ERRI EMERGENCY SERVICES REPORT-EmergencyNet NEWS Service-Friday, May 1, 1998 Vol. 2 - 121
ASIA AND PACIFIC
MEDAN, INDONESIA (EmergencyNet News) - Violent student
protests against President Suharto erupted in Indonesia's north Sumatra city of Medan on
Friday and some of the demonstrators threw petrol bombs at security forces. An estimated
500 students, many hurling stones, were met with tear gas, rubber bullets and armoured
cars mounted with water cannon which drove them back into their campus at the Islamic
University of North Sumatra, a mile from the city centre.
The students then set fire to tyres and tree branches to block the road and some high school boys in grey shorts and white shirts joined in, hurling stones from side streets until tear gas drove them away before a break in the confrontation for Friday prayers.
There were other protests against Suharto in cities on Indonesia's main island of Java, including Jakarta, Yogjakarta, Surabaya and Bandung, witnesses said, but there were no immediate reports of serious trouble.
Indonesia's economic crisis has caused spiralling inflation and widespread job losses has fuelled the protests. Most of the many demonstrations against 76-year-old Suharto which began in February -- just before he was re-elected to a seventh five-year term by a body he largely hand- picked -- have been confined to campus and most have been fairly peaceful.
MEDAN, INDONESIA (EmergencyNet News) - Students around Indonesia demonstrated, sometimes violently, against President Suharto on Saturday, demanding the swift political and economic reforms he has refused them. Students at more than half a dozen campuses in Jakarta and on Java -- Indonesia's main island and political heartland -- marked the country's Education Day with anti-Suharto protests. They all demanded reform and that Suharto quit to take responsibility for the country's worst economic crisis in decades. Suharto told government, political and military leaders on Friday that political change could be discussed, but not implemented constitutionally until 2003.
JAKARTA (EmergencyNet News) - Indonesia's military chief issued a stern warning against anti-Suharto student protests, as the government announced sharp hikes in fuel, electricity and transport prices.
ASIA AND PACIFIC
JAKARTA (EmergencyNet News) - Indonesia's military chief issued a stern warning on Monday against anti-Suharto student protests, as the government announced sharp hikes in fuel, electricity and transport prices. Armed Forces head and Defence Minister General Wiranto, said the protests were sliding toward anarchy and he had told army commanders to take "stern action" against student demonstrations which moved off campus.
But analysts said an increase in fuel prices would ripple through the economy, adding to the inflationary pressures which have battered the nation in recent months, and almost certainly lead to further restiveness.
MEDAN, INDONESIA (EmergencyNet News) - Indonesian police opened fire to quell looting and riots in the North Sumatra capital of Medan, wounding two demonstrators.
INTERNATIONAL EMERGENCY SERVICES REPORTS
ASIA AND PACIFIC
MEDAN, INDONESIA (EmergencyNet News) - Two people were wounded when Indonesian police opened fire to quell looting and riots in the North Sumatra capital of Medan on Tuesday. The rioters, angered by fuel price hikes, looted shops, ransacked stores and burnt cars in the city of two million that has been the focus of student protests over recent days.
Police riding on motorcycles chased the looters into alleys and opened fire with pistols. Police were said to be questioning about 100 people in connection with the riots. Some of the shops were looted before police first fired rubber bullets and shots into the air to disperse a mob of more than 1,000 early on Tuesday. The rioting had begun on Monday night. Looters set fire to at least six cars. Police and troops backed by armored cars were patrolling the city.
In Jakarta, seven students were injured after a clash with riot police at the National University. Workers, jobless labourers and high school students had joined university students in other protests in the city of ten million.
MEDAN, INDONESIA (EmergencyNet News) - Police fired tear gas and rubber bullets on Wednesday to ward off looters attacking Chinese-owned shops in a third day of rioting over government-decreed price hikes. Indonesia's currency and stock market slid amid alarm over the escalating unrest. At least one person suffered a head injury in Wednesday's clashes. Running out of cash, the government increased fuel, transport and electricity prices on Tuesday, pleasing international aid donors but angering Indonesians already beset by food price hikes.
ASIA AND PACIFIC
MEDAN, INDONESIA - Indonesian police shot and wounded two people during a riot in the North Sumatran capital of Medan on Wednesday. Anti-government protests were also reported on Wednesday in major cities on Java, including Yogyakarta and Surabaya. Police, who had earlier been shooting into the air, opened fire in Medan on rioters who were attacking shops in a central area of the city.
