Rights team urges officers be tried for rights abuses<\/p>\n
Tiarma Siboro, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The Commission of Inquiry into Human Rights Violations (KPP
\nHAM) has identified 50 high and middle-ranking military and
\npolice officers believed to be involved in the Trisakti and
\nSemanggi killings, and demanded they be charged.<\/p>\n
KPP HAM, in its report probing the affair, formally
\nrecommended on Thursday that the National Commission of Human
\nRights (Komnas HAM) charge the officers for alleged crimes
\nagainst humanity.<\/p>\n
One high-ranking military officer and two high-ranking police
\nofficers were accused of involvement at the strategic level, 11
\nhigh and middle-ranking officers at the operation command level
\nwith 36 middle-ranking officers at the field command level.<\/p>\n
\"We conclude that the killings took place with the full
\ninvolvement of the security officers who used their power, as
\nwell as their weapons, in an excessive way for the sake of
\ncertain political interest,\" KPP HAM's chairman Albert Hasibuan
\ntold a press conference after submitting the report to Komnas
\nHAM.<\/p>\n
The presentation of the report also marked the dissolution of
\nthe commission, which was set up by Komnas HAM on Aug. 27 last
\nyear to investigate the shooting of four Trisakti University
\nstudents during a demonstration on May 12, 1998, which triggered
\nmassive riots that led to the downfall of former president
\nSoeharto.<\/p>\n
It was also tasked to investigate the Semanggi I incident that
\noccurred on Nov. 13, 1998 and the Semanggi II incident that took
\nplace on Sept. 24, 1999, in which several people, including
\nstudents, were killed.<\/p>\n
The inquiry team had issued summonses to a number of military
\nand police generals, including former Indonesian Military chief
\n(ret) Gen. Wiranto for questioning.<\/p>\n
However, the generals refused to answer the summonses,
\nalleging that the commission was unlawful.<\/p>\n
\"The Trisakti incident in May 1998 occurred as the security
\ninstrument tried to stop students from holding rallies demanding
\nthat former president Soeharto step down,\" Albert said on
\nThursday.<\/p>\n
\"The Semanggi I incident occurred when security personnel
\nattempted to ensure Soeharto's successor, B.J. Habibie, remained
\nin office; while the Semanggi II incident took place as students
\nmarched to protest a House session set to approve laws which
\nallowed the state to commit repressive acts against its
\ncitizens,\" Albert said.<\/p>\n
Present at the press conference were Hendardi of the
\nIndonesian Legal Aid and Human Rights Association (PBHI), Usman
\nHamid, secretary of the inquiry team, and also Munarman of the
\nNational Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of the
\nViolence (Kontras).<\/p>\n
Albert refused to name the accused officers, saying that
\nArticle 24 of Law No. 26\/2000 on human rights forbids them
\nrevealing the names publicly.<\/p>\n
The commission also urged the Attorney General's Office to
\nadopt recommendations made by the joint fact finding team
\ninvestigating the Trisakti incident on the grounds that the two-
\nday rampage across the country \"had a systematical connection
\nwith the Trisakti killings\".<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/rights-team-urges-officers-be-tried-for-rights-abuses-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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