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Friday,
August 17, 2001, Chandigarh, India   |
Megawati’s
apology for rights abuse in 2 states Diplomats
denied access to aid staff |
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Musharraf
must go now: ARD Islamabad, August 16 The Alliance for Restoration of Democracy (ARD), a grouping of Pakistani parties, has demanded early elections and the exit of President Pervez Musharraf. Arrest
Khaleda’s son: Hasina
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7 killed
in Lanka ambush Pressure
for W. Asia peace mounts
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Megawati’s apology for rights abuse in 2 states Jakarta, August 16 But she warned the two resource-rich regions at either end of the archipelago that they would never be allowed to break away. In a lengthy speech marking the anniversary of independence from Dutch colonial rule 56 years ago, President Megawati Sukarnoputri told Indonesia’s long-suffering people that it would take time to drag the country out of four years of economic and political mayhem. The daughter of Indonesia’s founding father Sukarno took power more than three weeks ago but until now has said little about how she plans to steer the world’s fourth most populous country out of one of the most dire periods in its history. “Our multitude of crises certainly cannot be overcome all at once ... . Only by (working together) can we gradually emerge from this time which has been very painful for us all,” she said in an address to Parliament that was broadcast nationwide. Ms Megawati pulled no punches in her assessment of Indonesia’s myriad woes, adding that improving security and preventing any provinces from breaking away were among her top priorities. She said gross human rights abuses committed by the military off the battlefield must be dealt with, although she also urged the armed forces to maintain the territorial integrity of the nation — a pursuit that has often led soldiers into brutality. Ms Megawati promised to fight graft — revealing she had asked her family to remain clean and ordered Cabinet ministers to disclose their wealth. Measures transferring control over finances to far-flung regions would remain in place, she added. While Megawati apologised to the six million people living in misery in Aceh and Irian Jaya, she ruled out independence. “We convey our deep apologies to our brothers who have long suffered as a result of inappropriate national policies,” Ms Megawati said, adding that an apology was not enough and had to be backed up by new initiatives. She made clear to the international community that the option given to East Timor to break free in 1999 was not open to Aceh or Irian, which only comprise a small portion of Indonesia’s 210 million people, but where thousands have died during decades of struggle. The President said she hoped the people of Aceh and Irian would accept special autonomy packages on offer that would give them a greater say in running their own affairs. “But one thing is clear. All this (special autonomy) will take place within the context of maintaining the integrity of the Republic of Indonesia,” she said. Both provinces are also key to the economy with Aceh rich in oil and gas and Irian Jaya famed for its mineral wealth. Ms Megawati told separatists that they would never get support from foreign governments for their cause, and urged them to work together to develop Indonesia. Her speech largely sidestepped any specific plans to woo back investors and rebuild the banking sector, although she is expected to give a separate account on the economy and the budget to Parliament next month. Ms Megawati said the constitution — a vague document drawn up by her father — needed fixing if Indonesia was to avoid the recent political instability that has bedevilled the nation.
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Diplomats
denied access to aid staff Kabul, August 16 “We have been asked to be patient and to wait until the investigations are finished and they have further suggested that it would be better to remain in Islamabad to monitor progress there,” said Australian Consul Alistair Adams. “We currently have visas which expire on August 21 and we have those visas currently before the Taliban authorities for an extension and on persistent questioning it would appear at this stage that they won’t be extended,” he added. Adams, and his colleagues from the German and US missions in Islamabad, have been waiting in Kabul since Tuesday to try to secure access of the foreign detainees. Twenty-four staff from the Germany-based Christian relief group Shelter Now, which included four Germans, two Australians, two Americans, were arrested almost two weeks ago. The diplomats said they had a two-hour meeting today with the head of the Taliban’s consulate department Abdur Rahman Hotak, where it was repeated there could be no consular access. German diplomat Helmut Landes said the Taliban were stubborn. “They are completely stubborn and they are not ready to accept even a minimum access to the detainees, except they have promised to forward some of the items,” he said. The diplomats said they asked the Taliban’s Foreign Ministry to provide daily welfare updates and act as a conduit to deliver personal items and messages from relatives. There was no response to the request. They have also requested clarification on what punishment those arrested could face, but apart from a brief reference to a June decree that provides expulsion for foreigners guilty of proselytising, there has been no concrete information. Taliban protocol chief Abdul Ghafour Afghani told reporters the investigation had been broadened: “The investigation takes a long time because we are trying to find out more evidence on links (with funding agencies). The Taliban, which espouse a purist form of Islam, say they had seized a large haul of Christian material, much of it in local Dari and Pushto languages, although none of the arrested Afghans had admitted abandoning the Muslim faith. Taliban’s Minister for the promotion of virtue and prevention of vice, Mawlavi Mohammad Wali, has ruled out a pardon for the detainees, saying they were aware of their activities despite a clear ban in the country. Mr Wali said all foreign institutions and non-governmental organisations in Afghanistan would be put under surveillance to ensure that they did not spread other religions.
