Military reasserts power, casualties mount in Aceh
The US Senate voted last week to end restrictions on military aid to Indonesia. The government of President Megawati Sukarnoputri – which now refers to the rebels as terrorists in an effort to draw parallels to the US war on terror – is considering declaring a state of emergency that would expand the military`s powers. But to observers, the Indonesian military has already launched a war: Human rights abuses are surging and the military is clawing back the domestic political role it lost when former dictator Suharto was ousted in 1998. Full Story