ABRI's homework<\/p>\n
The Armed Forces (ABRI) seems to need time to consolidate
\nitself before it carries out thorough investigations into the
\nthree dramatic national tragedies which occurred recently. These
\nare the shootings of the Trisakti University students, the
\ndisappearances of political activists and widespread riots which
\nwere marked by looting, arson and rape. All took place during
\nformer president Soeharto's regime and many people believe that
\nservice personnel were involved in organizing all of them.<\/p>\n
While the authorities still have to establish the truth around
\nthese cases, one thing is sure: they have not only tarnished our
\nimage in the eyes of other nations but provoked questions about
\nthe government's sincerity and capability to solve them.<\/p>\n
President B. J. Habibie, who since the beginning of his
\npresidency has believed that the solution of the problems is
\nsomething on which the credibility of his government depends,
\nordered the ABRI leadership to investigate all three cases.<\/p>\n
The good news that followed was that as the military arrested
\nsuspects in the Trisakti shootings and started to process them
\nbefore a military tribunal many people were optimistic that the
\nmilitary would be able to uncover the truth fairly and promptly.<\/p>\n
But pessimism returned as the slow progress of the kidnaping
\ncase gave the impression that some people remain untouchable by
\nthe law. The picture was complicated even further by a report
\nfrom the United States saying that the Pentagon had suspended its
\nCombined Exchange and Training program for members of the
\nIndonesian Army after the Americans found it was responsible for
\nthe activists' disappearances. The story was printed by
\nWashington Post and was widely quoted by international news
\nagencies.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile back home, the National Commission on Human Rights
\nhas heard about the gruesome rape of innocent women and girls
\nwhich accompanied the looting and arson in Jakarta on May 13 and
\nMay 14. It has also emerged that the bloody riots were clearly
\norganized -- they occurred abruptly in many nooks and crannies of
\nthe capital city and caught almost everyone by surprise.<\/p>\n
The Armed Forces put the death toll from the mayhem at 499 in
\nGreater Jakarta alone but the commission's findings said that at
\nleast 1,118 people were killed.<\/p>\n
To shed some light on this dark page of our history, Habibie
\nhas asked Indonesians to exercise the virtue of patience and let
\nABRI conclude its internal consolidation. Although the President
\ndid not explain the meaning of the phrase, what we should do is
\nremind him that the failure of ABRI to uncover the truth will
\npush him further away from obtaining the credibility he badly
\nneeds.<\/p>\n
But the more tragic thing is that the failure to solve the
\nthree cases will also worsen our economic and political
\nsituation.<\/p>\n
All Indonesians will watch how far ABRI will be sincere and
\ncourageous in solving the cases because it is no easy task. We
\nbelieve the ABRI leadership will face a lot of difficulties in
\nits mission. The government should set up a completely
\nindependent national committee, comprising ABRI, the National
\nCommission on Human Rights and non-governmental organizations, to
\ninvestigate the cases.<\/p>\n
However, to a certain extent, we do not need to blame any
\nparty because we have inherited all these problems from Soeharto,
\nwho is in the same frame of mind as Louis XVI, the French monarch
\nwho is well known for saying Apres mois, le deluge (After me,
\ndisaster).<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/abris-homework-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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