STATE DEPARTMENT TRAVEL INFORMATION - Indonesia
===================================================
Indonesia - Public Announcement
May 6, 1998
Serious rioting, looting, and destruction of property occurred in Medan, North Sumatra in early May. In view of the possibility that such unrest may continue, American citizens are advised to defer all nonessential travel to Medan. Additionally, rising economic hardship could spark rioting in other parts of Indonesia and increase the intensity of widespread student protests, which are occasionally accompanied by violent confrontations with security forces.
American citizens should exercise caution and prudence when visiting Indonesia, and are encouraged to register with the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta (tel. 011-62-21-344-2211), the U.S. Consulate General in Surabaya (tel. 011-62-31-567-2287), or the U.S. Consular Agency in Bali (tel. 011-62-361-233-605).
Updated information is available from the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta or through the Embassy's home page at http://www.usembassyjakarta.org.
For additional information on travel to Indonesia, consult the Department of State's latest Consular Information Sheet. This Public Announcement expires August 6, 1998. It replaces the March 20 Public Announcement, and supplements the April 13 Public Announcement regarding air pollution in Indonesia, which expires May 12, 1998.
WASHINGTON (EmergencyNet News) - A senior Pentagon official says that a joint military exercise with the Indonesian military is being halted because of mounting unrest there. The official stressed that the action "should not be interpreted as a protest" by the U.S. government against Indonesia, whose government has been criticized on Capitol Hill for repressive tactics. He said it was being taken for the troops' own protection and because the Indonesian military has been distracted by widespread rioting.
ASIA AND PACIFIC
YOGYAKARTA, INDONESIA (EmergencyNet News) - A man reportedly died after receiving a head injury during a clash with Indonesian security forces dispersing protesters in the central Java city of Yogyakarta on Friday. The 41-year-old man was said to be a passer-by who was caught up in a confrontation among police and protesters during a demonstration outside Sanata Dharma university on Friday. It was believed that a blow from a police baton had caused the man's head injury. About 100 other people were injured during the demonstration.
Casualties during three months of anti-government student demonstrations across the nation have been confined so far largely to injuries received from rubber bullets used by security forces to disperse off-campus protests. Military sources have said riot police and troops have been ordered not to use live ammunition.
*****
ESR CLOSE UP
INDONESIAN VIOLENCE GETTING WORSE
By Jeremy Zakis, ERRI Asia and Pacific Desk
JAKARTA (EmergencyNet News) - Buildings were burned down by mobs in central Jakarta on
Thursday in the third day of anti-government violence. President Suharto said he would
stand down rather than use force to cling to power against the peoples' wishes. Suharto's
remark is the first time that he has indicated he may be prepared to step aside. But many
people doubt that the autocratic former general will resign.
In the latest violence, about 400 people were rampaging through Hayam Wurua Chinese
district, smashing windows and raiding shops, defying charges by police on motorcycles.
The Chinese, who comprise of less than five percent of Indonesia, have taken the brunt of
much of the rioting because of their perceived wealth and domination of commerce. They
account for nearly 80 percent of Indonesia's wealth.
Banks, supermarkets, electronics stores and bakeries were broken into, looted and torched
across wide areas of the city. Near the University of Indonesia, police continued to
fire in the air throughout Thursday to quell another student demonstration that turned
violent. A Reuters Television crew saw thousands of students charge out of the campus,
throwing rocks at police and setting at least one building on fire.
The police fired shots into the air in an attempt to break up the demonstration, not
causing any injuries, witnesses said. It's not clear if police used live ammunition or
rubber bullets.
During clashes on Wednesday, at least 12 people were killed as protests against Suharto's
rule exploded into an orgy of looting, arson and gunfire lasting well beyond midnight. Six
students had been killed the previous day
when security forces opened fire on an anti-Suharto demonstration at the city's Trisakti
University.
Suharto cut short a state visit to Egypt on Thursday and was expected home in the small
hours of Friday. He was quoted by local newspapers as telling Indonesian residents of
Cairo that he was willing to step down "if I am no longer trusted."
"I will become a pandito (sage) and endeavour to get closer to God," the Jakarta
Post quoted 76-year-old Suharto as saying. "I will do tut wuri handayani (guide from
behind)."
