Physical attacks by right-wing groups on meetings of the Indonesian
National Liberation Party of Unity (Papernas - see
translated articles from Indonesian press below). Their objective seems
to be to disrupt attempts by Papernas to get registered as an electoral
party in time for the 2009 presidential elections. After the massacre of
up to a million leftists and social activists in Indonesia 1965, the
anti-communist hysteria being promoted by these right-wing groups is
deeply menacing.
The situation is quite bad now and some office bearers of
the new party have been intimidated into resigning after being
threatened with having their homes burnt down by these right-wing thugs.
If you or friends can approach human rights and civil
liberties groups or prominent democratic rights advocates to send
messages supporting the democratic right of Papernas to organise, please
send them to Katarina Pujiastuti at
These articles are the translated by James Balowski from the INDOLEFT
news service is produced by the Institute of Liberation, Media and
Social Studies (LPMIS) and Action in Solidarity with Asia and the
Pacific. See
Please spread this urgent appeal for solidarity to your friends and
comrades.
Solidarity greetings
Peter
* * *
Papernas conference in Sukoharjo forcibly broken up by Islamic thugs
Tempo Interactive - April 30, 2007
Imron Rosyid, Solo -- Dozens of members of Surakarta Islamic Community
Militia (LUIS) forcibly broke up a conference being held by the National
Liberation Party of Unity (Papernas) in the Central Java city of
Sukoharjo on Sunday March 29. Islamic groups in Jakarta have taken
similar actions against Papernas.
The LUIS members blockaded the entrance to the conference venue at the
Gajah House on Jl. Yos Sudarso in the Tanjung Anom area of Sukoharjo.
Members of the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) (sic) even frisked a police
intelligence officer who they accused of being a provocateur. "We have
evidence, Papernas is PKI [Indonesian Communist Party]", said LUIS
general secretary Khoirul Suparjo.
Shouting "God is great", the LUIS members who were wearing robes and
turbans arrived on motorbikes and an open pickup truck. Papernas members
who believed they already had a permit to hold the event tried to hold
them off from inside the building. However because the LUIS members
outnumbered conference participants, some of them decided to leave the
venue before the event started.
Sukoharjo Regent Bambang Riyanto, who was wearing tennis sportswear,
then facilitated a dialogue between the two groups in order to prevent
anarchic acts. The head of the Papernas conference organising committee,
Onang Tiyoso eventually gave in and agreed to halt the event but under
the condition that all FPI members must leave the location before they
disbanded. "In formal terms, Papernas does in fact actually have a
permit for the activity, but in order that the local situation remains
favorable, I have asked Papernas to cancel the event", said Riyanto.
Suparjo said that his organisation would continue to hunt down Papernas
members that want to organise similar activities saying based on the
statutes and rules of association that they have on the party, Papernas
is communist. He cited the Papernas' program of Tripanji(1), the
protection of prostitutes and so forth as evidence that they are
identical to the PKI.
Meanwhile the chairperson of Papernas' Central Java Regional Leadership
Board, Kelik Ismunanto said he regretted the LUIS' actions in forcibly
breaking up the event. According to Ismunanto, regardless of LUIS'
perceptions of Papernas they do not have the authority to prohibit or
break up their events. "Our party is registered with the Department of
Justice and Human Rights, we will be participating in the 2009 general
elections and we had already obtained a permit for the event from the
police", said Ismunanto while promising that they would take legal
action against LUIS over the incident.
Notes:
1. Tripanji - Papernas' Three Banners of National Unity: Abolishing the
foreign debt, nationalising the mining industry and build the national
industry for the welfare of the people.
* * *
Papernas declaration in Sukoharjo broken up by right-wing thugs
(Adds details on previous posting – JB.)
Radar Solo - April 30, 2007
Sukoharjo -- A tense situation developed at the declaration of the
National Liberation Party of Unity (Papernas) in Sukoharjo, Central
Java, that was to be held yesterday afternoon. Even before Papernas
members had begun the meeting, dozens of members of the Sukoharjo
Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) had occupied the Gajah Tanjung Anom
Building where the event was to be held.
