ILLEGAL
. Indonesian Foreign Minister Subandrio issued a statement. February 15 that the Communi sti: party. had. been dissolved by the gov ernment. oo fon, : .
According to Antara news agency this was “confirmed by Sukarno the next..day. The confirmation was made in response to an inquiry from.two Leaders. of the. Moslem Scholars party who went to see the president about it. .
‘The ‘decree in actuality illegalizes the Indonesian Communist party...Whether it attempts. to function as an: underground organization ‘remains, to be seen. It has been decimated. ‘by the blood.purge initiated-by the generals now in control of ‘the government.
_..-Some of the more militant cadres of the party.can be expected, however, to attempt to rebuild the party which with its.3,000,000 ~ members.:was the largest | in any capitalist country. ae
_ INDONESIA -- —THE GHEEF PRIZE".
_ In an editorial in its. February. 19 edition, the New York Times raises. an argument. , heard.for the first time -in imperialist circles, against. Johnson's - tactical course in Vietnam.. The argument is that escalation of the _ war endangers. the greatest prize in Southeast Asia -- a prize that has just dropped within American reach; namely, indonesia. a -,:: The arguments of the Times cast. a revealing light on the exact
nature of the rift in the American capitalist class over U.S. involvement in Vietnam, since the Times has played a prominent role in expressing doubts about the wisdom of the policy of escalating the war in Southeast Asia. ~ = “Army control -in Indonesia has been’ consolidated, believes the Times. ‘This is-shown "by the trial of Communist leaders and the re-_ call ‘of Jakarte's Ambassador in Peking." The consolidation of army control “fundamentally alters the West's strategic problem in Southeast Asia." -~) -". In imperialist circles, of course, the "strategic problem" has little connection with peace, democracy or the right of nations ‘to determine what kind of economic systems or governments they want. The Times bases its case on straight: imperialist geopolitics:
: "Tndonesia, with its 105 million people and vast undeveloped resources, is by far the richest, most populous and -- with its command of the straits between the Pacific and Indian Oceans -- the most strategically located country in Southeast Asia. It was the