Military chief General Wiranto, perhaps the most powerful man in the country after
Suharto, said the dead included three soldiers. He said he was confident the armed forces
could control the mayhem. As he spoke,
a convoy of 15 armored personnel carriers moved through the deserted streets of Jakarta.
There is a widespread belief among students that the military will ultimately side with
protesters against Suharto while the police are seen as his supporters.
*****
ASIA AND PACIFIC
----------------
JAKARTA (EmergencyNet News) - The U.S. Embassy in Indonesia is urging U.S citizens to
defer nonessential travel to Indonesia and said it had approved the departure of family
members of Embassy staff from the country.
The German government is also warning its citizens not to travel to Indonesia after fresh
rioting claimed at least 22 lives this week. The German Foreign Ministry said in a
statement: "Because of the tense situation in Indonesia the Foreign Ministry advises
travellers not to go to Indonesia (with the exception of Bali) for the time being."
Indonesia is a popular tourist destination for Germans.
Japan on Thursday advised its citizens, including tourists, not to travel to Indonesia
unless it was essential. Chief Cabinet Secretary Kanezo Muraoka said that it was
unpredictable where the situation in Indonesia will lead.
On 8 May, the Japanese government announced a caution-level travel advisory for Indonesia
-- the least serious warning in its five-level system. Thursday's announcement was the
next level up. There are an estimated 7,000 Japanese tourists in Indonesia, a popular
travel destination. Around 13,000 Japanese live there.
ERRI DAILY INTELLIGENCE REPORT-ERRI Risk Assessment Services-Friday, May 15, 1998-Vol. 4 - 135
JAKARTA (EmergencyNet News) - A major faction of President Suharto's political party on
Friday turned against Indonesia's embattled leader and further jeopardized his rule, while
foreigners stampeded out of the riot-torn capital of Jakarta. The charred bodies of more
than 120 looters were pulled from two burned-out shopping malls. Suharto held a frantic
series of meetings, cutting big price increases on gasoline and other essential fuels that
helped trigger the anger behind four days of deadly riots that have claimed another 24
lives.
JAKARTA (EmergencyNet News) - American companies doing business in Indonesia pulled out en
masse on Friday in response to the turmoil caused by four days of rioting and student
protests. Oil powerhouses like Mobil, Atlantic Richfield and Conoco said Friday they had
begun airlifting employees out of the capital, as did Citicorp, Merrill Lynch and other
financial giants. Midday phone calls to the Jakarta offices of McDonald's and
Freeport-McMoRan were met with answering machines. Many companies gave employees and their
families one-way tickets to nearby foreign cities.
*****
LEAD FOCUS
ASIAN DEFENSE EXPERT WARNS INDONESIAN CRISIS
THREATENS REGIONAL SECURITY
By Steve Macko, ERRI Risk Analyst
A former senior official at Japan's Defense Agency says that what started as a currency
and financial crisis in Indonesia has turned into a crisis threatening Asia's regional
security. Satoshi Morimoto, now a senior researcher at Nomura Research Institute's Center
for Knowledge Exchange and Creation, said, "The Indonesian crisis is no longer just
about currency
and financial matters. It's a security crisis threatening domestic and regional
stability."
Morimoto, a former senior official at both the Japanese Defense Agency and the Foreign
Ministry, added, "The fading charisma of President Suharto will seriously damage
ASEAN unity, as he has been a de facto leader of ASEAN."
He said that in the worst case, the riots, which have been so far taken place in several
Indonesian cities, could spread throughout the nation and intensify calls for Suharto to
step down.
Indonesian students have clashed with security forces in Jakarta all week. The recent
escalation in the loss of life during the riots has prompted a U.S. adviser to Suharto to
predict that the country was about to "blow up."
Steve Hanke, a professor at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, who was named
Suharto's economic adviser this year, said the West's austerity prescription was not
working and attempts to push through economic and political reform in Indonesia were
ill-timed and would trigger more unrest.
Hanke said on Tuesday, "The whole thing is going to blow up. I thought it would take
three to four months but it is going to be sooner." Morimoto said a disturbance in
public order would make it harder for Jakarta to carry out economic reforms outlined by
the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in exchange for loans. He said that a consequent
halt in money flow to Indonesia from the IMF and the global community would aggravate
economic and social confusion in the country, which would inevitably lead to a repression
of the riots by military forces.
"The Indonesian military could eventually make Suharto resign and take control of the
government," Morimoto said. "However, things are unlikely Morimoto said riots of
the current magnitude have not been seen in Indonesia for the past 30 years, which he saw
as clear evidence that Suharto's leadership is waning.
