{"id":136989,"date":"2023-09-10T17:41:53","date_gmt":"2023-09-11T00:41:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=136989"},"modified":"2023-09-10T17:42:07","modified_gmt":"2023-09-11T00:42:07","slug":"leaked-cia-front-preparing-color-revolution-in-indonesia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2023\/09\/10\/leaked-cia-front-preparing-color-revolution-in-indonesia\/","title":{"rendered":"Leaked: CIA Front Preparing Color Revolution in Indonesia"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Kit Klarenberg<\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n

We are reproducing here an article published in mintpressnews.com<\/a> regarding CIA plans for Indonesia. According to infromation from a friend of DDP from Indonesia the US Embassy in Jakarta had approached the PKS (islamist political party, opponent of Indonesian government)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Documents passed anonymously to MintPress News<\/em> reveal the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), a notorious CIA front, is laying the foundations for a color revolution in Indonesia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In February 2024, citizens will elect their President, Vice President, and both legislative chambers. Current maverick leader Joko Widodo, widely beloved by Indonesians, is ineligible for a third term, and NED is preparing to seize power in the wake of his departure. This operation is conducted despite the leaks indicating Jakarta\u2019s foremost intelligence agency has expressly warned U.S. officials to stay put.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The paper trail is a stunning insight into how NED operates behind the scenes, from which obvious inferences can be drawn about its activities elsewhere, past and present. By the organization\u2019s own reckoning<\/a>, it operates in over 100 countries and disperses in excess of 2,000 grants every year. In Indonesia, these sums have helped extend the Endowment\u2019s tendrils into various NGOs, civil society groups, and, most crucially, political parties and candidates across the ideological spectrum.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This broad spread bet goes some way to ensuring U.S. assets, one way or another, will emerge victorious next February. However, a veritable army of NED operatives on the ground is also primed to challenge, if not overturn, the results should the wrong people win. Personal grants \u2013 in other words, bribes \u2013 from the Endowment have already secretly been distributed to Indonesians for staging anti-government protests.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What skullduggery NED has in store for election day isn\u2019t certain, although sparks are assured to fly. At the very least, these documents amply reinforce what Endowment cofounder Allen Weinstein openly admitted<\/a> in 1991:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A lot of what we do today was done covertly 25 years ago by the CIA.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018The Jokowi Effect\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Joko Widodo \u2013 popularly known as Jokowi \u2013 is something of a rockstar. The first Indonesian leader not drawn from the country\u2019s established political or military elite since its hard-won independence from the Dutch in 1949, he was born and raised in a riverside slum in Surakarta. From there, he fought to become mayor of his hometown in 2005, then governor of Jakarta in 2012, then President two years later.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Every step of the way, Widodo has battled bureaucracy and corruption while pursuing programs<\/a> to deliver universal healthcare, economic growth, radical infrastructure development, and material improvements to the lives of average citizens. Such is his domestic popularity that analysts routinely speak<\/a> of the Jokowi Effect.\u201d After the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle named him their presidential candidate in 2014, their vote share leaped<\/a> 30% in that year\u2019s legislative election.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Widodo\u2019s candidacy also reportedly stimulated<\/a> Indonesia\u2019s stock market and Rupiah currency due to his sparkling political and economic record. One might think burnishing the country\u2019s finances to such a degree through sheer force of personality would make him an ideal leader from Washington\u2019s perspective. Yet, the President has also prioritized<\/a> protecting Indonesia\u2019s sovereignty\u201d and limiting overseas influence in Jakarta. Moreover, he pursues an intensely independent foreign policy, much to the U.S. Empire\u2019s chagrin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Widodo has encouraged<\/a> leaders of Muslim states to reconcile and pushed for Palestinian independence. His Foreign Minister visits Palestine but refuses to establish diplomatic relations with Israel. He has also distributed sizable aid<\/a> to oppressed Muslims abroad. Most egregiously, since Russia\u2019s invasion of Ukraine, he flew<\/a> to both countries and urged their leaders to seek peace. When Jakarta hosted the G20 Summit that year, he invited not only Zelensky but Putin to attend despite fierce Western criticism<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In many ways, Widodo emulates the rule of Sukarno, Indonesia\u2019s first President, from 1945 to 1967. His policies, domestically and internationally, were explicitly anti-imperialist. At home, he prevented Western exploitation<\/a> of his country\u2019s vast resource wealth while maintaining cordial relations with both East and West and personally championing<\/a> the Non-Aligned Movement, members of which eschewed both power blocs to pursue an independent path.