LETTERS TO THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT
DEMANDING THAT IT ACT RESPONSIBLY TOWARDS EAST TIMOR AND INDONESIA

Note: the three letters are in reverse date order.

Letter 1:

7 May 2002

The Honorable Colin L. Powell
Secretary of State
U.S. Department of State
2201 C St NW
Washington, DC 20520

The Honorable Donald H. Rumsfeld
Secretary of Defense
Department of Defense
1000 Defense Pentagon
Washington, DC 20301-1000

Dear Secretary Powell and Secretary Rumsfeld:

We are greatly troubled by Pentagon plans to significantly increase engagement with the Indonesian military (TNI). Prudent restrictions on military aid to Indonesia, renewed and strengthened by Congress in the FY02 Foreign Operations Appropriations Act, would in effect be nullified.

Indonesian armed forces continue to perpetrate systematic human rights violations throughout the archipelago. The Indonesia section of the 2001 State Department’s Country Report on Human Rights Practices documents “shooting of civilians, torture, rape, beatings and other abuse, and arbitrary detention” and notes that “the Government rarely holds the military or police accountable for committing extrajudicial killings or using excessive force.” Rewarding the TNI with US assistance -- while crackdowns on civilians continue, and in some cases escalate, and resistance to accountability remains overwhelming -- signifies the condoning of serious rights violations by the Administration.

The Administration has already lifted the embargo on commercial sales of non-lethal defense articles and increased bilateral contacts between the militaries, while Congress has agreed to reinstate Expanded International Military Education and Training (IMET) for FY02. Yet these initiatives have not led to military reform or greater influence in Jakarta, as argued by many in the Administration. On the contrary, the Indonesian government has been less than cooperative in the “war on terrorism,” largely neglecting Administration requests regarding terrorist suspects and their assets. Domestic-focused militant jihad groups continue to enjoy protection and support from members of the government and military.

We are disturbed about the ease with which CINCPAC Admiral Dennis Blair overrode Foreign Operations Appropriations jurisdiction and succeeded in securing a last-minute addition to the FY02 Defense Department Appropriations Act (HR 3338, provision 8125), providing $17.9 million to establish a Regional Defense Counter-terrorism Fellowship Program. Provision 8125 was clearly an end-run around Foreign Operations Appropriations IMET restrictions, although none of the seven conditions Congress required to lift the ban have been met. There are no restrictions on which countries can participate in the program, which has an unknown curriculum.

The FY02 Emergency Supplemental Appropriations request is more troubling still. The request for an additional $8 million for the “training of civilian and military personnel in support of humanitarian and peacekeeping activities in Indonesia” can only be seen as yet another attempt to undermine congressional restrictions. Before peacekeeping training should even be considered for the TNI, soldiers would do well to stop their widespread practice of murder, torture, and rape of civilians. The purpose and composition of the $8 million to “vet, train, and equip a counter-terrorism unit” is unclear.
Potentially many more millions for defense articles, services, training, and other aid could be made available for Indonesia from large pools of money for unspecified countries, including $100 million “to support foreign nations.” If the FY02 Emergency Supplemental Appropriations requests are honored, the TNI will not only have access to prestigious U.S. military training without congressional oversight, but bill language providing for defense articles and services to unspecified countries could be used to supply Indonesia with banned FMF. We further object to making funds “available notwithstanding any other provision of law.”

If the Pentagon is allowed to ignore existing Foreign Operations Appropriations restrictions in the FY02 Emergency Supplemental Appropriations request, congressional intent will be effectively ignored, an unacceptable and fundamentally undemocratic precedent. The message coming from Washington to Jakarta will be even more conflicted, rendering U.S. support for democracy and human rights in Indonesia even less credible. It is incomprehensible to deny IMET and FMF for the TNI and talk about the need for military reform and an end to impunity on the one hand, while the same sought-after training, financing, equipment, and services are provided in everything but name. The United State’s most important point of leverage – to foster respect for human rights and accountability and encourage military reform – will be lost with little or nothing gained.

It is crucial that this leverage is not lost. As organizations working on behalf of human rights and social justice, we strongly request that the Administration cooperate with Congress to achieve the following:

The IMET and FMF restrictions for TNI must be respected and administration support given for their renewal in FY03. The TNI should not receive training under the Regional Defense Counter-terrorism Fellowship Program. Funds appropriated through the supplemental request should not be used to train the TNI in any form or provide the military with undefined defense articles and services. Any clause stating that funds for foreign militaries “may be made available notwithstanding any other provision of law” should be excised. Throughout the bill, countries eligible for specific programs or pots of monies should be specified.