He said, "What people are protesting against is not just what they see as the
influence over the economy of Chinese businessmen, in which the mass of the public has
remained poor, but they are also attacking the obvious decay in Suharto's 32-year
rule."
Morimoto pointed to several possible developments in the region following the Indonesian
crisis going beyond the economic arena. He warned that "Indonesia's deepening
confusion means a critical crack in the multilateral security cooperation framework that
has been kept intact by ASEAN members."
He added this would likely to deprive the region of the drive to settle sensitive
political issues in such countries as Cambodia and Myanmar.
Security talks among countries bordering the South China Sea would also be stalled, as
they have been hosted and managed by Indonesia.
According to Morimoto, ASEAN as a group has been keeping good terms with China, but this
could also change if Suharto steps down. He said: "China is likely to approach member
nations one by one to extend its influence on military, diplomatic and political
issues."
ASEAN, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, is comprised of: Brunei, Indonesia,
Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
On Friday, anarchy and panic reigned again in Jakarta and several other Indonesian cities
as officials said at least 165 people had been killed in a two separate mall fires.
Indonesian President Suharto returned after cutting short a state visit to Egypt and
ordered civilian and military officials to take strict action against looting.
Suharto moved to remove the main complaint of the citzens -- he ordered fuel price cuts.
The Indonesian Energy Minister told parliament that prices of premium gasoline, diesel and
kerosene would be cut from midnight on Friday.
At least 110 people were killed in a shopping plaza that was set ablaze on Thursday night
in the East Jakarta district of Klender. At least 95 bodies had been taken out of the
5-story building. Most of the victims were said to be looters who were busy ransacking the
shops in the plaza when rioters set it on fire.
Another 20 bodies were laying in the morgue of the Cipto Manugunkusumo hospital. They were
said to be victims of riots overnight in a western district of Jakarta. Another five
people were reported killed in a fire in a department store. Five more people were killed
in widespread rioting in southern Jakarta on Thursday night.
Anarchy continued on Friday, with many outlying areas of the city the targets of rampaging
mobs. A hotel in north Jakarta was set on fire and a shopping mall in the west of the city
was ransacked. Some foreigners' houses in the luxury southern suburbs of the city were
also looted.
Violence was also reported in Solo, Surabaya and several other Indonesian cities, but
there were few details available. The effect of the mayhem in Jakarta is beginning to
unglue many people. Most banks and restaurants are closed. City hotels were full of
worried residents fleeing their homes, while the airport was choked with foreign nationals
and ethnic Chinese
seeking safe havens overseas.
ERRI DAILY INTELLIGENCE REPORT-ERRI Risk Assessment Services-Saturday,
May 16, 1998-Vol. 4 - 136
JAKARTA (EmergencyNet News) - Rioting that swept across the capital reportedly spread to
other Indonesian cities as Americans tried to flee the country on two U.S.-chartered
planes. The U.S. Embassy's evacuation plan was overwhelmed when almost 2,000 Americans
applied for 800 seats. Four more charter evacuation flights were announced on Saturday.
Meanwhile, thousands of university students marched through the city of Surabaya, at one
point occupying the state-run radio station. The Jakarta Post also reported troubles in
Bandar Lampung and Palembang. Indonesia is struggling to cope with its worst economic and
political crisis in decades.
JAKARTA (EmergencyNet News) - Rescue workers searching through the burned out hulk of a
Jakarta shopping mall on Saturday discovered the corpses of 113 people burned to death
during a looting spree. The grim discovery added to a growing death toll from four days of
anti-government rioting in the capital. Teams of searchers alerted by people hunting lost
relatives have so far recovered more than 240 charred corpses from four upmarket plazas
looted and torched by mobs since Tuesday. White-gowned rescue workers in Ciledug Plaza in
west Jakarta were carrying out bodies and remains in plastic bags
and on makeshift stretchers made from fencing on Saturday. Beneath stormclouds threatening
a tropical downpour, the exhausted workers ceased their efforts in mid-afternoon and said
they would resume on Sunday.
