AGO told to solve May tragedy

AGO told to solve May tragedy

JAKARTA: The Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of
Violence (Kontras) urged the Attorney General's Office (AGO) on
Monday to follow up on the investigation into the May 1998
tragedy by the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM).

"The AGO does not have any reason not to follow up the results
of that investigation, as gross human rights abuse was committed
during the tragedy," said Kontras coordinator Usman Hamid,
referring to the May 1998 riots that led to the downfall of
former president Soeharto.

Kontras said the office had so far not shown any positive
response to the investigative results Komnas HAM submitted last
year.

The rights body had found that gross human rights violations
had taken place in the riots that saw shopping centers, shops and
houses, mostly owned by Chinese-Indonesians, gutted by fire.

AGO spokesman Kemas Yahya Rahman, meanwhile, refuted Kontras'
accusation, saying the incident happened six years ago and was
complicated.

The office said it thus needed more time to solve the case to
do justice to the victims. -- JP