Activists launch campaign to resolve Munir murder case
Activists launch campaign to resolve Munir murder case
Tiarma Siboro, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
About 500 people, mostly rights activists, staged a rally on
Wednesday as part of a campaign to push the government to solve
the murder of noted human rights defender Munir.
The demonstrators first rallied in front of the National
Intelligence Agency (BIN) headquarters in South Jakarta, and
later moved to outside the presidential palace, calling on
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to take action against the
masterminds of the murder.
"Even after one year (since the murder), everyone remains in
the dark as to who is responsible for murdering our colleague
Munir. So, we are here to ask the government to continue
investigating the case until the mastermind of the murder is put
on trial," one activist said.
Dozens of police personnel secured the peaceful rally at BIN,
which was also participated in by Munir's widow Suciwati, while
BIN staffers silently watched the protesters from inside their
office, the gate of which was securely locked.
As a symbol of mourning, Suciwati place flowers in front of
the gate.
Munir, cofounder of two prominent human rights groups
Imparsial and National Commission for Missing Persons and Victims
of Violence (Kontras), was one of the country's most prominent
human rights campaigners.
One year after Munir's murder, the government has failed to
properly investigate and prosecute those responsible, rights
activists have said.
Munir died in September last year on a Garuda flight en route
to the Netherlands, just hours before the plane arrived at
Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport.
An autopsy report by the Dutch Forensic Institute found lethal
levels of arsenic in Munir's body, which the forensic experts
believed to be the cause of death.
Subsequent investigation found that the arsenic had most
likely been added to a drink served on the Jakarta to Singapore
leg of the flight.
In December 2004, Susilo formed a fact-finding team (TPF),
which was given a six-month mandate to assist the police in
investigating the murder. The team's mandate ended on June 23,
with it producing a lengthy report with detailed findings and
recommendations, which included the allegation that certain
senior BIN officials played a hand in the murder.
Activists have also urged Susilo to disclose the TPF report
and follow it up, such as by establishing a special committee
that would supervise the work of the police in relation to the
murder case.
To date, the police have only named Garuda pilot Pollycarpus
Budihari Priyanto and two Garuda flight attendants as suspects.
Pollycarpus, who some believe is a BIN agent, is on trial for
violating Article 340 of the Criminal Code on premeditated
murder, which carries the death penalty.
Meanwhile, a legislator expressed on Wednesday his
disappointment in the police for not making significant progress
in the Munir case, indicating that the country protected human
rights only on paper.
Slamet Effendi Yusuf, who is the deputy of a House special
team to monitor the murder investigation, said the big question
of who was really behind the murder had been left unanswered.
"If we want to show the world that we have changed and are
taking human rights more seriously, the government better speed
up work and reveal the core of the case," he said.