Jubilee Campaign USA, January 2, 2003
Dear Friends,
The Plot to Assassinate Rev. Rinaldy Damanik
Jubilee Campaign has been closely monitoring and reporting the horrific mistreatment
by Indonesian authorities of Rev. Rinaldy Damanik since his false arrest and
imprisonment on September 9, 2002. We are saddened to report that the situation
has further eroded for Rev. Damanik as we celebrate the Christmas and New Year
season.
On Sunday December 22, 2002, at approximately 4:00 a.m., without any early notice
Palu Police quietly seized and transported Rev. Damanik from a prison in Jakarta to a
prison in Palu, the provincial capitol of Central Sulawesi. Four days later, on Thursday
December 26, 2002, an attempt was made on Rev. Damanik's life by way of poisoning
his prison food. When Rev. Damanik finished his meal, he began to experience
severely painful cramping in his body and was immediately hospitalized. Rev.
Damanik is reported to be in stable condition as this article is posted.
For those unfamiliar with the persecution of Rev. Rinaldy Damanik, it began on
September 9, 2002. Rev. Damanik voluntarily reported to the Central Post of
Indonesian National Police on that day as a witness. He had been asked to provide
testimony with regard to attacks on 6 villages in Poso by the Islamist terrorist groups.
Upon his arrival at the Central Police Post, however, Rev. Damanik was immediately
arrested. Indonesian police stated that Rev. Damanik had always been a suspect, and
was thus to be detained. (See Jubilee Campaign's reports: Chronology of Poso in
August and Chronology of Rev. Damanik's arrest).
After nearly one full month of investigation, interrogation, and cross-checking with
witnesses, police found no facts or evidence suggesting that Rev. Damanik was
involved in the burning of any village or in any terrorist or criminal plot in the region. A
military officer even confirmed the fact that the weapons allegedly found in Rev.
Damanik's car had not been found in his car at all but, rather, had belonged to the
mobs that surrounded him by that time.
Despite having failed to substantiate any charge against Rev. Damanik, Indonesian
Police extended his detention twice on account of pressure from political
opportunists, military personnel, and religious extremists. This additional unlawful
detention began on October 2, 2002, and has been marked by multiple and continued
efforts to falsely establish Rev. Damanik's guilt. It has now also been marked by an
attempt to assassinate this vocal human rights advocate. Most telling is the forcible
transfer of Rev. Damanik's case to a jurisdiction where he is likely to face 20 years
imprisonment, despite his innocence and the utter lack of evidence against him. The
transfer of Rev. Damanik from Jakarta to Palu, and the attempt on his life, clearly
establish an absolute violation of justice and human rights, and further erode any effort
by Indonesia's leadership to establish the supremacy of law and order in the country.
Why would Rev. Damanik receive such heavy-handed treatment at a time when the
world is scrutinizing Indonesia for its reported links to Al Qaeda? Why was there a
change of plan, as it appeared, from a possible 20 years imprisonment to an
assassination? The answer is simple - his voice must be silenced. Since the October
12 bombing of two Bali nightclubs by Islamic extremists, the political, military and
Islamist elite of Indonesia have been scrambling to reconfigure their rhetoric and their
perceived attitude toward terrorism. The Bali bombing has proven the existence of an
Islamist terrorist network in Indonesia that is inescapably linked to Al Qaeda. In fact,
the evidence offered across the media has shown that Indonesia has provided one of
the most strategic bases for Al Qaeda- linked international terrorism in the world. It
has been reported that some key figures in Al Qaeda terrorist cells first receive
ideological training at an Islamist school (Pondok Pesantren) called Hidayatulah in
East Kalimantan, Indonesia. Following their indoctrination, the terrorist trainees move
on to Poso, Central Sulawesi, Indonesia where they receive militia training to carry out
their violent jihad.
The Poso conflict has several dimensions and underlying purposes. One is to exploit
the rich natural resources of the region, a known mode of operation for various political
and military elite in Jakarta. The terrain in Central Sulawesi is highly desirable, with its
very limited infrastructure and its richness of natural resources. A second is to
establish greater power for militant Islamic extremist groups in Indonesia. In the late
1980s and early 1990s, then-President Soeharto, seeking to monopolize political
power, gave more and more concessions to the right wing Islamic religious groups. In
the 1990s, Soeharto used his military supremacy to systematically marginalize
Christians and other minority groups, and to maintain the New Order Regime's
absolute power. Following the era of the New Order Regime, the right wing Islamic
groups in collaboration with certain military elite, continued using religious nuances to
exploit Indonesian natural resources and the economy. This in turn escalated religious
persecution against Christians and other minority groups, which further nurtured the
culture of terror around the country. After the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in
the United States, and especially after the October 12, 2002 Bali bombing, the
militant Islamist agenda in Indonesia can no longer be concealed. It is their
undisputed goal to create an Islamic state in Indonesia that is based on a strict
application of Sharia'h. Even graver persecution of Non-Muslims is thus inevitable.
Rev. Rinaldy Damanik unwitting pawn.
Although there are certainly religious underpinnings, the false accusation and unlawful
arrest and imprisonment of Rev. Rinaldy Damanik reach far beyond religious
persecution alone. Rev. Damanik has become an example of Indonesia's political,
economic, and social exploitation. He has become an unwitting pawn in the broad
effort among Indonesia's elite to conceal the truth of what has been happening and
what organizations have been operating in Poso for the past several years.
Momentum is gaining for the radical Islamic terrorist movement in Indonesia. The
political, military, and extreme Islamist elite in Indonesia simply cannot afford to allow
Rev. Rinaldy Damanik go free. He is not only an eyewitness to systematic terror by
Islamic extremists in Indonesia, but he is an Indonesian citizen who espouses a
non-violent approach to conflict, and may very well be the only one who could hold off
the move of jihad warriors in the region.
Indonesia's leadership and the international community at large must pay careful
attention to the injustices suffered by Rev. Rinaldy Damanik. The failure to
assassinate him on Dec 26 should not be assumed as the last attempt made on him.
An assassination to prisoners has been considered as common and as a sign of
anarchy in Indonesia justice system. If he is convicted of these false charges and
harshly sentenced without a shred of evidence against him, Indonesia may have fallen
beyond the point of recovery. It is imperative that Indonesia establishes the
supremacy of law and order where every citizen, regardless of his/her religious,
political, ethnic or social background, is treated humanely and protected equally
under the law. The evil devastation of Bali could be repeated at any moment in any
part of Indonesia. Those who support law, order, and human dignity, must take the
initiative to see that such violent acts are no longer permitted, and no longer
concealed. Rev. Rinaldy Damanik must be freed from his unjust imprisonment.
Sincerely,
Ann Buwalda
Jubilee Campaign USA
email: jubilee@jubileecampaign.org
voice: 703-503-0791
web: http://www.jubileecampaign.org
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