Government to study riot report

Government to study riot report

JAKARTA (JP): The government promised yesterday to study the
findings of the National Commission on Human Rights's
investigation into the July 27 riots. Some of the revelations
differ markedly from the official account of the unrest.

"I will take the commission's report to the next coordinating
meeting on political affairs and security," Coordinating Minister
for Political Affairs and Security Soesilo Soedarman told
reporters after receiving nine of the commission's leaders in his
office.

"I will also consult the President on these findings," Soesilo
said.

In its report published Saturday, the commission criticized
the government for meddling in the internal affairs of the
Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI), and said this contributed to
the unrest that left five people dead and 23 people missing.

In one of the five corpses fragments of bullets were found,
the commission said. This contrasts with the military's assertion
that not a single bullet was fired in containing the unrest.

The commission also said that members of the security
apparatus were involved in the violent takeover of the PDI
headquarters from supporters of Megawati Soekarnoputri, an
incident that later snowballed into a full-scale riot.

Soesilo praised the commission's findings as "seriously and
diligently prepared."

But whether the government will act on them depends on the
study, Soesilo said. "We have no objections against the findings.
But we need to verify them."

The commission said there were some violations of people's
basic rights during the incident, including the right to freedom
from fear, freedom of assembly and freedom from inhumane
treatment.

The commission urged the government to investigate all of the
riots' perpetrators, including the new PDI chairman Soerjadi, who
ordered the headquarters' takeover.

It also recommended that the government and other related
agencies help those whose property and businesses had suffered
during the unrest.

The government said four people were killed but says it has no
report or evidence of any missing people.

The government has blamed the riot on the Democratic People's
Party (PRD), an organization of mainly youth and student
activists whom the Armed Forces likened to the outlawed
Indonesian Communist Party.

Several PRD members, along with labor leader Muchtar Pakpahan,
are currently being interrogated by the Attorney General's Office
in connection with the riot. They have been charged with
subversion.

The commission report made no reference to any PRD role in the
riot.

At a separate occasion, the Chief of the Jakarta Regional
Military Command, Maj. Gen. Sutiyoso, insisted yesterday that no
rifles were fired by the military in handling the unrest.

On the day of the riot, members of the security forces were
equipped with wooden or rattan batons, Sutiyoso was quoted by
Antara as saying.

Speaking to reporters after installing Brig. Gen. Yudomo as
the new commander of the Jakarta Garrison, Sutiyoso said soldiers
were only issued with rifles on Monday, when the military gave
the order to shoot on sight in the event of any sign of trouble.

Megawati, the ousted PDI chairperson who lost control of the
party headquarters after the July 27 riot, welcomed the
commission's report yesterday but said that it did not go far
enough.

The commission should have given more details of the locations
where the victims were found, Megawati told reporters when she
attended the trial of some of her supporters charged with assault
during the July 27 riot.

The report should also have stated clearly the locations where
the missing people were last seen, she said.

Megawati said that the report should have described the type
of gun used that caused the bullet wound found in the dead
victim. (imn/16)

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