Committee to investigate May rapes to be set up

JAKARTA (JP): President B.J. Habibie will next week officially establish a committee with a short term mission to investigate the alleged rape of women during and after the May riots across the country.

State Minister for Women's Affairs Tutty Alawiyah said the National Committee Against Violence Toward Women would be fully independent and would include representatives of non-governmental organizations and the country's most prominent advocates of women's rights in its ranks.

The formation of the committee comes as the result of the President's meeting with 23 female activists on Tuesday, during which he was urged to take action against the rape cases.

"The committee will answer directly to the President," Tutty said after meeting with Habibie yesterday.

Also present during the meeting were Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare and Poverty Alleviation Haryono Suyono, Minister of Social Services Justika Sjarifudin Baharsjah and Minister/State Secretary Akbar Tandjung.

Tutty said she hoped that senior psychologist Saparinah Sadli would chair the committee because she was the person most capable of leading such an important investigation.

"Saparinah is in Bogor now... I will contact her this evening. I hope she says yes," Tutty said later at her office.

The committee itself will operate along similar lines to the National Commission on Human Rights.

However unlike the human rights commission, the committee will not be financially dependent on the government, said Tutty.

"The government wants to give the committee the widest possible opportunity," Tutty remarked, adding that the committee's main focus would be on helping abused women.

Tutty said she would soon contact the activists who had been selected to sit on the committee, indicating that it would consist of at least 25 people.

Habibie's wife Hasri Ainun Besari will be an advisor to the committee.

During a 2.5 hour meeting with Habibie, the activists presented him with "clear and authentic" evidence of the assaults which took place during the riots. Later in the evening, Habibie made a televised statement condemning the rapes.

Ita Nadia from Kalyanamitra told the President that 168 women, mostly of Chinese descent, were raped. One hundred and fifty two of the victims were from Jakarta and the remainder were residents of Solo, Surabaya, Palembang and Medan.

Twenty of the women died after being raped.

Ministers also acknowledged yesterday that the government had done little to help the families of more than 1,000 people who were burned alive when fires raced through shopping centers and other buildings during the rioting.

"The subject was not discussed during our meeting," Haryono said. (prb/ylt)