Indonesia
In the wake of tsunami calamity
Indonesian army steps up war in Aceh
By John Roberts, January 5, 2005
There are growing signs that the Indonesian military (TNI) is exploiting the current catastrophe in northern Sumatra to crush the separatist Free Aceh Movement (GAM) and establish its unchallenged con...
Tsunami death toll in Indonesia approaching 100,000
By John Roberts, December 31, 2004
Catastrophic is the only word that comes close to describing the impact of Sunday’s earthquake and tsunami on the impoverished Indonesian regions in northern Sumatra. As of yesterday, the offici...
Did the Indonesian military murder human rights activist Munir?
By John Roberts, December 1, 2004
A well-known Indonesian civil rights activist, Munir, died an agonising death on an Air Garuda flight to Amsterdam on September 7. While there were suspicions of foul play from the start, it was only ...
Indonesian cleric faces trial again over Marriot and Bali bombings
By John Roberts, November 12, 2004
Islamic fundamentalist cleric Abu Bakar Bashir has been brought to trial on new charges of involvement in two terrorist attacks: the bombing of the JW Marriott Hotel in Jakarta on August 5, 2003, in w...
Yudhoyono’s cabinet mirrors conflicts within Indonesia’s ruling elite
By John Roberts, November 1, 2004
Indonesia’s new 34-member cabinet was sworn in on October 21, the day after the inauguration of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. The announcement of the cabinet’s composition was made b...
Big business spells out economic agenda for new Indonesian president
By John Roberts, October 19, 2004
In the lead up to his inauguration as Indonesian president tomorrow, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has remained tight-lipped about the make-up of his cabinet, and, as throughout the election campaign, any ...
Indonesian editor jailed under repressive libel laws
By John Roberts, October 6, 2004
In a case that has serious implications for democratic rights in Indonesia, the Central Jakarta District Court sentenced Bambang Harymurti, editor of the weekly newsmagazine Tempo, on September 16 to ...
Ex-general wins Indonesian presidential election
By John Roberts and Peter Symonds, September 28, 2004
Retired general Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono won the second round of the Indonesian presidential election in September, defeating incumbent President Megawati Sukarnoputri in a landslide. While the offici...
The political issues behind the Jakarta bomb blast
By the Socialist Equality Party (Australia), September 10, 2004
The reactionary character of Islamist terrorist groups has once again been demonstrated in Thursday’s huge bomb blast outside the heavily fortified Australian embassy in Jakarta, indiscriminatel...
Indonesian court dismisses Bali bombing charges as unconstitutional
By John Roberts, September 3, 2004
In a decision that provoked sharp criticism from the Australian government, the South Jakarta District Court has dismissed charges against Johni Hendrawan, also known as Idris, over his role in the Oc...
Documents confirm US colluded in Indonesia’s 1969 incorporation of Papua
By John Roberts, August 30, 2004
Recently declassified documents from the archives of the US State Department have shed a little more light on one of the many grubby chapters of US foreign policy in the Cold War period: how Washingto...
Suharto’s political machine backs Megawati in Indonesian poll
By John Roberts, August 26, 2004
With the second round of the Indonesian presidential elections just a month away, the incumbent Megawati Sukarnoputri last week signed a formal coalition agreement with Golkar, the United Development ...
