AGO commitment to T. Priok case questioned<\/p>\n
Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
During a hearing with Attorney General M.A. Rachman late last
\nmonth, legislator Mutamiul Ula of the Reform faction came across
\nwhat he considered irrefutable proof that the Attorney General's
\nOffice (AGO) was not serious about prosecuting those responsible
\nfor the 1984 Tanjung Priok bloodshed.<\/p>\n
He found the AGO's report on the Tanjung Priok case was the
\nsame as one given to the House of Representatives in November
\nlast year.<\/p>\n
"There are hardly any differences in your report. You just
\nchanged several words. Without reading this report, I already
\nknow the contents because this is the same report you presented
\nto us last year," Mutamiul told Rachman during his hearing with
\nHouse Commission II for legal and home affairs.<\/p>\n
Outspoken legislator Dwi Ria Latifa of the Indonesian
\nDemocratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) agreed, saying the
\nidentical reports reflected the AGO's lackluster handling of the
\ncase.<\/p>\n
An apparently embarrassed Rachman replied: "It is because the
\ninvestigation is still underway. That is why we only changed a
\nfew words in the report."<\/p>\n
Rachman's reply spoke volumes about his office's response to
\nthe public pressure for a speedy and thorough investigation into
\nthe Tanjung Priok case.<\/p>\n
Three years have passed since the government ordered that a
\nhuman rights tribunal be established to hear the case.<\/p>\n
A presidential decree issued in 2000 on past human rights
\nviolations stipulates that an ad hoc court will try only the
\nalleged perpetrators and masterminds of the 1999 East Timor and
\nTanjung Priok human rights abuses.<\/p>\n
The presidential decree followed the enactment of Law No.
\n26\/2000 on human rights tribunals, which carries a maximum
\nsentence of death for those convicted of gross human rights
\nviolations.<\/p>\n
Under the international spotlight, the human rights court has
\nsentenced five military and civilian officials charged with
\ncrimes against humanity in East Timor to between three and 10
\nyears in prison. It has acquitted 15 others, sparking criticism
\nof Indonesia's apparent failure to deliver justice.<\/p>\n
Unlike the East Timorese human rights victims, the victims of
\nthe Tanjung Priok incident and their families, who have been
\nseeking justice for decades, will have to continue their wait to
\nsee the perpetrators in the dock.<\/p>\n
The Tanjung Priok bloodshed took place on Sept. 12, 1984, when
\nsoldiers opened fire on antigovernment protesters outside a
\nmosque in Tanjung Priok, North Jakarta.<\/p>\n
Relatives of the victims say the incident claimed more than
\n400 lives, while the military claims only 18 people were killed.<\/p>\n
An investigation by the National Commission on Human Rights
\n(Komnas HAM) identified 33 fatalities and 55 people injured in
\nthe violence.<\/p>\n
The attorney general claimed during the hearing at the House
\nthat his office could not accelerate the prosecution because of
\nfinancial constraints.<\/p>\n
B.R. Pangaribuan, the chief of the Attorney General Office's
\nhuman rights task force, told the House commission his office
\nlacked the funds to bring the case before the human rights
\ntribunal.<\/p>\n
"We have submitted a proposal for financing to the Directorate
\nGeneral of Budget at the finance ministry, but they said our
\nproposal was incorrect because we asked for funds for both the
\nTanjung Priok and Abepura cases. They told us to submit two
\nseparate proposals," he said.<\/p>\n
The Abepura case refers to alleged human rights abuses
\ninvolving security officers against civilians in Papua.<\/p>\n
"Therefore, we have to wait for the funds because we cannot
\nafford to finance the process," Pangaribuan said.<\/p>\n
However, Pangaribuan earlier promised his office would swear
\nin ad hoc prosecutors to handle the Tanjung Priok case early in
\nMay.<\/p>\n
Prosecutors have named 14 active and retired military
\nofficers, including the current commander of the Army's Special
\nForces (Kopassus), Maj. Gen. Sriyanto Muntrasan, as suspects in
\nthe incident.<\/p>\n
Sriyanto was the head of the operational section on the North
\nJakarta Military District at the time of the bloodshed.<\/p>\n
L.B. Moerdani and Try Sutrisno, Indonesian Military chief and
\nJakarta Military chief respectively at the time of the bloodshed,
\nwere conspicuously absent from the list of suspects.<\/p>\n
Tired of waiting for justice, some of the victims and families
\nof victims of the shooting decided to attempt a reconciliation
\nwith Try. He offered some of them compensation, but others
\ninsisted that the case should be brought to court.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/ago-commitment-to-t-priok-case-questioned-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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