'No pardon for former communists'<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The Armed Forces (ABRI) yesterday ruled out
\ngranting a pardon to political prisoners convicted in connection
\nwith the abortive coup attempt by the Indonesian Communist Party
\n(PKI) 30 years ago, saying that they remain a threat to security.<\/p>\n
\"We have to remain alert to the latent threat of the PKI,\"
\nArmed Forces Chief Gen. Feisal Tanjung told reporters. \"We still
\nforesee the dangers if they are released.\"<\/p>\n
\"We must be vigilant against neo-communism in Indonesia,\" he
\nadded.<\/p>\n
Feisal made the remarks after attending a hearing with
\nCommission I of the House of Representatives, during which the
\nissue was also widely discussed.<\/p>\n
Three political prisoners convicted over the 1965 coup attempt
\n-- Soebandrio, Omar Dhani and Abdul Latief -- have applied for
\nclemency from President Soeharto at the suggestion of the
\ngovernment, which is planning to grant special remissions to
\nthousands of prisoners in connection with this year's 50th
\nanniversary of Indonesia's independence.<\/p>\n
The three men, now in their 70s and 80s, were originally
\ncondemned to death for their roles in the coup, but their
\nsentences were later commuted to life imprisonment after they
\napplied to President Soeharto for clemency.<\/p>\n
Some senior politicians, legal experts and human rights
\ncampaigners have urged the government to release the political
\nprisoners in the spirit of reconciliation as part of the
\ncountry's Golden Anniversary. They have also argued the
\nprisoners' case on humanitarian grounds, saying that the men have
\nalready paid their debts to society by spending nearly 30 years
\nin jail.<\/p>\n
Minister of Justice Oetojo Oesman said that, normally, felons
\nserving life sentences did not qualify for remission. He added,
\nhowever, that in the case of political prisoners, they could
\napply for special clemency from the President.<\/p>\n
If their requests were to be granted, they could be freed
\nimmediately because, by law, the maximum jail term a person can
\nserve is 20 years.<\/p>\n
Oetojo said earlier that President Soeharto would rule on the
\nmatter before Independence Day on Aug. 17.<\/p>\n
When the issue was raised by House members yesterday, Gen.
\nFeisal said his objection was based chiefly on legal grounds.<\/p>\n
\"It's not a matter of pardoning the political prisoners. It's
\na matter of upholding the supremacy of the country's law,\" he
\ntold reporters after the hearing.<\/p>\n
\"We will ignore other factors that have been cited as reasons
\nfor releasing them,\" he said. \"It is beyond the Armed Forces'
\nauthority to consider how old the political prisoners are and how
\nlong they have spent in jail.\"<\/p>\n
The military, he added, did approach the matter from the point
\nof view of humanitarian considerations, but more from a security
\nangle.<\/p>\n
Soebandrio, 80 years old, was deputy prime minister to
\npresident Sukarno when the abortive coup was staged. Omar Dhani,
\n71 and an Air Marshall, was commander of the Air Force at the
\ntime and Col. Abdul Latief, now in his 70s, was commander of the
\nFirst Infantry Brigade of the Jakarta Military Command.<\/p>\n
All three are currently being held in the Cipinang
\npenitentiary in East Jakarta.<\/p>\n
On the appointment of Lt. Gen. (ret.) H.B.L. Mantiri as
\nIndonesia's new ambassador for Australia, which has stirred
\ncontroversy in Australia, Feisal pointed out that opposition to
\nthe appointment was not coming from the Australian government.<\/p>\n
The Australian government has accepted Mantiri's nomination,
\nhe told the House members.<\/p>\n
Mantiri's appointment has sparked protests in Australia
\nbecause of remarks he purportedly made condoning the bloody
\nincident in Dili, East Timor, in 1991, as \"proper\".<\/p>\n
Mantiri apparently made the remarks during a press interview
\nin 1992 when he was commander of the Udayana Regional Military
\nCommand which oversees East Timor. The general was not personally
\ninvolved in the Dili incident. (imn)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/no-pardon-for-former-communists-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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