(WiPC/IFEX) – British academic Lesley McCulloch and her American colleague, health worker Joy Lee Sadler, went on trial in Indonesia on 25 November 2002, accused of violating visa regulations by collecting information and documents about rebels in the Indonesian province of Aceh. The two women have been in police custody for more than two months […]
(WiPC/IFEX) – British academic Lesley McCulloch and her American colleague, health worker Joy Lee Sadler, went on trial in Indonesia on 25 November 2002, accused of violating visa regulations by collecting information and documents about rebels in the Indonesian province of Aceh. The two women have been in police custody for more than two months and reportedly face a maximum of five years’ imprisonment or a fine of 25m rupiah (approx. US$2,771) if found guilty of immigration offences. Their trial was postponed and was due to recommence on 27 November.
International PEN is concerned at the prolonged detention of McCulloch and Sadler, and considers the women to be detained primarily for the nature of McCulloch’s research on the separatist insurgency in the province.
Background Information
McCulloch was arrested on 11 September with former health worker Sadler and their translator in the Indonesian province of Aceh. They were taken in for questioning over materials in their possession relating to the separatist Free Aceh Movement, and were charged with carrying out “activities incompatible with tourist visas” under Article 50 of the immigration law, which carries a sentence of up to five years’ imprisonment
The women are being held in the provincial capital Banda Aceh. Unverified complaints of ill-treatment include their incarceration in a small, sparsely furnished cell, exacerbating McCulloch’s back condition to the extent that she was admitted to hospital. The women have been granted diplomatic access after initial difficulties, and have been able to send messages to their families and supporters.
McCulloch is an academic specialising in the Indonesian province of Aceh. She is the principal researcher on the province for the East-West Centre’s project on internal conflicts in Asia. Until June 2002, she held a post as a lecturer in Asia Pacific Studies at the University of Tasmania in Hobart. She has written extensively on the conflict in Aceh for newspapers, including the “International Herald Tribune”, “The Jakarta Post” and “The Australian”. Sadler is a former nurse who reportedly hoped to find a volunteer health position with a local organisation in Aceh.
Recommended Action
Send appeals to the justice minister:
– protesting the continuing detention of McCulloch and Sadler
– expressing alarm at the possibility of ill-treatment in detention
– highlighting the unsuitability of a custodial sentence in such circumstances
– calling for the immediate and unconditional release of both women
Appeals To
Minister of Justice
Professor Yusil Ihza Mahendra
Departemen Kehkiman
JI. H.R. Rasuna Said Kav. 6-7
Kuningan
Jakarta Selatan
Indonesia
Fax: +62 21 525 3095
Appeals may also be sent to the diplomatic representatives of your country in Indonesia as well as to the Indonesian ambassador in your own country.
Please copy appeals to the source if possible.
