Power dictates whether proof of rape exists<\/p>\n
By Julia I. Suryakusuma<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): \"Did the mass rapes (of ethnic Chinese women)
\nreally happen?\" Even before the work of the government-sponsored
\njoint fact-finding team is completed, a number of government
\nofficials have raised this nagging question. This has sparked a
\npublic debate -- and generated much confusion -- which has served
\nto obscure rather than clarify the matter. This debate has
\ncentered around the presence or absence of bukti (evidence).<\/p>\n
In Indonesia, evidence is intimately connected to power, may
\nit be state power, parental power, male power or others.
\n\"Evidence\" requires the verification of those in power.<\/p>\n
In the absence of a legal system fully independent from the
\nexecutive (read: the military), \"evidence\" is ultimately
\nsomething held in the hands of the rulers.<\/p>\n
In fact, one might say that the presence of \"evidence\" is
\ninversely proportional to the accused party's proximity to power.<\/p>\n
Minister of Defense and Security Gen. Wiranto recently made a
\nstatement regretting that the Commission on Human Rights had
\nreleased a report about mass graves in Aceh, Sumatra, without
\nconsulting the Army first.<\/p>\n
Despite the exhumation of mass graves, as long as the military
\ndoubts these killings happened during this decade (for obvious
\nreasons of interest), it will not be said to be \"proven\".<\/p>\n
Or consider Soeharto's challenge to the public to \"prove\" his
\nwealth. It does not matter how many reports come out in the
\nmedia. For the moment, Soeharto is still confident enough in his
\npower, in the fact that he still controls the bureaucracy,
\ntherefore he knows there will not be a shred of evidence found.<\/p>\n
Evidence will not materialize if the perpetrators are
\nperceived to be a part of the same system of power as the
\ninvestigators and the judges.<\/p>\n
It is not surprising that women raped last May are unwilling
\nto give testimony to the police, submit their bodies to forensic
\nexaminations by government scientists. All the more so if they
\nare terrorized into keeping their mouths shut.<\/p>\n
The gap between the demands for evidence and the conditions of
\nthe traumatized victims, as well as the continued terror, and
\ndenials especially by government officials -- has been a major
\nhindrance in solving the crimes.<\/p>\n
Recently it has been suggested that since photos of rapes
\ncirculating on the Internet are not photos of the rapes which
\noccurred last May, that therefore the rapes never happened.<\/p>\n
Nothing could be more absurd. Some groups have announced that
\nthe rape photos circulating on the Internet were taken from a
\nbook about human rights violations in East Timor.<\/p>\n
One can only speculate about who would be interested in
\npassing these photos off as photos of the May rapes. However,
\ntheir recent misuse does not mean that the original photos were
\nengineered. In fact, the photos of sexual torture by men in
\nmilitary uniform in East Timor, also worthy of condemnation in
\nand of themselves, only supports the possibility of rapes in May
\nby \"trained groups\".<\/p>\n
It is exceedingly ironic that a regime built on the basis of
\nhistorical distortion and a culture of lies, should demand
\nevidence for an incident that has been officially recognized by
\nits own government.<\/p>\n
In the 32 years of New Order rule, the suffering of millions
\nof people has been ignored, for the sake of \"national stability\".
\nThey might consider speaking out, were it not for the fact that
\nthe people were continuously terrorized, pressured and
\nthreatened.<\/p>\n
In the New Order there is a tendency to conceal the truth.
\nEven figures of, say, casualties of a train accident are reduced
\nby the authorities, let alone incidents that are politically
\nloaded. This is also the case with figures on poverty,
\nunemployment and other social indicators.<\/p>\n
Evidence is often engineered, as in the cause celebre of
\nMarsinah (a female labor activist who was tortured and murdered
\nfor demanding higher wages), as well as Udin (a journalist who
\nwas investigating the suspected wealth of the Bantul regent), and
\nPak De (a traditional healer who was convicted, but most likely
\nframed, for the murder of Dietje, a former model who allegedly
\nhad a relationship with a member of the Soeharto family).<\/p>\n
All cases are yet to be solved, for lack of \"evidence\",
\nalthough it is heavily suspected that the military\/authorities
\nwere involved in all three instances.<\/p>\n
Corruption and the appropriation of the people's wealth is
\nconcealed by big \"development\" projects; decision-making in the
\neconomic and political spheres are never transparent; the
\nsystematic violation of human rights by the state apparatus is
\nmasked by the \"refined eastern culture\" (of the Javanese), where
\nthe corruptness and degeneracy of the rulers is festooned by
\nglittering state and military ceremonies.<\/p>\n
Elections which are flaunted as a \"festival of democracy\" in
\nfact are only a means to squander the people's money to
\nlegitimize the authoritarian rule of a few people, and one despot
\nin particular.<\/p>\n
In this context, the fact that the authorities can still
\ndemand evidence of the May rapes that clearly happened, is
\nevidence of their arrogance and lack of moral and political
\nresponsibility.<\/p>\n
\"Evidence\" and \"truth\" are connected to perception, which
\ncannot be separated from self-perception and self-interest. In
\nthe case of the May rapes, the government has political and
\neconomic interests in denying that the rapes happened.<\/p>\n
Politically, they may feel that recognizing the May rapes
\nwould undermine the authority of the government (and the
\nmilitary). Economically, it seems that some government officials
\nare defensive due to the pressure of countries populated by
\nethnic Chinese, such as Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan and even
\nChina -- who have threatened economic sanctions if investigations
\ninto the case are not conducted satisfactorily.<\/p>\n
\"Evidence\" is not evidence. Concerning the May rapes, an
\nindependent organization could prove they occurred, as the
\nVolunteer Group for Humanity has done, by compiling confidential
\ntestimonies of victims. Whether the evidence is accepted is
\nanother matter.<\/p>\n
In the context of an authoritarian regime, what counts is not
\ntruth but power, often brute (military) power. The authorities
\ncan \"transform\" lies into \"truth\", as \"evidence\" is an object
\nthat they construct, control and have power over.<\/p>\n
The authorities have the means and resources to force their
\ninterpretation of an event and make it into a public truth. This
\nis something they have done historically, starting with their
\ninterpretation of the alleged Communist coup in 1965 which was
\nthe basis of New Order rule and the legitimator of the systematic
\noppression of the people.<\/p>\n
Indirectly, this interpretation (read: historical
\nmanipulation) is also the political basis for the discrimination
\nagainst the ethnic Chinese as the Indonesian Communist Party was
\nlinked to the communist party in China.<\/p>\n
In the case of the May rapes, by continually disbelieving the
\nevidence that has emerged, the government -- but also the media
\nand the public -- is treating the victims as the accused.<\/p>\n
\"Evidence\" is not the same as reality, witnesses, let alone
\ntruth. \"Evidence\" like truth can only emerge in a context that is
\nfree of fear, threats, prejudice, vested interest, an independent
\njudicial system, a society that is free from collusion,
\ncorruption and nepotism, a culture of openness, justice and
\ndemocracy, and a government which is pro-people.<\/p>\n
Only then will the \"evidence\" of the May rapes, which have
\nalready seared the conscience of many Indonesians and raised the
\nindignation and anger of the international community, be able to
\nbe found.<\/p>\n
The writer is a social and political commentator, and an
\nactivist-member of the Indonesian Women's Coalition for Justice
\nand Democracy.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/power-dictates-whether-proof-of-rape-exists-1447893297",
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