Word: suharto
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...expected to draw out the fighting to provoke more atrocities, hoping to embarrass Jakarta into withdrawing its troops. But a continuing conflict also serves the interests of Indonesia's military brass, which sees a chance to regain some of the power it lost with the fall of dictator Suharto five years ago. And President Megawati Sukarnoputri, looking to next year's elections, wants to be seen as tough on separatism. As a senior Western diplomat wearily remarks, all sides want--even need--the conflict to continue. All, that is, but the people of Aceh. --By Andrew Marshall
...brutal, unchecked crackdown in Aceh is transporting Indonesia back to the dark days of the Suharto dictatorship, exposing the military's reformist claims of recent years as a sham. With the Aceh campaign entering its third week, T.N.I.'s strategy-if that's the word-is shockingly clear. First, saturate the benighted countryside with trigger-happy soldiers and flush out any GAM suspects on a tsunami of civilian blood. Second, frighten into silence anyone who dares to report on the gory consequences, such as the summary execution of eight young men and boys at Peusangan in northern Bireun district...
...which delights Indonesia's once all-powerful generals. The military has found itself beleaguered and under suspicion ever since the fall of longtime dictator Suharto in 1998, something the current top brass is determined to change. "The military sees Aceh as a chance to regain its legitimacy and influence," says leading human-rights activist Munir. "Aceh is a way to demonstrate that they are the only force that can hold the country together. And it is a win-win situation for them: if they win and crush GAM, they are heroes. If they fail to solve the Aceh problem within...
...Many top Indonesian generals also long to regain their once-preeminent role in government and policy making, which eroded significantly after the 1998 fall of Suharto. The military of late has already been reasserting itself as senior generals helped author a bill now before Parliament that, if passed, would permit them to act without presidential approval. Trials for the killing and pillaging in East Timor in 1999 and the 2002 murder of Papuan independence movement leader Theys Eluay failed to hold any top military brass accountable. (Army chief Ryamizard Ryacudu said the soldiers convicted of killing Theys deserved medals instead...
...into action on behalf of American interests—while hiding them as best he could from the American people. This trusty aide and right-hand man helped plan the assassination of foreign leaders in Chile to pave the way for Pinochet, and stood by with weapons while Suharto slaughtered 200,000 East Timorese. He opposed and obstructed Vietnam peace talks in 1968 to help Nixon and his “secret plan” get elected, and then convinced him (although it probably wasn’t hard) to massively bomb civilian targets in Cambodia, helping Pol Pot emerge...