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