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sukarno\u2019s bold refusal to bow to imperial interests made him a thoroughly marked man. In 1965, he was ousted in a blood-spattered military coup<\/a> sponsored by the CIA and MI6, ushering in 30 years of an iron-fisted military dictatorship led by General Suharto. Over one million people were killed through politically motivated massacres, executions, arbitrary imprisonment, and savage repression. Even the CIA describes<\/a> his purge of leftists as one of the worst mass murders of the 20th century.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Widodo is now preparing to leave office, his constitutionally-mandated terms over, and personal approval ratings at all-time highs<\/a>. His departure creates a clean political slate, which NED is eager to fill. Mercifully, a repeat of the intelligence agency-orchestrated slaughter that brought Suharto to power decades ago appears unlikely. But the leaked documents obtained by MintPress News <\/em>make clear the U.S. Empire is preparing to pull off another coup in Jakarta under the aegis of democracy promotion.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This has been NED\u2019s raison d\u2019etre since inception, in 1983. The organization was explicitly founded<\/a> by senior CIA spooks and U.S. foreign policy apparatchiks to serve as a public mechanism for the Agency\u2019s traditional clandestine support for opposition groups, activist movements and media outlets overseas, which engage in propaganda and political activism to disrupt, destabilize, and displace \u2018enemy\u2019 regimes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

NED\u2019s malign meddling over the years is too lengthy to list here. But recently, this has included sponsoring a failed uprising<\/a> in Cuba, funneling money<\/a> to separatist protesters in Hong Kong, and attempting to topple<\/a> the Belarusian government. Having floundered in these insurrectionary adventures is evidently no deterrent to trying again in Indonesia now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018Personal Branding Development\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The leaked files are weekly briefings dispatched from the Indonesian office of the International Republican Institute (IRI) back to headquarters in Washington during June, July and August 2023. IRI is a core component of NED, which typically works <\/a>with another, the National Democratic Institute, on regime change operations abroad. The pair are innately linked to their respective namesake political parties at home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These briefings provide updates on administrative issues, local political developments, staff activities, press clippings, and IRI\u2019s progress on fulfilling the objectives of its NED grant in Indonesia to improve the capacity of emerging political party leaders to assume leadership positions within the parties and act as agents of change in support of increased internal party democracy, transparency, and responsiveness to citizens.\u201d The last available Endowment grant records<\/a>, from 2022, show the Institute was given $700,000 for this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Every week, IRI reported its outreach\u201d to emerging leaders\u201d in the country \u2013 graduates of NED training programs, now prominent members of dozens of political parties, and local NGOs and civil society organizations. Many are running as candidates in 2024, having been taught campaigning and voter engagement strategies and to challenge results by the Endowment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of IRI\u2019s emerging leaders\u201d was recorded as carrying out internal party reform in his party\u201d and always appearing\u201d prominently in its ranks. He was recently trained in launching legal disputes over the forthcoming election\u2019s results, which resulted in his being trusted as a candidate\u201d by the party.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another boasted to his IRI handlers that he continues to socialize himself to the public regarding his candidacy either in person or through social media\u201d and had recently appeared on popular radio and T.V. shows. He credited training provided by the NED-funded Association for Election and Democracy (Perludem) for his personal branding development in politics\u201d and ability to serve as public speaker and engage with media.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Perludem publishes regular<\/a> US AID-financed journals, which provide recommendations and references for improving electoral governance and democratic and political processes in the Asia and Pacific region.\u201d It also convenes regular Emerging Leader Academy (ELA) events, where the individuals named in the IRI documents are groomed and learn message development,\u201d among other electioneering skills.