We object to any military assistance for the TNI. However, if new aid programs are implemented, the Pentagon should consult in detail with members of Foreign Operations Appropriations Subcommittees and Foreign Relations/International Relations Committees, as well as other interested members of Congress, prior to and during any program. These consultations should include the curricula and locations of the training.

If any training does go forward, the Pentagon should provide Congress with verification that those with whom the Pentagon works – whether individuals or units of the police or military -- will not use skills gained to suppress domestic conflicts. All individuals and units that receive training must be vetted for participation in past abuses, and any with records of committing human rights violations should not be allowed to participate. The U.S. should not assist the TNI in further acts of murder, torture, rape, and other abuses in Indonesia.

Foreign policy formulation should be returned to the authority of the Foreign/International Relations Committees, the Foreign Operations Appropriations Subcommittees, and the State Department, where it traditionally has resided.

We also ask for clarification of the nature, composition, and purpose of the Regional Defense Counter-terrorism Fellowship Program, as well as the counter-terrorism unit.

Thank you for your serious consideration. We look forward to your response.

Sincerely,

John Ackerly, President
International Campaign for Tibet

Bama Athreya, Deputy Director
International Labor Rights Fund

Medea Benjamin, Co-Founder
Global Exchange

Kurt Biddle, Washington Coordinator
Indonesia Human Rights Network

Diana Bohn, Secretary
Bay Are Jubilee Debt Cancellation Coalition
Co-Coordinator, Nicaragua Center for Community Action

Rev. William Callahan, Co-Director
Quixote Center/Quest for Peace

Rev. John Chamberlin, National Coordinator
East Timor Religious Outreach

Peter J. Davies, UN Representative
Saferworld

Dr. Cathey E. Falvo, MD, MPH, Board of Directors
Physicians for Social Responsibility

Program Director, International and Public Health, School of Public Health
New York Medical College

Tamar Gabelnick, Director
Arms Sales Monitoring Project
Federation of American Scientists

Erik Gustafson, Executive Director
Education for Peace in Iraq Center

William D. Hartung, Director
Arms Trade Resource Center
World Policy Institute

David Herrel, Interim U.S. Director
Visions in Action

Martha Honey, Co-director
Foreign Policy In Focus, Institute for Policy Studies

Carol Jahnkow, Executive Director
Peace Resource Center of San Diego

Melissa Jameson, Director
War Resisters League

Prof. Peter Juviler, Director
Human Rights Studies, Barnard College, Columbia University

Lavinia Limon, Executive Director
U.S. Committee for Refugees

Kevin Martin, Executive Director
Peace Action Education Fund

Mary Anne Mercer, Co-chair
Northwest International Health Action Coalition (NIHAC)

John M. Miller, Director
Foreign Bases Project

John Oei, Founder
Indonesian, Chinese, and American Network

Karen Orenstein, Washington Coordinator
East Timor Action Network

Diana Ortiz, OSU, Director
Torture Abolition and Survivors Support Coalition International

Robert Pedersen, Trade and Labor Coordinator
Indiana Alliance for Democracy

Colin Rajah, Executive Director
JustAct - Youth Action for Global Justice

Jen Randolph Reise, Co-Director
Women Against Military Madness

Dave Robinson
National Coordinator, Pax Christi USA

Sharon Silber, Eileen B. Weiss, Co-Founders
Jews Against Genocide

Morton Sklar, Executive Director
World Organization Against Torture U.S.A.

Stephanie S. Spencer, Program Associate for Southern Asia
Common Global Ministries of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and the United Church of Christ

Gail Taylor, Legislative Director
School of the Americas Watch

Kathy Thornton, RSM, National Coordinator
NETWORK: A National Catholic Social Justice Lobby