Led by Ustad (Islamic teacher) Khoirul, the FPI members, who had been
arriving since 10am, began to pour into the venue where the event was to
be held. They immediately moved towards the auditorium that had been set
aside by the Papernas organising committee.
FPI's arrival caused confusion among some of the Papernas members. "We
have come here to break up this event. We are asking that Papernas be
disbanded and not be allowed to exist in Indonesia. Because Papernas is
an embryo of the PKI (Indonesian Communist Party - Ed.). Where is the
committee chairperson, I want to meet them", ordered Khoirul in a shrill
voice.
Not wanting to create a problem, several of the Papernas members that
were already present left the venue one by one. Unfortunately the FPI
members prevented this. "Don't let them leave. The ones that were here
earlier, order them all back inside", Khoirul instructed his subordinates.
It was not just members of Papernas that were harassed, but also other
people in the vicinity who they considered suspicious. Tensions reached
a climax when the FPI frisked a Sukoharjo district police intelligence
officer that had been guarding the venue from the start. If he was
indeed a police officer, the FPI asked the man to show them his identity
card.
A National Unity and Social Protection Agency (Kasbang Linmas) official
also suffered a similar fate. Becoming suspicious about his actions, the
FPI immediately accosted him. As well as examining his identification
papers, they also asked for the photographs on his cell phone to be
erased. The FPI members even asked the man to take off his shirt and
show them a tattoo on his body.
"This is a picture and symbol of the PKI. Because we know that earlier
you were inside and now you are going back inside", asserted one of the
FPI members while pointing at the tattoo on the Kasbang Linmas
official's body.
After a short while Sukoharjo Regent Bambang Riyanto arrived. He had
come to facilitate a dialogue between the two camps in order to resolve
the problem peacefully. This was because Riyanto wanted the situation in
Sukoharjo to remain 'conducive'.
The two parties met at around 11.30am. Papernas eventually agreed not to
go ahead with the event and asked its members who were already present
to return home. Following this, one by one the FPI members left the
location. (mg2/mg3)
* * *
Media Indonesia - April 30, 2007
Papernas flags burnt at FPI protest in Bekasi
Golda Eksa, Bekasi -- Around 30 members of the Bekasi Islamic Defenders
Front (FPI) gave speeches and set fire to flags of the National
Liberation Party of Unity (Papernas) in front of the Bekasi municipal
government offices on Monday April 30. They also brought banners and
posters with messages opposing Papernas.
"Papernas, is a reincarnation of the Indonesian Communist Party (PKI).
Papernas [says it] is populist democratic. This term is the camouflage
that is usually used by communists or socialist in Indonesia like the
PKI. It is because of this that we don't want the party to grow and
develop", said action coordinator Ustad (title of Islamic teacher)
Abdurrahman.
Abdurrahman went on to say that the PKI's once cause the nation to loose
its best sons. Moreover he said, thousands of Muslims were wiped out by
the PKI.
After giving speeches for around an hour, the protesters set fire to
Papernas flags shouting that they will not tolerate Papernas' presence,
especially in Bekasi.
From the Bekasi government offices, they then moved off to continue the
action at the Bekasi City Regional House of Representatives on Jl.
Chairul Anwar in East Bekasi under the tight security of the Bekasi
municipal police. (GG/OL-02).
[Translated by James Balowski.]
Papernas postpones regional meeting to avoid clash with FPI
Liputan 6 - April 30, 2007
Sukoharjo -- The National Liberation Party of Unity (Papernas) continues
to come under pressure. Again and again the Islamic Defenders Front
(FPI) has attempted to break up Papernas events. This time it was a
meeting to establish a regional leadership board in Sukoharjo, Central
Java, on Sunday April 29.
Without showing any hesitation, FPI members moved in and tried to evict
Papernas members who had arrived at the Gajah Sukoharjo Building for the
event. Tensions rose between the two camps and police moved in quickly
before a clash could break out.
The two groups were then brought together for a dialogue facilitated by
Sukoharjo Regent Bambang Riyanto. The FPI said it objected to Papernas
because it has a communist ideology that his banned in Indonesia. In the
end the Papernas members decided to postpone the meeting because it
could potentially result in a brawl.
