JAKARTA(IO) : Islamic groups staged separate demonstrations outside the US and Australian embassies in Jakarta yesterday and warned the US not to attack Afghanistan or other Muslim nations, as well as condeming recent attacks on mosques in Queensland, Australia.

Separately, a number of high-ranking officials in Indonesia urged Muslim groups not to attempt to force citizens of the US and and its allies to leave Indonesia.

Yesterday around 200 people from the Muhammadiyah Students Association (IMM) rallied in front of the US Embassy here in Jakarta, denouncing the possibility of US attacks on Afghanistan.

Muhammadiyah is Indonesia+´s second-biggest Muslim organization and has many schools and universities.

During the rally, the IMM students waved posters and banners and delivered speeches in the street, causing heavy traffic disruption. Chairman of South Jakarta chapter of IMM, Mohammed Supendi, said the protest was a reflection of solidarity among Muslims against likely strikes by the US on Afghanistan.

"The US government´s plan to attack Afghanistan would be a big mistake," he said, complaining that Washington´s decision to accuse Osama bin Laden of masterminding the September terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon in Washington DC was tantamount to a declaration of war against Islamic believers.

Supendi warned that if the US does attack Afghanistan, then Indonesian Muslims will wage war on America. "Toward this eventuality, IMM calls on all Islamic believers to unite and to launch a holy war (jihad) against the US," he thundered.

At the Australian Embassy, around 100 youths, belonging to the Syabab Hidayatullah organization, noisily denounced recent attacks on mosques in Queensland.

Demonstration coordinator Mohammad Isnaeni said his group has asked the Australian government to punish "those who have indulged in the amoral acts". The demonstrators also demanded the Australian government apologize to the international Islamic community and rebuild the damaged mosques.

Australian Prime Minister John Howard was outraged by the latest attack on Saturday, saying "If it is an act of vandalism or vilification, I condemn it unreservedly. There is no place in Australia for that kind of despicable conduct," Howard went on "Islamic Australians are as entitled as I am to a place in this community. If their loyalty is to Australia as is ours, and their commitment is to this country, we must not allow our natural anger at the extremes of Islam which have been manifested in the attack on the World Trade Center to spill over on to Islamic people generally".

"Hundreds of Islamic people died in the World Trade Center. Barbarism has no ethnicity and no-one should give any comfort to anybody in this country who seeks to wreak vengeance on people of the Islamic faith or people of Middle Eastern descent," Howard said.

In Indonesia´s second largest city, Surabaya, around 300 protesters from different Islamic organizations grouped in the Islam Anti-Terrorism Movement (GIAT) yesterday staged a demonstration in front of the US Consulate.

Among the organizations in GIAT are the Indonesian Muslim Students Association (HMI), National Mandate Party Youth Front (PAN-FP) and Association of Inter-Campus Muslim Students.

The demonstrators condemned all terrorist actions and urged the US not to attack Afghanistan. They also criticized the US for its "double-standards" and called on President Megawati Sukarnoputri not to support America´s stance on Afghanistan.

"We want the US consul general to send our demands by facsimile to Jakarta, which will then send them to the United States," Nurhadi, one of the demonstrators, told local reporters.

Many officials here have vainly urged Muslim groups not to search for citizens of the US and its allies and force them to leave Indonesia.

Vice President Hamzah Haz said yesterday that he opposes the threats to launch a "sweeping operation" to expel US citizens. "Sweeping is not the right move," he said.

Earlier, on Sunday, militant Muslim groups went to several five-star hotels in Solo, Central Java, searching out American tourists in a ´sweep´. Calling themselves the Anti-American Terrorist Force, they also visited Solo´s Adi Sumarmo International Airport. No Americans were found.

The groups also went to several hotels, handing oujt posters which read: "Once Afghanistan is attacked, people from America and its allies have to get out of Solo."

