An American researcher whose work helped expose a network of al-Qaeda-linked terrorists in Indonesia has been ordered out of the country for violating her work permit, an immigration official said yesterday.
However, terrorism expert Sidney Jones claimed that Indonesia's intelligence agency was behind the expulsion order because it considered reports published by her group, International Crisis Group (ICG), to be "subversive."
The order represents a blow to freedom of expression in Indonesia, which critics say has been gradually eroded since democratic reforms were ushered in after the downfall of ex-dictator Suharto in 1998.
PHOTO: REUTERS
The government has jailed several student activists and journalists critical of President Megawati Sukarnoputri -- currently seeking re-election -- and other political leaders.
Jones, 52, from Albany, New York, said she was given the deportation order late on Tuesday. It cited immigration violations and was effective immediately.
Her Australian assistant analyst, Francesca Lawe-Davies, 27, was also ordered to leave.
Indonesia's immigration department spokesman Ade Endang Dahlan confirmed the order yesterday, saying Jones had violated the terms of her work permit, but he gave no more details.
Earlier, authorities had said they might not renew Jones' visa, which expires on June 10. It was unclear why the government stepped up its action against her on Tuesday.
"I was devastated to learn that I had to leave Indonesia, but now I am just furious," she said. "I am not sure when I have to leave. I am assuming they'll give [me] time to pack."'
The Belgium-based think tank opened its office in Jakarta in 2000.
In 2002, the group released detailed reports on the activities of the al-Qaeda linked Jemaah Islamiyah terror group in Indonesia at a time when the government refused to acknowledge its existence.
Jemaah Islamiyah was blamed for the Oct. 12, 2002, Bali bombings. Police have since arrested scores of its members.
ICG has also produced critical reports on the government response to separatist conflicts in Aceh and Papua provinces as well as religious violence in Central Sulawesi.
Some officials and diplomats have privately complained that the terrorism reports were alarmist and were so often cited in the Western media that they hurt the country's economy, particularly its tourism sector.
The ICG's president, former Australian foreign minister Gareth Evans, said the expulsion order was served with "a desire to smother legitimate criticism."
"This will do far more damage to Indonesia's reputation than [to] the ICG's," he said. "This is a sad day for those hoping for better from Indonesian democracy."
Foreigners have largely been immune to Megawati's crackdown on critics, although a court jailed British national Lesley Jane McCulloch, an academic critical of the government, for five months after she was caught in Aceh in 2002.
Megawati is currently trailing her main rival in opinion polls ahead of presidential elections scheduled for July 5.
ELECTION DISTRACTION? When attention shifted away from the fight against the militants to politics, losses and setbacks in the battlefield increased, an analyst said Recent clashes in Somalia’s semi-autonomous Jubaland region are alarming experts, exposing cracks in the country’s federal system and creating an opening for militant group al-Shabaab to gain ground. Following years of conflict, Somalia is a loose federation of five semi-autonomous member states — Puntland, Jubaland, Galmudug, Hirshabelle and South West — that maintain often fractious relations with the central government in the capital, Mogadishu. However, ahead of elections next year, Somalia has sought to assert control over its member states, which security analysts said has created gaps for al-Shabaab infiltration. Last week, two Somalian soldiers were killed in clashes between pro-government forces and
Ten cheetah cubs held in captivity since birth and destined for international wildlife trade markets have been rescued in Somaliland, a breakaway region of Somalia. They were all in stable condition despite all of them having been undernourished and limping due to being tied in captivity for months, said Laurie Marker, founder of the Cheetah Conservation Fund, which is caring for the cubs. One eight-month-old cub was unable to walk after been tied up for six months, while a five-month-old was “very malnourished [a bag of bones], with sores all over her body and full of botfly maggots which are under the
BRUSHED OFF: An ambassador to Australia previously said that Beijing does not see a reason to apologize for its naval exercises and military maneuvers in international areas China set off alarm bells in New Zealand when it dispatched powerful warships on unprecedented missions in the South Pacific without explanation, military documents showed. Beijing has spent years expanding its reach in the southern Pacific Ocean, courting island nations with new hospitals, freshly paved roads and generous offers of climate aid. However, these diplomatic efforts have increasingly been accompanied by more overt displays of military power. Three Chinese warships sailed the Tasman Sea between Australia and New Zealand in February, the first time such a task group had been sighted in those waters. “We have never seen vessels with this capability
‘NO INTEGRITY’: The chief judge expressed concern over how the sentence would be perceived given that military detention is believed to be easier than civilian prison A military court yesterday sentenced a New Zealand soldier to two years’ detention for attempting to spy for a foreign power. The soldier, whose name has been suppressed, admitted to attempted espionage, accessing a computer system for a dishonest purpose and knowingly possessing an objectionable publication. He was ordered into military detention at Burnham Military Camp near Christchurch and would be dismissed from the New Zealand Defence Force at the end of his sentence. His admission and its acceptance by the court marked the first spying conviction in New Zealand’s history. The soldier would be paid at half his previous rate until his dismissal
RSS