Kontras counters Wiranto statement on Aceh victims<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Leading rights activist Munir shot back at Armed
\nForces Commander Gen. Wiranto yesterday for speculating that
\nhuman remains unearthed recently from mass graves in Aceh could
\nhave been victims of the turmoil following the 1965 communist
\ncoup attempt.<\/p>\n
\"It's not possible since none of the victims (of the outlawed
\nIndonesian Communist Party) were buried. All of them were dumped
\ninto the sea,\" said Munir, who is the coordinator of the
\nCommission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras).<\/p>\n
According to local testimony, he said, the victims in 1965
\nwere dumped into the Kuala Langsa and Ulele seas, respectively
\noff of Banda Aceh and East Aceh.<\/p>\n
Munir said there was, so far, no record of the number of
\nvictims killed in 1965. He only said that many people were killed
\nby the military in its campaign to quash the communists there.<\/p>\n
On Wednesday, Wiranto criticized the National Commission on
\nHuman Rights for publicizing its findings on the alleged number
\nof victims of rights violations in Aceh over the last decade
\nwithout checking with the military first.<\/p>\n
Wiranto also said he doubted the military had been responsible
\nfor the number of victims stated by the commission. The figures
\nwere based only on the remains excavated last week, he said,
\nadding that some of the bones could have been from victims of the
\ncommunist uprising.<\/p>\n
Yesterday, it was Munir's turn to criticize Wiranto. He said
\nthe general's statement was \"surprising\".<\/p>\n
\"He shouldn't have said that at a time when people are
\ndemanding that the government disclose any atrocities committed
\nby the military,\" he said.<\/p>\n
He argued that Wiranto's statement was a defensive reaction
\nand counterproductive to the efforts aimed at unveiling past
\nmilitary atrocities.<\/p>\n
\"The campaign to reveal alleged abuses committed by the
\nmilitary between 1990 and 1998 in Aceh...is not meant to place
\nthe Armed Forces (ABRI) in a corner,\" Munir said.<\/p>\n
\"The attempts are part of our respect to humanity,\" he added.<\/p>\n
The National Commission on Human Rights announced Monday that
\nat least 782 people were killed, 368 tortured, 168 reported
\nmissing, 3,000 women widowed and between 15,000 to 20,000
\nchildren orphaned during the nine years of military operations
\nagainst a local separatist movement between 1989 and this year.<\/p>\n
In 1990, Amnesty International and the Legal Aid Foundation
\n(YLBHI) said at least 1,000 people were detained and tortured in
\nunknown places in Aceh. Up until 1991, they reported that 2,000
\ncivilians, including women and children, were killed in mass
\nexecutions or through detention. (emf)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/kontras-counters-wiranto-statement-on-aceh-victims-1447893297",
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