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One graduate told IRI she had started to share and disseminate information regarding her plans to run as a legislative candidate\u201d and was now increasingly active on social media.\u201d With tools she received from ELA, she hopes to attract more young voters, especially first-time voters.\u201d Another was reported to have again strengthened his role in the party\u2019s internal body\u201d and be personally training prospective witnesses at polling stations\u201d to monitor proceedings on election day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Right down to the school level, youth political engagement was of evident significance to IRI and its cadre of political operatives. Accordingly, on July 1, Perdulem hosted an event, Make Election Great Again!<\/em>, where attendees were taught the fine art of identifying the strategic role of students in the 2024 election.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

IRI\u2019s vote-meddling capabilities were significantly enhanced on July 12, when its operatives attended an event hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies and Google. A panel featured two opposition politicians, journalists, and researchers, who warned dis\/misinformation\u201d could affect the 2024 election and, terrifyingly, result in a similar figure to Widodo becoming President. A local polling expert presented data from a recent survey conducted by his firm on how trust in political parties impacts voter preferences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018Achieved Milestone\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the leak\u2019s most tantalizing excerpts is in a briefing note from June 28 this year. It records how IRI representatives met with high-ranking members of the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta, including its Political Officer, Ted Meinhover. He conveyed U.S. concerns\u201d about the 2024 elections, in particular how Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto\u2019s electability\u201d had increased dramatically,\u201d meaning he stood the highest according to the polls.\u201d Meanwhile, former Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan\u2019s ratings were on the decline.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meinhover lamented how Indonesian law restricts parties with less than 20% of seats in parliament from fielding Presidential candidates. If that threshold\u201d were removed, there will be more candidates in the election, and the U.S. will have more options,\u201d he declared. Still, Washington needs to maintain friendly relations with all parties to safeguard U.S. interests in Indonesia, no matter how the election plays out.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meinhover added the Embassy had been active in outreaching\u201d leaders of the local Labor party and Indonesia\u2019s Trade Union Confederation to know about their plans to protest\u201d a law on job creation recently signed<\/a> by Widodo. Fearing the legislation will dampen foreign investor enthusiasm\u201d in the country, the U.S. firmly supports activities opposed to it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Accordingly, the Embassy secretly suggested to Labor party chiefs they could exploit the opportunity\u201d of Indonesia\u2019s Independence Day on August 17 to launch protests\u201d against the job creation law and Meinhover\u2019s hated Presidential Threshold.\u201d Strikingly, a U.S. diplomatic apparatchik present mentioned Jakarta\u2019s State Intelligence Agency (BIN) had recently warned\u201d the Embassy not to interfere\u201d in the 2024 elections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meinhover said this had motivated the Embassy to continuously support\u201d IRI\u2019s cloak-and-dagger activities to further implement U.S. policies while avoiding Indonesian regulations.\u201d So it was, a July 8 \u2013 14 briefing noted, the Institute contacted Labor party leaders and a welter of Indonesian labor organizations \u2013 to which IRI continuously provide small grants\u201d \u2013 and discussed plans to organize protests\u201d against the job creation and Presidential threshold laws in late July or early August.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Those protests went ahead<\/a> on August 9 at Jakarta\u2019s Constitutional Court and State Palace. Local media coverage of the events was duly recorded in an IRI briefing, which also noted that the Institute provided a third grant\u201d of 1,000,000 Rupiah to the Pandeglang Labor party\u2019s executive chair for the effort. They reportedly appreciated IRI\u2019s support for their activities.\u201d The briefing added, The protests went well and [were] brought to a successful close.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A week later, Institute staffers again provided support\u201d to the Labor Party\u2019s Pandeglang chapter to successfully\u201d protest against the two laws. The executive chair received a further personal grant of 5,000,000 Rupiahs for this achieved milestone.