Carmen Trotta, Associate Editor
The Catholic Worker

Joe Volk, Executive Secretary
Friends Committee on National Legislation

Charles Warpehoski, Program Coordinator
Nicaragua Network

Roland Watson
Dictator Watch

John Witeck, Coordinator
Philippine Workers Support Committee

Kani Xulam, Director
American Kurdish Information Network

Phyllis S. Yingling, President
Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, United States Section

cc: The Honorable Robert C. Byrd, Chair, Senate Appropriations Committee
The Honorable Ted Stevens, Ranking Member, Senate Appropriations Committee
The Honorable Patrick J. Leahy, Chair, Senate Foreign Operations Appropriations Subcommittee
The Honorable Mitch McConnell, Ranking Member, Foreign Operations Appropriations Subcommittee
The Honorable C. W. Young, Chair, House Appropriations Committee
The Honorable David R. Obey, Ranking Member, House Appropriations Committee
The Honorable Jim Kolbe, Chair, Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Subcommittee
The Honorable Nita M. Lowey, Ranking Member, Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Subcommittee


Letter 2:


22 April 2002

Secretary Colin L. Powell
U.S. Department of State
2201 ‘C’ Street, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20520

Dear Secretary Powell:

We urgently appeal to you to support the most generous grant possible without restrictive macroeconomic conditions at the May 14 and 15 pledging conference in East Timor. We strongly encourage you to work with other donor governments and international financial institutions (IFIs) to make sure that East Timor’s expected financing gap is covered in its entirety.

East Timor’s call to fund its financing gap comes on the heels of President Bush’s recently stated commitment to eradicating poverty worldwide and efforts by Treasury Secretary Paul O’Neill and others to make sure that grants form a large portion of international assistance to poor countries. Pledging to fund 25% of the gap would be consistent with recent positions taken by the Administration and would signal the sincerity of U.S. intentions to the world.

As you likely know, the East Timorese government is expecting a $154 to $184 million shortfall in its already lean recurrent and development budgets over the first three years of independence. While less than the Administration spends on one F-22 fighter plane, for a small country like East Timor this sum could stand in the way of a promising beginning as the world’s newest nation. Due to reductions in peacekeeping and other UN operations in East Timor, the U.S. will be saving substantial sums, a portion of which could be pledged in May.

We strongly believe that the U.S. government has a moral obligation to ensure that East Timor’s financing gap is fully funded. For some 50 years, the U.S. was the largest supporter of the Indonesian military, despite its egregious human rights record. That the President and Secretary of State of the United States in 1975 gave a green light to Indonesian dictator Suharto to invade East Timor is widely documented. And throughout the occupation, the U.S. supplied Indonesian security forces with well over one billion dollars of military assistance and equipment. Generous grants to East Timor without strings attached cannot bring back the hundreds of thousands of East Timorese killed, but they would help ensure a peaceful and prosperous future for East Timor.

It is wholly practical to sustain the positive investment made to date in East Timor by the U.S. and other countries. This is the world’s first chance to take preemptive action to thwart the vicious cycle of poverty and debt that has a stranglehold on far too many developing countries. Simply put, it is far cheaper to prevent a problem than to fix it. East Timorese civil society and government leaders have made poverty eradication a top priority; they have repeatedly stated that the nation should not mortgage its future by incurring debt. East Timor has highly credible financial institutions with sound international practices.Substantial profits from offshore oil and natural gas will start flowing in five to ten years. It makes little sense from either an economic or a humanitarian perspective to force a nation only beginning to recover from such pervasive and recent destruction to use its revenues to service debt to wealthy institutions and countries rather than spend on education, healthcare, and other vital services. Moreover, a stable East Timor is important for a stable Indonesia.

Any contributions, whether from the U.S. or other donors, should not be tied to crippling strings of structural adjustment, whether in name or in practice. While the term is not used in reference to East Timor, there are strong indications that similar onerous macroeconomic conditions will be applied. The U.S. and other countries must implement lessons learned repeatedly from the painful experiences of so many poor nations that tying assistance to such conditions has only led to further impoverishment including decreased access to healthcare and education; devastated small- and medium-sized farms, businesses, and other local industries; lowered wages and increased unemployment; undermined food security; and environmental degradation. All of these effects burden women disproportionately. With enough foresight, East Timor can avoid the same fate.

The people of East Timor have paid a terrible price for their freedom and will soon proudly celebrate their independence. That independence must also apply to economic and financial arenas. The United States can make sure that East Timor’s people did not suffer the unbearable only to end up in an endless cycle of poverty. Our government must contribute its fair share to East Timor’s financing gap and coordinate with other governments and IFIs to guarantee that the full amount is covered with grants free of restrictive macroeconomic conditions.