On March 29 Papernas demonstrators clashed with the FPI in the Dukuh
Atas area on Sudirman, Central Jakarta. Several people were injured
including two children and a middle-ranking police officer from the
Tanah Abang sectoral police. (TOZ/Ferry Aditri)
* * *
Right-wing thugs attempt to disrupt May Day in Yogyakarta
Khairul Ikhwan, Yogyakarta -- A commemoration of May Day in Yogyakarta
was almost marred by a clash when protesters from the Yogyakarta
People's and Worker Alliance (ARPY) were unexpectedly waylaid by members
of the Anti-Communist Front (FAKI) and the Yogyakarta Islamic Defenders
Front (FPI).
The FAKI and FPI members accused the ARPY of being infiltrated by the
National Liberation Party of Unity (Papernas) that they claim has a
communist ideology.
The incident occurred at intersection in front of the central post
office when a man climbed up onto an open pickup truck that ARPY was
using as a platform and dragged a person giving a speech off the
vehicle. Initially the ARPY activists were too shocked to react but were
eventually able to rescue their colleague.
Tension rose as FAKI and ARPY members confronted each other but
fortunately police were able separate the two groups before a clash
could break out.
Five thousand workers rally in Medan for May Day
May Day was also commemorated by thousands of workers in the North
Sumatra provincial capital of Medan with around 5,000 workers rallied at
the North Sumatra DPRD and the Medan State Court.
The workers, who came from a number of labour organisations such as the
North Sumatra Trade Union (SBSU) and the Indonesian Prosperous Trade
Union (SBSI), were demanding improvements to workers' welfare and that
May 1 be declared a national holiday. (djo/sss)
* * *
Prominent NU cleric Abdullah Faqih to lead anti- Papernas group
Antara News - April 14, 2007
Surabaya -- Prominent Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) cleric and the caretaker of
the Langitan pesantren (traditional Islamic boarding school) in Tuban,
East Java, KH Abdullah Faqih has been chosen to lead a group opposing
the National Liberation Party of Unity (Papernas).
The senior ulama (Islamic scholar) has been appointed to be the advisor
to the Friendship Forum to Safeguard Pancasila and the Unitary State of
the Republic of Indonesia Against the Threat of Neo- Communism (Forum
Silaturrahmi Mengawal NKRI dan Pancasila dari Ancaman Neo-Komunisme)
that held a consolidation meeting in the East Java provincial capital of
Surabaya on Saturday, which was attended by delegations from Sumatra,
Java and West Nusa Tenggara.
Other prominent figures that were in attendance included KH Ir.
Solahuddin Wahid (Gus Solah, the caretaker of Tebuireng pesantren in
Jombang), Prof. Dr. Aminuddin Kasdi (East Java Indonesian Historians
Society, MSI), Prof. Dr. Edi Sri Swasono (economist), Taufik Ismail
(cultural observer), retired TNI Major General Sutoyo NK (the former
director general of social and political affairs at the Department of
Domestic Affairs) and KH Abdussshomad Bukhori (chairperson of the East
Java Indonesian Ulemas Council, MUI).
"The PKI [Indonesian Communist Party] has indeed been destroyed, but
communist ideas are resurfacing through various means and because of
this vigilance is needed", said Faqih who is also one of the founders of
the Ulama National Awakening Party (PKNU).
Faqih believes that one of the ways in which ex-PKI or PKI cadres are
rising up again is through politics, education and the law. "The
political means being undertaken includes among other things efforts to
revoke the Tap MPRS XXV/1966(1), but it failed", he said.
"Now, they are trying to take advantage of the situation and conflicts
the Indonesian nation is experiencing, most recently by building a new
political movement. This conflicts with [the state ideology of]
Pancasila and Islam, because of this it must be resisted", he asserted.
Speaking separately with Antara News during a break in the event, Gus
Solah explained that it would be best to invite Papernas to address the
legal factors because Indonesia is a constitutional state. "But, the
legal efforts shouldn't be juridical in character, rather a submission
to the Constitutional Court in the form of an appeal or judicial
review", explained the younger brother of former President Abdurrahman
Wahid(2).
Speaking in a similar vein, the deputy chairperson of the goodwill
committee, Arukat Djaswadi said that they are urging the government to
act immediately against Papernas because it has violated the MPRS
Decree, Law Number 27/1999(3) on State Security, and many other laws.
