Seems the troops could help by quelling any unrest in addition to providing relief efforts.Foreign soldiers assisting the tsunami relief effort in Indonesia's devastated Aceh province will have to leave by the end of March, the Jakarta government said today.
The Indonseian vice-president, Jusuf Kalla, said troops should be gone "the sooner the better", and added that three months should be enough time for them to complete their work.
The announcement came as Indonesia moved to assert greater control over the relief effort. The government is believed to be grateful for the help offered, but uneasy about the number of foreign aid workers and soldiers in Aceh, where seperatists have been fighting government troops for decades.
Aid workers were today told that their safety could not be guaranteed outside Banda Aceh, the main city, and the ravaged town of Meulaboh, and ordered to declare their travel plans or risk expulsion.
Indonesia's military has warned that separatist fighters could rob aid convoys and use refugee camps as hideouts, but has yet to offer evidence to support its claims.
A government statement said it would be "placed in a very difficult position" if any foreigner who came to Aceh was harmed, but Clive Williams, an Australian defence expert, told the Associated Press that the Indonesians wanted to conceal military corruption.
"The big problem with dealing with [the Indonesian military] in Aceh is that they're involved in a lot of corruption there, and the reason I think they don't want people to go to some areas is because they're involved in human rights abuses," he said. "Having a situation of martial law and then civil emergency has allowed them to get away with a lot."
Wary of Indonesia's sensitivities, US marines have scaled back their plans to send hundreds of troops ashore to build roads and clear rubble. Commanders have also agreed that their troops would not carry guns while on Indonesian soil, and that the majority of troops would return to ships stationed off the coast after each day's work.
Getting help to the neediest is already a logistical nightmare, with roads having been washed away or blocked by fallen trees.
More than 100,000 people in the province have been killed, and tens of thousands left homeless. It is on the northern tip of Sumatra island, which was closest to the epicentre of the earthquake that triggered the December 26 tsunami.
The death toll from the tsunami today stands at 158,638, with Indonesia, Sri Lanka and India having suffered the most fatalities.
"The big problem with dealing with [the Indonesian military] in Aceh is that they're involved in a lot of corruption there, and the reason I think they don't want people to go to some areas is because they're involved in human rights abuses," he said. "Having a situation of martial law and then civil emergency has allowed them to get away with a lot."
Originally posted by: imhotepmp
"The big problem with dealing with [the Indonesian military] in Aceh is that they're involved in a lot of corruption there, and the reason I think they don't want people to go to some areas is because they're involved in human rights abuses," he said. "Having a situation of martial law and then civil emergency has allowed them to get away with a lot."
And this is new? Indonesia has a history
Ever heard of a guy named Suharto East Timor? Read a little bit about how he came to power. A complete bloodbath. The indonesian government has had a history of serious human rights violations for decades(Suharto came into power in the 60's. But we(read U.S. government) convenently forget these things.out of sight out of mind, I guess.
The point of me bringing this up is not to say we shouldnt be helping, rather, we go over to iraq under the guise of "human right violations" or "weapons of mass destruction" when there are alot of other countries that the US government conveniently ignores because it suits them and their agenda.
Imouthes
Originally posted by: machintos
WTF?
I heard from my friends that the reliefs being given to Indonesian are not divided equally.
Chinese born Indonesian are not getting their shares and are being discriminated against by Indonesian troops.
Now Kalla is telling the foreign troops that are there to leave? WTF? Is he stupid or what?
BTW..
<-- Indonesian
Originally posted by: machintos
WTF?
I heard from my friends that the reliefs being given to Indonesian are not divided equally.
Chinese born Indonesian are not getting their shares and are being discriminated against by Indonesian troops.
Now Kalla is telling the foreign troops that are there to leave? WTF? Is he stupid or what?
BTW..
<-- Indonesian
US marines have scaled back their plans to send hundreds of troops ashore to build roads and clear rubble. Commanders have also agreed that their troops would not carry guns while on Indonesian soil, and that the majority of troops would return to ships stationed off the coast after each day's work.
Marines walking around in a foreign country, with known Al-Queda cells in the area, and not being allowed to carry even side arms. Funny there arent articles on the front page of every newspaper about this. Good works never get metioned, yet when one injured iraqi gets capped by a Marine, you never hear the end of it.Originally posted by: Grunt03
US marines have scaled back their plans to send hundreds of troops ashore to build roads and clear rubble. Commanders have also agreed that their troops would not carry guns while on Indonesian soil, and that the majority of troops would return to ships stationed off the coast after each day's work.
Man where are the good commanders like Zinney, he would have told them to kiss his ass. Something is very wrong when we bow down to these fools.......
Originally posted by: machintos
WTF?
I heard from my friends that the reliefs being given to Indonesian are not divided equally.
Chinese born Indonesian are not getting their shares and are being discriminated against by Indonesian troops.
Now Kalla is telling the foreign troops that are there to leave? WTF? Is he stupid or what?
BTW..
<-- Indonesian
Originally posted by: conjur
WTH are the rebels/Al Qaeda going to use against us? Driftwood? Have you seen the images from Banda Aceh?
Originally posted by: Train
Marines walking around in a foreign country, with known Al-Queda cells in the area, and not being allowed to carry even side arms. Funny there arent articles on the front page of every newspaper about this. Good works never get metioned, yet when one injured iraqi gets capped by a Marine, you never hear the end of it.Originally posted by: Grunt03
US marines have scaled back their plans to send hundreds of troops ashore to build roads and clear rubble. Commanders have also agreed that their troops would not carry guns while on Indonesian soil, and that the majority of troops would return to ships stationed off the coast after each day's work.
Man where are the good commanders like Zinney, he would have told them to kiss his ass. Something is very wrong when we bow down to these fools.......
Originally posted by: rufruf44
Originally posted by: conjur
WTH are the rebels/Al Qaeda going to use against us? Driftwood? Have you seen the images from Banda Aceh?
You really have no idea what you're talking about.