\u201d While this amounts to $330, it can hardly be considered an insubstantial sum in local terms, given that 50% of Indonesia\u2019s population earns less<\/a> than $800 monthly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other briefings indicate several Indonesian organizations and individuals receive direct payments from IRI for achieving specific milestones,\u201d Perludem among them. In a perverse irony, the February 2021 edition<\/a> of the organization\u2019s journal featured essays on topics including political financing and its impact on the quality of democracy,\u201d; the urgency of preventing illicit political party fundraising,\u201d; a disproportionately unequal playing field: challenges to and prospects for campaign finance law\u201d; and accountability and transparency of political party financing\u201d across Asia Pacific.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Eighteen months later, Perludem launched an app<\/a> helping Indonesians understand how electoral boundaries are drawn\u201d and allowing users to create their own versions of boundary delimitation or drawing\/redrawing of electoral districts as they deem appropriate by universal standards and principles.\u201d Who or what funded this seditious venture wasn\u2019t stated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018Budgets are Tight\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

One can only imagine the righteous furor that would erupt if documents revealing Chinese or Russian government agents, including Embassy staff, were secretly grooming politicians and civil society actors in foreign countries while covertly encouraging and bankrolling the activism of opposition parties and trade unions in conscious, deliberate contravention of national regulations.\u201d However, such activity is par for the course for U.S. diplomatic missions everywhere \u2013 and indeed, NED.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s also worth noting that the Endowment\u2019s outlay in Indonesia is relatively modest. One weekly briefing even mentions how budgets across IRI\u2019s three projects\u201d in the country are tight for the foreseeable future.\u201d The Institute\u2019s Indonesian party leader training operation aside, the nature of the two other ventures is unclear from the leaked documents. But, according to figures published on NED\u2019s website, the organization spends less than $2 million in Jakarta annually.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Usually, the sums involved are vastly higher. For example, over the 12 months leading up to Ukraine\u2019s 2014 Maidan Revolution, NED pumped around<\/a> $20 million into the country. Still, Western journalists, politicians, and pundits aggressively rubbished<\/a> all suggestions that insurrectionary upheaval was anything other than an expression of popular will<\/a>, resulting from surging yearning for liberalism and democracy by the overwhelming majority of citizens. They have done so ever since.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is despite contemporary polls never showing<\/a> majority Ukrainian support for Maidan, or E.U. and NATO membership; President Viktor Yanukovych remaining the most popular politician in the country until his last day in office; every actor<\/a> at the forefront of the protests, including the individual who started them, receiving NED or USAID funding; leaders of U.S.-financed organizations in the country openly declaring<\/a> their desire to overthrow the government in the years prior; the Maidan demonstrations being riddled<\/a> with hardcore nationalists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One might still argue many Maidan protesters were <\/em>animated by legitimate grievances. Yet, the leaked trove raises serious questions about the agency\u201d of anyone in direct or even indirect receipt of NED funding. The papers amply show individuals and organizations on the ground anywhere can be stirred to activism at the local U.S. Embassy or Endowment chapter\u2019s express behest at any time in return for even a small grant.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is wholly inconceivable Indonesian labor groups would otherwise have protested Widodo\u2019s job creation law or restrictions on how many Presidential candidates can run were it not for the former potentially harming Western investors and financial interests in Jakarta and the latter limiting Washington\u2019s choice of puppets in the country. How many other anti-government agitators around the world, be they protesters, trade unionists, journalists, or otherwise, are similarly acting to achieve milestones\u201d agreed in secret with NED is anyone\u2019s guess.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From Washington\u2019s perspective, the importance of ensuring a pliant government is installed in Indonesia cannot be understated. With U.S. military chiefs openly <\/a>discussing war with China in the very near future, the region must be populated with client states that can aid and abet that world-threatening effort. Similar initiatives are undoubtedly underway across the entire Asia Pacific. As such, it has never been more critical that NED\u2019s activities everywhere are scrutinized, if not outright banned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Feature photo | Illustration by MintPress News<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Leaked: CIA Front Preparing Color Revolution in Indonesia<\/a><\/blockquote>