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TITLE: Amnesty Intl Condemns Indonesia As Acehnese Goes On Trial |
AUTHOR: |
PUB: AP |
DATE: March 8, 2001 |
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The trial of an Acehnese independence activist charged with sedition opened Thursday as an international human rights group condemned the case, declaring the defendant "a prisoner of conscience." Prosecutors read out the indictment against Muhammad Nazar, who faces a sentence of up to seven years in jail if found guilty. "The defendant encouraged people to revolt against Indonesia by...distributing pamphlets that created hatred against the legal government," said prosecutor Supery, who like many Indonesians uses only one name. Nazar was arrested Nov. 20 after organizing a peaceful rally in the region calling for an independence referendum. Amnesty International official Lucia Withers said the trial was a throwback to the days of former dictator Suharto, who used the armed forces and courts to stamp out political opponents. "Amnesty sees this as a serious step backward for the new regime," she said. "Nazar is a prisoner of conscience." About 600 police and soldiers guarded the court house. The trial was adjourned until Monday. Indonesia's government has ruled out an independence referendum, instead offering Aceh more autonomy and a greater share of revenue from oil and natural gas exports. Meanwhile in Jakarta, the head of the army's elite strategic reserves called on his troops to crush the rebel Free Aceh Movement, known locally by its acronym, GAM. "GAM is an enemy of the state. We must quell them all," Lt. Gen. Ryamizard Ryacudu said Wednesday, as quoted by media reports. He said two battalions of Kostrad - the Indonesian army's main warfighting force - had been deployed to Aceh, to augment the 30,000 troops and police already in the region. He said extra battalions were on standby ready to be deployed. In the latest violence in Aceh, three unidentified bodies were found Wednesday in the east of the region, hospital officials said. The deaths bring to at least 247 the number of people killed in separatist violence in Aceh this year. END |