Sincerely,

Christine Ahn, New Voices Fellow
Food First

Bama Athreya, Deputy Director
International Labor Rights Fund

Mubarak Awad, Chair of the Board
Nonviolence International

Jeff Ballinger, Director
Press for Change

Medea Benjamin, Co-Founder
Global Exchange

Kurt Biddle, Washington Coordinator
Indonesia Human Rights Network

Michele Bohana, Director
Institute for Asian Democracy

Diana Bohn, Co-Coordinator,
Nicaragua Center for Community Action

Rev. William Callahan, Co-Director
Quixote Center/ Quest for Peace

Rev. John Chamberlin, National Coordinator
East Timor Religious Outreach

Marie Clark, National Coordinator
Jubilee USA

Peter J. Davies, UN Representative
Saferworld

Erik Gustafson, Executive Director
Education for Peace in Iraq Center

Katherine Hoyt, National Co-Coordinator
Nicaragua Network

Aviva Imhof, Southeast Asia Program Director
International Rivers Network

John Judge, Member of the Board
Washington Peace Center

Mary Anne Mercer, Co-chair
The Northwest International Health Action Coalition (NIHAC)

Njoki Njoroge Njehu, Director
50 Years Is Enough Network

John Oei, Founder
Indonesian, Chinese, and American Network

Ann Oestreich, IHM, Congregation Justice Coordinator
Sisters of the Holy Cross

Karen Orenstein, Washington Coordinator
East Timor Action Network

Robert Pedersen, Trade and Labor Coordinator
Indiana Alliance for Democracy

Colin Rajah, Executive Director
JustAct - Youth Action for Global Justice

Jen Randolph Reise, Co-Director
Women Against Military Madness

Stephanie S. Spencer, Program Associate for Southern Asia
Common Global Ministries of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and the United Church of Christ

Ivan Suvanjieff, President
PeaceJam Foundation

Ben Terrall, Director
East Timor Relief and Research Project

Mark Toney, Executive Director
Center for Third World Organizing

Neil Watkins, Washington Office Coordinator
Center for Economic Justice

Roland Watson
Dictator Watch

Robert Weissman, Co-Director
Essential Action

John Witeck, Coordinator
Philippine Workers Support Committee

Kani Xulam, Director
American Kurdish Information Network

Phyllis S. Yingling, President
Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, United States Section

cc: The Honorable Paul H. O’Neill, Secretary of Treasury
The Honorable Andrew S. Natsios, Administrator, U.S. Agency for International Development


Letter3:

19 April 2002

Dear Appropriations Committee Member:

We urgently appeal to you to ensure that the U.S. makes the most generous grant possible, without restrictive macroeconomic conditions, at the May 14 and 15 pledging conference in East Timor. As a member of the Appropriations Committee, you are well-positioned to do so. You may be aware that the East Timorese government is expecting a $154 to $184 million revenue shortfall in its already lean recurrent and development budgets over the first three years of independence. While this sum is minuscule on an international scale, it could stand in the way of a promising beginning to the world’s newest nation.

East Timor’s call to fund its financing gap comes on the heels of President Bush’s recently stated commitment to eradicating poverty worldwide and efforts by Treasury Secretary Paul O’Neill and others to make sure that grants form a large portion of international assistance to poor countries. Pledging to fund 25% of the gap would be consistent with recent positions taken by the U.S. and would signal the sincerity of our intentions to the world.
We urge you to explore scenarios by which the necessary funding for the financing gap can be attained. We understand that due to timing constraints, Administration representatives have pledged funds at past donor conferences which were appropriated retroactively. We encourage you to work with your colleagues on the Appropriations Committee to consider such an option for East Timor, as well as ensuring that, in coordination with other donors, monies contributed suffice to cover the entire financing gap with grants. Options for this funding include the FY03 Foreign Operations Appropriations bill’s debt relief package, Economic Support Fund, or another portfolio. A second possibility would be to earmark ESF for budgetary support for East Timor in the FY02 Emergency Supplemental Appropriations bill, as has already been requested by the Administration for the Afghan Interim Authority and Jordan. Finally, we ask that you explore with the Administration the possibility of drawing from State Department, Treasury, or other discretionary funds for this purpose. We note that due to reductions in peacekeeping and other UN operations in East Timor, the U.S. will be saving substantial sums, a portion of which could be donated.

