ID :
39176
Tue, 01/06/2009 - 21:49
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News Focus: INDONESIA READY TO SEND TROOPS TO PALESTINE

By Eliswan Azly
Jakarta, Jan 6 (ANTARA) - The rising deathtoll among the Palestinian people on the 10th day of Israel's continuing air and ground attacks, in addition to the awkward attitude of the UN Security Council which has chosen to remain a spectator rather than take concrete actions, have triggered international outcries, especially in Muslim countries including Indonesia.
Muslim countries could not accept the passive and double standard attitude of the UNSC which was seen to be reluctant to overcome the crimes against humanity committed by the Zionist military in the Gaza Strip.
In Indonesia, many Muslim organizations urged the government to send troops to Palestine and therefore President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Monday said Indonesia was ready to send troops to Palestine if a ceasefire had been put into effect in Gaza and a monitoring team was set up to maintain peace in the region.
"If the United Nations Security Council fails to produce a resolution, another mechanism can still be used, namely asking the UN General Assembly to hold an emergency meeting," Yudhoyono said.
In principle, Indonesia had no objection to sending troops to Palestine at the request of the United Nations if a ceasefire had been put into effect there.
The president called on Indonesian people wishing to go to the Gaza Strip to help the Palestinians face Israeli attacks to also take the safety factor into consideration.
"The government's policy is how to enable humanitarian aid to reach them (Palestinians) and how to make our diplomatic measures effective. A ceasefire is the best solution. The safety of Indonesian people is also important," he said.
About the safety of the Palestinians in Gaza, he said the Indonesian government had decided to help them with aid, adding the government also needed to ensure the safety of Indonesian citizens.
"Our goal is to help and show our solidarity in correct ways. So people should choose ways that can be part of the solution and not ways that will create problems," he said in response to the wish of many Indonesians to go to Gaza to help the Palestinians.
In response to the president's statement, Slamet Effendi Yusuf, a member of the House of Representatives (DPR)'s Commission I, said the commission would support an eventual government decision to send military (TNI) members to Palestine as part of a United Nations peace-keeping force.
The sending of TNI members would be one of Indonesia's contributions to efforts to settle the conflict that had claimed hundreds of civilian lives in the current Israeli-Palestine conflict.
"We will support the sending of TNI members there not to wage a guerrilla war but as part of a UN peace-keeping force," Slamet stressed.
He said Indonesia needed to take a clear diplomatic stance on the conflict that had claimed hundreds of civilian lives and consider sending TNI members there as part of UN peacekeeping force.
The TNI has so far been involved in several UN peacekeeping missions with the last participation recorded in Lebanon in 2007 following the end of the war between Israel and Hezbollah.
Earlier, some Muslim-based organizations, including Hizbut Tharir Indonesia (HTI), urged the Indonesian government not only to condemn Israeli brutality but also to send military troops to Palestine without waiting for an instruction from the United Nations.
During a meeting with the leader of the Regional Representatives Council (DPD) on Monday, HTI spokesman Muhammad Ismail Yusanto said the UN could no longer be expected to take the side of the Muslims who had fallen victim to the Israeli military onslaught.
"The world organization has proven to be weak toward the US and its allies because the UN has so far been an instrument to legitimize the actions and interests of colonialist countries," he said.
In HTI's view, the Israeli attacks on Palestinian Hamas targets were not only a war but a massive slaughter of human beings which should be jointly and militarily countered by Islamic countries in the world.
Therefore, Yusanto said, HTI was appealing to the authorities of all Muslim countries to immediately deploy military troops and war machines in Palestine to stop Israel's barbaric onslaught.
"The Zionists only understand the word 'war' and are never influenced by diplomatic efforts," he said.
On the same occasion, DPD Chairman Ginandjar Kartasasmita said the Council shared HTI's stance and hence would soon issue a statement on Israel's brutality in the Gaza Strip.
However, an official DPD statement would first have to be discussed in a plenary DPD session.
"The Indonesian government should not keep silent about any problem befalling Muslims in other parts of the world. The Israeli aggression is similar to what Hitler did during the second world war," he said.
Ginandjar agreed that the Israeli brutality could be categorized as the acts of a terrorist country which should be jointly and militarily countered by all Muslim countries in the world.
He also stressed the the UN Security Council should take more concrete steps without using a double standard which had so far caused uncertainties and unrest in the world.

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