JAKARTA (EmergencyNet News) - The governor of riot-torn Jakarta said Saturday calm had
been restored to the Indonesian capital and appealed for residents and foreigners to
return from overseas. Governor Sutiyoso said 232 people were confirmed dead and 69 injured
from the violence that has racked the city of ten million people this week. "The
situation
is calm now. There are no problems," he said. "I encourage everyone to come
home." His appeal came as an exodus of frightened foreigners began in earnest on
Saturday. Thousands of foreigners and Indonesians -- mainly ethnic Chinese -- have left
since demonstrations demanding political reforms and protests against price hikes turned
violent.
*****
LEAD FOCUS
JAKARTA SAID TO CALM FOR NOW
From the ERRI Watch Center
JAKARTA (EmergencyNet News) - The battered country of Indonesia was said to be counting
its dead from almost a week of mayhem as foreign nationals continued to flee from the
Pacific island nation. On Saturday, it appeared that President Suharto had moved to
restore his authority. Suharto was quoted as saying he would make a rare reshuffle of his
cabinet, just two months after appointing it, and would pursue political reforms.
It is not known how or even if Suharto's moves might address widespread demands for
democratic reform. Columns of military armored vehicles cruised the streets of the capital
and troops used loudspeakers to warn off rioters. Jakarta Governor Sutiyoso declared the
capital safe again and urged the thousands who have already fled abroad to return home. He
admitted some
240 people had been killed this week. But ERRI has received uncomfirmed reports that as
many as 500 people may have died.
The death toll was still rising as rescue workers continued searching through the charred
ruins of the scores of buildings torched during four days of near anarchy. More than 70
bodies were brought out of one shopping mall which burned from Thursday to Saturday
morning. Rescue workers said the final toll could be much higher.
Eighteen charred corpses were pulled out of another mall and 11 from a third on Saturday,
adding to the 100 already taken from the ruins of a fourth mall on Friday.
Major cities were mostly quiet on Saturday after riots which grew out of Tuesday's
shooting by security forces of six student protesters demanding political reform after
three decades of Suharto's autocratic rule.
France on Saturday advised its citizens in Indonesia to leave as soon as possible unless
their continued stay there was essential. The French Embassy in Jakarta will stay open. On
Friday the French Foreign Ministry advised dependants of French citizens working in the
Asian nation to leave. More than 3,000 French nationals live in Indonesia, of whom an
estimated 2,300 reside in Jakarta.
ERRI DAILY INTELLIGENCE REPORT-ERRI Risk Assessment Services-Sunday, May 17, 1998-Vol. 4 - 137
JAKARTA (EmergencyNet News) - The death toll from a wave of unrest in Jakarta officially hit 500 as tanks and troops patrolled the streets of the riot-scarred capital on Sunday. The Indonesian military also announced more than 1,000 rioters and looters had been arrested since the riots erupted on Tuesday. Suharto announced on Saturday that he would reshuffle his cabinet, a move that could dump some of the president's controversial cronies. The president is coming under increasing pressure to ease his 32-year-old grip over this sprawling country of 200 million people.
ASIA AND PACIFIC
----------------
TOKYO (EmergencyNet News) - The Japanese Foreign Ministry on Sunday upgraded its warning
to Japanese in Indonesia and advised the families of Japanese workers there to leave the
country. The ministry said the prospect of large-scale demonstrations on Wednesday --
National Awakening Day, the anniversary of uprising against Dutch colonial masters --
prompted it to upgrade the warning.
Riots in Indonesia last week led to the previous level-three travel warning, advising
Japanese to postpone any trip to the country. The new warning was level four. Level five,
the highest advisory, would call for a complete evacuation of all Japanese in a foreign
country.
Japan said on Friday it was drawing up contingency plans to send military aircraft to
Indonesia to evacuate its citizens in the event of major unrest in the troubled country.
ERRI DAILY INTELLIGENCE REPORT-ERRI Risk Assessment Services-Monday, May 18, 1998 Vol. 4 - 138
JAKARTA (EmergencyNet News) - Following a week of nationwide disturbances and deadly riots, Parliament leaders will ask President Suharto to step down, the speaker of the upper house said on Monday. Parliament speaker Harmoko said the four factions in Parliament would meet Tuesday to ask Suharto, who has led Indonesia for 32 years and is Asia's longest-serving leader, to resign. Violence the past week, triggered by an economic crisis that has pushed up food and fuel prices, has left at least 500 people dead and loosened Suharto's hold on this Southeast Asian nation of 200 million people, the fourth most-populous on Earth.
