Doubts cloud Aceh military trial
YOGYAKARTA (JP): Skepticism persists about the trial of 24 soldiers and a civilian charged in a mass killing in Aceh last year as violence continued in the strife-torn province on Thursday.
Member of the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) Munir said the joint military-civilian tribunal now under way was aimed at placating the public while shielding the real offenders from prosecution.
He said the disappearance of key suspect Lt. Col. Sudjono was a proof.
"The trial will not touch government officials and military top brass who should be held responsible for human rights abuses in Aceh."
He said Sudjono's disappearance was irregular and the commission obtained information it was politically orchestrated.
Munir said several eyewitnesses reported to the commission that they saw Sudjono at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Jakarta on March 22, probably heading to Denpasar, Bali.
"Our witnesses even wrote down the license plate number of the car that took Sudjono to the airport," Munir said.
In Aceh, protests marred the preparations for President Abdurrahman Wahid's visit to Langsa, East Aceh, on Sunday.
Dozens of student activists rallied at the East Aceh legislature, demanding Abdurrahman hold a referendum with the option for independence.
"We want to remind Abdurrahman that the Acehnese only want a referendum to decide the future of this province," Iskandar S.Y of Samudera University said.
"He can pray anywhere he wants because the matter of Aceh actually can be solved from Jakarta," another activist said.
Abdurrahman has ruled out submitting to the demand for independence and repeatedly expressed guarded optimism of a quick resolution of the discord.
East Aceh Police chief Lt. Col. Abdullah Hayati said on Thursday that more than 820 police and military personnel were deployed for the President's visit.
Meanwhile in the provincial capital Banda Aceh, a group of 25 protesters marched to the gubernatorial office on Thursday morning, demanding a thorough investigation into the killing of at least 60 civilians in Simpang KKA in North Aceh on May 3 last year.
Separately, head of the National Family Planning Board in Aceh Risman Musa revealed that arson and bombing of its three buildings caused total losses of Rp 6.5 billion.
A wave of arson and bombings have hit Aceh in the past few weeks, targeting government offices, schools and security posts.
In the latest attacks, a gang of gunmen set on fire the assistant regent's office in Mabaro, eight kilometers east of Banda Aceh, early on Thursday, spokesman for the Sadar Rencong antirebel operation Col. Safri D.M. said.
Late on Wednesday, an explosion rocked the Darussalam Police post in Lambaro Angan, 12 kilometers east of Banda Aceh.
In West Aceh, two junior high schools were set ablaze by an armed gang. No fatalities were reported in the incidents. (44/50/51/edt)