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Musharraf
must go now: ARD Islamabad, August 16 An ARD leader told Online news agency that there should be fresh elections within 90 days and not in 2002 as promised by General Musharraf on Tuesday. “The ARD will also demand immediate stepping down of General Musharraf and a democratically elected government,” the leader said. “General Musharraf is pushing the country towards disaster and his early exit is inevitable”. Meanwhile, the Pakistan Muslim League (PML) faction headed by former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif yesterday dubbed General Musharraf’s plans unveiled a day earlier as “illegal and unconstitutional”, Online news agency reported. “We won’t allow him to implement his ideas. He is not authorised to amend the constitution. He is an unconstitutional Head of State, and wants to prolong his rule,” PML leader Ehsan Iqbal said here. He said the Musharraf regime had become a security risk for Pakistan and that the best option for the military, which seized power in October, 1999, by ousting Mr Sharif, was to restore democracy and return to the barracks. “There is no justification for them to remain in power anymore as they have failed in all respects. Only an elected government can drag the country out of the present political and economic crises”, Mr Iqbal said after a meeting of the party’s Central Working Committee.
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Arrest Khaleda’s son: Hasina Dhaka, August 16 Ms Hasina also demanded the arrest of Khaleda’s brother-in-law Syed Iskander, who is the younger brother of slain President Zia-ur Rahman. In a statement, Ms Hasina said the law and order situation in Bangladesh had worsened since the caretaker government took over last month. She said: “After Khaleda’s gave inflammatory speeches in public meetings, her son Tarek, Syed Iskander and other BNP leaders, with the help of terrorists, have been conducting attacks on the AL.” She said the attacks had left “91 AL leaders and activists dead and over 3,000 injured so far.” Ms Hasina alleged that the BNP-Jamaat-e-Islami clique had created a reign of terror in Bangladesh, killing, looting and torching villages and vehicles. She said sensing their defeat in the coming elections, BNP members had become mad and added that the caretaker government had totally failed in tackling the situation. Elections are likely to be held in Bangladesh in October. BNP Secretary-General Abdul Mannan Bhuyian, meanwhile, in a statement yesterday, dismissed the allegations made against Tarek and Iskander as “false.” He said Ms Hasina had made such statements to avoid arrests of AL godfathers and mafia lords.
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7 killed in Lanka ambush Colombo, August 16 The rebels ambushed a naval ground patrol in the Trincomalee district, 240 km northeast of the capital Colombo, military spokesman Brig Sanath Karunaratne said. "Three naval troops were killed and two injured in the initial attack," Brigadier Karunaratne said. "Troops fought back and we have now recovered the bodies of four Tigers." More than 64,000 persons have been killed since the LTTE began fighting in 1983 for a separate state for minority Tamils in the north and east. Norway has been trying to bring the two sides to the negotiating table for the past 18 months, but its efforts have been hamstrung by haggling over conditions for talks. Sri Lanka’s Aviation Minister crossed battle lines in the country’s north during a Catholic pilgrimage on Monday and said he had held talks with local leaders of the Tigers. The LTTE later denied holding talks with him.
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Pressure for W. Asia peace mounts Jerusalem, August 16 In a joint stand, the USA and Russia have agreed to coordinate efforts to end months of violence and pave the way to a resumption of peace talks which stalled shortly before a Palestinian revolt erupted last September. “The parties must make up their mind that peace is preferable to war,” US President George W. Bush told reporters yesterday during a school visit in New Mexico. “Mr Arafat must do everything in his power to discourage the suicide bombings and the Israelis must be restrained in their response,” Mr Bush said. Tension in West Asia has shot up in the past week after two Palestinian suicide bombings prompted an Israeli takeover of Palestinian offices in the holy city and a night raid into Palestinian-ruled Jenin in the West Bank. Meanwhile, in the Gaza Strip, the Israeli army reported, Palestinians fired two mortar bombs at Jewish settlements in southern Gaza early today. No one was hurt in the attack. US Secretary of State Colin Powell and Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov agreed to "further coordinate’’ their countries’ positions in a telephone conversation yesterday, a Russian Foreign Ministry statement said. “Palestinians and Israelis should refrain from hostile acts against each other. Violence breeds violence and this leads to a slide into catastrophe,” the ministry said. RAMALLAH (West Bank): Palestinians will stop eating fruit and poultry imported from Israel to protest at the Jewish state’s blockade of their territories, the Palestinian Agriculture Minister said on Thursday. Hikmat Zeid told a news conference the ban followed repeated appeals to Israel to let Palestinian farmers transport their produce freely within the West Bank and Gaza Strip, where Israeli check-points have crippled internal trade since a Palestinian uprising began more than 10 months ago. “As a result of the Israeli military procedures, we decided to ban some Israeli products as a first step,” Zeid said. The ban covered fruits, poultry and frozen meat imported from Israel. “Our people can make do without these fruits and we do not need alternatives,” the minister said. He said Israeli soldiers were preventing Palestinian fruit and vegetables from reaching West Bank and Gaza markets and were allowing Israeli produce to be sold there instead.
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Israel has security
pact with 39 nations Jerusalem, August 16 Currently, Israel has such secret agreements with India, China, Turkey and Singapore as well as with countries in east and west Europe, Australia, the USA and central and South America, the daily reported.
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