*****
LEAD FOCUS
ANALYSTS PREDICT THE DOWNFALL OF SUHARTOJAKARTA (EmergencyNet News) - A recent poll of analysts in the Asia and Pacific region found that most experts predict that Indonesian President Suharto is on his way out, but the questions of how and when he goes and who will succeed him remain up in the air.
Question: When will he depart and who is likely to succeed him?
Salim Said, Indonesian political scientist and military-political analyst, said, "I cannot say when he will go. It depends very much on the way he responds to the demands of the people. It is difficult to find a strong man now. We are now in a period where we no longer have a strong man rooted in society ... there is a problem in negotiating over who should be the next leader."
"I think anybody who knows Jakarta will say change will take place," said Mohammed Jawhar bin Hassan, Director-General of the Institute of Strategic Studies in Kuala Lumpur. "President Suharto will have to go in the near future .... Once they have sorted out a way for him to make a graceful exit, there is no choice. As to who succeeds him, it all depends on what formula there is for the transition."
Harold Crouch, Indonesian specialist at Australian National University in Canberra, said, "It could be soon, or it could be some time. I think he's got some staying power, but its fraying at the edges. My guess is some respected retired general will succeed him."
"Suharto's departure should be done constitutionally," said Thee Kian Wee, senior research associate at Jakarta's Center for Economic and Development Studies. "It shouldn't be a coup. But it means convening a special session of the People's Consultative Assembly (Indonesia's top constitutional body which elects the president and vice-president) as quickly as possible. The civil element in a new government should be very strong and include dissident elements like (Moslem leader and Suharto critic) Amien Rais."
Bruce Gale, Singapore manager of Hong Kong based Political and Economic Risk Consultancy said, "I would think we're talking about a matter of weeks. The man in the best position to replace him is armed forces commander General Wiranto. But the question is less important than the composition of the new government, which will have a very short honeymoon."
JAKARTA (EmergencyNet News) - Succumbing to protests, President Suharto announced plans on Tuesday to end his 32-year authoritarian rule, saying he would step down after introducing long called-for political reforms and holding parliamentary elections. In a 15-minute nationally televised speech, a somber Suharto said that the elections would be held "as soon as possible." But thousands of angry student protesters besieged the Parliament, demanding he quit now. Some feared the reform process could take months under the aegis of the powerful military, which supports Suharto.
ASIA AND PACIFIC
SURABAYA, INDONESIA (EmergencyNet News) - An army truck drove into a crowd during an anti-Suharto rally outside Airlangga University in Indonesia's second city of Surabaya on Tuesday. At least 30 people were reported injured.
Witnesses said hundreds of students and members of the local community were sitting on a road outside the western gate of the university when the army truck was driven into the crowd in an apparent attempt to disperse them.
JAKARTA (EmergencyNet News) - Tens of thousands of soldiers sealed off a park adjacent to the Presidential Palace with barbed wire and tanks on Wednesday to block a mass anti-government protest against President Suharto. Some 150,000 troops poured into the streets, helicopters flew overhead and tanks lined up beside coiled wire and wooden barricades in a show of support by Indonesia's military for the 76-year-old autocrat. Fearing bloodshed, Indonesia's most prominent opposition leader Amien Rais cancelled the rally.
U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT NEWS
WASHINGTON, DC (EmergencyNet News) - On 14 May, the U.S. Department of State issued the following Travel Warning for Indonesia:
"The Department of State warns all U.S. citizens to defer travel to Indonesia. Serious rioting, looting, and destruction of property have occurred in various cities throughout the country. Widespread protests have increasingly been accompanied by violent confrontations with security forces. Live ammunition has been fired at protesters, and several deaths have occurred.
The Department of State has ordered the departure of all dependents of U.S. Embassy Jakarta and U.S. Consulate General Surabaya employees, as well as employees in non-emergency positions in Jakarta and Surabaya.
American citizens currently in Jakarta and Surabaya should depart the country as soon as possible. American citizens in other parts of Indonesia may also wish to consider departure at this time. In the meantime, American citizens should avoid large crowds and demonstrations."
Related ERRI on-line reports:
http://www.emergency.com/indoriot.htm: Series of Reports on Economic and Civil Unrest In Indonesia - 02/11/98 to 02/16/98
http://www.emergency.com/asiacris.htm: 01/22/97-Economic Turmoil in Asia Raises Security Concerns
(c) Copyright, EmergencyNet NEWS Service, 1998. All Rights Reserved. Redistribution without permission is prohibited by law.
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