Reports said the groups consisted of Laskar Santri, Surakarta Islamic Defenders´ Front (FPI), Jundullah Force, Al-Islah Force, Hawariyun Force, Hisbullah Brigade, Salamah Force and several other radical groups. Some of them were involved in a similar search for Americans in Solo last year, following protests over US support for Israel. The groups on Monday vowed to conduct another search for Americans in the city but did not specify when.

Hamzah Haz urged followers of Islam not to go after Westerners. "Don`t attack foreigners here. Let the government handle them," he said, adding the government would never harm the interests of Muslims.

Foreign Affairs Minister Hassan Wirayuda, speaking in New York late Monday, condemned the searches, saying they would hamper the government´s efforts to restore Indonesia´s international image. "We need to cooperate with all people in the country to avoid actions that could worsen Indonesia´s image abroad," he said.

Home Affairs Minister Hari Sabarno entered the fray yesterday, saying that police are responsible for dealing with groups which launch sweeps against US citizens. "There must be a strong measure from the security authorities," he said, and emphasized that Indonesia is a law-abiding country, where the rights of citizens, including foreigners temporarily staying in the country, are guaranteed.

Jakarta Police chief Inspector General Sofyan Jacoeb said yesterday that efforts to expel US citizens would only tarnish Indonesia´s image abroad, and those responsible for any sweeping operations would be arrested. "We are going to arrest them according to the law," he told reporters before attending a meeting of local government leaders and security officials.

The meeting, convened specifically to discuss the impact of possible US attacks on Afghanistan, was attended by Jakarta Governor Sutiyoso, Jakarta Military commander Major General Bibit Waluyo and religious leaders.

Jacoeb said he plans to deploy sharpshooters, to protect US citizens, at 17 locations in Jakarta, including Sukarno-Hatta Airport, US offices, the US Embassy and residential areas. In addition to the sharpshooters, he added, 10 companies of police will be deployed to protect the locations.

Jakarta Military commander Waluyo said Indonesians should not jump on the anarchy bandwagon in protest of the possible US strikes on Afghanistan. "What is the point of launching demonstrations? It will only add to the suffering of the poor. The problem of America should be left to the care of the Americans," he pontificated.

He said it is the right of any groups to hold demonstrations as a reflection of solidarity with the people of Afghanistan, as long as the protests do not get out of control. "How would you feel if it was our turn to be made the subject of a sweep by white men in the US?" he asked.

Governor Sutiyoso said searches for US citizens in Jakarta would be detrimental to the national capital. "I don´t like a sweep to be held in Jakarta because it will only harm our interests." The governor said officials held talks with Muslim leaders to ensure that sweeps will not be conducted in the national capital. However, he noted that the Islamic Defenders Front, which has expressed its intention to search for and expel US citizens, was not invited to the talks.

In east Java Governor Imam Utomo said yesterday that US citizens living in or visiting his province should not worry about the threat of searches. "I have called on the people to refrain from such an act," he told the press Utomo said he had met with a number of local Muslim leaders and expects adherents of Islam in East Java to exercise self-control "so as to avoid indulging in destructive acts". Commenting on the provision of protection to US citizens and interests in East Java, the governor said he has not received any requests for safety guarantees. "If there have been any requests, they were probably submitted to the police chief," he said.

Indonesian legislators have also tried to stem the rising anti-US sentiment and on Monday appealed to police to take action against those responsible for the anti-American searches. "The police could either question or arrest them," Ibrahim Ambong, chairman of House of Representatives Commission I on security and foreign policy affairs, told a local newspaper

He said searches for Americans in public places would fly in the face of President Megawati´s promise to maintain security for investors in the country. Megawati told American investors in Houston, Texas, on Saturday that the security situation in Indonesia was improving.

National Mandate Party (PAN) legislator Andi Mappataheng Fatwa also said police must fulfill their promise to protect foreign citizens, especially Americans. "Even more so after Ambassador Robert S. Gelbard himself asked the police chief to protect US interests and its citizens in Indonesia," he said.

(source : www.indonesian-observer.com)