We strongly feel that the U.S. government has a moral obligation to make sure that East Timor’s financing gap is fully funded. For some 50 years, the U.S. was the largest supporter of the Indonesian military, despite its egregious record of rights abuses. That the President and Secretary of State of the United States in 1975 gave a green light to Indonesian dictator Suharto to invade East Timor is widely documented. Throughout the occupation, the U.S. supplied Indonesian security forces with well over one billion dollars of military assistance and equipment. Generous grants to East Timor without strings attached cannot bring back the hundreds of thousands of East Timorese killed with U.S. backing, but they would help ensure a peaceful and prosperous future for East Timor.

It is wholly practical to sustain the positive investment made to date in East Timor by the U.S. and other countries. This is the world’s first chance to take preemptive action to thwart the vicious cycle of poverty and debt that has a stranglehold on far too many developing countries. Simply put, it is far cheaper to prevent a problem than to fix it. East Timorese civil society and government leaders have made poverty eradication a top priority; they have repeatedly stated that the nation should not mortgage its future by incurring debt. East Timor has highly credible financial institutions with sound international practices.Substantial profits from offshore oil and natural gas will start flowing in five to ten years. It makes little sense from either an economic or a humanitarian perspective to force a nation only beginning to recover from such pervasive and recent destruction to use its revenues to service debt to wealthy institutions and countries rather than spend on education, healthcare, and other vital services. Moreover, a stable East Timor is important for a stable Indonesia.

Any contributions, whether from the U.S. or other donors, should not be tied to crippling strings of structural adjustment, whether in name or in practice. While the term is not used in reference to East Timor, there are strong indications that similar onerous macroeconomic conditions will be applied. The U.S. and other countries must implement lessons learned repeatedly from the painful experiences of so many poor nations that tying assistance to such conditions has only led to further impoverishment. With this knowledge, East Timor is well-positioned to avoid the same fate.

The people of East Timor have paid a terrible price for their freedom and will soon proudly celebrate their independence. That independence must also apply to economic and financial sectors. Congress, acting as the government’s conscience, has time and again redirected Administration policies when they have strayed from oft-stated principles of respect for human rights and democracy. This has been especially true in the case of East Timor. We trust that Congress will maintain this tradition as East Timor approaches independence and beyond. With your help, the United States can ensure that East Timor’s people did not suffer the unbearable only to end up in an endless cycle of poverty.

Sincerely,

Christine Ahn, New Voices Fellow
Food First

Bama Athreya, Deputy Director
International Labor Rights Fund

Mubarak Awad, Chair of the Board
Nonviolence International

Jeff Ballinger, Director
Press for Change

Medea Benjamin, Co-Founder
Global Exchange

Kurt Biddle, Washington Coordinator
Indonesia Human Rights Network

Michele Bohana, Director
Institute for Asian Democracy

Diana Bohn, Co-Coordinator,
Nicaragua Center for Community Action

Rev. William Callahan, Co-Director
Quixote Center/ Quest for Peace

Rev. John Chamberlin, National Coordinator
East Timor Religious Outreach

Marie Clark, National Coordinator
Jubilee USA

Peter J. Davies, UN Representative
Saferworld

Erik Gustafson, Executive Director
Education for Peace in Iraq Center

Katherine Hoyt, National Co-Coordinator
Nicaragua Network

Aviva Imhof, Southeast Asia Program Director
International Rivers Network

John Judge, Member of the Board
Washington Peace Center

Mary Anne Mercer, Co-chair
The Northwest International Health Action Coalition (NIHAC)

Njoki Njoroge Njehu, Director
50 Years Is Enough Network

John Oei, Founder
Indonesian, Chinese, and American Network

Ann Oestreich, IHM, Congregation Justice Coordinator
Sisters of the Holy Cross

Karen Orenstein, Washington Coordinator
East Timor Action Network

Robert Pedersen, Trade and Labor Coordinator
Indiana Alliance for Democracy

Colin Rajah, Executive Director
JustAct - Youth Action for Global Justice

Jen Randolph Reise, Co-Director
Women Against Military Madness

Stephanie S. Spencer, Program Associate for Southern Asia
Common Global Ministries of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and the United Church of Christ

Ivan Suvanjieff, President
PeaceJam Foundation

Ben Terrall, Director
East Timor Relief and Research Project

Mark Toney, Executive Director
Center for Third World Organizing

Neil Watkins, Washington Office Coordinator
Center for Economic Justice

Roland Watson
Dictator Watch

Robert Weissman, Co-Director
Essential Action

John Witeck, Coordinator
Philippine Workers Support Committee

Kani Xulam, Director
American Kurdish Information Network

Phyllis S. Yingling, President
Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, United States Section