JAKARTA, Oct. 6 (UPI) -- The possibility of arrest in the Netherlands forced Indonesia's president to cancel his state visit at the very last minute at Jakarta's airport.
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was reportedly aboard his plane when he made his decision. It would have been the first state visit to the Netherlands by an Indonesian president in almost 40 years.
The issue for the Indonesian president is the separatist group the Republic of South Moluccas, which has a base in the Netherlands. The group asked a Dutch court to order the arrest of the Yudhoyono in connection with alleged human rights violations between 1999 and 2002.
Ethnic violence, focusing on Muslim and Christian divisions on Moluccas islands left around 5,000 people dead. Another half million were estimated to have been displaced from the archipelago. Many homes and buildings remain destroyed and haven't been rebuilt.
The estimated 1,000 hot, humid and mostly mountainous islands of Indonesia have a total land mass of just less than 29,000 square miles and are home to an estimated 2 million people. They are sometimes called the Maluku, or Spice Islands, well known for their nutmeg, cloves and mace.
UPI
