LAKSAMANA.Net, May 26, 2004 11:56 PM
Sidney Jones Facing Expulsion from Indonesia
Laksamana.Net - The International Crisis Group (ICG) fears the Indonesian
government is preparing to expel its Jakarta-based director Sidney Jones, who is
widely regarded as the foremost expert on terrorism and human rights abuses in the
country.
In a statement issued Wednesday (26/5/04), the Brussels-based ICG said the
Manpower Ministry had several weeks ago refused to renew the work permits of Jones
and her colleagues following a "complaint". Since then their office has ceased to
function.
Jones, a US citizen, has won international renown her in-depth reports on regional
terrorism network Jemaah Islamiyah, as well as her research into conflicts in Aceh,
the Maluku islands, Sulawesi and Papua.
ICG’s Jakarta office has produced 39 reports on Indonesia since she joined the
Group in May 2000.
Government officials, including Foreign Affairs Minister Hassan Wirajuda, on
Wednesday criticized some of Jones' work, prompting her to issue a statement of
concern over her treatment.
"Wirajuda reportedly told journalists and political party activists that ICG's reports
were biased, and that the government had the right to expel whomever it chose," she
was quoted as saying by Australia’s The Age daily.
Seeking an explanation for the government’s refusal to extend her work visa, Jones
was told by the Manpower Ministry it had received a complaint but it could not say
what it was about or who had made it.
"How can we answer charges when the charges are made in secret?" she said.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Marty Natalegawa admitted Wirajuda had criticized
Jones at a breakfast gathering attended by Indonesian journalists but denied the
minister had described her work as biased.
"It's absolutely not the case. What Mr Hassan said...when a question was asked
about the status of Ms Jones's visa, he wondered out loud about the work of the ICG
but not in the context of it being biased but he simply [posed] a well-considered
question about the authority of its reports."
Natalegawa said the minister was especially concerned by ICG reports on Aceh. The
Group’s most recent report on Aceh - ‘How Not to Win Hearts and Minds’ - was
published last July.
The Foreign Ministry insisted its concern over the reports had led to the decision to
prevent Jones from working in Indonesia.
"This is totally unrelated to the question of Sidney Jones's work permit...we are not
going to fall into the trap and, nice try to Sidney Jones, make her some kind of
martyr," Natalegawa was quoted as saying by The Age daily.
In addition to the Foreign Ministry’s complaints, Jones said "serious accusations"
had also been made against her on Tuesday during a meeting between the National
Intelligence Agency (BIN) and parliament’s commission on security affairs.
She said she had been trying for two months to meet BIN chief Hendropriyono to
discuss ICG's work, but to no avail.
Before joining ICG as Indonesia Project Director, Jones was executive director of the
Asia division of New York-based Human Rights Watch from 1989 to 2002. An
Indonesia specialist with 20 years' experience working in and on the country, she also
served as director of the Human Rights Office of the United Nations Transitional
Administration in East Timor from December 1999 to July 2000.
Prior to joining Human Rights Watch, Jones was the Indonesia and Philippines
researcher at Amnesty International in London. From 1977 to 1984, she was a
program officer with the Ford Foundation, first in Jakarta, later in New York. During
this time, she also studied Islam and politics in Indonesia, living in a traditional
Muslim boarding school in East Java. She holds degrees in Oriental Studies and
International Relations from the University of Pennsylvania and spent a year at Pahlavi
University in Shiraz, Iran.
The decision not to renew her visa has raised fears of a crackdown on independent
reporting on Indonesia’s trouble spots.
The government was widely criticized in December 2001 for refusing to extend the
work permit of award-winning Age correspondent Lindsay Murdoch after authorities
objected to his reports on human rights abuses in Aceh and Timor.
ICG President Gareth Evans, a former foreign minister of Australia, said he had
complete confidence in the competence and integrity of Jones, adding Indonesia's
reputation would be damaged if the ICG is expelled.
Following is the ICG statement on the Indonesian government’s accusations against
Jones.
ICG Responds to Expulsion Threat in Indonesia
Jakarta/Brussels, 26 May 2004: The International Crisis Group learned from the
Indonesia media this morning that serious accusations were made against its
Jakarta-based director, Sidney Jones, in a meeting yesterday between the National
Intelligence Agency (BIN) and Commission I, the committee of the Indonesian
Parliament responsible for security affairs.
In response to a question earlier today, Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda reportedly
told journalists and political party activists that ICG's reports were biased, and that the
government had the right to expel whomever it chose.
To date, ICG has received no direct communication from the Foreign Ministry, BIN, or
immigration with respect to its work or the visas of its staff. The only indication that
something was amiss was the refusal of the Ministry of Labor to extend work permits
for ICG staff, based on a "complaint". When ICG asked in March 2004 who the
complaint was from, and what the nature of its contents was, Ministry of Labor
officials said they could not respond to either question.
"How can we answer charges when the charges are made in secret?" says Jones. "I
would be more than happy to appear before Commission I and respond in detail to
whatever questions Commission members would like to pose." Jones also notes that
she has been trying unsuccessfully for the last two months to meet with BIN Director
Hendropriyono to discuss ICG's work.
ICG has been in Indonesia since 2000. The Jakarta office is one of nineteen field
offices of the Brussels-based organization that produce analyses of conflict around
the world. The Jakarta office has produced reports on Aceh, Papua, Maluku, Poso,
police and military reform, decentralization and terrorism.
ICG President Gareth Evans says, "I have total confidence in the competence and
integrity of Sidney Jones and ICG's Jakarta team."
"If General Hendropriyono, the Foreign Minister, or anyone else have complaints about
our work, we will be only too happy to answer them fully and directly."
"I think the Indonesian government should take into account that if we are expelled
from Indonesia, this will do far more damage to Indonesia's reputation than ICG's."
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