[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 111 (Thursday, August 2, 2001)]
[House]
[Page H5182]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1100
                      NEW BEGINNING FOR INDONESIA

  (Mr. PITTS asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. PITTS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to extend my congratulations to 
Megawati Sukarnoputri, the new President of Indonesia, and I commend 
the people, the government, and the military for the smooth, nonviolent 
transition of power.
  I also urge President Megawati to use her leadership to address 
widespread human rights abuses, such as the bloodshed and destruction 
in the Malukus, the arrests and deaths of innocent civilians in Aceh 
and Irian Jaya, the shaky court cases established against pastors in 
Poso, and the intentional manipulation of religious tensions in a 
number of areas of the country.
  The instability and human rights abuses can be involved through the 
arrest and bringing to justice of the perpetrators, such as Laskar 
Jihad leader, Mr. Jafar Umar Thalib, and his cohorts.
  Mr. Speaker, the people of Indonesia deserve a peaceful and 
prosperous nation in which the fundamental rights of all people are 
respected. The President has a real opportunity to shape a new future 
with her cabinet appointments to shape the new future for the 
Indonesian people and ensure that democracy and civil society will 
reign.

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