repatriation is expected to take place on October 18 to bring back all militia leaders from Ainaro. These militia leaders have recently said that they will accept the results of the 1999 referendum as well as the August election results in East Timor.
Papua
The overall situation in Papua during September was stable. The only exception was an attack by armed TPN/OPM (Papua Freedom Movement) - as claimed by the army and police- on September 29 at Ilaga, Puncak Jaya. A gang of OPM attacked and occupied government buildings and the Polsek and Koramil posts at Ilaga. According to local police, 15 people were killed. Reportedly, the attack was a culmination of frustrations and social unrest within the OPM. They were disappointed with the PDP, (Papua Presidium Council) who failed to fulfill their promise to bring independence for Papua.
Civilian Military
The relative stability of the central government after two years of a largely dysfunctional administration would, under normal circumstances, provide a good opportunity for political consolidation in general and accelerated military reform in particular. The events of September 11, however, and its repercussions in Indonesia, have cast a shadow on the country's prospects for recovery. The demonstrations of Islamic groups against a possible U.S. attack on the Taliban regime, and the discourse about how the Indonesian government should react, are likely to create splits within the cabinet. Despite these unfortunate developments, opportunities for institutional reform remain, and changes in the security sector are much more likely to occur than under the previous post-Suharto administrations. OTI continues to support the ongoing process of military reform. New grants in this sector are as follows:
- A grant to the National Institute of Sciences (LIPI, Lembaga Ilmu Pengetahuan Indonesia) to bring a delegation of civilian military experts to the Staff and Command School in Bandung. A workshop will be held between TNI's drafting team and the civilian experts, focusing on the internal organization of TNI and its doctrine. The workshop is expected to have a major impact on the further course of military reform.
- A grant to the Yogyakarta-based Institute for Research and Empowerment (IRE) to develop a concept for local security. Based on the experience collected in earlier OTI-funded grants, during which IRE had worked with grassroots communities on security issues, the grantee will design a framework for reforming the local security sector.
- A grant to the civil society group Propatria to facilitate the travel of an Indonesian delegation of NGOs to the Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies, attending a conference on "The Roles of NGOs in Indonesian Security". The conference was held October 2-4, and included TNI officers, representatives of international NGOs, U.S. military and senior USAID officials. Besides debating the cooperation between NGOs and security forces in reforming the security sector, the possibilities of USG contribution to the reform process were evaluated.
During the conference, discussions ensued about the role of NGOs in a democracy, including being advocates for people who are adversely affected by unreasonable or inadequate government policies. The discussions also helped participants better understand how each side defines "security" differently. Both Indonesian security representatives and civilians said that good communication was the most critical factor in establishing better relations among the Indonesian government, security institutions, and civilian organizations.
- The Center for Judicial Studies (PPPH, Pusat Penelitian Pengembangan Hukum) at the University of Airlangga, Surabaya, was granted funds for a workshop on the reform of TNI's territorial structure. The Office of Territorial Affairs at TNI Headquarters has developed a concept paper to hand over the territorial structure to local governments in 10 to 20 years. The workshop wants to assemble the governor and selected regents from East Java to discuss this concept. TNI Headquarters has already guaranteed a high-level delegation to the event, which will be held in early November.
- The Faculty of Social and Political Studies at the University of Gadjah Mada, Yogyakarta, was provided with a grant to draft a code of ethics for the security forces of political parties and mass organizations. The grantee will bring senior party officials to Yogyakarta to develop binding rules for the paramilitary forces of the political organizations.
B. Grants Activity Summary
OTI Indonesia grants, FY00:
Total number of grants FY00: 195
Total grant funds committed: $5,607,928
Grant numbers by sector, FY 00:
Civil Society: 88 grants, $2,146,441
Civilian/Military: 24 grants, $970,181
Governance: 54 grants, $1,777,989
Media: 29 grants, $713,315
OTI Indonesia grants, FY01:
Total number of grants FY01: 228
Total grant funds committed: $4,630,695
Grant numbers by sector, FY 01:
Civil Society: 114 grants, $1,885,915
Civilian/Military: 19 grants, $493,142
Community Stabilization: 16 grants, $783,953
Governance: 46 grants, $921,742
Media: 33 grants, $545,941
Grants in current reporting period: 18 grants, $555,035
Civil Society: 9 grants, $181,185
Civilian/Military: 3 grants, $75,943
Governance: 2 grants, $197,326
Media: 4 grants, $100,580
C. Next Steps
Some of OTI's upcoming activities include:
West Timor
In an effort to encourage further refugee returns, OTI is considering support to Catholic Relief Services/Kupang to support their Timor Lorosae newspaper distribution program to areas like Kupang and Kefa. OTI is developing a program with a local NGO in Buraen/Kupang and Kefa specific to women's issues.
Aceh
OTI intends to continue training support for the Provincial and district level Parliaments in response to changes created by the new special autonomy law. Additionally, OTI will expand support to the NGO community, in particular those organizations working in human rights protection. OTI has several more training projects planned in organizational and financial management, as well as a Communicating for Humanity course.
North Maluku
It is anticipated that in October two grants will be written to World Vision International to provide materials in support of its community infrastructure program in the districts of Galala, Kau, Malifut, and Tabelo. In addition, OTI has coordinated with the British Council, who, with BBC Radio, is planning to conduct a more advanced training for radio journalists in Maluku and North Maluku.
Maluku
OTI is developing three grants in Southeast Maluku to carry out school reconstruction, in order to remove obstacles to voluntary returnees in three regions of the district. OTI is also developing a parliamentary strengthening program aimed at building the skills necessary to cope with decentralization and returning IDP needs in Southeast Maluku.
Papua
OTI will be expanding a Parliament training activity conducted with the provincial level parliament to include all the district level groups. This training focuses on the realities created by the special autonomy law, and the decentralization of effort to the region.
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