By Sean Healy
The crackdown against student protest by the Suharto regime in Indonesia requires a loud and clear show of solidarity by students in Australia.
Suharto sees the current campus upsurge in Indonesia, and the students' commitment to taking their protests to the rest of the Indonesian people, as a direct threat to his power.
The vicious military repression, the police baton-charges, the arrests and torture of students, and the "disappearing" of student leaders are all a desperate attempt to put down the student revolt.
In Australia, we have to take a stand against this repression. We have to demand the release of the political prisoners and an end to the crackdown — and we have to ensure that the practice of "disappearing" opponents stops.
This is the aim of the April 24 national demonstration outside the Indonesian embassy in Canberra, which Resistance has been instrumental in organising. Initiated by the socialist youth organisation Resistance, the action has been endorsed by the student associations of the University of Canberra and the Australian National University; student organisations in Melbourne, Sydney and Wollongong; and the National Union of Students. Endorsers also include activist groups such as Action in Solidarity with Indonesia and East Timor and University Students for East Timor.
The demonstration will also condemn our own government's support for Suharto. From the Indonesian embassy, the rally will march to Parliament House.
The April 24 demonstration needs to be the beginning of a stronger student movement in solidarity with the Indonesian democracy movement. Already, plans are underway for an Asian-wide day of student solidarity with Indonesia.
For more information, telephone (02) 9690 1230 or your local Resistance Centre (details on page 2).