Ex-Indonesian political prisoners criticize U.S. role

Tanith L. Balaban Arizona Daily Wildcat Indonesian activist Yeni Rosa Damayanti (left) and East Timorese activist Fernando Araujo spoke about peoples' rights under the military both in Indonesia and East Timor last night in Social Sciences building Room 222. The two activists spoke as part of the Global Exchange series that runs through the end of next semester.

Indonesian protesters Yeni Rosa Damayanti and Fernando Araujo spoke to about 40 University of Arizona students and faculty about the struggle for freedom in Indonesia and East Timor - an incorporated area - under an oppressive military regime.

During the event, sponsored by the national Global Exchange Program and organized on campus by political science graduate student Greg Knehans, Damayanti and Araujo urged international condemnation of Indonesia's government.

Knehans, who gave the opening statement, said East Timor is a small region that was a colony of Portugal before it was granted independence in 1975. The area is seeking independence and democratic elections, aimed to institute a majority-backed Marxist government.

Indonesia, with military aid from the U.S., invaded East Timor in December 1975, murdering one-third of the population, Knehans said.

Knehans has been working with the East Timor Action Network, a national group trying to raise awareness of the area's problems.

"The killing is still going on," said Araujo, who at the age of 10 witnessed the systematic slaughter of 18 of his family members.

Knehans blamed much of what happened in East Timor on the U.S., which he said trained and supported the military in Indonesia - "an investor's paradise."

Multinational corporations exploit the land for economic gain, he said. Gas and mineral reserves attracted investors such as Irving, Texas-based Exxon Corp. and Freeport-McMoran, a New Orleans-based mining company, Knehans said.

Although the military has complete control over the civilians, breeds fear and uses violence, the United States has the ability to influence Indonesia's government.

The situation is improving slightly, Araujo said, since the U.S. Congress passed a resolution three weeks ago to support a United Nations referendum for East Timor.

"We want a free situation where people can choose freely," he said.

Benjamin Bush, a political science freshman, said the speeches had a strong impact.

"I have heard about the situation in Indonesia before," Bush said. "But the arguments for the self-determination of these peoples were much more compelling in person."

Genevieve D. Cruise can be reached via e-mail at Genevieve.D.Cruise@wildcat.arizona.edu.