Indonesia

26/05/1998 1 Conscription

conscription exists

Conscription is enshrined in the 1945 Constitution. According to art. 179: "The Federal Law enacts regulations on the right and duty of all able citizens to assist in the maintenance of the independence of the Republic (...) and in the defence of the territory. The Federal Law regulates the exercise of this right and duty and determines the exceptions thereof." Art. 180, par.1 reads: "The armed forces of the republic (...) are entrusted with the protection of the interests of the Republic.

On Friday 14 November six East Timorese refugees were remanded to a prison in Preston in the north of England, awaiting trial on charges of "trespass" following an action at British Aerospace's nearby Werton factory.

The six were arrested on 12 November along with three British activists after they climbed into the factory as a protest against the export of BAe Hawk warplanes to Indonesia. All six refused to give the police their names and were held in police cells for two days, before being remanded to prison.