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Indonesian protesters attack Australian ambassador

Source
Sydney Morning Herald - November 22, 2000

Lindsay Murdoch in Jakarta and David Lague – The Howard Government will lodge a diplomatic protest after Australia's most senior diplomat in Indonesia, Mr John McCarthy, was attacked yesterday and bailed up for almost an hour by a group of about 20 pro-Jakarta East Timor protesters.

Police failed to protect him when he arrived at the opening of an Australian insurance office in Makassar, South Sulawesi. About 15 Indonesian journalists who were interviewing Mr McCarthy shielded him as protesters yelling "f – - you, f – - you" tried to kick and punch him. Mr McCarthy was unhurt. At least one other Australian, believed to be an embassy official, was kicked in the stomach. Others were roughed up.

Mr McCarthy prompted a diplomatic stir this week when he said he believed that Indonesia's former military chief, General Wiranto, had "broad knowledge" of last year's violence in East Timor. In an interview with the Herald, Mr McCarthy dismissed General Wiranto's claim he had been unaware of the campaign of violence to prevent independence in East Timor.

A journalist working for the Makassar-based Fajar newspaper told the Herald that Mr McCarthy was "kicked and punched a couple of times". "He did not say a word, he just stayed calm," she said. "We tried to hold the protesters from attacking him."

Another journalist, Rusdy Embas, said when the protesters arrived, they were yelling "where's the Australian, where's the Australian?" "It happened very quickly," Embas said. "None of us expected the attack."

As the melee got ugly Mr McCarthy was pushed inside the insurance company's new offices. Witnesses said it took almost an hour for police to set up barricades outside so Mr McCarthy could be escorted to a car which drove him to the airport to catch a flight to Jakarta. Despite the arrival of police the protesters had refused to disperse and demanded that Mr McCarthy come outside. Nobody was arrested.

One of the protesters, Alfredo Dos Santos, was quoted by the Detik.com newsagency as saying they wanted to warn Mr McCarthy and the Australian Government to stop meddling in Indonesia's internal affairs, especially Timor. "It was Australia which deliberately played us against each other in East Timor and caused the civil war between East Timorese," he said.

Earlier yesterday Indonesia's Defence Minister, Mr Mohamad Mahfud, criticised Mr McCarthy for making "improper comments" which were "interfering in another country's internal affairs". But he told reporters in Jakarta that he regretted the attack on Mr McCarthy.

"It will only worsen the situation. The attack should only be considered a criminal, not politically motivated attack," he said. Mr Mahfud later said the Government regretted the inability of local police officers to deal with the protesters.

Makassar's police chief, Colonel Amin Saleh, blamed the insurance company, PT MLC, for failing to tell police Mr McCarthy would attend the office opening.

A spokesman for the Foreign Minister, Mr Downer, said last night that the Australian Government regarded incidents like yesterday's as "totally unacceptable". "We expect the Indonesian authorities to make every effort to ensure that this kind of incident does not happen."

A spokesman for Indonesia's Department of Foreign Affairs, Mr Sulaiman Abdulmanan, said the attack was strongly condemned, especially as it was on an ambassador from a close neighbour. "Such acts are clearly against the law," he said. "The perpetrators must be punished according to the law."

Indonesia announced yesterday it was again postponing a meeting of ministers from Australia and Indonesia that had been rescheduled for Canberra in January after earlier being abruptly cancelled by Jakarta.

The postponement, another setback in attempts to repair relations between the two countries, came after the Vice-President, Ms Megawati Sukarnoputri, banned all travel by ministers during December, the Islamic fasting month.

Indonesia's Foreign Minister, Mr Alwi Shihab, said his Government would send Australia a written apology. The meeting was designed to open the way for President Abdurrahman Wahid to visit Australia.

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