Fwd (GLW): INDONESIA: Crisis begins to unite workers and peasants

["Alan Bradley" <abradley1@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

>From Green Left Weekly, October 2, 2002.

INDONESIA: Crisis begins to unite workers and peasants
BY MAX LANE

JAKARTA - As the Indonesian economy sinks into even deeper crisis, a major
social and political crisis has begun to unfold. This crisis began with the
September 11 re-election by the Jakarta provincial parliament of retired
general Sutiyoso as Jakarta governor.

Sutiyoso, held responsible by the rank and file membership of President
Megawati Sukarnoputri's Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDIP) for
the murderous attack on the PDI's national office in July 1996, was
re-elected with the strong, public support of Megawati herself. Tens of
thousands of angry PDIP members blockaded the parliament forcing MPs to use
armoured cars and helicopters to enter the parliamentary compound.

Since then a wide range of NGOs and other community organisations have begun
legal proceedings against Sutiyoso's re-election after some MPs admitted
taking bribes for votes.

Almost the whole media, reflecting public sentiment in Jakarta, condemned
the re-election. The Jakarta parliament is now held in total public
disrepute.

< The remainder of the article can be found at:
http://www.greenleft.org.au/current/511p17.htm >


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