Activists hail July 27 case reopening<\/p>\n
Abdul Khalik, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Right activists welcomed the reopening of the investigation into
\nthe July 27, 1996 melee at the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI)
\nin Central Jakarta, but they questioned the motives behind the
\nmove.<\/p>\n
Human rights lawyer Todung Mulya Lubis said on Tuesday that he
\nagreed that the case should be resolved as soon as possible as it
\nhad been demanded by the public for years, but expressed concern
\nthat it was now being used as a political tool to discredit other
\npresidential candidates.<\/p>\n
\"The case should have been resolved years ago. But I also
\nunderstand that many people are suspicious about motives as the
\nreemergence of the case is announced during the (presidential)
\ncampaign period,\" Lubis said. The election is on July 5.<\/p>\n
The investigation team comprises the police, the Attorney
\nGeneral's office and the military. They will reopen the
\ninvestigation into the violence that claimed five lives, injured
\n149 and left 23 others missing, according to official figures. On
\nMonday they promised to hand over the case files to the
\nprosecutor's office by next week.<\/p>\n
At least one presidential candidate could be implicated in the
\ncase -- the Democratic Party's Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono -- who
\nwas the chief of staff of the Jakarta Military in 1996 when the
\nincident occurred. He was questioned by the investigating team as
\nwitness over the case in 2000 but was not implicated.<\/p>\n
Susilo, who leads the current President in public opinion
\nsurveys by over 30 points, however, was not on the suspect list
\nreleased by the military police in 2002.<\/p>\n
Another rights activist Hendardi of the Indonesian Legal Aid
\nand Human Rights Association (PBHI) said the case should have
\nbeen processed with or without political influence.<\/p>\n
\"We can smell political motives here because the case should
\nhave been resolved a long time ago, that is, if the current
\ngovernment had the political will to do so. It shouldn't be done
\nin the middle of a presidential election,\" said Hendardi.<\/p>\n
He remarked that the case had been used as a bargaining tool
\nby President Megawati Soekarnoputri vis-a-vis the military.<\/p>\n
She did not process the case when she needed support from the
\nsecurity forces (earlier in her term), but on Monday she reopened
\nthe case in the midst of a battle for votes against military
\ncandidates, he said.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, National Police Chief Gen. Da'i Bachtiar said that
\nthere was no specific order from the President over the case.<\/p>\n
\"It is merely coincidence that we found new evidence at this
\ntime to complete the six dossiers that were earlier rejected by
\nthe prosecutor's office. But it is a normal part of our legal
\nprocess to try to resolve an old case,\" Da'i said.<\/p>\n
The National Police deputy chief of detective Insp. Gen.
\nDadang Garnida refused to give details on the interrogation
\nschedule of the suspects and witnesses but said that they could
\nquestion Susilo if necessary.<\/p>\n
\"We have questioned (Susilo) as a witness before. We will
\nsummon him to the headquarters if we need more information from
\nhim,\" said Dadang.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/activists-hail-july-27-case-reopening-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}