Controversial cases dominate human rights body's work

Controversial cases dominate human rights body's work

JAKARTA (JP): The National Commission on Human Rights has
received thousands of reports of human rights violations since it
was established in late 1993.

Last year alone it received 3,321 letters.

Most are related to land and worker disputes. However, it has
been the political reports, involving disputes between
individuals or groups and the authorities, which have drawn
national and international attention.

In most cases, the commission has not come up with the
thorough conclusions the public might have hoped for. In response
the commission said its job is limited to finding indications of
wrongdoing and coming up with recommendations.

The Army has often proved responsive to its findings, as is
reflected by some of the cases.

July 27

The July 27 riot investigation is viewed as one of the most
controversial. Many believe it was triggered by the takeover of
the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) headquarters by the
government-sanctioned camp of the party.

The commission is still investigating possibilities of rights
violations during the riot.

Its preliminary findings published in August said five people
died, 149 were injured and 74 were still missing.

This was in stark contrast to the government's report, which
mentioned four dead and only 26 injured, while no one was
reported missing.

President Soeharto then ordered the commission to prove its
findings.

On Oct. 2 the commission announced that 30 people are still
missing. Its final report is scheduled to be disclosed after its
plenary meeting on Oct. 10.

Ujungpandang

In April, three students drowned when trying to avoid clashes
with security officers during a demonstration against public bus
fare rises in Ujungpandang, South Sulawesi.

This was the commission's conclusion, after which the regional
military command admitted some of their members had resorted to
violence in the clash.

Twelve officers of the regional military command were then
brought before a military tribunal for violating military
procedures.

Marsinah

In Surabaya, East Java, the badly mutilated body of labor
activist Marsinah was found in May 1993, a few days after she
organized a strike at a watch factory of PT Catur Putra Surya.

The murder, the arrest of the prime suspects and the trials
were all controversial.

The arrest of the owner and executives of the company in Oct.
1993 raised an outcry as they were abducted and declared missing
for a few days before police announced they had been arrested.

Then all the defendants withdrew their confessions, alleging
they were tortured by investigators.

Investigations by the commission concluded there were
indications of violations of the defendants' rights.

They were acquitted of all charges by the Supreme Court last
year. Non-governmental organizations have demanded that police
should reopen the investigation.

Liquisa

The commission twice sent a fact-finding team to investigate
reports of procedural violations by the military in Liquisa, a
regency west of East Timor's capital Dili, last March.

It concluded military personnel violated rights in an
operation, on Jan. 12 this year which left six villagers dead.

The late chairman Ali Said said the military believed the six
civilians were supporters of a GPK, or security disturbance
movement. In East Timor GPK is government shorthand for the
Fretilin separatist group which is seeking East Timorese
independence from Indonesia.

The commission's findings, according to some human rights
activists, resulted in two soldiers being summoned before
military tribunals. Several officers and soldiers were
disciplined over the incident.

Timika

A commission team announced last September that it had found
evidence of the murder of a number of civilians in the town of
Timika, Irian Jaya.

The team was set up following reports of the alleged murder of
17 civilians by military personnel in the copper mining complex
of PT Freeport Indonesia.

The commission lauded the measures taken by the Army in
sending its own team to investigate the case, and its plan to set
up an officers' honorary council to look into the matter.

Armed Forces Chief Gen. Feisal Tanjung conceded there had been
a "procedural error and a violation of regulations" in soldiers'
handling of the incident.

He declined to reveal the number of casualties, but said it
took place on June 1 during a military operation set up to ambush
a group of people belonging to the Free Papua Movement (OPM), an
armed separatist organization. (imn)