Govt must reopen investigation into July 27 riot

JAKARTA (JP): Leading rights campaigner Marzuki Darusman renewed calls yesterday for the government to reopen the investigation into the July 27, 1996 attack on the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) headquarters which led to five deaths and the disappearance of many other people.

Marzuki, who is deputy chairman of the respected National Commission on Human Rights, told the media yesterday that the case should be settled once and for all to bring speculation to an end.

He described how every time there was talk about the bloody incident, the rights body was urged to press the government to reinvestigate the incident. The most recent call was made by Megawati Soekarnoputri, the ousted chairwoman of the PDI whose supporters had the headquarters wrested from their hands by a rival faction in the party.

"The case should be settled to end speculation," Marzuki said commenting on Megawati's call.

During a rally to mark the second anniversary of the incident held at her home in South Jakarta on Monday, Megawati called on the government to follow up on the rights body's recommendation and begin to search for those still missing after the incident.

Megawati was ousted from the PDI leadership by Soerjadi in a government-backed congress in Medan in June 1996.

Then on July 27, 1996, her supporters were forced out of the PDI headquarters on Jl. Diponegoro, Central Jakarta. The incident sparked a major riot in surrounding areas.

Many believe the government under former president Soeharto engineered the takeover of the headquarters because it resented Megawati's increasing influence.

The rights body said at least five people were killed in the incident and 23 others are still classified as missing. It also linked the government and the military with the incident.

"The government and the security apparatus involved themselves excessively and failed to act impartially in their role overseeing political and security affairs," it said.

Marzuki said the public still viewed the case as unsettled.

"To settle the problem by simply saying there are now two PDIs or that (the two conflicting factions) should reconcile is not a fair or realistic solution," Marzuki said.

Marzuki said the new government under President B.J. Habibie should not consider the PDI to have returned to "normal".

Minister of Home Affairs Syarwan Hamid, when asked about the protracted conflict recently, said there could now be two PDIs under the respective leaderships of Megawati and Soerjadi.

Syarwan, who was Armed Forces (ABRI) chief of sociopolitical affairs when the bloody takeover took place, maintained on Monday that the affair was an "internal matter" between Soerjadi and Megawati.

However Soerjadi said yesterday that the government must be held responsible for the incident.

"You know the security personnel were at the scene (during the takeover). The existence of the PDI, Golkar and the United Development Party cannot be separated from the government's intervention," Soerjadi was quoted by Antara as saying.

Regarding denial of involvement from Syarwan and Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs Feisal Tanjung, who was ABRI commander at the time, Soerjadi said: "It was only what they said."

Former minister of home affairs Yogie S. Memed also denied any involvement in the removal of Megawati yesterday.

"It was not me who was fighting, the fighting was between them," Yogie, who is now a member of the Supreme Advisory Council, said.

Soerjadi reminded the government that it was still the main patron of the political parties.

"There must be some part of the government that can be held responsible for the PDI problem," Soerjadi said.

Soerjadi also said the PDI congress was scheduled to begin on August 25 in Sulawesi. (byg)