PROMOTING HUMAN RIGHTS, PEACE AND DEMOCRACY IN INDONESIA

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TAPOL has written to Foreign Office Minister Derek Fatchett drawing his attention to the use of British-supplied water cannon against thousands of workers who were on strike in Surabaya last week

24 February 1999

A photograph of the water-cannon in use was published in The Jakarta Post on 18 February. A copy of the photo was sent to the Minister and to Members of Parliament.

The text of TAPOL's letter to Derek Fatchett is printed below:

Derek Fatchett MP
Minister of State
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
London SW1A OAA

23 February 1999

I enclose a copy of a photograph from the Jakarta Post of 18 February, which shows a British Tactica water cannon being used on 17 February against workers in Surabaya, East Java, calling for higher wages. At least 20 workers were injured when soldiers and police tried to stop them entering the city centre. An article in the same issue said that ‘security personnel fired warning shots and sprayed the crowd with yellow liquid’.

The water cannon and discoloured liquid was clearly used to suppress the workers’ rights to free assembly and to freely express their legitimate demands. The dispute was settled peacefully the next day and the intervention of the security forces in this way was completely unjustified.

The water cannon was also used for internal repression in breach of assurances given to the British Government. (We know that they were licensed for export by the previous administration, but the assurances were given to the British Government as a sovereign entity and not just to the administration which approved the export.)

Nearly a year ago, on 9 April 1998, we wrote to the Prime Minister about British water cannon being used in Surabaya against protesting students 'with discoloured water that looked like it was from a sceptic tank'. We asked him to call upon the Indonesian Government to stop using water cannon in this way. Obviously our demands have been completely ignored.

These are matters of serious concern. There are likely to be many political demonstrations on the streets of Indonesian cities in the build-up to the elections on 7 June and the security forces have introduced a ‘shoot on sight’ policy to crackdown on what they regard as civil unrest. Armed forces commander, General Wiranto has specifically stated that ‘repressive measures’ will be used. There are fears that political dissidents will be targeted ["Repressive measures" could allow a crackdown on political dissidents, Australian Financial Review, 8 February].

We urge you to ensure that no British equipment is used for these purposes and we ask you to:

1. Protest in the strongest terms to the Indonesian Government about the use of British equipment against the Surabaya workers.

2. Demand that the Indonesian Government halts the use of British equipment for internal repression and insist that it reaffirms its previous assurances.

Please also confirm whether the water cannon licensed for export in December 1996 have been delivered. If not, we would we urge you once again to revoke the licence in view of the clear danger that the equipment will be misused.

Yours sincerely, Carmel Budiardjo (TAPOL)

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