"Because of this, it is time for the government to act firmly, because
they are most clearly an embryo of a communist [party], because they use
the principle of populist democracy, whereas if they [want to] live in
Indonesia they must use Pancasila and the 1945 Constitution"
, he said.
The head of the Center for Indonesian Community Studies (CICS) explained
that Papernas cannot be dealt with of by juridical means because
Papernas uses the ideology of logic, however Papernas has clearly
violated the "rules of the game" in Indonesia and the government must be
firm.
Similar comments were made by Kasdi. "The aroma of the PKI inside
Papernas is strong, including the view that the 1945 [nationalist]
revolution is unfinished, the jargon of Tripanji(4) and the focus on
workers, farmers and the urban poor", he said.
Notes:
1. Tap MPRS XXXV/1996: MPRS Decree Number XXXV/1996 on the Dissolution
of the Indonesian Communist Party and Prohibitions on Marxist, Leninist
and Communist Teachings
2. Following the attack by the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) on Papernas
in Jakarta on March 29 Wahid publicly condemned the incident saying that
it was unconstitutional and if the government stays quiet on the issue
it will endanger the life of the nation. He also called on police to act
firmly against the FPI. Wahid was scheduled to speak at a Papernas
declaration that had to be postponed because of the attack.
3. Law No. 27/1999 is a revision to the Criminal Code that codifies the
MPRS Decree.
4. Tripanji - Papernas' Three Banners of National Unity: Abolishing the
foreign debt, nationalising the mining industry and building the
national industry for the welfare of the people.
* * *
FPI accuses Papernas of spreading communist ideology, undermining the state
Sinar Indonesia Baru - April 11, 2007
Medan (SIB) -- Dozens of people from the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI)
demonstrated at Regional House of Representatives (DPRD) in the North
Sumatra regional capital of Medan on Tuesday April 10 against the
National Liberation Party of Unity (Papernas). The protesters believe
that Papernas is extremely dangerous because it only wants to legalise
and provide legal guarantees to commercial sex workers and is hiding
behind the mask of the state ideology of Pancasila and the 1945
Constitution.
The demonstrators gave speeches and issued a statement against the
establishment of Papernas, which held its founding congress in
Kaliurang, Central Java in January. They said that this was extremely
dangerous because the denial of religious values is becoming ever more
rampant and fate of the country will be to degenerate into an
uncivilized nation.
Action organisers Muhammad Iqbal and Ustad Muliyamin said that Papernas
only acknowledges Pancasila as the country's ideological basis and the
1945 Constitution as a constitution. In addition to this, Papernas'
adheres to imperialist principles (sic) in order to try to recruit
members from all sectors of society, particularly from the working
class, farmers, students and the urban poor. Based on this, the FPI is
asking that the National Unity and Social Protection Agency (Kesbang
Linmas) not to accept Papernas' when it registers itself nationally on
June 2.
They also called on the national and North Sumatra General Election
Commission not to verify the registration of a party that has communism
as its ideology, because it violate Tap MPRS Number 25/1996 and Law
Number 27/1999(1) on the dissolution of the Indonesian Communist Party.
They are also asking the police as investigators and the enforcers of
the law to have the courage to take firm action against Papernas and
disband all of its regency and municipal offices throughout North Sumatra.
The FPI is also asking the leaders and members of the North Sumatra DPRD
to be more careful and stay on guard against the communist movement in
the legislator because they suspect that it has already been infiltrated
by certain individuals who want to spread communist ideology in North
Sumatra and that they also suspect that the mastermind behind this
spread is the financier of Papernas in North Sumatra.
They are therefore asking the people of North Sumatra to be wary of
agitation and propaganda that is being manipulated by certain
irresponsible individuals to overthrow the Pancasila state and the 1945
Constitution and replace it with communist ideas. (A13/c)
Notes:
1. Tap MPRS XXXV/1996 - MPRS Decree Number XXXV/1996 on the Dissolution
of the Indonesian Communist Party and Prohibitions on Marxist, Leninist
and Communist Teachings. Law No. 27/1999 is a revision to the Criminal
Code that codifies the MPRS Decree.
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